Art form: 3-D

Medium: glass, steel, lights, motorized dimmer switch

Year created: 2008

Description of work: This piece consists of a seven foot cube constructed of steel and two-way mirror. The lighting is constantly changing. When the lights outside the cube are on, the lights inside the cube are off. As the outside lights dim, the interior lights brighten and vice versa.

If the viewer is inside the cube when the exterior lights are on, he/she can see through the mirror and into the gallery. This viewer can see other people outside the cube (who can't see in). When the lights shift and the interior becomes lit, the viewer only sees themselves reflected infinitely in the mirrors.

If the viewer is outside the cube when the exterior lights are on, he/she sees the gallery reflected in the cube. When the lights shift and the interior becomes lit, the viewer sees into the cube including any viewer on the inside (who can't see out).

Please view the video of the work for a better understanding.

NOTE: for the lighting effect to work properly, I need a dark space with no natural light.

Work statement: It is apparent to me that individuals live within their own experience. This is, in fact, what makes each person an individual. As much as one would like to communicate or reproduce one’s experience for others, it is simply not possible to fully do so. Unique experience is a result of a litany of variables including: the way sensory information is gathered, processed, stored, recalled, forgotten, and cross referenced, as well as, culture, belief system, upbringing, socio/economic status, previous experiences, genetics, and mood. All of these factors and more play an interwoven part in defining a person’s experience.

This work, "Self," is a representation of the solitary space or cell of the self. It phases through peroids of self-consciousness and awareness of that which is outside the self throught the use of two way mirrors and lighting.

Please view the video of the work.

NOTE: for the lighting effect to work properly, I need a dark space with no natural light.