Father Prays over Son on Osu Beach, Accra, Ghana 1973

Chester Higgins Jr. created this image, Father Prays over Son on Osu Beach, Accra, Ghana, as a black and white photograph. The photograph is dominated by a tonal range of grays, from the dark foreground of wet sand to the lighter, cloud-filled sky. Higgins uses the horizon line to bisect the composition, emphasizing the contrast between the earthly and the ethereal. The figures of the father and son are rendered as silhouettes, their forms simplified to graphic shapes against the diffused light. This formal reduction invites contemplation on the themes of ancestry and spirituality. The composition guides us to reflect on the visual elements such as the gradation of light and shadow.