<I>Untitled (Naturally '68 photo shoot in the Apollo Theater featuring Grandassa models and founding AJASS members Kletus Smith, Frank Adu, Bob Gumbs, Elombe Brath and Ernest Baxter)</I>
date: label: Date
content: ca. 1968; printed 2017
name: label: Photograph by
content: Kwame Brathwaite, American, 1938 - 2023
label: Subject of
content: Kletus Smith, American
label: Subject of
content: Frank Adu, American, 1937 - 2018
label: Subject of
content: Robert Gumbs, American, born 1939
label: Subject of
content: Elombe Brath, American, 1936 - 2014
label: Subject of
content: Ernest Baxter, American, born 1939
label: Subject of
content: Sikolo Brathwaite, American, born 1924
label: Subject of
content: Unidentified Woman or Women
label: Subject of
content: African Jazz-Arts Society and Studios, American, founded 1956
label: Subject of
content: Patrice Émery Lumumba, Congolese, 1925 - 1961
label: Subject of
content: Marcus Garvey, Jamaican, 1887 - 1940
label: Subject of
content: Apollo Theater, American, founded 1934
label: Subject of
content: Christopher Hall, American, 1932 - 2005
label: Subject of
content: Robert Harris, American, born 1929
notes: label: Description
content: A color photograph of Grandassa models and founding AJASS members Kletus Smith, Frank Adu, Bob Gumbs, Elombe Brath and Ernest Baxter captured at the Naturally '68 photo shoot at the Apollo Theater. The ten Grandassa models are standing in the back row with the tallest three at the center and the others in descending height order on either side. Sikolo Brathwaite is depicted standing third from the left. The five men are crouched in a row below the models. From left to right is Smith, Adu, Gumbs, Brath and Baxter. The women are wearing dresses and skirts, most of which are constructed from brightly colored textiles with African-inspired motifs. The men are wearing brightly colored and patterned dashiki shirts over jeans and trousers. Three of the men are holding books. The book held by Smith on the far left is [LITTLE ZENG TAKES US TO / ANCIENT AFRICA] by Christopher N. Hall and Robert Harris. The booklet at the center held by Gumbs reads [NATURALLY ’63 / PORTFOLIO], and the book on the right, held by Brath, is [COLOR / US / CULLUD! / The American Negro Leadership / Official Coloring Book] by Elombe Brath and Christopher Hall. The group is standing on a light tone wooden floor, in front of a dark blue wall. The wall is plastered with posters and flyers for events such as [NATURALLY ’62], [NATURALLY ’63], [NATURALLY ’64], [NATURALLY ’65], [NATURALLY ’67], [GARVEY DAY / CELEBRATION], [a portrait of / PATRICE / LUMUMBA], [[AFRICAN HUT DANCE], [caste-life / REVUE], and others. There are no marks or inscriptions, front or back.
place: label: Place captured
content: Harlem, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Activism
label: Topic
content: African diaspora
label: Topic
content: Art
label: Topic
content: Associations and institutions
label: Topic
content: Beauty culture
label: Topic
content: Black power
label: Topic
content: Design
label: Topic
content: Fashion
label: Topic
content: Hair
label: Topic
content: Photography
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Photographs and Still Images
label: Movement
content: Black is Beautiful
label: Movement
content: BAM (Black Arts Movement 1965-1976)
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2021.26.3
objectType: label: Type
content: portraits
label: Type
content: inkjet prints
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Courtesy of the Kwame Brathwaite Archive & Philip Martin Gallery, © Kwame Brathwaite
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: pigment on paper (fiber product)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 15 × 15 in. (38.1 × 38.1 cm)