Birmingham Race Riot

Andy Warhol "Birmingham Race Riot" 1964

I was most fascinated by this picture due to the fact that the artist must have been purposefully trying to blur what was happening at that moment and everyone who was involved. The picture depicts the riots at Birmingham, Alabama, which was one of the climaxes of the Civil Rights Movement. The image is showing supporters of Martin Luther King, who were protesting segregation and were attacked by the police with dogs. In particular this image shows one man being attacked by two police dogs on leashes while many on lookers are hurried along. What really caught my attention was how the picture has a high contrast, which blurs the details, and makes the picture seem much more interesting due to the fact that it’s a little dark and mysterious. Also what is interesting is how this enhanced contrast heightens the distinction between black and white, and present a news item as a moment in history that is worth preserving. The picture is stopped at the perfect moment so that you can see all the action that would have been happening at that very time.

The one thing about this picture that made me stop and stare at it, is how it shows the police dog, mouth open and teeth showing, jumping towards the man, while the other dog has his teeth clenched on the man’s pants and are pulling on them. In this picture time is stopped at the moment when the dog is in mid leap and you can see the fierceness in his eyes. What this made me think of was how awful it must have been to be this man at that riot and how terrifying it must have been for him to see a dog like that coming towards you to attack.  Also what was so interesting to me was how the picture was arranged, such that I was more focused on the action that is being portrayed, than the environment around it.

I believe that this picture allows the viewer to reflect on our past as a country, and see  how far we have come, while also allowing the viewer to form their own interpretation of what this piece means. This piece was so interesting to me because it depicts something that is part of our history, but it also forced me to think about if I was in the shoes of the man being attacked.