From what I observe, as a woman, it’s not possible. It’s not only social processes and economic structures but also some sort of navigational systems in interpersonal relationships, (even between the most promising people), that keep me and probably a lot of us feeling unseen and unheard. The fulcrum that keeps a healthy balance between all the different roles melting together in the crucible of life is a purpose where your viewpoint can meet with others. Mind you, saying that I don’t disbelieve your experience. I can’t help wondering the endless combinations of top and bottom reflections of roles that combine when no one is watching... which is probably where humour is born. It must be brilliant to feel that relief of nakedness. Then I’m thinking, is there a taboo when you ignore it? Who asks the question? And who is watching? Effectively a mirror offers a fragmented view, if the space around us isn’t ‘talking’, i.e the light and the wind isn’t moving. Isn’t exactly like that the nature of digital? It can mimic the organic but it’s fragmented and possibly recycled by it’s own mechanisms but still it’s not environment.
*[At this pivotal moment of awak- ening to industrialism's effects on humanity and to the theoretical aspects of this transformation of the human condition, Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) coined the term 'environment' in the Lowlands of Scotland in 1828.]
When something is and isn’t there, like glass or mirrors, movement can
reveal its inner qualities but it’s complex. The space between aesthetic object and artistic practice is in a way positioning a mirror towards other’s projections on your space, while finding cover behind it to move to the rhythm of your own drum. What others see is either their projections mirrored as an aesthetic object, or the patterns of your movement towards creating a new space. The juxtaposition between movement and stillness is that area I think, between multi-dimensional space and that which isn’t changing. The wind is known by it's effect. Fragmentation versus Synthesis. Digital versus Organic. That’s it, i burned my brain...
Hi Eleni, thank you for these reflections. They make me think of the comic book cover pictured in this film at 1:36 — "What if no one was watching the watcher?" https://youtu.be/a2gfhJuDc8E?t=96
Incredible. This idea of story telling, renewal and letting it all go on a constant refresh. How often we hold on to images and stories about who and what we are in the moment, a consistency or familiarity that extends the mirror outward and inward. It seems there is a desire to present a consistent image to others, while internally questioning "is this really me"? Truly a fragmented view. Did you experience any deeper meaning from this ritual - of the self?
Hi Mark — yes, for many years I felt that "consistency" was something I needed to maintain, as some kind of virtue in and of itself. Probably many of us feel that. Yet that kind of rigidity quickly becomes a prison. These days, I try to hold everything more lightly, being as accepting as I can of whatever feels most alive in any given situation, and trusting the wisdom of that ever-growing edge.
Jonathan, This was, to me, the most startling of your fragments, the turning point of the story. The violence surprised me. The shedding of past identities so brutal, as was their representation in the images or memorabilia or clothing. But that's what made it all so powerful. It was the segment of the video that stayed with me the longest, made me think of my own background, my own identities and, like you, some of the identities crafted by my surroundings, my upbringing.
The ritual took courage. It took intention. I loved the symbolism. I had not thought about the "taboo" nature of it except that in shattering a mirror, you are spurning supersititon–at the same time you were destroying past identities. It fit. It was perfect.
I appreciated your writing; it gives me additional insight into the visual. It was good to see it again, the fourth time. There were things, details, that I noticed–I was particularly struck by the reflection from the mirror segment, a reminder that no matter how much we try to shed our old skin, its imprint is still there even though, as you say, you felt freer, though slightly unmoored.
Thanks, Geoff. Yes, of all the rituals in the series, this one may be the most universal. It's really something that any of us could do. And yes, the old identities are never fully gone, just broken apart so that can be re-integrated into a new and larger whole. There's a nice quote that speaks to this by a woman named Florida Scott-Maxwell: "You need only claim the events of your life to make yourself yours. When you truly possess all you have been and done, you are fierce with reality."
From what I observe, as a woman, it’s not possible. It’s not only social processes and economic structures but also some sort of navigational systems in interpersonal relationships, (even between the most promising people), that keep me and probably a lot of us feeling unseen and unheard. The fulcrum that keeps a healthy balance between all the different roles melting together in the crucible of life is a purpose where your viewpoint can meet with others. Mind you, saying that I don’t disbelieve your experience. I can’t help wondering the endless combinations of top and bottom reflections of roles that combine when no one is watching... which is probably where humour is born. It must be brilliant to feel that relief of nakedness. Then I’m thinking, is there a taboo when you ignore it? Who asks the question? And who is watching? Effectively a mirror offers a fragmented view, if the space around us isn’t ‘talking’, i.e the light and the wind isn’t moving. Isn’t exactly like that the nature of digital? It can mimic the organic but it’s fragmented and possibly recycled by it’s own mechanisms but still it’s not environment.
*[At this pivotal moment of awak- ening to industrialism's effects on humanity and to the theoretical aspects of this transformation of the human condition, Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) coined the term 'environment' in the Lowlands of Scotland in 1828.]
When something is and isn’t there, like glass or mirrors, movement can
reveal its inner qualities but it’s complex. The space between aesthetic object and artistic practice is in a way positioning a mirror towards other’s projections on your space, while finding cover behind it to move to the rhythm of your own drum. What others see is either their projections mirrored as an aesthetic object, or the patterns of your movement towards creating a new space. The juxtaposition between movement and stillness is that area I think, between multi-dimensional space and that which isn’t changing. The wind is known by it's effect. Fragmentation versus Synthesis. Digital versus Organic. That’s it, i burned my brain...
Hi Eleni, thank you for these reflections. They make me think of the comic book cover pictured in this film at 1:36 — "What if no one was watching the watcher?" https://youtu.be/a2gfhJuDc8E?t=96
Incredible. This idea of story telling, renewal and letting it all go on a constant refresh. How often we hold on to images and stories about who and what we are in the moment, a consistency or familiarity that extends the mirror outward and inward. It seems there is a desire to present a consistent image to others, while internally questioning "is this really me"? Truly a fragmented view. Did you experience any deeper meaning from this ritual - of the self?
Hi Mark — yes, for many years I felt that "consistency" was something I needed to maintain, as some kind of virtue in and of itself. Probably many of us feel that. Yet that kind of rigidity quickly becomes a prison. These days, I try to hold everything more lightly, being as accepting as I can of whatever feels most alive in any given situation, and trusting the wisdom of that ever-growing edge.
Jonathan, This was, to me, the most startling of your fragments, the turning point of the story. The violence surprised me. The shedding of past identities so brutal, as was their representation in the images or memorabilia or clothing. But that's what made it all so powerful. It was the segment of the video that stayed with me the longest, made me think of my own background, my own identities and, like you, some of the identities crafted by my surroundings, my upbringing.
The ritual took courage. It took intention. I loved the symbolism. I had not thought about the "taboo" nature of it except that in shattering a mirror, you are spurning supersititon–at the same time you were destroying past identities. It fit. It was perfect.
I appreciated your writing; it gives me additional insight into the visual. It was good to see it again, the fourth time. There were things, details, that I noticed–I was particularly struck by the reflection from the mirror segment, a reminder that no matter how much we try to shed our old skin, its imprint is still there even though, as you say, you felt freer, though slightly unmoored.
Thanks again.
Thanks, Geoff. Yes, of all the rituals in the series, this one may be the most universal. It's really something that any of us could do. And yes, the old identities are never fully gone, just broken apart so that can be re-integrated into a new and larger whole. There's a nice quote that speaks to this by a woman named Florida Scott-Maxwell: "You need only claim the events of your life to make yourself yours. When you truly possess all you have been and done, you are fierce with reality."
Man with mirror by Guy Sherwin maybe relevant here? https://www.luxonline.org.uk/artists/guy_sherwin/man_with_mirror.html
Thanks — nice to be aware of this.