Photographing rodeos, parades, pageants and everyday life in Texas and the American South, Rahim Fortune's images of champion cowboys and rodeo queens celebrate Black American history, traditions, pride and resilience.
Watch as Fortune unpacks the stories behind the striking images in his series 'Hardtack', shot exclusively in black and white. Hear about his inspiration from the historic American documentary photographers Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans and Russell Lee, who, while working for the US government, captured southern life throughout the Great Depression and early 20th century.
00:00 Introducing photographer and educator Rahim Fortune
00:05 Photo series 'Hardtack'
00:22 'Stampede Queen' and capturing the joy of pageants and parades
01:11 Early interest in photography
01:34 'Praying Cowboy' and pride through clothing
01:55 Symbolism of the cowboy hat for Black Texans
02:16 Family albums and newspaper photos
02:32 Connecting to the history of American photography
02:56 Buffalo soldiers and what 'Hardtack' represents
Find out more about Fortune's photographs: collections.vam.ac.uk/search/...
‘Hardtack’ is published by Loose Joints: loosejoints.biz/
Explore more photography in our collection:
www.vam.ac.uk/collections/pho...
19 июн 2024
