Teach with Collections: Gordon Parks, Soapbox Orator, Harlem, New York

Renowned for his keenly observed documentary photographs that chronicle the black American experience, Gordon Parks was also a writer, musician, poet, composer, and film director. Parks returned to Harlem after working in Washington, D.C. for a 1952 project inspired by the publication of Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man. Ellison, who had lived in Harlem for more than a decade, collaborated with Parks on the project. "With Ellison's help he re-created from the novel . . . scenes . . . to show the horror and disillusionment of a man who has lost faith in himself and his world." For this inventive variation on the documentary photo essay, Parks shot "a series of images of an actor on the streets of Harlem." The resulting story, "A Man Becomes Invisible," was published in the August 25, 1952 issue of Life.

Conversation prompts:

Does the style of this photograph seem like that of a documentary work or a portrait? Which details would you use to support your argument?

Both Parks and Ligon refer to Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man. Compare the two works of art in terms of their medium and use of text. How do they approach the subject of race differently?