Period 2 - Critical Analysis No. 6

2/11/2022

Today you will be writing about this image made by artist and photojournalist Gordon Parks. This image is from a series Parks completed for Life Magazine. Life sent Parks to Alabama in 1956 to document 3 black families during one of the most turbulent times in American history. The project was meant to show how ordinary black families truly lived in the Deep South during 1956, and the images would serve to counter the misinformation spread that a racially segregated society was good for everyone.

Write 4 paragraphs, 5 sentences minimum per paragraph. Remember to post your analysis as a comment to the blog post that corresponds to your class. If you post your analysis to the wrong class's post, it will not be graded.

Remember, refer to your "How to See" handout for analyzing a photograph--

Describe specifics.
Describe form.
Describe the content.
Evaluate the image.

Your analyses will be graded on:

meeting minimum length requirements
depth of organization
evaluation of the content
grammar/punctuation

Georgia Martinez

2/11/2022 07:09:40 am

This photo depicts a family outside of a convenience store. The dad is helping one of his daughters drink from the colored only water fountain. His other two daughters are gathered around him and there are two other ladies, maybe his wife and eldest daughter, waiting for the fountain too. Right next to the colored only fountain, there is a white only fountain that none of them are going near, even if they want water. On the convenience store window there are ads for different ice cream and drinks. They are wearing very traditional 50’s clothing, jewelry, and hairstyles. The picture is pretty well lit from the sun and there are plenty of everyday bright colors captured in the image.
The image frames all of the people in front of a square window, but it is a little off-center. The main focal point of the image is the fountain that reads “White Only” in bold lettering. The viewer’s eye is then drawn to the other fountain with the father and his daughters and then around to the rest of the image. Within each third of the image there is another focus. On the leftmost third is the father and his daughters, the middle third is the white only fountain, and the rightmost third is the two women.
The photographer seems to be trying to display what life was like for a black American family during the 50s. Heavy segregation was a huge part of life back then, and for the most part they just had to accept it and wait for the colored fountain, even though the other one was wide open. It shows how there was no room to question how life was, it simply just was, and as awful as life was for them, they did not have a choice in what fountains or seats or schools they used. This shot was clearly taken candidly. It was not staged, so it shows a more accurate perspective on their life.
I do like this photo, I think it was trying to spread awareness for a good cause and did it in an artistic way. People often understand a picture better than words, and this picture is saying a lot. I think it is a very successful image in trying to get the point across and inform others on how life is for colored people in the South during this time.

Brooke Kapoor

2/11/2022 07:10:51 am

My first glance at this picture seemed bright and happy. However, a closer look at this photo and you see the 'white only' and 'colored only' water fountains. This photo makes me almost feel sick to see a beautiful family with beautiful children so alienated.
This photo was obviously taken during the 1950's most likely in the south. Although the light is bright and happy looking, there's a deeper issue going on in this photo. This is how black and colored people lived and it makes me so upset.
As far as the dynamics in this photo, the light is airy and bright. There colors are very vibrant and variant. The fashion is very "south like" with the long colorful dresses and skirts on the ladies and the nice shirt and khaki pants. The photo is natural and level, not anything that appears to be eerie or scary. The photo has a very vintage feel and is a little faded, which adds to the historical context.
The rule of thirds is kind of used here. There is more action on the left and less action towards the right. When I looked at the photo my eye is automatically drawn to the banana split poster on the store. This is why I thought this would be a happier picture.
Again, this photo although seemingly happy and light, is actually very sad for many people. It really tugs at my heart strings and honestly, when you know what this photo is about, it is hard to look at it.
I think the photographer definitely succeeded at conveying a time in history where equality was non existent. This photo is not unpleasant to look at, if you don't know or are not able to reason the back story.

kendrick De Luna

2/11/2022 07:14:38 am

this image has a messages. as a father helps his daughter get water from a colored fountain. the picture is clear it was at the time when whites and blacks couldn't do anything together.
The picture colors really show how the black water fountain wasn't as clean as the whites. the picture I feel like was taken at the best time because you see a whole family together and having to drink and be "different" from what's " normal".
I noticed the little girls don't have shoes on in the picture. the way people dressed back then is totally different on how we dress now. this picture also makes me wonder what else did this family have to go through in this time? also what is ice milk?

Alexis Block

2/11/2022 07:15:26 am

This photo has many colors in it, but the colors look more saturated to look like a photo taken in the 80’s. The colors aren't as bright and you can't see every different color because of the effect that is needed to make it look like it's from the 80’s. The lighting in the image also takes place in the daytime and so there are different shadows that are created from the sun. The objects that are included in the photo is a family that is showing all of the racism in that time period. There are two different fountains a white and colored fountain. This image is meant to show the racism and how these normally families who do nothing wrong are treated differently because of the color of their skin.
The composition functions in this image is pleasing to look at, how the image has good colors shown and it correctly represents that period in time. This image opens up people's eyes on how colored people were treated in this time period even in the water that they drink. This photo does not use the rule of thirds because all of the image is filled with space; there is only empty space at the very top of the image. The point of view of the image is eye level, it is trying to take in the full family and to show them from a point of view that we as people would see them if we walked past them. The focal point of the image is the family and how they are like any normal family, where they have family outings and hang out as a family. People look at them as different when they are really just normal people with a normal life, they shouldn't be treated differently for the color of their skin. The lines bring you to the family and directly to the whites only sign on the water fountain. There is a space left between the family to show the direct line of that sign. I would say the image is pretty balanced and shows the full picture without missing important parts that the artist is trying to portray. The edge of the image is taken where the family cuts off and the top is cut off at the top of the building. The negative space of the image is on the top of the photo and there is nothing important about the fan and top of the building.
The theme and idea of the image is to correctly portray the racism in America during the 70’s and 80’s. This is correctly portrayed by showing the two different fountipmnd for either colored or white people. The story being told is to show everyone's the same and we shouldn't be treated differently because of the color of our skin. This image reminds me of many movies that were filmed to poetry how the colored people of that time were treated. This is shown to show others who were not directly given an inconvenience because of the color of their skin. This image is meant to challenge some people's ethical and political views because it portrays a topic that is very stressful for people because many have been affected by this racism with their family.
I like this image because it is trying to show others and even me, what people of this time had to go through to just live. Some people aren't as fortunate to just have the luxury of walking around and not being stared at because of the color of their skin or the way they look. This image is meant to show the racism through how they had to drink out of different water fountains also. Which is something so silly to make different things over, because we all drink the same water. I would like this photo to successfully represent this topic and show others how we are all equal and should be shown as equal.

Owen Alvares

2/11/2022 07:19:47 am

The picture appears to be the outside of a ice cream shop. The ice cream shop has 2 water fountains one says “WHITE ONLY” and the other says “COLORED ONLY”. The picture is about the segregation in the 1950’s. The text that came along with the picture says there are 3 black families, however there are 2 adult woman and 1 adult man with 4 kids around the man. There are no other people in the picture.

The picture itself look very real the detail seems very real. The reflection of the glass on the frozen milk shop shows some human figures and what looks like a car. The picture doesn’t even seem to be set up for picture. The camera is slightly tilted to the left.

Using the rule of thirds the two woman follow the left lateral line the ice cream shop sign follows the top line there’s a metal bar at the bottom the follows the very bottom the man is in the right line. The people are drinking from the colored fountain only. The clothes they are wearing looks like used clothing or hand made.

There are a lot of small detail on the picture because it’s the real thing. The image was made to display the racism happening. The picture does a good job at looking into the subject this piece of picture.

Kaleb Yu

2/11/2022 07:26:19 am

The photo takes place outside of an ice cream store of sorts. Segration was a big deal at the time of the photo, which is made evident by the "blacks only" and "whites only" water fountains out on the sidewalk. The colors are pretty vibrant, which is reflected in the greens and whites on the subjects' clothes as well as the flashy advertisements for the various ice cream flavors. The image is of an African American girl drinking from a segregated water fountain. It also makes me feel hot, like it's 12:00 PM in the middle of July.

The exposure isn't too drastic. It highlights the subjects, the environment, and captures the natural lighting perfectly. Using the rule of thirds, it draws my attention to the African American family on the left and the pedestrians on the right. It even draws me towards to the "whites only" water fountain because there's literally no one there to block its view.

The theme of this image (in my opinion at least) is segregation. As mentioned, countless times before, it's made obvious by the segregated water fountains. The intent is to most likely document segregation at the time. The photo was for a magazine showing the everyday life of African American families at the time. I think it's a good image to evaluate even today because it brings to our attention of what African Americans had to deal with in such hard times.

Overall, I kind of like the image. I like the vibrant colors, as well as the emotions and immersion that the image puts me in. It's a good image to evaluate the extent to which segregation affected African American families. Also, if I'm being honest, I just like old photos because of how static it is. Rather than using photography as a means of art like most cases today, these photos just immortalize the moment.

Ethan Green

2/11/2022 07:33:34 am

The picture shows the setting which is during the inequality of the usa in the middle 1900's. You can see the signs saying white only and how it is not equal in this time. you can see how people portray each other with the different water stations. they treat them almost like they are animals compared to them.
the form of the picture is that you can see the rule of thirds lines embedded into the picture. the different signs all line up with the pipe and the people's heads. it all looks like a tic tac toe board. the rule of thirds is prevalent through this picture, and it is important in this setting.
the content of the image is that it was made a long time ago. It depicted how America has changed overtime and what we have done in the past.
the image in the end is kind of interesting. the concept is showing how inequality is stopping and the world is becoming a better place. it is slowly becoming better but it is still in the world. i like the image a lot and i would rate it a 9/10

Will clanton

2/15/2022 06:28:13 pm

Comments are closed.

Period 2 - Critical Analysis No. 6

Analyze

Archives

Categories

Home