Gordon Parks photographed a handful of images outside the Marcus Garvey club, but this shot is the only one that shows details of the actual space. In the window display, one can see articles, full publications, and a prayer for the president. Most prominent, however, is the portrait of Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican-born political leader, publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, orator and creator of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League. As the head of the UNIA-ACL, he encouraged people of African origin to return to their homelands to redeem the countries by removing all Euro-centric white influence. While not all black leaders at the time agreed with him, his speeches and writings influenced many future leaders, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Marcus Garvey passed away in 1940, but his influence was still felt in Harlem in 1943, when Parks made this image. Earlier that year, on assignment for the Office of War Information, Harlem had captured Parks' heart, so much so that he moved to the neighborhood in 1947. Parks' 1948 photo story on a Harlem gang leader is what earned him a job at LIFE Magazine, where he would go on to produce some of his best-known work.
+ Limited-edition, exclusive to 20x200
+ Museum quality: archival inks, 100% cotton rag paper unless noted
+ Handcrafted custom-framing is available
Our quoted dimensions are for the size of paper containing the images, not the printed image itself. We do not alter the aspect ratio, nor do we crop or resize the artists’ originals. All of our prints have a minimum border of .5 inches to allow for framing.
Medium:
Innova Fibaprint Warm Cotton Gloss
Edition Structure:
8"x8" | edition of 20
11"x11" | edition of 250
16"x16" | edition of 50
20"x20" | edition of 10
