Dawoud Bey: An American Project

Apr 17–Oct 3, 2021

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Type 55 Polaroid Street Portraits

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After more than a decade of using a handheld 35mm camera, in 1988 Bey chose to slow down his process, moving to a larger and more conspicuous tripod-mounted 4 × 5-inch-format camera to make this series of street portraits. Like many other photographers working at that time, Bey was increasingly concerned with the ethics of traditional street photography, “which privileged the photographer at the expense of the subject,” and sought more equitable, reciprocal relationships with his sitters.

He began openly approaching strangers he wished to photograph in order to give “the Black subjects [a space] to assert themselves and their presence in the world, with their gaze meeting the viewer’s on equal footing.” He used Polaroid Type 55 film, which produced both instant pictures that he gave to the sitters and negatives that could be used later to make additional prints. Printing technologies have advanced in the decades since Bey made the photographs; the images here have been reprinted at nearly life-size, realizing his original intention of creating a more heightened encounter between subject and viewer. 

  • A portrait of a young boy eating an ice cream pop.
    A portrait of a young boy eating an ice cream pop.

    Dawoud Bey, A Boy Eating a Foxy Pop, Brooklyn, NY, 1988. Pigmented inkjet print (printed 2019), 40 × 30 in. (101.6 × 76.2 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Stephen Daiter Gallery, Chicago; and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco. © Dawoud Bey

  • A portrait of a young couple embracing on the side of the road.
    A portrait of a young couple embracing on the side of the road.

    Dawoud Bey, A Couple in Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY, 1990. Pigmented inkjet print (printed 2019), 40 × 30 in. (101.6 × 76.2 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Stephen Daiter Gallery, Chicago; and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco. © Dawoud Bey

  • A close-up of a girl with a knife-shaped nose-pin.
    A close-up of a girl with a knife-shaped nose-pin.

    Dawoud Bey, A Girl with a Knife Nosepin, Brooklyn, NY, 1990. Pigmented inkjet print (printed 2019), 40 × 30 in. (101.6 × 76.2 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Stephen Daiter Gallery, Chicago; and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco. © Dawoud Bey

  • A man in a hat leans against a closed gate and faces the camera.
    A man in a hat leans against a closed gate and faces the camera.

    Dawoud Bey, A Man at Fulton Street and Cambridge Place, Brooklyn, NY, 1988. Pigmented inkjet print (printed 2019), 30 × 40 in. (76.2 × 101.6 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Stephen Daiter Gallery, Chicago; and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco. © Dawoud Bey

  • A young man is sitting on a bike and resting his arms on the handles.
    A young man is sitting on a bike and resting his arms on the handles.

    Dawoud Bey, A Young Man Resting on an Exercise Bike, Amityville, NY, 1988. Pigmented inkjet print (printed 2019), 30 × 40 in. (76.2 × 101.6 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Stephen Daiter Gallery, Chicago; and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco. © Dawoud Bey

  • A young black man in formal attire stands in front of a tent and rows of metal chairs.
    A young black man in formal attire stands in front of a tent and rows of metal chairs.

    Dawoud Bey, Young Man at a Tent Revival, Brooklyn, NY, 1989. Pigmented inkjet print (printed 2019), 40 × 30 in. (101.6 × 76.2 cm). Courtesy the artist and Sean Kelly Gallery, New York; Stephen Daiter Gallery, Chicago; and Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco. © Dawoud Bey

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Maya Man, A Realistic Day In My Life Living In New York City

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