Mirror Room III Outdoor

You see this in Mirror Room (Outdoor, 1968/1994/2004/2024). In this reflective space, objects from past performances come together, for the first time in the open air. The objects recall memorable moments from Jonas’ artistic practice. They create tracks of the performers, stand-ins. Like a treasure chamber or archive. 

As in many of Jonas’ works, natural and artificial elements are combined. Naked bodies link up with stones, metal and glass, and the reflection of the park landscape. The loose objects stand alone while also being part of an installation. This constellation is constantly changing, just like the reflections in the mirrors when you move in front of them as a visitor.  

The way in which we portray people in nature is a recurring element in Jonas’ work. According to her, as people we stand at the centre of nature, and also appear to have lost the connection.  

Joan Jonas (1936, US) lives and works between New York and Nova Scotia (Canada). Her pioneering projects and experiments were crucial in the development of video-performance art as a medium, in the early 1970s. In her performances, Jonas systematically explores how live events can be structured in time and space.