Photographer Kieran Dodds Documents Red-Haired Americans and Reflections on National Unity
A new photography project captures hundreds of portraits of people with ginger hair across the United States and explores themes of unity through their diverse family histories and perspectives.
What happened
Photographer Kieran Dodds interviewed and made portraits of hundreds of people with ginger hair across the US between 2024 and 2026 as part of an ongoing series. He asked each interviewee the same closing question: What unites the states? The resulting work, available as a preorder book, is structured around themes that emerged repeatedly during these conversations rather than focusing on hair itself.
Context
The project documents the diverse ethnic, cultural, and family backgrounds of red-haired Americans, revealing varied perspectives on national unity. Interviewees highlighted themes including diversity as a unifying force, the persistence of racial attitudes, the mixed heritage that characterizes American families, and the role of local community in bridging political polarization. The portraits and testimonies illustrate how red hair—a recessive genetic trait—appears across multiple ethnic groups (Iranian, Chinese-Thai, Native American, Scottish, African American, Turkish, and Irish backgrounds among those featured), underscoring the complex genetic and cultural mixing that characterizes the American population.