The Criminal Type
My wall of Freedom Rider mugshots and portraits at the “Criminal Type,” a show curated by Elizabeth Breiner and now up thru late October at ApexArt in lower Manhattan.
At the top, the first 240 Riders arrested in Jackson, MS, in chronological order (by group). At the bottom, 120 profiles selected and arranged by me. In between, five portraits and bios from my book.
I loved making all of this, but at the moment I’m very partial to the profile mural. Shorn of their partners, the profiles turn out to be unexpected and surprisingly tender portraits. Freed of their police ID slates but unable to make a face for the camera, the Riders must offer themselves up undefended. The camera records portraits in curl, sideburn, and jawline, the cock of the head, the squaring of shoulders.
Amassed, all moving in the same direction, the Riders are a movement, they are *the* movement, they are a portrait of the movement, they are a portrait of America in 1961.
