Object Details
Artist
William H. Johnson, born Florence, SC 1901-died Central Islip, NY 1970
Luce Center Label
The New York Amsterdam News reported in 1939 on the crowds gathering at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem. The reporter described the "cock-eyed hats, perched at crazy angles on . . . shiny hair" and skirts "a tantalizing fraction of an inch below their knees" (Powell, Homecoming: The Art and Life of William H. Johnson, 1991). In Street Life, Harlem, William H. Johnson portrayed an elegant couple dressed "to the nines" for an evening on the town. Style, as much as skin color, was a mark of pride among many African Americans who had come of age during the Harlem Renaissance, but the flamboyant appearance of zoot-suiters inflamed racial tensions long after swing music and the jitterbug had been absorbed into American popular culture.
Luce Object Quote
"I am feeling . . . that I would like my own homeland next, as I know of no better country to inspire me . . ." Letter from the artist, 1938, in Powell, Homecoming: The Art and Life of William H. Johnson, 1991
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation
Date
ca. 1939-1940
Object number
1967.59.674
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
Painting
Medium
oil on plywood
Dimensions
45 5/8 x 38 5/8 in. (116.0 x 98.0 cm)
See more items in
Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection
Department
Painting and Sculpture
Data Source
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Topic
Figure group
Cityscape\New York\New York
Cityscape\street
African American
Cityscape\celestial\moon
Cityscape\New York\Harlem
Architecture Exterior\commercial
Link to Original Record
Record ID
saam_1967.59.674