Jinseon Chon

Jinseon Chon (b.1991 Seoul, Korea) based in London

Kyonggi University, BA Environment Sculpture 11 - 18

Royal College of Art, MA Painting 21 - 23

I arrived at the topic of the mirror through my own work and interest in its possibilities and history as an object, inside and outside of art. The mirror is such a simple, everyday object, but has a deep and complicated relationship to the self. I have been working with mirrors since 2018. The process to make this work was to simply sand and scratch mirrors repeatedly until parts of the mirror become completely clear or depicted, so the viewer can see through the front into the back of the mirror. For me, this process is more like a meditation.

‘Mirror Series – Inside Out’ is about reflecting the self: self-harm, self-awareness, self-escape, self- erasure and placing the self within the social.

It is necessary to point out the environmental situation that I was surrounded by in Korea and how I reflect, reflect on, and was reflected by the state of affairs in my own country. No one can deny the image that the mirror itself produces, its reflective material never lies, even if it changes, meaning that whatever is in the mirror is also in the environment. To understand my mirrors, it is important to understand the environment of Korea that I am reflecting.

Usage of light in my mirror is not only about depicting or painting with light through the scratched part. However, in terms of visual effects, it leads audiences into my mirror work and makes them enjoy and contemplate themselves through their reflections with lightened lines. The work is only completed by the viewers who are standing in front of my mirror. 

Continually making scratches on my reflection could be interpreted as escaping from myself or erasing myself from what I have done and I have been through. Self-reflection, self-awareness or erasing myself, whatever is at stake in the essence of the action, I hope it could be one opportunity to think about experiences not only as a material of mirrors but also in terms of dignity when viewers are standing in front of my mirrors. When the cuts and scars are shared and shown, only then can healing begin, from my individual experience to the viewer, witnessing their own mirror projection.