Hank Shocklee on his Magnificent Music Machine, Hofstra U.: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A black and white photograph of Hank Shocklee at Hofstra University.

Shocklee is pictured in the center of a configuration of DJ equipment. He is bending over, his left hand on the controls of a large mixer and his proper right hand on a stack of three different machines taped together. The topmost machine is a Roland Bass Line drum machine. A box of records is to his right, with an Afrika Bambaata record sleeve pulled out at an angle. He is wearing a light colored long sleeve shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows with a black vest, jeans, a necklace, and a bracelet on each wrist. The only inscription, on the verso, reads [44A].

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1980s
• Photograph by: Harry Allen, American, born 1964
• Subject of: Hank Shocklee, American
• Subject of: Hofstra University, American, founded 1935
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Type: portraits
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Sheet): 13 9/16 × 19 13/16 in. (34.4 × 50.3 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (Image): 11 15/16 × 17 15/16 in. (30.4 × 45.5 cm)
• Place captured: Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Hip-hop (Music)
• Topic: Musicians
• Topic: Photography
• Object number: 2015.132.39
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• 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: © Harry Allen Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.