Stereoscopy Day is an international celebration of the birth of stereoscopic 3-D.
Founded by the Brian May Archive of Stereoscopy, it celebrates:
- The inventor of stereoscopy, British polymath Sir Charles Wheatstone.
- Stereoscopy’s pioneers and their successors, up to the present day.
- The long history of the medium, from its first Golden Age and subsequent periods of popularity.
- Its rich diversity and multiple uses in various fields.
- The sheer immersive magic it can bring to images, and other applications.
Stereoscopy Day is celebrated across the world every year on June 21st, which is the anniversary of the day in 1838 when Sir Charles Wheatstone officially presented his revolutionary reflecting stereoscope to the Royal Society of London, and demonstrated his theory of binocular vision.
Sir Charles Wheatstone and his family. Stereoscopic daguerreotype by Antoine Claudet. National Portrait Gallery Collection.
A more portable version of the stereoscope was later popularised by Sir David Brewster in the early 1850s.
Sir David Brewster. Stereocard by John Moffat. The Brian May Archive of Stereoscopy Collection.
The idea of Stereoscopy Day was sparked on the official 180th birthday of stereoscopy, June 21st 2018, at King’s College London, with the talk “Professor Wheatstone, the inventor of the Stereoscope, was also there“.
Sir Charles Wheatstone was the first appointed Professor of Experimental Philosophy at King’s College London, and the University holds the Wheatstone Collection.
Stereoscopy Day can be honoured in many ways to promote the history and present uses of this wonderful medium, including:
- Sharing stereoscopic 3-D-related posts on social media, such as stereo photos you’ve taken yourself, or highlighting stereoscopic treasures within collections (don’t forget to add #StereoscopyDay)
- Talks
- Presentations
- Watching your favourite 3-D movie
- Taking your own stereoscopic 3-D photos
- Making your own stereoscopic artworks: analogue, digital, even using AI
- Meetings
- Interactive displays
- Workshops
- Exhibitions
- Special Discounts
No matter where you are in the world, you’re invited to join in and celebrate #StereoscopyDay
Whether you have a smartphone, digital or analogue, mono or stereo cameras, you’re invited to join in! Don’t forget to share any stereoscopic 3-D images which you’ve taken or you have in your collection.
Listings of events and activities taking place worldwide in 2023 can soon be found here. Please get in touch if you would like yours adding to the list.
World Stereoscopy Day is organised by the Brian May Archive of Stereoscopy, a CIO with an aim to educate the general public on the subject of stereoscopy. In 2023 Stereoscopy Day has the support of the following organisations, institutions, companies and artists:
35mmc (Community-Authored Blog)
Berezin Stereo Photography Products (CA, USA)
The Bill Douglas Cinema Museum (University of Exeter, UK)
Birkbeck University of London (UK)
British Photographic History (UK)
Charles Dickens Museum (London, UK)
CLEM Patrimoine (Bordeaux, France)
Colección Fernández Rivero de Fotografía Antigua (Spain)
Colleen Woolpert Studio – Artist (Michigan, USA)
De Monfort University Leicester (UK)
Foticos Collection (Zaragoza, Spain)
The Griffith Institute – University of Oxford (UK)
London Stereoscopic Company (UK)
Michael Taylor RP – Artist (UK)
National Museums Scotland (UK)
The National Portrait Gallery (London, UK)
The National Science and Media Museum (Bradford, UK)
Oczko Stereo (Germany & Poland)
The Royal Photographic Society (Bristol, UK)
The Royal Society (London, UK)
Universidade Lusófona (Lisbon, Portugal)
University of St. Andrews (UK)
Stereoscopy Day 