Nina Simone, Photographic session for first album cover for Colpix Records, "The Amazing Nina Simone," Philadelphia, 1959: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A black and white silver gelatin photograph of Nina Simone during a photographic session for Colpix Records, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1959. With her short dark hair curled, Nina Simone smiles in her seated position on a high wooden stool. Her legs are outstretched as she leans back slightly. She is staged atop a large dark photographic paper background roll, and wears a short sleeve floral patterned knee length dress and dark high heeled shoes with bows on them. The twin palm emblem of Palm Press, Inc. is imprinted at the bottom right of the photographic sheet.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1959; printed 1995
• Photograph by: Herb Snitzer, American
• Subject of: Nina Simone, American, 1933 - 2003
• Subject of: Colpix Records, American, 1958 - 1966
• Signed by: Herb Snitzer, American
• Printed by: Palm Press, American, founded 1977
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Image): 15 5/16 × 10 3/8 in. (38.9 × 26.3 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (Sheet): 19 × 14 9/16 in. (48.2 × 37 cm)
• Place captured: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Blues (Music)
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Musicians
• Topic: Photography
• Object number: 2019.62.2
• 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: © Herb Snitzer Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.