Norig Dodier
The Mirror
During the exhibition, in of one the rooms, a secret door could be found (image1NorigDodier). It led to a dark space, where only stood a mirror. (image2NorigDodier)(image3NorigDodier)This mirror looks old and stained. After a few seconds in the room, the light shuts down and the viewer is left in darkness. There only remains a flashlight which the viewer can grab.(image4NorigDodier) If he/she directs the light beam onto the mirror, suddenly the apparent decay stains are revealing images, being projected on the opposite wall. (image5NorigDodier)Here a sheep(image6NorigDodier), or a forest (image7NorigDodier)…
Anyone can play with the projection and make it more or less abstract, focusing on textures or light effect, ‘zooming’ in and out by getting the flashlight closer or further away from the mirror. (image8NorigDodier) (image9NorigDodier)
This project has been created during a research about concealment. Here, the viewer is shown an apparent old mirror, reflecting is own image, and, at first, he/she will believe that’s about it. However, a deeper layer arrises, when the main light shuts down and the smart viewer is able to discover the hidden photographs that have been engraved, in what he/she thought was decay stains. It is a way to explore concealment, to show that what is blindly obvious often contains hidden informations, as well as to encourage and celebrate a smart and curious interaction with the surroundings, in opposition to stay satisfied with what is given to be seen.
This work is also a study of the mirror as an object, being analyzed through the research around
concealment. A mirror happens to be a very good concealing device, because it is never really seen. One sees only what it reflects, but never really the object in itself. In a more poetical level, I would say that when a mirror is finally looked at, -when light is shined on it- it can only show shadows. The mirror is made of polished zinc plates (25x 15/20cm) etched in a copper sulfate bath.
Text about the student’s practice:
I am a revealer,
my work can take various forms in terms of media, such as weaving, printing, glass working, books and stories. All of them are asking for a certain craft knowledge. I really enjoy working close to the material. But even more, I like to hack the technique, to find this shadow area that ‘no one thought about’. Work along with it, to lead me to discover new things. The works are sometimes scraping the surface of magic, and leave the viewer in doubt and contemplation.
A main topic that comes back in my work, is the idea that we live in a very rich world, where there is more to be seen than what we take for granted. I celebrate the act of smart observation and use of craft, to create magical moments. Through the material or the idea, I invite the viewer to dig deeper than the surface, enjoying to perceive things in a different way, to discover new realities, new ways of understanding the world, new links to make between things.