Behold the People: R. C. Hickman’s Photographs of Black Dallas, 1949 – 1961

R. C. Hickman was a Dallas photographer whose thousands of images produced from 1949 to 1961 document aspects of life in an African American community in Texas. Mr. Hickman worked as a commercial portrait photographer, a photojournalist for several black newspapers in Dallas, a freelance photographer for national black publications such as Jet, Sepia and Ebony and a photographer for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

His photographs depict a community largely invisible to white Americans—thoroughly a part of mainstream America by virtue of accomplishment and lifestyle but excluded from it because of race. The images reveal the strong sense of community within, from which individuals survive, grow and understand themselves.

The exhibition is toured by the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin, and presented in partnership with Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Gallery Hours: Tues-Sat from noon to 5PM
Irving Arts Center’s galleries are open for viewing free of charge during regular gallery hours Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 5 PM.

*Please note: A portion of this exhibition is only accessible via stairs.