Phillip Loken photographs, 2024-2025

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Summary

Creator:
Loken, Phillip and Archive of Documentary Arts (Duke University)
Abstract:
Phillip Loken is a fine art ethnographic and documentary photographer based in North Carolina whose work focuses on the Black American South. The collection contains 24 black and white inkjet prints, one color inkjet print, and associated materials for The Calling: Hoodoo's Communion With The Ancestors taking place in Durham, North Carolina's Eno River State Park and documents Hoodoo and Black community. Acquired by the Archive of Documentary Arts.
Extent:
2.5 Linear Feet
Language:
Materials in English.
Collection ID:
RL.13142

Background

Scope and content:

The Phillip Loken photographs contain 24 black and white inkjet prints and one color inkjet print depicting the event, "The Calling: a Hoodoo Homecoming" led by Twin Hoodoo Muthas, Saint Xolani and Jeida K. Storey on April 13, 2024 on Durham, North Carolina's Eno River. Also included are programs, written observations of the event from participants, prayer cards, the incense container and feather used in the event, and supplemental information provided by Loken.

Photographs taken by Phillip Loken depict Saint Xolani, Jeida K. Storey, Loken, and other participants in the event and include visualizations of different rituals, prayers, river working, other religious practices and spirituality, and the Eno River, with themes such as Black joy, ancestors, and community.

Biographical / historical:

Currently based in Mebane, North Carolina, Phillip "King Phill" Loken was born in Texas and has lived in various cities and towns across North Carolina since the age of four. His photography is intimately tied to his lived experiences as a Black man in the American South. He wants to capture the rich history and vibrant cultural expressions that influence the lives of the people he makes images of.

Loken's work has been exhibited nationally in galleries, art spaces, and competitions, including, but not limited to ArtFields 2024 Competition, CAM Raleigh, Black Box Gallery, Anchorlight, GreenHill Center for NC Art, Click! Photography Festival.

As a professional photographer, Loken has worked with a variety of organizations and companies, including the City of Raleigh, CreativeMornings, the North Carolina Museum of Art, NoirBnb, Special Olympics North Carolina, and Woodforest National Bank. His photographs have also been licensed for use by the Greater Raleigh Convention & Visitors Bureau, Verizon's Go90 docuseries American Down Low, and Walter Magazine. Loken was featured in a documentary film, Creative NC: An Introspective Look at Creative Culture, which premiered in 2017 at the North Carolina Museum of History.

Artist statement: "We laughed, we cried, we celebrated, we honored the ancestors. Time escaped us. Tapping into the spiritual practices of our ancestors felt so right and I didn't realize how much I needed this until I was in it. I gained a new community and extended family. I gained an even deeper appreciation for our ancestors. I gained more than I can put into words.

Seldom do I make images of myself during a booking, but I was more than just a documentarian in this space; I was a part of this, I am a part of this and I needed my presence remembered alongside this Hoodoo family. Such Black Power was felt and represented when we, a group of 26 Black people dressed in all white, arrived at Durham, North Carolina's Eno River State Park to communicate with our ancestors and practice Hoodoo. During a moment we shared, Jeida blessed me with a message that I always subconsciously knew, but having it verbalized gave it a new strength. She told me with any image I make, any person I make images of, I am documenting the lineage of that African person as well. That statement is in all bold at the front of my brain now whenever the shutter button on any of my cameras is pressed. It feels amazing to know my ancestors are present, proud, and will continue to guide me. All of my ancestors (as a direct descendant and communal descendant), especially the Maroons of Jamaica, stand strong beside me."

Phillip Loken is a 2024 recipient of an Archive of Documentary Arts Collection Award for the project, The Calling: Hoodoo's Communion With The Ancestors.

Biography and artist statement provided by Phillip Loken.

Acquisition information:

The Phillip Loken photographs were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library from Phillip Loken as a winner of the 2024 Archive of Documentary Arts Collection Award.

Materials including the feather, incense holder, programs, prayer cards, and observations were provided to Phillip Loken by Saint Xolani and Jeida K. Storey.

Processing information:

Processed by Tere Elizalde, June 2025

Accessions described in this collection guide: 2025-0038

Photograph arrangement, titles, and identification numbers were provided by the creator.

Arrangement:

Photographs arranged in order provided by the donor.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the Rubenstein Library's Citations, Permissions, and Copyright guide.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Phillip Loken photographs, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Permalink:
https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m17j33