Mirror Images

Somewhere near the surface of the glass and silver nitrate, a mirror’s image optically responds to a human observers’ movements, reflecting the environment based on the viewers position. As the viewer approaches the mirror, its’ appearance opens up a wider and deeper view of the room. It magnifies the image recognized by the perceiver and visually reflects the three-dimensional scene atop its flat surface. Nearly 40 years after Dan Grahams’ written reflections on the mental and visual appearance of the mirror image,1 the design for All Square, a restaurant and non-profit in Minneapolis, expands this interest. The name “All Square” is a reference to the notion that those who have paid their debts to society are square and free to move forward with a clean slate, as well as a nod to the shape of the fast-casual restaurant’s signature dish. The grill cheese eatery offers its formerly incarcerated employees a professional development fellowship in addition to a living wage. To give the non-profit mission and branding of All Square a physical presence, the project uses the name and motif of the ‘Square’ as the starting point and repeats it at varying dimensions throughout the space. The square is materialized as mirrors and aluminum frames to form thresholds that divide and unify the large room.

https://doi.org/10.35483/ACSA.AM.108.44

Volume Editors

ISBN
978-1-944214-26-5