Photographic print of Sister Rosetta Tharpe: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A black-and-white photograph of Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Ottilie Patterson. Tharpe is standing on the left side of the photograph and is wearing a black sweater with light-colored floral appliques and black pants. She is standing in front of a microphone and singing. She is looking up and has her arms outstretched in front of her. Blues singer Patterson is on the right side of the photograph wearing a vertical striped shirt. They were performing at the Marquee Club. The back of the photograph is signed at center in black ink with “Terry Cryer / ©.”

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1957
• Photograph by: Terry Cryer, British, 1934 - 2017
• Subject of: Sister Rosetta Tharpe, American, 1915 - 1973
• Subject of: Ottilie Patterson, Northern Irish, 1932 - 2011
• Type: black-and-white photographs
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Type: portraits
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (image): 6 7/8 × 6 15/16 in. (17.5 × 17.7 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (sheet): 7 15/16 × 9 15/16 in. (20.2 × 25.3 cm)
• Place captured: England, United Kingdom, Europe
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Gospel (Music)
• Topic: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
• Topic: Photography
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: 2014.98.21
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Gayle Wald
• 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: © Terry Cryer Estate Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.