Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Gordon Parks

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.parks64
Creators:
Parks, Gordon, 1912-2006
Doud, Richard Keith
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project
Dates:
1964 Dec. 30
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
19 Pages
Transcript
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
An interview of Gordon Parks conducted 1964 Dec. 30, by Richard Doud, for the Archives of American Art, in New York, N.Y.
Scope and Contents
Parks speaks of his background; his early interest in photography; influences on him; his early career as a fashion photographer; joining the Farm Security Administration; his early impressions of the FSA; Roy Stryker's influence and guidance; how being Black and the experience of racism influenced his ability to relate to his subjects; memorable people he met during the FSA years; his post-FSA career, including his novels and his work for LIFE; and his opinions about the FSA's impact on people and on photography.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Gordon Parks (1912-2006) was a filmmaker, author, photographer, and composer from New York, N.Y.

Administration

Sponsor
Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This interview conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.

Digital Content


Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.

More Information

General

General
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 1 min.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Art and race Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Documentary photography Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photography Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
African American artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
African American photographers Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Filmmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Composers -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Stryker, Roy Emerson, 1893-1975 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
United States. Farm Security Administration Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Archives of American Art
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