Jonathan Gardenhire

Representations of black men are embedded with an unforgettable history of mistreatment and misrepresentation. My photographs explore representation, sexuality and masculinity in black culture. The images serve to depict my own sensitivity, sensuality, forgiveness and quest to figure out what it means to me to be black, through portraits of other men and still lifes of objects that I associate with black culture. Using traditional methods of photography, such as studio portraiture, and more contemporary methods, such as appropriation, my images trace a "mis-history" in an attempt to redefine and reclaim black identity through new and old imagery to reshape perceptions of black men at large. 

www.jonathangardenhire.com