Framed photographs of Chano Pozo inscribed to Ray Barretto: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A large plaque outlined in a brown, thick line around the edge. There are two black and white, almost sepia, photographs of Luciano "Chano Pozo" Gonzales, side by side, also with a thick, white border around each. Presumably, both were taken at the same time as Chano Pozo is wearing dark colored trousers, a light-colored long sleeve shirt, a single thin suspender over his right side, and a loose and wide pattered bowtie in both photographs.

In the left photograph, Chano Pozo holds the conga at a 45-degree angle, with his right hand near the head of the conga drum and his left hand near his face. In the upper right corner of the left photograph is a handwritten, silver inscription in Spanish which reads [J. Cartoae {illegible} / "Latin Jazz" / "Club" / Playa de Ponce / --o--].

In the right photograph, Chano Pozo holds the conga at a nearly 180 degrees, with his right hand parallel to his chest and his left hand on the conga’s head. In the upper left corner of the photograph is a handwritten, silver inscription in Spanish which reads: [A / Ray Baretto / gran exponente / de nuestra / musica afro-antillana.] or in English: “To / Ray Barretto / great performer / of our / afro-caribbean music". In the bottom left corner is a handwritten, silver inscription in Spanish which reads: [Con / mucha / admiracion / de / J. Cartoae {illegible} / Playa de Ponce / 12-12-87] or in English: “With / much / admiration / from / J. Cartoae {illegible} / Playa de Ponce / 12-12-87.”

In the bottom center of the two photographs is a black plaque with silver engravings that reads: [RUMBERO CUBANO / LUCIANO GONZALEZ / "CHANO POZO" 1915-1948 / COMPOSITOR DE: / "MANTECA" "TIN TIN DEO" "NAGUE" / "BLEM. BLEM. BLEM" "WACHI WARA" "PIM-PIM"] or in English: “CUBAN RUMBERO / LUCIANO GONZALEZ / "CHANO POZO" 1915-1948 / COMPOSER OF: / “MANTECA” “TIN TIN DEO” “NAGUE” / “BLEM. BLEM. BLEM” “WACHI WARA” “PIM-PIM”.”

The back of the plaque is a light-colored wood, which at the top center holds a fastened silver sawtooth hanger with a tied piece of white string. At the bottom right corner, it is stamped with the manufacturer information [LUMINOCEN GLOSS / SOMOS #1 EN LAMINADOS / UNION 117 PONCE, P.R. / 840-3875].

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1987
• Photograph by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Chano Pozo, Cuban, 1915 - 1948
• Owned by: Ray Barretto, American, 1929 - 2006
• Manufactured by: Luminocen Gloss, Puerto Rican
• Type: commemorative plaques
• Medium: lacquer on ink on paper (fiber product) on wood
• Dimensions: H x W: 12 1/2 × 18 1/2 in. (31.8 × 47 cm)
• Place made: Playa de Ponce, Puerto Rico, United States, Caribbean, Latin America, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Object number: A2020.52.1.7
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Brandy and Chris Barretto, in memory of Ray Barretto
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Unknown – Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.