Column: A lot of history captured by one shot

Dressed in a suit with a light-colored fedora pushed back on his head a bit, the young African-American man is shown standing on a sidewalk in full-length profile. His Speed Graphic camera with flash hangs down by his side in his right hand while he looks at something — an exposure meter? — in his left.

Charles “Teenie” Harris was about 30 years old when this photo was taken in 1938, three years into a photojournalism career that would last for 40 years. Upon his death at age 90, he left a legacy of more than 70,000 negatives, intimately detailing the Black urban experience in Pittsburgh.

Mr. Harris was a photographer for one of the nation’s most-influential Black newspapers, The Pittsburgh Courier. At a time when film cameras demanded that photographers make every exposure count, Teenie was known as “One Shot” for his ability to capture well-composed and effectively exposed photos in one attempt.

His candid images offer unique views of legendary people — John F. Kennedy, speaking to thousands of people jamming the streets of Monessen; Lena Horne, Eartha Kitt and Sammy Davis, Jr.; baseball hall-of-famers Josh Gibson and Roberto Clemente, just to drop a few names.

As one would expect of a newspaper photographer, many of his images captured the news of the day: Nat King Cole, signing a lawsuit against a Pittsburgh hotel, alleging discrimination; picketers marching in front of U.S. Steel headquarters; mourners in the street after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination.

Yet photos of the famous and newsworthy come with the territory of photojournalism. Teenie Harris’ greatest gift was his documentation of everyday life in Pittsburgh’s African-American community from the mid-1930s through the mid-1970s.

Images of church life and social events, weddings and graduations, pageant winners and banquets, Little League and high school basketball all were captured through Mr. Harris’ lens. And then there were events made memorable as moments frozen in time by “One Shot.”

Two toddlers are sharing a drink from a water hose on the front steps of a home. Barbers are busy at a half-dozen chairs flanking the room while the front double-doors of the shop are propped wide open, showing a busy street scene beyond and a curious passerby.

A beret-wearing artist stands in front of an easel, painting his interpretation of the church in the background, as a half-dozen curious people look on, half of them children. A neatly dressed couple is seated, holding a sign that reads “Family of the Year,” their son and daughter standing just behind them, as an official places a floral crown onto the woman’s head.

This is Black History Month. One interesting and enjoyable way to honor that would be to spend some time with the work of Charles “Teenie” Harris. That easily can be done this month online or in-person.

The City of Pittsburgh has teamed up with the Carnegie Museum of Art to offer a program titled “Teenie Harris: The Man Behind the Lens.” In addition to a gallery of images, there are interviews with Charlene Foggie-Barnett, who is the archivist of the Harris collection at the Carnegie Museum of Art. Access it all at Pittsburgh.gov/events.

The Carnegie Museum of Art is the repository for more than 70,000 images in the Harris collection and has a dedicated gallery to his work that is titled, “In Sharp Focus: Charles ‘Teenie’ Harris.” You can see some of those images digitally by visiting CMOA.org.

However, make a nice day trip into Pittsburgh and you can see two displays of Mr. Harris’ work: one, a special Black History Month display in the Grand Lobby of the City-County Building, or the dedicated exhibition in the Scaife Galleries at the Carnegie Museum.

All of it reveals fascinating history that hadn’t been made yet when that young man was standing on the sidewalk: Pittsburgh history, African-American history, our history.

To respond to this column — or read other columns by Dave Hurst — visit www.hurstmediaworks.com.

This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Dave Hurst column about Charles "Teenie" Harris photography