The Carnegie Museum of Art recently presented a new exhibit dedicated to celebrating Black photojournalism in the 20th century.
On Saturday, the museum opened up “Black Photojournalism” with a celebration. Set to run until Jan. 19, 2026, the exhibit presents the work of almost 60 photographers who documented both historic events and the day-to-day living of Black Americans in the span of four decades. The exhibit specifically focuses on centering the work of Charles “Teenie” Harris, a photographer for the Black-owned Pittsburgh Courier who documented the life of Black Americans in Pittsburgh.
The timeline of the photographs spans from the end of World War II in 1945 until 1984, when Republican Ronald Reagan went up against Democrat Walter Mondale during the presidential election. Designed by artist David Hartt, the exhibit focuses on the impact Black photojournalists had on telling the stories of Black Americans from the perspective of Black Americans.
Amongst the collections featured are the Robert McNeill Collection from the Library of Congress, the Harmon Perry Collection from the Auburn Avenue Research Library and the Austin Hansen Collection from the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Archival material from Black-led newspapers such as the AFRO-American News and the Atlanta Daily World are also on display.
“Each one represents the energy of many dedicated individuals who worked to get out the news every single day,” said the museum in a press release for the exhibit. “One picture leads to another, making visible multiple experiences of history while proposing ways of understanding today as tomorrow is being created.”
The history of Black photojournalism dates back to the 19th century. In the 1800s, many abolitionists and activists, such as Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth, posed for daguerreotypes, an early type of photograph.
Through the pictures, they combatted the racist caricatures of Black Americans that were often spread by emphasizing the impact of truthful representation that drawings could not capture. Amongst the most famous Black photographers of this time was James Presley Ball, an abolitionist who learned how to take photographs from John B. Bailey.
From then on, Black photojournalism was used prominently, particularly during movements such as the Harlem Renaissance and the Civil Rights Movement. Famous photojournalists include Pulitzer Prize-winning Moneta Sleet Jr., who worked closely alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and James Van Der Zee, who photographed life during the Harlem Renaissance, as well as figures such as Marcus Garvey.
Photographer Ruby Washington also broke barriers as the first Black female staff photographer at the New York Times, most famously photographing US Secretary of State Colin Powell announcing the invasion of Iraq.
“During a period of urgent social change and civil rights advocacy, newspapers and magazines, including the Afro American News, Atlanta Daily World, Pittsburgh Courier, Chicago Defender, and Ebony, transformed how people were able to access seeing themselves and their communities,” said the Carnegie Museum of Art. “Their impact on the media landscape continues into the digital present.”
