Mr. Freeman, who lived in the District, found a special interest in photographing and collecting quilts from the rural South.
, whose images of residents in a Harlem tenement reminded Mr. Freeman of his upbringing in Baltimore in a large family where money was tight.In 1967, Mr. Freeman landed a job at the D.C. Gazette and was the newspaper’s photo editor from 1968 to 1973. After that, he began to roam, always trying to save money by eating on the cheap or charming his way into sleeping on someone’s couch.
His interest in folk art and traditions deepened with each road trip, taking photos of people who kept alive the crafts of weaving baskets or woodworking. Above all was Mr. Freeman’s fascination with quilts — as visual stories of communities and the shared bonds of the women who gather to make them. He built a personal collection of about 180 quilts and served on groups including the Smithsonian Institution’s Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.
“You’re in Mississippi. You run into an old farmer. Maybe you’re at a hog-killing at Percy Creek. You got your cameras but you ain’t snapping yet,” he
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