P.H. Polk

P.H. Polk was a photographer who career spanned what was without a doubt one of the most significant and turbulent periods of African American history. He was the first photography student at the Tuskegee Institute in 1917, and except for a year long stint in Atlanta in 1938, he remained the school's official photographer from 1939 until his death in 1984. During that time he documented the life and work of George Washington Carver, rural life in the South, the Civil Rights movement - including MLK Jr. and Malcolm X - and beyond. There's an exhibition of his work opening at the Beach Institute (502 E. Harris St. SAV) this week. His portrait work is phenomenal - he shot on an 8x10 Century. Here are two stunning examples of his portraits of farmers from the 1930s.