Rory Doyle

Artist Biography

Rory Doyle is a working photographer based in Cleveland, Mississippi — the heart of the Mississippi Delta. Doyle is a recipient of a 2018 Visual Artist Fellowship from the Mississippi Arts Commission for his ongoing project on African American cowboys and cowgirls in the Delta. The project was featured in the Half King Photo Series in New York City in June 2018, along with a concurrent show in Harlem. He was also recognized for the project winning the photojournalism category at the 2018 EyeEm Awards in Berlin, Germany. Doyle’s publication list includes The New York Times, The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, ABC News, Photo District News, The Atlantic, ESPN, Getty Images, Financial Times, Yahoo News and more. Born and raised in Maine, Doyle has lived in Mississippi since 2009.

Artist Statement

A recent article in Smithsonian estimated that just after the Civil War, one in four cowboys were African-American. Yet this population was drastically underrepresented in popular accounts. And it is still. The “cowboy” identity retains a strong presence in many contemporary black communities.

This ongoing documentary project in the Mississippi Delta, “Delta Hill Riders,” sheds light on an overlooked African-American subculture – one that resists both historical and contemporary stereotypes.

The project began in January 2017 when I attended a black heritage rodeo in Greenville, Mississippi.

The body of work reveals how deep and diverse this community is. I’ve been invited to black heritage rodeos, horse shows, trail rides, “Cowboy Nights” at black nightclubs, and subjects’ homes across the Delta.

On a personal level, I’ve been welcomed by these folks in a way I could not have imagined. And because of that, it’s been the most engaging project I’ve worked on. It’s a story that’s particularly timely with the current political environment, and a renewed focus on rural America.

Delta Hill Riders is a counter-narrative to the often-negative portrayal of African- Americans. Instead, I have captured a group of riders showing love for their horses and fellow cowboys, while also passing down traditions and historical perspectives among generations.

Ultimately, the project aims to press against my own old archetypes – who could and could not be a cowboy, and what it means to be black in Mississippi – while uplifting the voices of my subjects.