ECU Libraries Catalog

O.N. Pruitt's Possum Town : photographing trouble & resilience in the American South / Berkley Hudson.

Author/creator Hudson, Fraser Berkley
Format Electronic and Book
Publication InfoChapel Hill : The University of North Carolina Press ; [Durham, North Carolina] : Published in association with the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University, [2022]
Descriptionxviii, 244 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 26 cm
Supplemental Content Full text available from Oxford UNC Press Titles
Subject(s)
Series Documentary arts and culture
Documentary arts and culture.
Abstract "Photographer O.N. Pruitt (1891-1967) was for some forty years the de facto documentarian of Lowndes County, Mississippi, and its county seat, Columbus--known to locals as 'Possum Town.' His body of work recalls many FSA photographers, but Pruitt was not an outsider with an agenda; he was a community member with intimate knowledge of the town and its residents. Columbus native Berkley Hudson was photographed by Pruitt, and for more than three decades he has considered and curated Pruitt's expansive archive, both as a scholar of media and visual journalism and as a community member. This stunning book presents Pruitt's photography as never before, combining more than 150 images with a biographical introduction and Hudson's short essays and reflective captions on subjects such as religion, ethnic identity, the ordinary graces of everyday life, and the exercise of brutal power"-- Provided by publisher.
Abstract "Photographer O.N. Pruitt (1891-1967) was for some forty years the de facto documentarian of Lowndes County, Mississippi, and its county seat, Columbus--known to locals as 'Possum Town.' His body of work recalls many FSA photographers, but Pruitt was not an outsider with an agenda; he was a community member with intimate knowledge of the town and its residents. He photographed his fellow White citizens and Black ones as well, in circumstances ranging from the mundane to the horrific: family picnics, parades, river baptisms, carnivals, fires, funerals, two of Mississippi's last public and legal executions by hanging, and most grimly, a lynching. From formal portraits to candid images of events in the moment, Pruitt's documentary of a specific yet representative southern town offers viewers today an invitation to meditate on the vexing interrelations of photography, community, race, and historical memory. Columbus native Berkley Hudson was photographed by Pruitt, and for more than three decades he has considered and curated Pruitt's expansive archive, both as a scholar of media and visual journalism and as a community member. This stunning book presents Pruitt's photography as never before, combining more than 150 images with a biographical introduction and Hudson's short essays and reflective captions on subjects such as religion and racial violence, small-town work-life and entertainment, and the idea of visual legacy as linked to historical memory"-- Provided by publisher.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references (pages 218-222) and index.
Access restrictionAvailable only to authorized users.
Technical detailsMode of access: World Wide Web
Genre/formElectronic books.
LCCN 2021038334
ISBN9781469662701 (cloth ; alk. paper)
ISBN(ebook)

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