A glimpse at Barkley L. Hendricks' unseen photography archive
A new show at Jack Shainman Gallery reveals the revered painter's lesser-known creative explorations.
Best known for his iconic paintings of Black figures, Barkley L. Hendricks was also a prolific photographer, something celebrated in the new show Myself When I Am Real at New York’s Jack Shainman Gallery. Having received his first camera in the mid-60s, Barkley studied under photojournalist Walker Evans at Yale, an experience that affirmed for him the value of documentary photography. “Just him being a Black photographer and shooting his everyday life — that’s radical,” remarks Elisabeth Sann, director at the gallery.