Mirrors Transformed

The selfie is the latest step in a long artistic tradition:

• Self-portraiture once required mirrors and easels; now it needs only a phone
• Social media profiles work as curated exhibitions of the self
• The driving question never changed: how do I want the world to see me?

The selfie isn't a narcissistic novelty — it's the newest tool in a 500-year project of self-presentation. The impulse to control your own image is as old as mirrors.