Gordon Parks made a name for himself many times throughout his long and eventful life (1912-2006), whether it was as a photographer, director, author, poet, or composer. As one of the first black American filmmakers to direct a Hollywood movie, Parks helped create the “blaxploitation” genre with films like “Shaft” and “Shaft’s Big Score”. This and his photojournalistic work for Life magazine, as well as his iconic photography of poor Americans in the 1940s, cemented his name into American history as one of its important figures.
Photographer Kristofer Dan-Bergman had a rare opportunity to meet Parks in his last few years and four of the photographs taken during this interaction were recently shown in Raleigh, NC. The exhibition was titled “Living in Color” and lasted for two weeks!
