Daytona Beach, Florida. Bethune-Cookman College. Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune, founder and former president and director of the NYA (National Youth Administration) Negro Relations after 1943

This gelatin silver print, *Daytona Beach, Florida. Bethune-Cookman College. Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune, founder and former president and director of the NYA (National Youth Administration) Negro Relations*, was made by Gordon Parks. Imagine Parks composing the shot, deciding to include all those pictures on the wall behind Dr. Bethune. What were they talking about? Was he rearranging things in the room, thinking about lines and composition? I love how the pictures become a kind of chorus line of faces behind her; she’s surrounded by a community of peers, predecessors, and those she’s watching over. Parks includes so many details, the glasses in her hand, the telephone, the flowers. It's an intimate image, full of respect and admiration. Photographers and painters are always in conversation – each figuring out how to see and show the world in their own way. Parks's image resonates because it is also more than a literal picture. It is a study in light and dark, interior and exterior, public and private. The photograph embodies the essence of the place, the woman, and her impact.