The Black Mirror (series) 2019-2023
“Untitled” was created for an exhibition pairing artists with scientists, honoring endowed chairs supporting biological research through contributions from the Jacobs family. Ten research scientists were matched with San Diego artists to develop new work in response to their fields of study, broadly centered on human existence.
Maruyama was paired with Dr. John Reynolds of the Salk Institute, whose research focuses on visual cognition—the neural mechanisms that shape how we see and attend to the world. More recently, his work has expanded to include aging and age-related brain disorders, studied through a group of marmosets whose cognitive behaviors and brain activity are tracked over time.
The collaboration resonated on a deeply personal level. At the time the exhibition was proposed, Maruyama’s aunt had just been diagnosed with dementia. The work that emerged shifts from scientific inquiry toward lived experience—an attempt to grapple with the emotional realities of memory loss and cognitive decline.
In this piece, the mirror becomes both a metaphor for memory and a record of its fragmentation. Created in collaboration with finishing specialist Greg Johnson, a long horizontal panel of black lacquer begins as a smooth, highly reflective surface, then gradually ripples into distortion, destabilizing the reflected image. A translucent, mobile “door” moves across the surface, held within a minimal frame. It leads nowhere and refers to nothing, yet interrupts the act of looking—an ambiguous presence that echoes the disorientation of memory slipping away.
"Trifecta: Art, Science, Patron"
Local artists and Salk Institute for Biological Studies scientists collaborate in this interdisciplinary project that was inspired by the visionary gift of the Jacobs family.
The Joan Klein and Irwin Mark Jacobs Senior Scientist Endowed Chair Challenge began in 2008 to encourage donors to establish endowed chairs in support of Salk scientists for their outstanding contributions to biological research. For every $2 million in donor contributions toward a chair, the Jacobs added $1 million to achieve the $3 million required for a full endowment, and the Jacobs Challenge is responsible for 18 of the 31 chaired positions to date.
Ten San Diego artists explored the curiosities of research practiced by these endowed-chair Salk scientists, and the resulting new artwork they created is the subject of this exhibition.
Presented coincidentally in the wake of the pandemic, and during the recovery from its affects, this project focuses attention on scientific discoveries in biology vital to human existence, the patrons whose support is foundational to this important research, and the artists who bring expression and insight to both. The juxtaposition of contemporary art and biological research aspires to engage the broader public in dialogue and a renewed appreciation for creativity, science, and philanthropy. Curated by Chi Essary. Major funding for this project generously provided by the Ray Thomas Edwards Foundation with additional support from Weston Anson and ArtWorks San Diego. Institutional support provided by the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture and by the Members of the La Jolla Historical Society. The Society is immensely grateful to the Salk Institute for Biological Studies for their support and participation in this project.