Poster for concert featuring Etta Moten Barnett presented by Alpha Kappa Alpha: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This is a black and white poster for a concert featuring Etta Moten Barnett presented by Alpha Kappa Alpha. The poster consists of a large black and white image of Etta Moten Barnett in the center with black text above and below the image. The picture depicts her seated, with her back to the camera. She turns to gaze at the viewer over her left shoulder, her left hand on her left hip. She wears a high collared dark velvet jacket with embroidery on the collar and down the back. The jacket is short, fitted, and has sleeves that flare wide at the wrist. On the bottom she wears a long lace skirt. She is seated on a round dark wood surface. In the bottom right corner of the image is a printed signature in white cursive text that reads “B COONY[?] / CHICAGO.” The image has a black background. In the wide white margin above the image is large black text that reads “ETTA MOTEN / ARTIST / CONCERT – STAGE – RADIO – SCREEN.” Below the image is large black text that reads “ In a Presentation of Song / Classical / Modern / FRIDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 9 / HUGHES HIGH SCHOOL AUDITORIUM / Clifton Ave. and McMillan St. / Presented by the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.” Under this text are listed six names that are the general chairman, chairman of publicity, ticket sales, and associate chairmen of the event. There is a handwritten inscription on the front upper right corner of the poster noting that the poster is a "Rough proof." The back is blank.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1930s
• Printed by: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, founded 1908
• Photograph by: B. Coony
• Subject of: Etta Moten Barnett, American, 1901 - 2004
• Subject of: Mattie Dalton Jackson, American
• Subject of: Margaret Davis Bowen, American, 1894 - 1976
• Subject of: Laura Troy Knight, American
• Subject of: Viola Lockley, American
• Subject of: Margaret Palmer, American
• Type: posters
• Medium: ink on paper (fiber product)
• Dimensions: H x W: 21 13/16 × 15 7/16 in. (55.4 × 39.2 cm)
• Place used: Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, North and Central America
• Place used: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Actors
• Topic: Advertising
• Topic: Broadway Theatre
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Topic: Sororities
• Topic: Women
• Object number: A2022.13.1.36
• 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.