Soon after House of Bondage was published in 1967, Cole secured a fellowship from the Ford Foundation to photograph the urban and rural United States. He traveled around the country but lived primarily in New York. His photographs from Harlem show his interest in the rhythms of daily life and gatherings like church services, musical performances, and protests. Struck by the racism he witnessed and faced in the US, Cole later drew parallels between the experiences of Black people here and in South Africa. He wrote that his pictures in House of Bondage might “explain why, of all countries, I should feel somewhat at home in the United States.”
Gallery label from 2023
