Mirror, 2001
Scott Snibbe

Mirror, 2001
vintage fan parts, custom electronics, impeller, motor, motor driver

The mirror amplifies and reflects human breath at the observer. As one blows into the mouthpiece of the mirror, a proportionally amplified wind blows back at you.

Someone said that the mirror produces 'artificial wind'. By contemplating these words, one is lead to examine the difference between "real" and "artificial" wind or breath. We label wind or our breath as if they were actual things, measurable and identifiable, when in reality they are processes - only measurable through their effect on other things (air molecules, hair, etc.). How is my "breath" of this moment, the same "breath" of the next? It is only a construction of our minds that ties these breaths together. And does my breath really belong to me? Or is this breath not only part of me, but also part of my environment - an equal exchange. You are constantly taking in your environment and expelling parts of yourself. The breath mirror reflects the process of breath back at you to help you decide whether your breath is yours in the first place.

The mirror is part of the breath series, an ongoing body of work. All of the pieces deal with breath amplification, transmission, recording and playback.

High quality image [1]

(c) 2000-2001 Scott Snibbe