Painter
Maceptaw Bogun
Maceptaw Bogun was a self-taught artist who used phosphorescent paint to make images change after the lights went out. Smithsonian conservators documented this effect in his painting Chapel In-the Fall-Wood, where a daytime landscape reveals a glowing moon and night sky in darkness.
Maceptaw Bogun quick facts
A concise reference for his landscape painting and documented use of phosphorescent paint.
| Practice | Self-taught painting |
|---|---|
| Paint-related medium | Glow-in-the-dark paint, using phosphorescent pigment |
| Documented example | Chapel In-the Fall-Wood, a landscape with a second luminous scene visible in darkness |
| Conservation finding | Smithsonian analysis identified strontium aluminate as the phosphorescent pigment responsible for an afterglow lasting more than two hours |
| Known for | Using changing light conditions as part of the painted image |
Source: Smithsonian American Art Museum: A Conservator Finds Art in the Dark.