Portraits and Voices of the African American Golf Experience

All Current Exhibits  May 2, 2022

The African American golf experience underwent dramatic changes during the decades before and after the Civil Rights era. During the significant period of social change, men and women played golf on courses across the country in leagues and tournaments that were open to all competitors. Included in this exhibit, A Passion for the Game, are images and personal reflections of players that provide a perspective of their experiences. For the pioneers of the African American golf experience, it was their passion for the game that compelled them to play with courage and dignity despite adversity.

The portraits contained in this exhibit were chosen to highlight the African American golf experience by featuring the work of esteemed photographer Michael Faye. Faye has a unique ability to capture the passion, intensity and personality of the players through refined black-and-white portraits, with a stark minimalistic touch that reflects the tone of the subject matter. Faye’s photographs were featured and published in a limited-edition book, PAR (2010), which was conceived by Dan Levinson and Robert Fernandez. James Black is featured in this portrait. A Passion for the Game is on view in The Gallery in Hunneman Hall, second floor, through June 30.

About the USGA Golf Museum and Library

The USGA (United States Golf Association) Golf Museum and Library is the oldest sports museum in the nation and contains the world’s largest and most significant collection of golf history. Since 1936, the USGA Golf Museum and Library has collected and protected the treasures of the game, connecting golfers, sports fans and scholars with remarkable artifacts, documents, stories and images that chronicle the rich history of golf. Its collections, the world’s largest and finest related to the game, include more than 70,000 catalogued artifacts, 750,000 photographs, 200,000 hours of footage and more than 100,000 library items in more than 25 languages that document the history of the game from its origins to the present.

Be sure to visit the Golf in Brookline Exhibit on the first floor. Our Special Collections teamed up with the USGA Golf Museum and Library to commemorate the U.S. Open this year and in years gone by.

Special thanks to Rosemary Maravetz, the Curator of Collections, USGA Golf Museum and Library, who sent us this exhibit; Chris Valle who installed it; and former Library Director Sara Slymon who facilitated it.