Self reflection
Self reflection - 6269
Jeppe Hein - WHO AM I WHY AM I WHERE AM I GOING - 2017
A stroll past the booths of any given international art fair will reveal that neon’s potential as a material in art seems far from being exhausted. Aside from the texts, enormous popularity is currently also enjoyed by works that play with the additional use of other materials besides neon. For instance, the conjunction of neon and reflective elements is attractive for some artists. Jeppe Hein has a whole series of works in which neon tubes are integrated into a semi-permeable mirrored box. The neon systems mounted behind the mirror are visible from the outside, while the mirror fulfils its usual function on the front. WHO AM I WHY AM I WHERE AM I GOING is written on one of them. Spectators confront themselves in a mirror, on which a message is mounted. It is obvious who the addressee is, since he or she sees himself or herself in the mirror. The messages are utterly direct, they transport the person standing opposite into the Here and Now. If one loses oneself in art during an exhibition visit, one will be jolted back to reality on arrival at this point. One is compelled to deal with oneself.
Photographed at the Centre for International Light Art
Self reflection
Self reflection - 6269
Jeppe Hein - WHO AM I WHY AM I WHERE AM I GOING - 2017
A stroll past the booths of any given international art fair will reveal that neon’s potential as a material in art seems far from being exhausted. Aside from the texts, enormous popularity is currently also enjoyed by works that play with the additional use of other materials besides neon. For instance, the conjunction of neon and reflective elements is attractive for some artists. Jeppe Hein has a whole series of works in which neon tubes are integrated into a semi-permeable mirrored box. The neon systems mounted behind the mirror are visible from the outside, while the mirror fulfils its usual function on the front. WHO AM I WHY AM I WHERE AM I GOING is written on one of them. Spectators confront themselves in a mirror, on which a message is mounted. It is obvious who the addressee is, since he or she sees himself or herself in the mirror. The messages are utterly direct, they transport the person standing opposite into the Here and Now. If one loses oneself in art during an exhibition visit, one will be jolted back to reality on arrival at this point. One is compelled to deal with oneself.
Photographed at the Centre for International Light Art