Clarence Henderson, "Lil' Daddy," Angola, Louisiana 17 - 1999

Deborah Luster’s “Lil’ Daddy” is a striking portrait of Clarence Henderson, taken in 1999 at the Angola Prison in Louisiana. The photograph, part of Luster’s ongoing series “A Southern Family,” uses a warm, sepia-toned color palette to highlight Henderson’s stoic expression and worn work clothes. The cotton field backdrop further emphasizes the harsh realities of labor faced by inmates at Angola, creating a powerful image that speaks to the themes of labor, incarceration, and racial inequality in the American South.