This image, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Point Dume, is that of a black woman in a white jog bra and matching underwear. The woman is running and the photographer Herb Ritts has captured her in mid stride. The woman’s head and shoulders cannot be seen, nor can most of her arms as they are cut short by the framing of the photograph, it becomes impossible to identify the woman without seeing her face. The ground underneath the woman shows us her shadow where we see her head but her right hand and left leg below the knee are outside of the frame, mimicking her physical form above. The photograph is in black and white and utilizes positive and negative space, strong contrast between the woman and both her clothes and the background, and gives the viewer a strong sense of motion.
Herb Ritts was a noted fashion photographer beginning in the late seventies and did many covers and spreads for noted magazines such as Vanity Fair and Vogue. He also created many advertising campaigns for noted brands like Chanel, Calvin Klein, and Levi’s. As with many fashion photographers, over time Ritts began to widen his subject material to include those in politics and society. He wanted images that had a simple enough aesthetic to be read instantaneously. The Herb Ritts foundation cites that his work: “often challenged conventional notions of gender or race.” This is apparent in his photograph of Jackie Joyner-Kersee.
I think that this photograph in 1987 made more of an impact than it would today. The way Ritts framed this photo creates tension and ambiguity. By cropping the image thus, he effectively allows any black woman to become the woman in this image, a powerful statement. For me, this photograph feels almost nostalgic, primarily because it was taken in black and white. Black and white also lends itself an elegance and grace, most likely because of a cultural association with the ‘great’ films of the 30s and 40s. But interestingly not only does black and white capture the grace and beauty of the past, knowing the artist’s perchance for challenging notions of race the choice of black and white becomes a statement in and of its subject. This is only highlighted by the high contrast Ritts used in this image. The juxtaposition of a black woman and white garments on a pale background is nothing short of arresting. The effect is something of an inversion of the positive-negative space. This inversion forces the viewer to focus on the body of the running woman and when looking to the background, the focus clearly lands on her shadow. The arrested motion of her stride and the echo of her stride found in her shadow are compelling. It seems almost as if this strong and beautiful black woman is breaking free of the whiteness around her and taking flight. The combination of the subject’s anonymity and the design elements chosen by Ritts calls to the repressed in all of us. It strikes us powerfully, black and white, and reminds us of inner strength and beauty. We all can break free.
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