Photograph of Etta Moten Barnett: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This is a black and white photograph of Etta Moten Barnett. It depicts her from the waist up, leaning forward resting on her folded elbows. Her chin is tucked slightly. She gazes up through her eyelashes directly at the viewer. She wears a dark jacket with long sleeves and wide shoulders. She has a large ornate bracelet on her left wrist and a large ornate jeweled brooch at her neckline. In the bottom left corner of the photograph is white text that reads “Bloom / ChicAGO.”

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: ca. 1940
• Photograph by: Bloom Photography, 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
• Dimensions: H x W (image): 13 3/8 × 10 9/16 in. (34 × 26.8 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (sheet): 14 × 11 in. (35.5 × 27.9 cm)
• Place captured: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Actors
• Topic: Broadway Theatre
• Topic: Singers (Musicians)
• Topic: Women
• Object number: A2022.13.1.82
• 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.