Roy DeCarava, 1919 – 2009, left behind a treasure trove of black and white images spanning over 6 decades. He captured images of the famous of the day, Paul Robson, John Coltrane, however, his pictures were usually of the regular inhabitants of Harlem and their everyday life. DeCarava said that “black people in America were not viewed as worthy subject matter” for art but rather were usually “portrayed either in a superficial or a caricatured way or as a problem.” … he wanted to achieve “a creative expression,” not a “documentary or sociological statement.”
Harlem born DeCarava encouraged and influenced the work of many black photographers over the years. He was the first African American to win the Guggenheim Fellowship in 1952 and was awarded a National Medal of Arts in 2006. He collaborated with poet Langston Hughes, another Harlem native, for the acclaimed book, “The Sweet Flypaper of Life” in 1955.
(Image: “Man Coming Up the Stairs”, 1952)
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