Photographic plate for the April 1937 edition of The Show-Down Magazine: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A photographic plate for page 10 of the April 1937 edition of The Show-Down Magazine with three (3) photographs of Alice Key. The photographs are adhered to a cardboard backing. On the front and back of the plate are handwritten notations in pencil.

A silver gelatin print depicting a black-and-white image of Alice Key. Key is depicted facing the viewer, sitting on an armchair with rounded arms. She is resting both of her elbows on the armrests and her proper right leg is crossed over her proper left leg. There is a magazine resting in her lap and she is holding the edge of it with her proper right hand and looking down as if reading it. Her proper left hand is resting at her throat. She is wearing a floral pattern blouse and a long, satiny, black skirt. Next to her is a round end table with two (2) books placed on top. In front of her is a floral pattern, dark rug.

A silver gelatin print depicting a black-and-white image of Alice Key. Key is depicted in profile, standing in a doorway. She has her proper right hand on the frame of the open door, her proper left arm is down by her side, and she is leaning on a white wall. Her head is turned and she is looking at the viewer, smiling. She is wearing a long, satiny, floral pattern blouse, belted at the waist. The blouse is worn over a long, black skirt. The mullion door she is holding open is covered with a sheer, light curtain.

A silver gelatin print depicting a black-and-white image of Alice Key. Key is depicted nude, seated in a white bathtub. Her body is in three-quarters profile, facing the right side of the image. Her head turned towards the viewer and she is smiling. Her proper right leg is slightly raised and she is holding her calf with her hands. The shower curtain is decorated with rows of diagonal tulips above zig zag design elements. The curtain is open and pushed toward the right edge of the image. In the foreground, is a white sink on the right. In the background, are a white tiled wall and a window with the shades drawn down.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1937
• Photograph by: Hughey J. Battelle
• Subject of: Alice Key, American, 1911 - 2010
• Subject of: The Show-Down, American, founded 1935
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Type: portraits
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper on cardboard
• Dimensions: H x W x D (Overall): 11 13/16 × 8 9/16 × 1/16 in. (30 × 21.7 × 0.2 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (2013.46.25.262a: Image): 4 5/8 × 3 1/8 in. (11.7 × 8 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (2013.46.25.262a: Sheet): 4 15/16 × 3 9/16 in. (12.5 × 9 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (2013.46.25.262b: Image): 4 7/16 × 3 1/16 in. (11.3 × 7.8 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (2013.46.25.262b: Sheet): 4 7/8 × 3 9/16 in. (12.4 × 9 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (2013.46.25.262c: Image): 4 7/16 × 6 1/2 in. (11.3 × 16.5 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (2013.46.25.262c: Sheet): 4 15/16 × 6 15/16 in. (12.5 × 17.7 cm)
• Place made: New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Dance
• Topic: Entertainers
• Topic: Jazz (Music)
• Topic: Mass media
• Topic: Nightlife
• Topic: Photography
• Object number: 2013.46.25.262abc
• 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: Unknown - Restrictions Possible Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.