Daguerreotypes, the earliest American photographs, are, in strict point of fact, mirrors. Each one is a unique image produced on a reflective, silver-coated copper plate. As such, the daguerreotype serves as the “image” for all the images presented in the Mirror of Race. In such photographs, we see ourselves in two senses: we see our ancestors and so our past, but we also see our own reflections on the same surface. Seeing, then, is a central theme to this presentation, for seeing underlies so much of the representation of race as grounded in appearance and seeing is what we do when we reflect in — and on — the mirror.
This program is designed for grades 3 to College level and can include lectures, performances and workshops. You may see samples of the images at http://mirrorofrace.org
