In 1959 Bruce Davidson contacted a street gang from Brooklyn known as the Jokers through a New York Youth Committee in charge of the reintegration of young people at risk of social exclusion. Progressively he began to gain the gang members’ trust, many of whom came from impoverished Irish and Polish Catholic families. Having lived through a troubled childhood, Davidson identified with them to some degree and portrayed their daily lives over the course of 11 months.

The photographs that comprise the series Brooklyn Gang—which have elements of both photojournalism and street photography—contributed toward creating a realistic and raw image of street gangs that had been mythologized and idolized through cultural phenomena such as West Side Story (1957) and the film Rebel Without A Cause (1955). The series tackles issues such as abuse, abandonment, and the lack of self-esteem, which many of the gang members suffered.

This photograph embodies Davidson’s sensitive and emotional point of view and was taken during one of the gangs frequent outings to Coney Island Beach. The stark contrast between black and white and the risky framing that crops the two subjects’ bodies were some of the aesthetic strategies that Davidson utilized throughout his career, and frequently yielded negative reviews.