Miroir 1986

Markus Raetz made Miroir by using simple lines and a mirror. The mirror is placed on a pedestal like a sculptural object, this artwork explores perception and representation, asking viewers to think about how we see and understand images. Raetz was a Swiss artist working in the latter half of the 20th century. After World War II there was a new visual culture due to mass media, and artists became more interested in how images shape our understanding of the world. What does it mean to produce art after the Holocaust and the use of the atomic bomb? How is art complicit in the construction of power and knowledge? Raetz's art engages with the institutional critique, exploring how museums and galleries frame our understanding of what art is. Historians of art and culture research archives, publications, and other visual materials, to better understand the social context that influence the artist's work.