Tag: Rory Doyle

Hailing from Maine, photographer Rory Doyle headed South and set up shop, working as a freelance editorial and commercial photographer in Cleveland, Mississippi, the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Here he began a series of work titled Delta Hill Riders, a portrait of Black cowboys today. Here, Doyle shares his experiences creating these photographs, portraits of a way of life whose history is still being told.

Another wonderful discovery in juroring the SlowExposures: Celebrating the Rural South Exhibition was the work of Rory Doyle. Rory attended the festival and I was able to see a broader edit of his photographs of the African-American cowboy community of the Mississippi Delta. The project not only shifts our vision of what we consider the traditional cowboy, but celebrates and explores the Delta culture. For the past two years, he has attended a myriad of Delta cowboy events, creating an expansive and modern look at a vibrant Mississippi community. The work has been well celebrated and he will be having a series of exhibitions starting in Cleveland, Mississippi in February 2019.  Rory states, “I wanted to have the first show in the Delta to allow the riders to attend by horseback, and allow them to have a voice at the gallery opening. We will also have a speaker discuss the significance of African-American cowboy history. The Mississippi Arts Commission and the Mississippi Humanities Council are supporting this endeavor, and I want to make sure they know how thankful I am for their support.”