Fields of Vision: The Photographs of Gordon Parks by Gordon Parks


Fields of Vision: The Photographs of Gordon Parks
Title : Fields of Vision: The Photographs of Gordon Parks
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 1904832873
ISBN-10 : 9781904832874
Format Type : Kindle , Hardcover , Paperback , Audiobook & More
Number of Pages : 64
Publication : First published January 1, 2011

Following on from the publication of the first six books featuring The Library of Congress’ internationally renowned collection of Farm Security Administration (FSA) and Office of War Information (OWI) photographs, the series continues with images chosen from the works of Gordon Parks. Born in 1912 in Fort Scott, Kansas, the youngest of fifteen children in a poor tenant-farming family, Parks was working odd jobs in Minnesota when he saw the work of FSA photographers in a magazine and was inspired to buy a camera. His early pictures landed him a position as Roy Stryker’s apprentice in 1942. Among his extraordinary FSA photos is “American Gothic,” which shows charwoman Ella Watson posed with mop and broom against an American flag. After the FSA, Parks worked at Life magazine. He also became a respected writer and film director. He died in 2006.

Fields of Vision: The Photographs of Gordon Parks Reviews

  • Yaaresse

    Another of the Library of Congress' Field of Vision series, this one is one of the best so far. What's amazing is to look at these photos knowing that Mr. Parks was a self-taught photographer who bought his first camera only shortly before joining the FSA project. Again, the shortcoming of this series is that it tells nothing about the photographers.

    Most of these photos were shot in DC, Massachusetts, and New York. Interesting to see how he played with depth and angles even then, long before he got behind a movie camera.

    Has anyone ever made a movie of Gordon Parks life? It would be a goldmine of fascination. I knew him for the movie Shaft and as co-founder of Essence magazine, but, according to Wiki he was also a poet, author, composer, painter, and more. From a homeless teenager working in brothels and flophouses to being a movie producer and BFFs (with benefits, or so it is rumored) with Gloria Vanderbilt must have been a long, colorful road.

  • Cora

    I really liked learning more about Gordon Parks. This book presented images that Parks took when he worked for Farm Security Administration and Office of War. They were great photographs that captured the everyday lives of people of all backgrounds during the early 1940s. I would have liked to see the images a little larger. The book is a small paperback (about 8 X 8 inches), but I do appreciate the affordable price that the size probably enabled. I also would have liked to see more of Parks works across the years in a book with this title. I understand that the Library of Congress published this book with the pictures from its collection, but it would have been nice if the book title reflected that the images were from this relatively short time in Park's long career.