Scan 11

Scan 12

I asked some of the children at work to write their names down. I wanted to explore how they identify their names and to see who could and couldn’t. As they are 3-4 years old they don’t hold a pen or pencil hard enough on the paper whilst writing or drawing something so that is why it is not legible shown through the scans. I noticed that their handwriting is rather large and they got puzzled that the didn’t have enough space to write the rest of their name.

This small activity was to explore a but about the concept of mirroring whist writing but none of the children did that so as a result they are developing well and growing to know themselves more.

Development of self-awareness

• Those who were less than 18 months old didn’t know the connection between itself and the person in the mirror, some look behind the mirror as they think it’s strange.
• At 18 months there is a change in the child’s awareness – makes them realise the “link between itself and the image in the mirror.”
• Some of the children in this video were giving themselves a huge grin and some were confused and shy. A little boy I noticed was saying ‘hi’ to the mirror not knowing who the person was. He also checked behind the mirror as he found it strange and new.
• The older children noticed the red dot on their forehead and wanted it taken off but that’s how the people/crew knew that they knew who they were in the mirror.
• They develop in having an increasingly “sophisticated sense of self”
• “They will have a rich and complex life of a mind and a sense of being central characters in their own dramas.”

• In comparrison to this other video (recorded by a parent) with his son at 15 months old observing himself in the mirror, finding it confusing snd looking at his dad for an answer but then was ignoring it as if he if bored of it.
• His second child, a little girl, was initially more intrigued going herself a huge smile and almost hugging herself in the mirror, trying to talk to herself or herself as the mirror (being more playful). I believe that she did notice it was her somehow and she was observing how the mirror ‘copied’ her by doing the same mouth movements. But then she too ignored the mirror a short while after. So does this mean girls can become more narcissistic than boys? Or does this just show that separate genders react differently yet conclude to the same emotion and realisation?
• This proves the statics of under 18 month old children don’t have an interest and don’t know what is going on nor what is appearing in the mirror.

https://www.jove.com/science-education/10111/the-rouge-test-searching-for-a-sense-of-self

CHILDREN ACTIVITY AT WORK: I work in a nursery part-time and I was having a conversation with one of the staff members and she did an activity with the children which has to do with self recognition and healthy eating. She used mirrors as her key object for the observation. The children had to look at themselves in the mirror and relocate their self on a plate from cut up fruits such as pineapple (for the smile), raisins (for the hair/braids) etc. The children enjoyed it especially as it encouraged them to eat ‘themselves’ (the fruit) in the end.

Essay title thoughts:

RICHARD WILSON: INSTALLATION VIEW

Peaceful Black Space – how I would explain this experience. It was really silent and I felt at peace within myself even though it was only a few seconds in there. The fact you were walking upwards felt daunting at first but then it feels like you are entering in another world/dimension. And it occurred to that it felt like I was appreciating being by myself perhaps it’s the type of results that Wilson wanted us to feel, to feel that we are relevant.

The first mirror piece strained my eyes and it felt as if there where many different realities. Many people were finding it humorous whilst looking at their reflections which I also found extremely hilarious and amusing as it brung strangers together.

I was more interested at some points observing the people around me how they interacted with the mirrors within the exhibition. There were a few primary school children laughing, dancing and making faces at the mirror, but also making fun of one another by their weird apprentices when looking at the mirror. the children show many different emotions but mainly positive; shocked, pleased, humour, confusion, memorization, fascination. This observation will defiantly be a part of my essay when I will be exploring the aspect of how we see ourselves in the mirror within our youth. What is also interesting is noticing the line of the floor caused by the ceilings lights reflecting off the mirror, which could be looked as other mirrors created naturally, unintendedly.

I made a few videos of recording myself whisky passing by the different types of mirrors within the gallery, looking at the camera lens at the same time as discovering myself in different ways with the pieces.

This first image of my reflection has a sense of isolation due to its large space area and dusky lighting creating a sense of tension. Which also helps the eye to narrow itself towards the mirror (to focus – almost forcing people to look at oneself self).

ANN VERONICA: MAGIC MIRROR

I was intrigued by these two mirrors laying side by side against the wall. By closely observing, it’s as if it has small particles of colour to make this one piece. It seems playful and gives a sense of seeing the world as a better place by it’s positive light colours.

I found this angle interesting to photograph due to it’s interning shadow colours and seeing how thin the mirror is. You can see that the interior of the mirror has the layer of the fun, colourful particles which displays when you see your reflection.

ROBERT IRQIN: DOTTING THE I’S & CROSSING THE T’S PART II

https://eyfs.info/forums/topic/11932-mirror-writing/

SELF PORTRAITS

The children were making faces when observing themselves in the mirror in order to recreate their identity on paper. They also were comparing themselves asking why each others hair was so different etc.

This essentially enhances their identification of their bodies and what humans look like. It is an activity where the children discover their aperances, how to write their name (to label their work) and also how to observe one another. They become facinated on how themselves and others look like. It makes them appreciative of their unique individual characteristics.

JSTOR

BY: JOHN STEZAKER

Collage imagery’s that play with their identities and how it is cleverly com-positioned.

https://shutterhub.org.uk/review-john-stezaker-whitworth-gallery-manchester-ends-june-2018/