A photographic celebration and exploration of Black American identity and the Black experience through the early- and mid-twentieth century from the founder and curator of the hit multimedia platform， Black Archives。

Renata Cherlise's family loved capturing their lives in progress。 But when she searched Jacksonville， Florida's digital archives for images， Renata found few historical photos of the housing complex where she grew up。 The ones she did find portrayed a crime-ridden neighborhood， not the home of some of her most joyful memories。

This spurred her to upload her own photos online and gather historical ones from public libraries and other archives。 In 2015， people everywhere began sending her their photographs， eager to see Black people living vibrant， ordinary lives。

The result is Black Archives， a stunning collection of timeless images that tell the powerful， joyful story of everyday Black life and the culture's dynamic， enduring influence on generations。 They commemorate handwritten letters， things left behind， pictures within pictures， the front porch， and many more moments of leisure， excitement， reflection， and pride。 Through Black Archives， people have discovered their loved ones at different ages， daily triumphs across decades， and multidimensional portraits of people and places。

Spotlighting the iconic and the candid， Black Archives takes us inside Black churches and social clubs， historically Black colleges and universities， sports teams， and more， offering a nuanced compendium of Black memory and imagination。