'We weren't Jewish (we were concerned photographers)': the Photo-League's archive of black lives in New York

The documentation of black lives by the New York Photo League (1936-1951) accumulated into a veritable archive. On one side of the lens were Jewish photographers who had replaced their traditional identity with a leftist, secular and modern one. On the other was a vibrant black community living main...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJewish culture and history Vol. 20; no. 4; pp. 359 - 381
Main Author Gil-Glazer, Ya'ara
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Routledge 02.10.2019
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Archives & records
black Harlem
Black people
documentary photography
Documentation
Identity
Leadership
Left wing politics
New York Photo League
Photography
Schools
Secularism
Teachers
New York
United States > US
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Summary:The documentation of black lives by the New York Photo League (1936-1951) accumulated into a veritable archive. On one side of the lens were Jewish photographers who had replaced their traditional identity with a leftist, secular and modern one. On the other was a vibrant black community living mainly in Harlem, whose cultural leaders promoted the idea of the New Negro. This article discusses and compares representations of blacks by two distinct ideological-stylistic sub-schools within the League, led by Jewish teachers Sid Grossman and Aaron Siskind, with particular emphasis on the political, ethical and aesthetic aspects of images produced.
ISSN:1462-169X
2167-9428
DOI:10.1080/1462169X.2019.1662626