Photograph of Etta Moten Barnett and her daughter in a wedding dress: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This is a black and white photograph by DuBois of Etta Moten Barnett and her daughter, Sue Barnett, in her wedding dress. Her daughter stands on the left side of the photograph in a quarter turn. She wears a long white dress with long sleeves and a portrait collar. The dress has a fitted drop waist and a train. She wears a waist length veil on her head and carries a bouquet of flowers in both hands held at her waist. Her face is in profile as she gazes to the right at her mother. Etta Moten Barnett is also in a quarter-turn, wearing a calf-length floral dress with a solid-colored waist and short cap sleeves. She wears elbow-length gloves and a large, brimmed hat. She gazes back at her daughter. An alter with candlesticks can be seen in the background. The photograph is matted in a cream matting with gold text in the bottom right corner that reads “DuBois / THE DRAKE.” The matting is glued into a grey cardboard folder with dark grey text on the front cover that reads “DuBois / THE DRAKE / CHICAGO.” Above the text is a dark grey coat of arms with two lions rampant on either side of a shield with a large letter ‘D’ on it and a scrolling banner below it with text that reads “PORTRAIT.”

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: ca. 1955
• Photograph by: DuBois, American
• Subject of: Etta Moten Barnett, American, 1901 - 2004
• Owned by: Etta Moten Barnett, American, 1901 - 2004
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Type: portraits
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper with cardboard
• Dimensions: H x W (image): 9 9/16 × 7 5/8 in. (24.3 × 19.3 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (folder closed): 14 × 10 9/16 in. (35.6 × 26.8 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (folder open): 14 × 21 3/16 in. (35.6 × 53.8 cm)
• Place made: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, 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: Broadway Theatre
• Topic: Families
• Topic: Marriage customs and rites
• Topic: Motherhood
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Object number: A2022.13.1.32
• 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.