@ARTICLE{10.21494/ISTE.OP.2026.1454, 

TITLE={The Mirror: Reflections and revelations}, 
  
AUTHOR={Ruth Scheps, }, 
	
JOURNAL={Art and Science}, 
	
VOLUME={10}, 

NUMBER={Issue 2}, 
	
YEAR={2026}, 

URL={https://www.openscience.fr/The-Mirror-Reflections-and-revelations}, 
	
DOI={10.21494/ISTE.OP.2026.1454}, 
	
ISSN={2515-8767}, 
	
ABSTRACT={The mirror’s history, spanning thousands of years, has led people to view it as an aesthetic object, an optical instrument, a source of knowledge or illusion, and even a metaphor for the soul. The first part of this article explores the various manifestations of mirror consciousness, as it appears in certain animals and in the foundational myth of Narcissus. The following section discusses the technical evolution of mirrors, the diversity of their uses, and the ways in which artists have begun to appropriate them. Next, the article addresses the spiritual dimension of the mirror, followed by its persistent presence in contemporary art, where it reflects the uncertainties and fragmentations associated with postmodernity. Stepping through the mirror (in the wake of literary adventures such as Alice’s) thus proves to be an endeavor as desirable as it is perilous. And while nowadays, the deep universe reveals itself more and more to giant telescopes, the question of infinity raised by the mirror continues to resurface, in contemporary art as well as in philosophy and literature.}}