Gordon Parks Photography Collection Now Resides at the Purchase College Library

Its not a rumor, the photograph collection of LIFE magazine's first, African American Photographer, Gordon Parks now resides at the newly renovated, noted Library of Purchase College SUNY. If you haven't heard about this consider yourself officially informed. The strongest dose of culture and art in New York's Westchester County is right here on campus at the Neuberger Museum, the Performing Arts Center and the Purchase College Library.

"As the first black photographer at LIFE magazine, Gordon Parks masterfully chronicled everything from the Civil Rights movement to gang life to the worlds of fashion and art. With equal parts grit and beauty, he photographed poor families living in squalor as well as professional athletes and glamorous stars. His iconic images of boxer Muhammad Ali are among his most well-remembered and widely-reproduced, but his portraits of neighbors...and the signature “American Gothic” image of a black cleaning woman holding mops in both hands are stunning images that underscored race and class issues in mid-20th century America." Read more of this Purchase College press release here.

TIME: Gordon Park's Photo Essay