I'm taking a look back at one of my own projects with a set of geotype mirrors that I installed around Aberdeen back in 2018. I'd been experimenting with gray shapes since 2015 and when I moved into my flat I found a set of matching mirrors in a disused shed ou the back and had stashed them away with plans to use them at some point in the future. In 2017 after being reinvigorated by Nuart and seeing artists like Aida Wilde and Mobstr using mirrors as a canvas my own project started to come together.
I'd painted the pryramid shapes at Westburn with three giant shapes that showed the slow rotation of the pyramids. Having worked on hand drawn animations in the past I was interested in how to create that movement and energy of animation and how it could be translated onto the streets. Insa had already stepped up the game with his incredible gif-iti works and Jussi TwoSeven also used the technique by painting individual images that when put in a sequence revealed roaring bears and running wolfs. Inspired by both I started to work out how to make my own shapes move and counter rotate. I spent the next few weeks painting up the mirrors at Kekun before heading out to install the first piece at the old Richards textile factory.
Armed with a portable drill and my mirror, I set off down the road and quickly attached one to the old factory entrance. The mirror sat for a few weeks but I wasn't happy with the shapes as the top seemed slightly off kilter. Indeed I'd had the same problem with the very first geotype down at Ruthrieston Community centre which I'd ended up re painting before white washing. Thankfully the mirror came down quite easily and made its way back to the studio.
I worked up a stencil to make sure each of the mirrors would have the same dimensions when finished as I had 5 to make. After a week or so the full set was finished and ready for round 2 of the installs. Being an avid explorer I'd ear marked a few sites with wooden boards where I could screw up the mirrors without causing any damage. I'd also been looking for interesting locations where the mirrors would create some interaction with the surroundings. So I set off again with each mirror and some tools. The majority of my locations were quiet side streets to the idea of being caught wasn't such an issue. Also the fact I'd be installing a piece as apposed to painting it on location changed the dynamic. When you're shaking spray cans and trying to get a piece done as quickly as possible there's a certain stress and buzz that comes with it.
After a few weeks I started to check on the mirrors to see how they were holding up. The Denburn mirror had disappeared, whether removed by the council or its sitting in someones house I don't know. The other were still there though and slowly I started to notice friends posting selfies with the mirrors in different locations. Eventually I shared a few of my own selfies and started to get tagged in others photos. A favourite came from a stranger who photographed the Schoolhill mirror and the light reflection it casts on the ground. Here friend commented how they scared her and they looked like elevator buttons for a space ship. Others started to use them to capture new reflections of their surroundings. Local photographer A Mid Northern got some cracking shots but it appeared not all the mirrors had been found yet.
And no one had figured out the secret of putting all the mirrors together to make a gif. And how would they, after all I didn't tell anyone about their purpose. Of course I made one myself but didn't share it til much later when most of the mirrors had gone. The Richards mirror got smashed up after a few months but I quite enjoyed walking past the remnants and imagining someone seeing themself and being so offended they took a hammer to it. Eventually the final mirror was found and I felt like some made up game had been finished. The Leadside road mirror eventually disappeared but I added a paste up to which someone added a sticker about 'people in cults' but I'm sure if they meant the location or the other meaning. It's interesting to think of the interactions created through the mirrors from the passive selfies to the physical destruction of the mirrors themselves.
The final mirror on Schoolhill is probably my favourite of the set and has proved popular with vain people. Its a great location being slap bang in the city centre and I often catch myself looking in it to see the reflections of the Art Gallery. Also the remnants of the Look Inside design pop up plays into the notion of looking in the mirror, an act of vanity but also playing off the idea of looking inside yourself at your inner worth. Suprisingly the mirror has survived for over 2 years on the streets. The lack of development on that site has saved it from the land fill, for now at least and apart from a few stickers its survived unscathed. A few friends have pointed out it needs a clean but I enjoy seeing how the external elements have affected it. A big part of placing work on the streets is seeing how they flourish or how quickly they get destroyed. Indeed work on the streets should be transitory and although its nice when pieces last for a while, I just wonder how much longer this one will last.
It's been a fun project to execute and to keep track of via social media. Despite most people seeming oblivious to it, its nice to see friends and strangers engage with the mirrors. I'm still working on new ideas and exploring the grey shapes and what they mean. Some might say in a city made of grey granite the last thing we need is more grey but to me its the perfect camouflage! Onto the next phase, hopefully it won't take me another 2 years to share it but you never know.
I'd painted the pryramid shapes at Westburn with three giant shapes that showed the slow rotation of the pyramids. Having worked on hand drawn animations in the past I was interested in how to create that movement and energy of animation and how it could be translated onto the streets. Insa had already stepped up the game with his incredible gif-iti works and Jussi TwoSeven also used the technique by painting individual images that when put in a sequence revealed roaring bears and running wolfs. Inspired by both I started to work out how to make my own shapes move and counter rotate. I spent the next few weeks painting up the mirrors at Kekun before heading out to install the first piece at the old Richards textile factory.
I worked up a stencil to make sure each of the mirrors would have the same dimensions when finished as I had 5 to make. After a week or so the full set was finished and ready for round 2 of the installs. Being an avid explorer I'd ear marked a few sites with wooden boards where I could screw up the mirrors without causing any damage. I'd also been looking for interesting locations where the mirrors would create some interaction with the surroundings. So I set off again with each mirror and some tools. The majority of my locations were quiet side streets to the idea of being caught wasn't such an issue. Also the fact I'd be installing a piece as apposed to painting it on location changed the dynamic. When you're shaking spray cans and trying to get a piece done as quickly as possible there's a certain stress and buzz that comes with it.
The mirrors were placed across 5 locations and photographed at the time as I didn't know how long they'd last before being removed or broken. I'd planned to make a gif of the finished works and started to wonder if people would even notice them and what they'd make of it. The fact that art on the streets has a different life span compared to works in a gallery is really interesting and its one of the reasons that I'm attracted to placing work in public space. With paste ups you expect that it'll last a couple of weeks and anything beyond that is a bonus so I was interested to see how the mirrors would fair and also if anybody would connect the the different shapes
Apart from my studio partner and a few visitors I didn't publicise the project or sharing any information about it. I think making street art in a time when Instagram and even social media didn't really exist has instilled the mentality of not really caring. It's one of the aspects I struggle with when you see artists blow up on instagram and every piece whether a sticker or a giant mural has an @ attached to it. Times change and so do trends, Aberdeen itself has embraced street art as a positive thing with the arrival of Painted Doors and Nuart but the memories of being photographed and finger printed in days of old keep me in check!
Apart from my studio partner and a few visitors I didn't publicise the project or sharing any information about it. I think making street art in a time when Instagram and even social media didn't really exist has instilled the mentality of not really caring. It's one of the aspects I struggle with when you see artists blow up on instagram and every piece whether a sticker or a giant mural has an @ attached to it. Times change and so do trends, Aberdeen itself has embraced street art as a positive thing with the arrival of Painted Doors and Nuart but the memories of being photographed and finger printed in days of old keep me in check!
And no one had figured out the secret of putting all the mirrors together to make a gif. And how would they, after all I didn't tell anyone about their purpose. Of course I made one myself but didn't share it til much later when most of the mirrors had gone. The Richards mirror got smashed up after a few months but I quite enjoyed walking past the remnants and imagining someone seeing themself and being so offended they took a hammer to it. Eventually the final mirror was found and I felt like some made up game had been finished. The Leadside road mirror eventually disappeared but I added a paste up to which someone added a sticker about 'people in cults' but I'm sure if they meant the location or the other meaning. It's interesting to think of the interactions created through the mirrors from the passive selfies to the physical destruction of the mirrors themselves.
The final mirror on Schoolhill is probably my favourite of the set and has proved popular with vain people. Its a great location being slap bang in the city centre and I often catch myself looking in it to see the reflections of the Art Gallery. Also the remnants of the Look Inside design pop up plays into the notion of looking in the mirror, an act of vanity but also playing off the idea of looking inside yourself at your inner worth. Suprisingly the mirror has survived for over 2 years on the streets. The lack of development on that site has saved it from the land fill, for now at least and apart from a few stickers its survived unscathed. A few friends have pointed out it needs a clean but I enjoy seeing how the external elements have affected it. A big part of placing work on the streets is seeing how they flourish or how quickly they get destroyed. Indeed work on the streets should be transitory and although its nice when pieces last for a while, I just wonder how much longer this one will last.
It's been a fun project to execute and to keep track of via social media. Despite most people seeming oblivious to it, its nice to see friends and strangers engage with the mirrors. I'm still working on new ideas and exploring the grey shapes and what they mean. Some might say in a city made of grey granite the last thing we need is more grey but to me its the perfect camouflage! Onto the next phase, hopefully it won't take me another 2 years to share it but you never know.
