Images have been used for as long as can be remembered to persuade others to think certain things, make certain issues noticed, and more. Especially today, most images are designed to make us feel a certain way or to think on a topic we normally may not have. Images from the ever-present Civil Rights movement are among some of the most controversial and conversation-starting photos there are. The image that I have chosen to analyze is in this category, and was captured at a protest in Charlotte, North Carolina about a month ago by photographer Johnathan Brashear. His inclusion of detail that may not be easily understood or identified upon a person’s first look at the photo are what make it that much more powerful when it is realized. In analyzing features such as color, line, contrast, and realism, a more detailed method of interpretation is available, and can further aid the audience in coming to a conclusion on the photo’s overall meaning.

Since colored photos were introduced in the late 1800s, images have had the ability to take on whole new meanings and contain more depth than before. While the element of color is not very complex in this photo, it is arguably its most important aspect. The contrast in the skin color of the police officer and the citizen is what makes this photograph so meaningful, due to the fact that it alludes to (and takes place during) Civil Rights activist events and protests. White versus black has been a topic of great controversy over time, and this photo is literally divided down the middle with white on one side and black on the other, seemingly a representation for not only the Civil Rights movement, but for America as a whole. To me, the fact that there is no other color inherently present in this picture also speaks volumes. In my opinion, this is referencing the idea that when these two groups of people have come face to face times of controversy, it is almost as if there is no one and nothing else around—they are each other’s main point of focus and concern. The fact that we can see the whites of their eyes so well is something that I also find important, because this means that they are both on high alert, and maybe even somewhat scared of the person they are looking at. The division of color in this particular photo could arguably stand for the division of color that has been so present in America since its beginning, and the photographer did right by making it the main focus of the image. 

The aspect of line structure in this photo mostly comes down to the clear dividing void in between the police officer and the Charlotte citizen. While there is no real ‘line’ present, the audience can infer that the space between the two characters is meant to represent the space that has grown in the connection between the police force and people of color in this country. Recently in America we have seen numerous accounts of police brutality against and conflict with people of color, and the protest that this photograph was taken at is a result of this war between the two groups, one that has existed since the founding of our nation. The other elements of line in the photo are not very clear at first glance, but upon analyzing I found that the (yet again) invisible line of each person’s posture in the photo could serve as a representation of the attitudes of both sides of this conflict. The citizen seems to almost have a defeatist posture; the line of this back more slouched and curved over, which could possibly represent the attitude that people of color have towards the anguish and hurt that the police force and white people in general have caused them since the country’s founding. While the line of the citizen’s shoulders makes them seem squared and ready to take a stand, along his back I found a more vulnerable silhouette, which draws emotion from the audience and brings us in close to the story behind the image. The line of the police man’s posture, on the other hand, struck me in a different way. The officer has a more straight and sturdy silhouette to his frame, which I took as a sign of fear and defense rather than of one having more strength to stand tall than the other. What with all the protective gear on, this man doesn’t have much of a choice but to have a straight line appearance to his body, and to me this represents the fear and anxiety that police officers experience when they put on their protective gear and are forced to stand tall to go into battle with rioters. While not all police officers are bad like has been stated by many, even the good ones are required to be on the defense in situations like the one in this photo, honoring the oath they took to protect their community and country from harm. One final element of line that I observed was the line from the police officer’s eyes to those of the citizen. While the two people may be different in just about every aspect, their eyes are almost perfectly lined up with one another, allowing them each a clear view of their opponent, and as some would say, a clear view into the soul of the other person. This aspect I found one of the most touching, because it brought this photo down to such a raw element due to the fact that this line of sight, while simple, is what unites the two separate entities. 

In regarding the element of realism, this photo is the epitome of a realistic image, due to the fact that it is a photograph taken of a real event in time. This photograph does not only depict the real conflict between two people, but the reality of America and the divide that has been present between its majority and minority since it was founded. If this was a more abstract image or even done in a different form of art, I don’t think it would have had as powerful of a message to the audience. For example, the sheen layer of perspiration on the citizen indicates his struggle and duration during this protest, which could also represent that of all people of color during their lifetimes. If the image was a painting, for instance, this element would not have been captured, and therefore a potential meaning would have been lost altogether. Another example of a realistic element in the photo includes the streaks across the protective eye shield on the police officer’s helmet. To me, the cloudiness of these streaks on the place that the officer sees through could represent a clouding of judgement for the police force and of white Americans in general. The protest that this photograph was taken at was initiated because of the clouded judgement of the police force in killing people of color for seemingly unjustified reasons, and therefore the cloudiness on the line of sight of this particular officer could allude to that overall ‘cloudiness’. It could also represent a haze over the eyes of white people in America, or rather the ones that claim racial issue is not present today. This ‘haze’ is due to the lack of education or plain denial that many white people in America are said to have, and this realistic element in the photo that could obscure the officer’s sight could stand for a representation of the overall obscurity in that mindset.

Although this image may not seem complex when looked at for the first time, when key elements are chosen to analyze there can be multiple paths of interpretation that are made present to the audience. In analyzing this photo’s color, contrast, line, and elements of realism, I was able to come upon my own conclusion of its meaning, and of the author’s purpose in taking it and displaying it to the public. While this photo may be controversial, it is a scene that both parties present in it are all too familiar with. The idea of white vs. black and officer vs. citizen has become so recurring in the past year, that just about any time the television is turned on there is another story regarding this ongoing war. Most people would argue that the Civil Rights movement ended a long time ago, but from analyzing this photo and its story along with many others like it, we can conclude that the movement has not even come close to its end. The elements that photographer Johnathan Brashear chose to include in this photo are what make it shine out of the dozens that he took on this day. His attention to detail is the reason that there is room for interpretation and creation of one’s own meaning, which to me represents a true artist. There is no drawn out point or meaning present in the photo, and I don’t think that it would be such a powerful image if there was. 