Celebrating the Black Cowboys of the Delta

Joe "Dancing Cowboy" Wrenn and his wife Barbara dance at a cowboy theme Valentine's Day event at Club Black Castle in Ruleville, Mississippi. © Rory Doyle

James, a smoking cowboy with a golden grill, poses for a portrait near Cleveland, Mississippi. © Rory Doyle

A thigh tattoo is revealed on Pam's leg during a trail ride in rural Tallahatchie County, Mississippi. © Rory Doyle

Kids beg for a ride with Pam at a horse show in Charleston, Mississippi. © Rory Doyle

Garriet watches migrating geese pass overhead at dusk in Bolivar County, Mississippi. © Rory Doyle

Not long ago, photographer Rory Doyle ran across an article in Smithsonian magazine that estimated that after the Civil War, one in four cowboys were African-American. So why has this population been drastically underrepresented in popular accounts? To this day, the cowboy identity retains a strong presence in many contemporary black communities.

“Delta Hill Riders,” Doyle’s ongoing documentary photography project in the Mississippi Delta, sheds light on an overlooked African-American subculture — one that resists both historical and contemporary stereotypes.

The work is the subject of an exhibition opening tomorrow at The Half King Photography Series in New York, and is also currently on display at Tikhonova Wintner Fine Art in Harlem.

Doyle began shooting “Delta Hill Riders” in January 2017 when he attended a rodeo in Greenville, Mississippi celebrating black cowboy heritage in the region. Since then, he’s documented this band of horse riders in a place not typically known for its cowboys.

The project challenges the Hollywood portrayal of cowboys only existing in the American West by depicting black cowboys and cowgirls living in the Delta.

“This work aims to press against my own old archetypes — who could and could not be a cowboy, and what it means to be black in Mississippi — while uplifting the voices of my subjects,” says Doyle.

Rory Doyle (USA, 1983) is a photographer based in Cleveland, Mississippi — the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Doyle’s editorial work highlights populations in the region that are often unnoticed or underserved. Along with his series about African-American Delta cowboys, he has also documented the growing Latino population in an area most known for its black and white history.

“Delta Hill Riders”
The Half King Photography Series
Opening Reception June 19, 2018 at 7pm

Tikhonova Wintner Fine Art
Through July 29, 2018