Archive of 18 Silver Gelatin Photos of Young Black Life in 1970s America
Photo Archive
Archive of 18 silver gelatin vernacular photos of life among young, black Americans c. 1970s. Black and white photos show young African Americans dressed in well-tailored suits, coats and 70s bellbottoms holding poses in what appear to be academic or professional settings. In one a woman with close-cropped hair in a wool pea coat and shoulder bag stands silhouetted, starin ginto the distance, the bust of an unknown monument behind her so it hangs just above her head, bare winter branches on trees in the background. In another, a man with Afro and mustache stands posed before what appears to be an office park. Wearing an immaculate suit, the square toe of one shoe just visible, and a 70s style trench coat with wide fur collar, he rests on hand on his hip, staring confidently into the camera. One photo of 9 subjects shows the group arranging itself for a posed photo, one woman directing where they stand, another laughing and looking off camera, each one's face dynamic and each subject doing something different. Another photo shows a young couple, the woman's long curls visible beneath her wool cap and her arms filled with notebooks. The 1970s were a decade of milestones for African Americans in politics, the workplace, pop culture and sports. Black joy is a phrase used by historians to highlight the positive aspects of Black history separate from its suffering. Representations of African Americans living lives at once ordinary and inspired, both deeply personal and universal, is an integral piece of any American history archive. "expressions and acts of black joy are often encouraged as a way for Black people to fully be themselves and form a sense of community as a response to systems that devalue them and stifle their self-expression. In this way, engaging in and sharing experiences of black joy are seen not as ways of ignoring oppression but as acts of resistance against it." (dictionary) The photos are artistically shot and beautifully developed. An uplifting collection documenting young black life in 1970s America.Item #18081
Price: $250.00
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