The Importance of a Mirror to a Dancer

Ashley Cook

April 24, 2020

“Conscious awareness is a powerful tool to transcending unconscious patterns. It fosters an expanded perspective and openness to new possibilities. It is a process of recognizing what is going on inside and out, the effects of decisions and actions, and the interaction between the complex array of factors and forces. It is seeing, observing our thoughts, recognizing our feelings and the effect they are having on us and others; it functions as a mirror functions for a dancer.” ¹

Dancers are able to see themselves in the mirror as an audience would see them and because of this, many dancers feel that the mirror is critical for their success. They provide immediate visual feedback in order to review progress objectively. They allow dancers to evaluate their movements. They help them to adjust their placement, positioning and formation independently and within a group. They serve as a tool for training, reflection and awareness. ²

Just as the opportunity to experience reflection is so important to dance, there are mirrors of all different kinds that can serve as essential components to the enhancement of consciousness behind any given effort. These types of mirrors come in different forms, however the obvious common denominator is that they all reflect the culture they are surrounded by; the spectrum exists indefinitely from subtle to overt and the variation of mediums used is also infinite. I would even venture to say that every movement, every thought, every word, every decision, every creation, is a reflection of the surrounding environment. We are consciously or unconsciously influenced by the information around us as we take it in and transform it into our own personal response, eventually exporting it back into the world as either an intentional or unintentional contribution; yet another influential mirror. The level of conscious awareness present during this process of consumption, digestion and response can have an impact on how deeply one would understand themselves as an integral part of their surrounding culture with the capability to influence, while also discovering how this culture is influencing their own personal development and how they see the world.

Detroit’s dynamic history has never gone unnoticed. As we think back to the various moments when the city has been highly influential, steadily carving path after path for societies and cultures everywhere to echo, we can easily recall the prominence of the city’s early industrial advancements, it’s highly innovative musical imprints, or the strength of it’s people who became robust leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement. But, sometimes it can be challenging to feel the momentum or cohesion that was once felt in this city, or to comprehend that this history is still present; that it is linked directly to our contemporary times, and that we are all working to keep building onto this timeline everyday.

The White Flight movement of Detroit, which began around 1948, caused a significant drop in population and industry in the city over many years, as it slowly implemented and upheld a seemingly conscious quarantine effort by setting boundaries, in various ways, between the city and it’s surrounding prosperous and more racially homogeneous suburban landscape. Ongoing challenges continue to keep the city without the sufficient sources of education, transportation or employment that are necessary for individuals and their communities to be healthy, safe and to thrive. With the amount of abandonment, isolation, neglect and insult that Detroit has experienced consistently overtime, it can sometimes be difficult for the city and its people to understand the power that they have or to recognize their unique and significant place in the world.

Detroit was launched into very unique positions time and time again, and only with the enduring resilience of its people could it have continued to evolve into what is now a contemporary city amongst a landscape of ruins. The people of Detroit continue to be impressed upon by the distorted, slowed down sense of time that has resulted from limited government imposition or market oversight, fostering a thrilling sense of autonomy to think, experiment and live outside of the domesticated norm. It is nothing like your standard modern future-focused society of the 21st century; at least not right now. As we continue to watch remnants of the city’s past deteriorate before our eyes, in the form of dilapidated architecture originating from these highly noted moments in Detroit’s history, it is easy to understand why we may sometimes feel severed from this noted past, as if there is a large gap in the timeline, a history-less period, between then and now. But the truth is that Detroit has never stopped. Despite this lack of initiative from the city or the state officials to mend the pains of existing trauma, or the reduced amount of the cohesive recognition of the city’s persistence regardless of this blight, there has still been plenty going on. And it has been just as innovative, imaginative and inventive as always, just a bit more underground, either by default, or by choice.

runner magazine is a grassroots publication project that seeks to highlight how this history and the landscape formed by this history affects our thinking today on a local level, and how, throughout time, Detroit has continuously been a point of reference on a more global level. It will provide a platform for communication and active discourse, investigating and publishing work and ideas by artists, thinkers and cultural producers who are, or have been, active in the city, with the goal of expanding their reach and emphasizing their voice in local, national and international conversations. runner is interested in uncovering, sharing and archiving stories of creative innovation and revolutionary spirits throughout our history until now, calling attention to Detroit as a historical and contemporary influence on the progression of culture all over the world.

As runner builds a library of contributions in the contexts of news, art, music, fashion, architecture, industry, thought and culture, it looks forward to incorporating a vast array of possibilities for experimentation in form, perspectives and ideas, while also involving traditional formats such as event notifications, news articles, interviews, theoretical, philosophical or poetic texts, reviews of local art shows, etc. On a broader and more long-term scope, runner would imaginably function as a type of anthropological study of the city’s historical and contemporary life. As it functions within the same socio-cultural context from which it evolved, interacting with the culture while simultaneously learning from it, it would, in effect, create a sort of boundless representation of the various operational infrastructures. With history and contemporary coexisting on one relative plain, time is not strict and content does not need to be current to be relevant. This would be an attempt to weave a fabric to trace and understand the vast influences in place.

A conscious culture understands, appreciates and celebrates its history and present times through access to news, inviting critical insight and reflection, having a focus on inclusion, having discussions, and encouraging advocacy. Active discourse in many forms has always acted as a mirror to enhance conscious awareness. As runner becomes a growing collective work created by the people who have lived and interacted with the city, it will sustain a platform allowing us to take responsibility for our home, stand for what we love and continue to generate excitement to be part of Detroit’s rich and significant timeline.

A non-exhaustive list of some of the other communication platforms that have actively published content for communities of Detroit and abroad includes: