Portrait drawing of Etta Moten Barnett: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This is a black and white portrait drawing of Etta Moten Barnett. It depicts her from the neck up. Her neck and the top of her shoulders are roughly sketched in, while her face and hair are rendered in detail. She is shown in a quarter profile turning towards the viewer. Her chin is raised, and her gaze is directed towards the viewer. Her hair is loose down to her shoulders, and she wears large hoop earrings. There is a date stamp [AUG 2 1942], and an inscription to Barnett "from Marcus" on the verso. Adhered to the back of the drawing is a clipping from a newspaper with text that reads "Etta Moten now is singing the role of Bess in the revival of Gershwin's folk opera, 'Porgy and Bess'."

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: Aug 2, 1942
• Created by: Unidentified
• Subject of: Etta Moten Barnett, American, 1901 - 2004
• Owned by: Etta Moten Barnett, American, 1901 - 2004
• Type: drawings
• Type: portraits
• Medium: ink on paper (fiber product)
• Dimensions: H x W (image): 9 13/16 × 8 9/16 in. (25 × 21.7 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (matting): 18 7/16 × 16 7/16 in. (46.8 × 41.7 cm)
• Place used: 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: A2022.13.1.80
• 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.