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Ebony
Photo: Toni Frissell John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
Photo: Toni Frissell John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
Ebony
Couturier | 2016
The gown Jacqueline Bouvier wore when she married John F. Kennedy in 1953 is said to be the most photographed wedding dress in American history. Yet only one newspaper mentioned the designer by name. The Washington Post's fashion editor, Nina Hyde wrote, “… the dress was designed by a Negro, Ann Lowe.”
Couturier explores the life and legacy of Ann Lowe. Learn how a black woman from rural Alabama impacted the lives of the most elite families in America and why despite many her contributions to the fashion industry she was not wealthy or particularly well known outside of exclusive circles.
Photo: Gordon Parks Library of Congress
Photo: Gordon Parks Library of Congress
Photo: Gordon Parks Library of Congress
Photo: Gordon Parks Library of Congress
American Gothic 2.0 | 2016
The photo American Gothic Washington DC was taken by Gordon Parks in 1942. The woman in the photo was Ella Watson, a black charwoman who mopped floors in the Farm Security Administration building. Parks chronicled the lives of Ms. Watson and her family for a month resulting in a prolific series of photos capturing the poverty and discrimination African Americans faced. Roy Stryker, Parks’ boss at the FSA said the photo of Ms. Watson was an indictment of America. Living in the shadow of the nation’s capitol Ms. Watson and her family experienced racism, poverty and discrimination.
American Gothic 2.0 takes viewers on a journey to locate Ms. Watson’s descendants. After more than 70 years have the Watsons realized the “American Dream” or has her family been trapped in the cycle of generational poverty?