Angola, Louisiana 31 - 1999

This photograph titled 'Angola, Louisiana' was made by Deborah Luster. It's got this old-timey feel, like a daguerreotype from the Wild West but it's not. It’s a portrait of a man, he’s wearing a cowboy hat and boots, leaning back, hands in the pockets of his jeans. He is captured against a dark backdrop. I can't help but think about the place named in the title, Angola. It’s a prison in Louisiana, the largest maximum-security prison in the US. I imagine Luster, camera in hand, stepping into that space. What must it have been like to be her, capturing these individuals, making a record of them? This portrait reminds us of the power of photography to preserve a moment, to tell a story, and to give a face to the often unseen. It's a quiet but resonant piece, inviting us to contemplate the lives and stories contained within its frame.