Jackson Free Press

The photographs from the "Mississippi Blues: A Pictorial History of Poverty in the Rural South" provide an insight to life in the Delta that is virtually unknown to outsiders.

The exhibit, at the Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center, showcases 37 black and white photographs revealing rural poverty in the 1960s that is still prevalent today.

When Museum Director Pamela Junior went to the Delta recently, she was inspired by the feeling of isolation the region encompassed.

"I was surprised at how different it was," she says. "It perplexed me that people were living in the 21st century and didn't want to talk to me."

After her trip, Junior went through the museum's archives and found the photos for the exhibit. The photographers are unknown, and perhaps that is what makes the exhibit so intriguing.

The pictures depict the inside of decrepit cabins, workers at industrial complexes and children playing with handmade toys. In many of the photographs, the children are smiling, drawing a contrast to the environment that surrounds them.

"Showcasing these photographs gives a mechanism for the public to understand the isolation and poverty in the Delta," Junior says.

The museum is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m . The exhibit runs through Dec. 30.