Gordan Parks: The Original Renaissance Man

An African-American Photographer and Composer, Motion Picture Director and Producer, Mr. Gordon Parks “Gordon Parks" spent the majority of his professional career at the crossroads of the glamorous and the ghetto – two extremes the noted photographer knew well.  Perhaps best recognized for his works chronicling the African-American experience, Parks was also an accomplished fashion photographer.

Bare Witness: Photographs by Gordon Parks provides a revealing look at the diversity and breadth of Park’s most potent imagery. Featuring 73 works specifically selected by Parks for the photographic collection of the Los Angeles-based Capital Group, Bare Witness divulges heart wrenching images, iconic moments, celebrities and slices of everyday life.

Born in 1912 in Fort Scott, Kansas, Parks, who died in 2006 at age 93, was an African American photographer who began working professionally in the 1930′s. Parks tackled the harsh truth and dignity of the black urban and rural poor in the United States.

He photographed aspects of the Civil Rights movements and individuals associated with the Black Panthers and Black Muslims. For nearly 25 years, from 1948 to 1972, he served as staff photographer for Life magazine. He also established himself as a foremost fashion photographer, providing spreads for respected magazines such as Vogue. Bare Witness features many of Park’s most memorable images such as “American Gothic.”