John Edwin Mason: Documentary, Motorsports, Photo History

Gordon Parks, Ella Watson, a Boy, a Bugle, and the American Flag

Pictures are complicated. So is being black in America. Throughout his life, Gordon Parks wrestled with both of these enduring truths. At first glance, Gordon Parks' most famous photo -- his portrait of Ella Watson -- looks pretty simple. Gordon Parks/Farm Security Administration: Government Charwoman (Ella Watson). Washington, D.C., August... Read more →

Marion Post Wolcott in a Mississippi Juke Joint (and on Sale at the 20x200 Gallery)

When Jen Bekman asks you to write an essay about one of your favorite photographers, the only correct answer is "Yes." Jen is the CEO of 20x200, an online gallery that she created with a mission to make great art affordable for almost everyone. It's a terrific project. Last summer,... Read more →

Happy New Year, 2015

Happy New Year, everyone! Marjory Collins/Office of War Information: New York, New York. Blowing horns on Bleeker Street on New Year's Day. January 1943. We're celebrating, today, with Marjory Collins, who worked for Roy Stryker's now legendary Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information [FSA/OWI] documentary project during World War II.... Read more →

Affrilachians: The FSA Photography of Ben Shahn & Marion Post Wolcott

I'm not an Affrilachian, but I'd award myself the title if I could. My credentials look pretty good. I've spent most of my adult life on the fringes of Appalachia, in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Charlottesville, Virginia. I've got deep roots, on my mother's side, in Clifton Forge, Virginia, which is... Read more →

Happy New Year (1943)

Happy New Year, everyone! Let hope that all of our 2014's will be everything we want them to be. Marjory Collins: New York, New York. Blowing horns on Bleeker Street on New Year's Day, 1943. [Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives. Click on the image for a larger... Read more →

Merry Christmas (1938)

Merry Christmas, folks, from Marion Post Wolcott and me. I hope that your holidays have been (and will be) filled with joy. You're probably wondering what this photo has to do with Christmas. Not much, honestly, besides the fact that Wolcott, one of my favorite photographers*, made it on Christmas... Read more →

Funky Friday & Convergences 7, Together Again for the First Time: Margaret Bourke-White, Marion Post Wolcott & Louis Jordan

Funky Fridays make me happy. It's a chance to show off music (and other funky stuff) that puts a glide in my stride and a dip in my hip. (By the way, if you're here for the tunes, skip all my talking and scroll down to the videos.) Convergences make... Read more →