Gordon Parks: Voices in the Mirror

Jack Shainman Gallery presents Voices in the Mirror, a significant exhibition that returns to the photographs of Gordon Parks through the memories and reflections of the people and families who stood in front of his camera. Bringing together photographs, firsthand accounts, and personal recollections, the exhibition offers a new way of looking at some of Parks’ most enduring images—this time through the voices of those who lived them.

Marking the 20th anniversary of The Gordon Parks Foundation, Voices in the Mirror takes its title from Parks’ final memoir, published in 1990. More than a retrospective of familiar photographs, the exhibition explores the relationships Parks developed with his subjects and the trust that shaped his approach to documenting Black life in America. His photographs chronicled segregation, racial injustice, political activism, and the struggle for equality, while also celebrating resilience, dignity, and Black excellence.

For the first time, members of families connected to some of Parks’ most recognizable subjects reflect directly on the photographs. Their testimonies bring new layers of meaning to images that have been studied for decades, revealing memories, emotions, and details that cannot be found through conventional historical analysis alone.

Among the contributors are Kathleen Cleaver, photographed with Eldridge Cleaver in Algeria in 1970; Kate Clark Harris, whose parents, psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark, were documented by Parks during their pioneering doll tests; Kyle Johnson, connected to Parks’ 1969 film The Learning Tree; and Cora Taylor, photographed during Parks’ landmark 1956 documentation of segregation in Alabama.

The exhibition also includes reflections from Lonnie Ali, widow of Muhammad Ali; Qubilah Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X; Anderson Cooper, son of Gloria Vanderbilt; and Isabella Rossellini, daughter of Ingrid Bergman. Writers, artists, filmmakers, scholars, and civil rights figures—including Ava DuVernay, Bryan Stevenson, Alice Walker, Rebecca Walker, Thelma Golden, Deborah Willis, Hank Willis Thomas, and Ambassador Andrew Young—further expand the conversation around Parks’ work and influence.

Several of the photographs take on particular force when viewed alongside these personal accounts. In Doll Test, Harlem, New York (1947), Parks photographed a young Black boy participating in the experiments conducted by Kenneth and Mamie Clark, which demonstrated the psychological impact of segregation on Black children. Their daughter, Kate Clark Harris, remembers the experience and Parks’ ability to move beyond appearances. For her, his photographs conveyed not simply what was happening, but the feelings beneath the surface.

That sensitivity is equally evident in Parks’ 1956 photographs of Alabama under Jim Crow. Assigned by Life magazine, Parks chose to focus not only on political leaders or major events but on ordinary people navigating the daily realities of segregation. In At Segregated Drinking Fountain, Mobile, Alabama (1956), he photographed a young girl being helped to a “colored only” water fountain. Cora Taylor, one of the women present, later recalled seeing the image published in Life and the disbelief of recognizing herself and her community in a national magazine.

Parks’ 1970 portrait of Black Panther leader Eldridge Cleaver and his wife, Kathleen, in Algiers offers another intimate example. Kathleen Cleaver’s recollection emphasizes the extraordinary power of photography to transform an otherwise private, distant moment into an enduring historical record. Parks isolated what mattered, creating an image that has outlived the circumstances in which it was made.

Alongside these testimonies are memories from people who knew and worked with Parks, offering insight into both his professional methods and his character. Among them is filmmaker Ava DuVernay, who worked as a publicist for Parks’ 2000 documentary Half Past Autumn. Her observation captures the distinctive quality of his vision: Parks did not simply photograph Black life—he recognized and revealed its inherent elegance.

Voices in the Mirror ultimately asks viewers to reconsider what it means to look at a historic photograph. These are not distant images belonging solely to the archives. They are photographs connected to families, memories, political struggles, and lived experience. By allowing those voices to enter the frame, the exhibition extends Gordon Parks’ legacy into the present and reminds us why his photographs continue to matter.

About The Gordon Parks Foundation

The Gordon Parks Foundation supports and produces artistic and educational initiatives that advance the legacy and vision of Gordon Parks—recognized as the most significant American photographer of the 20th century, as well as a writer, musician and filmmaker, who used the arts to further “the common search for a better life and a better world.” The Foundation was co-founded in 2006 by Parks with his longtime friend and editor at Life magazine, Philip B. Kunhardt, Jr., to preserve his creative work and support the next generation of artists advancing social justice.

Through exhibitions, publications and public programs, organized in collaboration with institutions internationally and at its exhibition space in Pleasantville, New York, the Foundation provides access to and supports understanding of, the work and contributions of Gordon Parks for artists, scholars, students and the public. The Foundation's archive houses Gordon Parks's photographs, negatives, contact sheets, publications and a selection of ephemera related to his work in photography, film, music and writing. The archive also includes collections by related artists.

Drawing inspiration from the pivotal role of a fellowship Parks received early in his career, the Foundation’s educational and grant-making initiatives are core to its mission and year-round activities. Through fellowships, prizes and scholarships, the Foundation provides vital support to artists, writers and students—current and future generations of creatives whose work continues his legacy. These initiatives are made possible through The Gordon Parks Arts and Social Justice Fund, established by the Foundation in 2019.