What's On

Featuring nearly 170 unforgettable images by more than thirty-five photographers, Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956–1968 tracks a crucial episode in American social and political history. Poignant and deeply affecting, the photographs in this exhibition portray historical turning points such as the Montgomery bus boycott (1956), the Freedom Rides to the Deep South (1961), the March on Washington (1963), the Selma-to-Montgomery march (1965), the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. (1968), and the Poor People\\\'s Campaign (1968). Some of the photographs have never been displayed to the public. On view are images by recognized names such as Bob Adelman, Morton Broffman, Bruce Davidson, Doris Derby, Larry Fink, James Karales, Danny Lyon, Builder Levy, and Steve Schapiro, as well as by press photographers and amateurs. Visitors will have the opportunity to experience the power of these images firsthand and learn more about the photographs\\\' pivotal role in shaping public opinion, promoting solidarity, and raising awareness of injustice.

The photographs are complemented by sound recordings of music and speeches, artifacts, and other archival materials that provide historical context. The Skirball has added a new section to the exhibition that documents the struggle for civil rights here in Los Angeles; among the local events portrayed are the picketing of the Kress Store in Pasadena (1960) and the Watts Riots (1965). The exhibition also includes a documentary film, produced especially for the Skirball\\\'s presentation of Road to Freedom, that illuminates the unified efforts of the Jewish and African American communities to achieve justice for all during the Civil Rights movement.

Read the press release about this exhibition.
 

MEDIA SPONSORS:

IMAGES (top to bottom):

Morton Broffman (American, 1928–1992), Dr. King and Coretta Scott King Leading Marchers, Montgomery, Alabama (detail), 1965, gelatin silver print. High Museum of Art, Atlanta. Gift of the Broffman Family, 2007.34 © Morton Broffman

Bob Adelman (American, b. 1930), Kelly Ingram Park, Birmingham (detail), 1963, gelatin silver print. High Museum of Art, Atlanta. Purchase with funds from Dr. Henrie M. Treadwell, 2007.172 © Bob Adelman

Leonard Freed (American, 1929–2006), Woman Kneeling with Sign during Demonstration, 1963, gelatin silver print. High Museum of Art, Atlanta. Purchase, 2005.309 © Leonard Freed/Magnum Photos

Danny Lyon (American, b. 1942), Taylor Washington Arrested at Leb\\\'s Delicatessen, Atlanta, 1964. Gelatin Silver print. High Museum of Art, Atlanta. Purchase with funds from the H.B. and Doris Massey Charitable Trust and Lucinda W. Bunnen for the Bunnen Collection, 1994.66 © Danny Lyon/Magnum Photos.

RELATED EXHIBITIONS:

• Breach of Peace: Photographs of Freedom Riders by Eric Etheridge


• An Idea Called Tomorrow - 2

AROUND THE CITY:

Delve deeper into the topics of race, culture, and civil rights by exploring related exhibitions at institutions around the city:

• After 1968: Contemporary Artists and the Civil Rights Legacy and An Idea Called Tomorrow – 1, on view at the California African American Museum


• America I Am: The African American Imprint and Race: Are We So Different?, on view at the California Science Center