Scattered near his feet lie several cigarette butts indicating a toxic addiction, implying woozy nicotine head rushes, paired perfectly with the preciously held bottle of gin in our figure’s right hand. In perfect balance, to his left and to his right, rest two record players poised, ready to verbalize a melody at the merest drop of a needle. The series contained four photographs but only two really jump to the fore:Ī man in a white button-down dress shirt sits at the center of the picture–naturally the focal point. Their friendship allowed a similar vision of racial injustice to be channeled into a project entitled A Man Becomes Invisible. This advice became the foundation of Parks’ lifelong ideology.īush continues to explain that Parks’ travels allowed him to “witness first-hand how easily crime, drugs, prostitution, and apathy claimed their victims as he fought his way through the violent streets of urban ghettos to emerge in places where few blacks dared to go–or even aspired to go.”Ĭoncurrent to Parks’ rise in reputation, Ralph Ellison - a WWII veteran - was in the process of writing his famed book, Invisible Man. What the camera had to do was expose the evils of racism, the evils of poverty, the discrimination, and the bigotry, by showing the people who suffered most under it. “You could not photograph a bigot and say, “This is a bigot,” because bigots have a way of looking just like everybody else. In a comprehensive literary collection ( The Photographs of Gordon Parks) honoring the pioneering photographer, Martin Bush explains that the pivotal inspiration came from his mentor, Ron Stryker. What did that look like? What did that mean? With an invigorated decisiveness he announced a project: He would photograph racism, highlighting its deep roots in America. Parks was turned away from several establishments and would not be served at restaurants. What he returned with was a deeper understanding of the racism that permeated throughout the nation’s capital, a result of the intense discrimination he experienced. Parks was instructed to go explore the area and attempt to discern the true essence of the new city in which he found himself. In the early stages of his career when Parks was on assignment in Washington, D.C., his mentor, Ron Stryker, pried a camera from his hands. This project would illuminate the comprehensive African-American experience in Harlem. Using the power of photography and literary prowess, Gordon Parks and his friend Ralph Ellison come together to create the project A Man Becomes Invisible. Tenement Dwellers, American Gothic, and the Portraits of Muhammad Ali are all a testament to the artist he was. His masterful ability with a camera is evident in many of his well-known photograph series taken throughout the 20 th century. Gordon Parks’ photographic genius cannot be completely expressed in the 900 or so words this article totals at, for his oeuvre is one that is truly transcendental.
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