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Picture It: Oklahoma City Through the Lens of Jim Argo

Jim Argo was a photojournalist for The Oklahoman whose powerful images captured the character of the state and spirit of its people for more than 50 years, The Jim Argo collection, donated to the archives and special collections, consists of over 2400 pho

 

 

 

Picture It: Oklahoma City through the Lens of Jim Argo

Jim Argo began his career in photojournalism while a student at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. He worked for two Texas newspapers before moving to Oklahoma City. He began working for The Daily Oklahoman and its sister publication, the Oklahoma City Times, in 1963. He developed a passion for photographing Oklahoma's landscape and people, winning several local, national, and international awards for his photography and writing.

Argo was the photographer for Oklahoma Impressions, published in 2006, and Oklahoma City Impressions, published in 2007, and was a contributing photographer to the book Oklahoma Simply Beautiful. He has co-authored three books published by the Oklahoma Historical Society and was a major photographic contributor to 14 other books on Oklahoma. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame in 1997. Argo retired as The Oklahoman photo editor in 2003.

Source: Oklahoma Historical Society

 

Managed by the Archives and Special Collections, these photographs contain just over 2400 photos. The images in the collection represent present day Oklahoma with such themes as landmarks, skylines, festivals, museums, recreation, rodeos and cowboys. The photos date from the 1960s through the 2000s. The following slides are a sample of his colorful works, also on view on the first floor, Chambers Library.

Gallery Images

Oklahoma City National Memorial, 2000

"Winnie Mae," Oklahoma History Center, 2005.

Oklahoma City Skyline, 1994.

Oklahoma City State Capitol, 2005

Oklahoma City, Bricktown Centeniial Fountain, 2006