Photography

Ella Watson

Ella Watson (March 27/29, 1883 – April 3, 1980) was an American janitor and charwoman who was famously the subject of Gordon Parks' photographic series including American Gothic in 1942, among at least 90 other photographs. According to the Gordon Parks Foundation, "Parks asked if he could take Watson's picture. She agreed, and for four months gave him access to her home and her community. The resulting photographs were a breakthrough in Parks' career." In 2024, the Minneapolis Institute of Art exhibited 60 of the photographs.

Also on this shelf

See also

• ▸Afocal photography
• ▸Jake Lloyd-Jones
• ▸Elstree

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