Zora J Muff sees himself as an artist who happens to be Black living in a society that believes in race.

“My work takes a look at the pathology of white supremacy, and trying to use photography, imagery, art as a way of exploring the realities of that predicament,” Murff said.

In Corrections, Murff leveraged his experience working as a social worker with juvenile offenders to shine a light on disparities and systemic issues inside the criminal justice system.

At No Point in Between took Murff to North Omaha, NE, where the federal government’s practice of redlining has had lasting social and economic impacts on a traditionally Black neighborhood.

“I wanted to consider the many different levels of structural violence,” Murff said.

With American Mother, American Father, Murff got personal, pointing his camera at himself and family members as a way to work through the knots of racial marginalization.

True Colors pulls together all of these themes, using pieces from Murff’s life and works to tell a broader story about race and white supremacy.

“I describe it as a manual for coming to terms with being Black in America,” Murff said.

Murff’s groundbreaking work on race and social justice led the International Center of Photography to honor him with the 2023 Infinity Award for Documentary Practice and Visual Journalism.

While he continues to focus his art on the issues surrounding race in America, he wishes it wasn’t necessary.

“If my art could do all of the things that I wanted it to do to create a world where I felt that I could live at ease, it would no longer be necessary for it to exist,” Murff said.

Blackness in America, anti-Black violence and oppression, yeah, it’s like the greatest conspiracy ever dreamed up. - Zora J Murff

So to me, like there is no difference between a spectacle lynching and redlining. It's just another means to the same end. - Zora J Murff

Since 1985, the International Center of Photography has recognized outstanding achievements in photography with its prestigious Infinity Awards. The awards ceremony is also ICP’s primary fundraising benefit, with its revenues assisting the center's various programs.

Harbers Studios commissioned MediaStorm, on behalf of ICP, to create a short film about each of the recipients to screen at the awards ceremony and to display online. The films pay tribute to the contributions of each artist to the craft and field of photography and demonstrate ICP's commitment to them.

As a privately funded nonprofit arts and education organization, ICP depends in large part on friends such as you for support. Your generosity is vital to ICP as it continues to grow and succeed in its mission: to present photography's extraordinary power to the public.

There are many ways to give to ICP: Donate to the Annual Fund, create a scholarship, sponsor exhibitions and education programs, contribute to the Collection, or make a planned gift.