<I>The Little Rock Nine</I>
date: label: Date
content: 2009; printed 2019
name: label: Photograph by
content: Platon, British, born 1968
label: Subject of
content: Melba Patillo Beals, American, born 1941
label: Subject of
content: Minnijean Brown-Trickey, American, born 1941
label: Subject of
content: Elizabeth Eckford, American, born 1941
label: Subject of
content: Ernest Green
label: Subject of
content: Gloria Cecelia Ray Karlmark, American, born 1942
label: Subject of
content: Carlotta Walls LaNier, American, born 1942
label: Subject of
content: Thelma Mothershed-Wair, American, born 1940
label: Subject of
content: Terrence Roberts, American, born 1941
label: Subject of
content: Jefferson Thomas, American, 1942 - 2010
label: Subject of
content: Little Rock Central High School, American, founded 1927
notes: label: Description
content: A black-and-white photograph of the Little Rock Nine, by Platon. The photograph depicts the Little Rock Nine in full length, holding hands, and standing in a row in front of the front entrance to the Little Rock Central High School. Standing from left to right is Jefferson Thomas, Minnijean Brown, Gloria Ray, Elizabeth Eckford, Carlotta Walls, Terrence Roberts, Thelma Mothershed, Melba Patillo, and Ernest Green. Thomas, on the far left, is wearing a dark tone, pinstripe suit with a white dress shirt and a patterned tie. He is looking up and to the right into the distance. He has a serious expression on his face. His proper right hand is resting on the front of his proper right thigh and he is holding Brown’s proper right hand with his proper left hand. Brown is wearing a medium tone, ribbed turtleneck shirt under a dark tone cardigan, black pants, and a necklace with a square pendant. She is smiling and looking up and into the distance towards the right. She is holding Eckford’s proper right hand with her proper left hand. Eckford is wearing a dark tone pantsuit, a dark tone blouse, a strand of pearls, and an accent scarf with an abstract black and white pattern. She has a slight smile on her face and is looking into the distance to the left. She is holding Ray’s proper right hand with her proper left hand. Ray is wearing a medium tone poncho with a black swirl pattern and dark tone, loose pants. She has a serious expression on her face and is looking forward into the distance to the left. She is holding Wall’s proper right hand with her proper left hand. Walls is wearing a medium tone, elongated cardigan with three-quarter length sleeves embellished with black beads along the neckline, cuffs, and along the open front edge. The sweater is fastened at the neckline with a single button. She is also wearing a medium tone blouse, dark tone pants, a necklace with a drop pendant, and bangles on both wrists. Her proper left arm is resting at her side. She has a serious expression on her face and is looking forward into the distance. Standing to the right of Walls is Roberts. He is wearing a dark tone suit and a white dress shirt. He is looking at the viewer and has a serious expression on his face. Mothershed is standing directly in front of him and he has both hands under her arms, supporting her, as she leans on her walker. Mothershed is wearing a black jacket with six large white button down the front and medium tone pants. She is looking directly at the viewer with a serious expression on her face. She is grasping the handrails on the metal walker in front of her with both hands. Standing next to her is Patillo. She is wearing a floral pattern jacket over a medium tone cowl neck shirt and an ankle length skirt. She is also wearing wire rimmed glasses, a headband, and a necklace with a teardrop shaped pendant. She is leaning towards Mothershed, looking at the viewer, with a serious expression on her face. She is holding Green’s proper right hand with her proper left hand. Green is standing at the far right side of the group. He is wearing a medium tone suit, a white dress shirt, a diagonally striped tie, and sunglasses. He is looking up and into the distance. The group is standing on a grassy patch in front of the school. Visible behind them are the hedges around the water feature and the steps leading up on either side to the front entrance of the school. Above the group is a cloudy sky. The photograph has a thick white border. The edition number, [5/12], is printed in the bottom left corner. The photographer’s signature and date, [Platon 19], is handwritten in the bottom right corner. Inside the border, at the bottom center, is the photographer’s embossed mark: [PLATON ? / EDITIONED ? / PRINT ?[encircled between two bands of embossed dots]]. The back of the photograph is plain and white.
place: label: Place printed
content: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
label: Place captured
content: Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Activism
label: Topic
content: American South
label: Topic
content: Civil Rights
label: Topic
content: Education
label: Topic
content: Photography
label: Topic
content: Race relations
label: Topic
content: Segregation
label: Topic
content: U.S. History, 1961-1969
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Photographs and Still Images
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Platon
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2021.33.1
objectType: label: Type
content: pigment prints
label: Type
content: portraits
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: © Platon
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: pigment on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (image): 15 9/16 × 21 1/2 in. (39.5 × 54.6 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (sheet): 20 × 24 in. (50.8 × 61 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (matted): 22 × 28 in. (55.9 × 71.1 cm)