February 27 - April 18, 2025
THE GORDON PARKS FOUNDATION GALLERY
48 Wheeler Avenue
Pleasantville, NY
Tonika Johnson, a 2024 Gordon Parks Foundation Art Fellow, is a photographer and activist from Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. Through her work, she explores the impact of segregation and discriminatory housing practices like redlining, while reshaping the narrative surrounding South Side communities.
Inspired by Gordon Parks’s photography as a teenager, Johnson chose the camera as a tool for social justice. Her early work focused on capturing the everyday resilience, pride, and joy of her community, challenging negative stereotypes about Englewood. Over time, her efforts grew to include collaborations, public art projects, and community-driven initiatives that have fostered policy changes, historic preservation, and neighborhood revitalization, ultimately contributing to the economic empowerment of Englewood residents.
This exhibition showcases highlights from Johnson's projects, alongside films documenting her work, a poem by local author Leslé Honoré, and historical photographs by Gordon Parks from his time in Chicago. Johnson’s approach extends Parks’s legacy, illustrating how art can drive social change and advocacy.
For more information, click here.
Tonika Johnson, a 2024 Gordon Parks Foundation Art Fellow, is a photographer and activist from Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. Through her work, she explores the impact of segregation and discriminatory housing practices like redlining, while reshaping the narrative surrounding South Side communities.
Inspired by Gordon Parks’s photography as a teenager, Johnson chose the camera as a tool for social justice. Her early work focused on capturing the everyday resilience, pride, and joy of her community, challenging negative stereotypes about Englewood. Over time, her efforts grew to include collaborations, public art projects, and community-driven initiatives that have fostered policy changes, historic preservation, and neighborhood revitalization, ultimately contributing to the economic empowerment of Englewood residents.
This exhibition showcases highlights from Johnson's projects, alongside films documenting her work, a poem by local author Leslé Honoré, and historical photographs by Gordon Parks from his time in Chicago. Johnson’s approach extends Parks’s legacy, illustrating how art can drive social change and advocacy.
For more information, click here.
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