One of Isaac Scott’s photographs that I am most drawn to is the demonstration on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. According to Scott, who spoke to Dayton Director Ian Berry’s class “The Artist Interview,” this protest was one of the biggest crowds that gathered in Philadelphia this past summer. As Scott talked to us about the event, he described how emotional it was to lie on the concrete for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, the length of time that it took for Minneapolis police officers to kill George Floyd. This image depicts a pivotal time for civil rights and is one that should go down in the history books.

Isaac Scott photographs Black Lives Matter protesters lying on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The feeling of exhaustion permeates: the image shows protesters after an intense day of fighting for racial justice. Not only are people physically depleted, but their raw emotions are revealed as they lie on the hot surface for eight minutes and forty-six seconds, the same amount of time that police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into George Floyd’s neck. Through his unfiltered images of protests, Scott creates awareness about racial injustice.