The Xmen: Museum Object and Cultural History
The Xmen: Date: 1985; printed 2021. Photograph by: Jamel Shabazz, American, born 1960. Subject of: Unidentified Child or Children.
The object in the museum catalogue
The photograph depicts a full-length image of seven youths, three in the front row half crouched and four behind, standing on an AA and E train waiting platform in Manhattan. All of them, posed with their arms in the air and around one another, are dressed in hip-hop fashion. They are wearing shorts with low top sneakers and fat laces. Four of them are wearing polos with three wearing tank tops. For accessories, some are wearing rings, necklaces, bracelets, Cazal-glasses, and/or hats.
The background is white subway tile with a three-tile wide strip of a darker color. There are several tiles missing on the left side. Above the group is a subway sign with black text [Downtown / & Brooklyn], a dark blue circle with white text [AA], a light blue circle with white text [E], and black text reading [To Chambers St / World Trade Center].
Materials, dates and provenance
- Date: 1985; printed 2021
- Photograph by: Jamel Shabazz, American, born 1960
- Subject of: Unidentified Child or Children
- Type: pigment prints
- Type: portraits
- Medium: pigment-based ink on paper
- Dimensions: H x W: 14 × 11 in. (35.6 × 27.9 cm)
- Place depicted: Manhattan, New York City, New York County, New York, United States, North and Central America
- Topic: African American
- Topic: Communities
- Topic: Fashion
- Topic: Hip-hop (Music)
- Topic: Photography
- Topic: Transportation
- Topic: Urban life
- Topic: Youth
- Object number: 2021.63.1
- Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture purchased with funds provided by the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center
- 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: © Jamel Shabazz Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Sources
More in Music
Keep reading
