• Intelligencer
  • The Cut
  • Vulture
  • The Strategist
  • Curbed
  • Grub Street
  • Subscribe to the Magazine Give a Gift Subscription Buy Back Issues Current Issue Contents
    Subscribe to New York Magazine
  • Subscribe
  • Profile
    Sign Out
The Cut
  • Style
  • Self
  • Culture
  • Power
Style
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Shopping
  • Design Hunting
  • New York Weddings
  • Parties & Red Carpet
  • Fashion Shows
  • Cathy Horyn
Self
  • Health & Wellness
  • Motherhood
  • Advice
  • Sex & Relationships
  • Science of Us
  • Horoscopes
  • Ask Polly
Culture
  • Books
  • Television
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Celebrity
Power
  • Politics
  • Work
  • Money
  • Rebecca Traister
More
  • Latest Stories
  • Video
  • About Us
  • The Cut Shop
  • nymag.com
  • New York Magazine
  • Intelligencer
  • Vulture
  • The Cut
  • The Strategist
  • Grub Street
gallery
November 20, 2016

The Vogue Photographer Who Took Black America As Seriously As He Took Fashion

By Lena Rawley

Share

  • Share
  • Tweet
Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation

Photographer Gordon Parks was 14 when, in 1925, he left his home in rural Kansas. Later, while waiting tables in a railroad dining car, he saw photos of migrant workers in a magazine and decided to become a photographer. He bought his first camera from a pawn shop and started his career as a society portraitist in Chicago. He became the first African-American photographer for Vogue and Life magazines.

Initially hired to shoot a series of evening gowns for Vogue, Parks developed a signature style in his images for the magazine: He photographed models in motion rather than in still poses, pioneering a new approach to fashion shoots. At the same time, Parks captured poverty and injustice in America. During his initial Vogue shoots, he also produced the photographic essay “Harlem Gang Leader.” After it was published to much acclaim in Life in 1948, the magazine also hired Parks. He spent the next two decades working for Life, covering a wide range of subjects — fashion and Broadway, police brutality and the civil-rights movement, and everyday lives of black families in the Jim Crow South.

The new book Gordon Parks: I Am You: Selected Works 1934–1978 features groundbreaking portraits taken throughout his career at Vogue and Life. Click ahead for a preview.

View
1 / 11 Photos
Jeweled Cap, Malibu, California, 1958 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Malcolm X Holding Up Black Muslim Newspaper, 1963 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Untitled, New York, New York, 1957 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Untitled, Paris, France, 1950 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
The Fontenelles at the Poverty Board, Harlem, New York, 1967 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Models with Boy-Length Haircuts, New York, New York, 1949 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Untitled, Harlem, New York, 1949 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Veruschka Models Dress by Pauline Trigère for Vogue, 1965 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Untitled, Chicago, Illinios, 1950 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Untitled, Washington D.C., 1963 Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
Gordon Parks: I Am You: Selected Works 1934–1978, out November 22 from Steidl/The Gordon Parks Foundation/C/O Berlin. Photo: The Gordon Parks Foundation
1 / 11

Tags:

  • cut homepage lede
  • gallery
  • slideshows
  • fashions
  • photography
  • gordon parks
  • More

More Galleries

campaign trail Jan. 28, 2021
 The Best Fashion Campaigns From Spring 2021  This season’s best from Prada, Versace, Miu Miu, and more. 
By Florence O'Connor
in memoriam Dec. 30, 2020
30 Incredible Fashion Moments From Pierre Cardin  Remembering a creative visionary. 
By Andrew Nguyen
rest in power Dec. 23, 2020
A Photo Memorial for an Iconic Model  She passed away suddenly at the age of 50 this week. 
campaign trail Nov. 18, 2020
‘Tis the Season for New Fashion Ads  See the best ones from Gucci, Prada, Versace, and more. 
By Emily Burns
nyfw spring 2021 Oct. 26, 2020
How a Great Collection Comes Alive  Christopher John Rogers launched its first-ever online shop, along with a new campaign. 
By Andrew Nguyen
campaign trail Sept. 24, 2020
See the Fashion Campaigns for Fall 2020  From Prada, Michael Kors, Celine, Louis Vuitton, and more. 
By Andrew Nguyen
nyfw spring 2021 Sept. 22, 2020
See the Coach Spring 2021 Collection  Worn by Megan Thee Stallion, Kate Moss, Cole Sprouse, and more. 
By Andrew Nguyen
fashion Sept. 16, 2020
The Stunning Awkwardness of Face Masks on the Red Carpet  Celebrities tried to make the best of a strange situation at the 2020 Venice Film Festival. 
one word one shot Sept. 15, 2020
72 Designers on Their Spring/Summer Inspirations  Just in time for Fashion Week. 
By the Cut
red carpet Sept. 8, 2020
This Red Carpet Was Totally Surreal  But also amazing. See all the looks at the Venice Film Festival. 
By Emilia Petrarca and Andrew Nguyen
in memoriam Aug. 31, 2020
Remembering Chadwick Boseman on the Red Carpet  His style was bold, risk-taking, and always impeccable. 
the wedding files Aug. 21, 2020
The Design-Minded Couple Who Didn’t Want to Try Too Hard  The bride got a wonderful surprise the morning of her wedding. 
By Kaitlin Menza
the wedding files Aug. 14, 2020
A Costa Rica Wedding During the Rainy Season  Thunder roared during the toasts. 
By Kaitlin Menza
the wedding files Aug. 7, 2020
A San Francisco Wedding at a Big, Empty Pier  The bride changed into crushed-velvet pants for the disco-infused reception. 
By Kaitlin Menza
the wedding files July 31, 2020
An Elopement Among the Lupines in Iceland  The late afternoon was spent snapping photos near waterfalls and black beaches. 
By Kaitlin Menza
the wedding files July 24, 2020
A Pennsylvania Potluck for 280 People  “I looked at her for the first time and had this feeling like, You. I know you.” 
By Kaitlin Menza
milan fashion week July 22, 2020
Behind the Scenes at Gucci’s Virtual Show  Instead of models, members of the design team sported the eccentric collection. 
By Andrew Nguyen
the wedding files July 17, 2020
A Dance Party Under Puerto Rican Palm Trees  Bad Bunny blasted and pitorro flowed. 
By Kaitlin Menza
the wedding files July 10, 2020
A Zoom Wedding Only Two Digital Creatives Could Produce  The couple coordinated multiple video segments, breakout rooms, and a dance party. 
By Kaitlin Menza
the wedding files July 3, 2020
The Anti-Spectacle Wedding That Turned Into a Spectacle  Brooklyn Bridge Park was the site of their first date, proposal, and wedding. 
By Kaitlin Menza
  • Style
  • Self
  • Culture
  • Power
  • Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Help
  • We’re Hiring
  • Press
  • Trademark
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Ad Choices
  • Do Not Sell My Info
The Cut is a Vox Media Network. © 2021 Vox Media, LLC. All rights reserved.