Gordon Parks Celebration Fort Scott The annual Gordon Parks Celebration honoring the world-renowned photographer, writer, musician and filmmaker will be October 6–8 on the Fort Scott Community College campus, with additional activities throughout the city. Honoring the life, achievements and contributions of Parks, the celebration includes speakers, artists, and programs for all ages. Other activities include film showings, an exhibit of Parks’ photographs, a book club presentation on his book A Choice of Weapons, and an annual photo contest with the theme “I Am Driven By…” at the Ellis Fine Arts Center, which houses the Gordon Parks Museum. Elsewhere in Fort Scott, the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes includes a history display on Parks, and the hometown filmmaker is the topic of a mural at Riverfront Park. There also will be guided tours of The Learning Tree Film Scene Sign Trail. Gordonparkscenter.org 620.223.2700 ext. 5850
Gordon Parks Museum Fort Scott Community College Beyond filmmaking, Gordon Parks was the first Black photographer at Life magazine and was a master of fashion photography for Vogue magazine. He also authored 20 books and wrote original musical compositions, film scores, poetry and a ballet. The Gordon Parks Museum honors the award-winning artist through exhibits describing his life and works and through educational programs about the arts, cultural awareness, and the role of diversity in society. “Gordon Parks excelled so much in many fields,” says museum director Kirk Sharp. “Not many people achieve that type of success in one field. He was a renaissance man.” Although Parks didn’t have the chance to finish high school or attend college, he received more than 50 honorary doctorate degrees during his lifetime, according to Sharp. Parks gifted 30 of his photographs to the museum after attending the first Gordon Parks Celebration in 2004; among the group was the iconic Tuskegee Airmen, which he took while working for the Office of War Information in the 1940s, and American Gothic, which featured a Black government office cleaning woman holding a broom and mop in front of an American flag. Per his wishes, many of his personal belongings were donated to the museum upon his death. Family members later contributed two of Park’s cameras and one of his tripods. Gordonparkscenter.org 620.223.2700 ext. 5850
