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Collection Data
- Description
- The collection (late 1940s to 1980s) depicts aspects of the personal life, literary career and some civil rights activities of writer and activist James Baldwin. Depictions of Baldwin's personal life before the 1960s, his family, and his civil rights activities are very limited.The Personal series consists of portraits and views of Baldwin at home; engaged in social activities with relatives, friends and colleagues; traveling; and individual and group portraits of friends and some family members. Some of the portraits of Baldwin could have been taken for publicity or photojournalistic purposes. Included in this series are views of Baldwin at his residence in St. Paul de Vence, France (ca. 1970-1987); documentation of Baldwin in Turkey (ca. 1965); and views of Baldwin visiting his friend, painter Beauford Delaney, at St. Anne's Hospital for the Insane, Montparnasse, Paris, France (1976). Among the other individuals depicted with Baldwin are Maya Angelou, Harry Belafonte, Barnard Hassell, and David Baldwin, James's brother.The Professional series consists of portraits of Baldwin used to promote his various publications; candid shots and views of Baldwin engaged in activities and events related to his literary endeavors, including book signings, lectures, meetings and interviews (late 1940s-1980s); and views of theatrical productions of his plays. The series includes a photo album depicting Baldwin's participation at a meeting on Lake Issuk-Kul, in Ala-Archa National Park, in Soviet-era Kyrgyzstan with other intellectuals from around the world (1986); and scenes and other images - mainly in the form of contact sheets - relating to different productions of his plays "The Amen Corner" and "Blues for Mister Charlie" (ca. 1960s), including a production starring Claudia McNeil, and a production directed by Frank Silvera and starring Beah Richards.Of note are a series of negatives depicting Pentecostal church services, some identified as Fireside Pentecostal Assembly, in Harlem taken by photographer Theodore Pelatowski, Baldwin's collaborator on an unpublished book entitled "Unto the Dying Lamb" (ca. 1948), for which Baldwin was awarded a Rosenwald Fellowship.The Civil Rights series (1960s-1980s) consists of views of Baldwin, documented in the form of contact sheets, conducting interviews, at an unidentified rally, and engaged in other civil rights activities, primarily in Louisiana and North Carolina (1960s). Included are publicity photographs for the 1982 documentary "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," in which Baldwin retraces his time in the South during the Civil Rights Movement.Related collections are the James Baldwin Portrait Collection and the Unto the Dying Lamb Collection.
- Names
- Baldwin, James, 1924-1987 (Collector)
- Bauer, Jerry (Photographer)
- Krementz, Jill (Photographer)
- Pakay, Sedat (Photographer)
- Pelatowski, Theodore (Photographer)
- Petrus, Max (Photographer)
- Schapiro, Steve (Photographer)
- Shaw, Stephen M. (Photographer)
- Weissmann, Mottke (Photographer)
- Dates / Origin
- Date Created: 1948 - 2002 (Inferred)
- Library locations
- Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division
- Shelf locator: Sc Photo James Baldwin Collection
- Topics
- Baldwin, James, 1924-1987
- Issyk-Kul Forum (1986 :Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyz Republic)
- African American authors
- African American dramatists
- African American political activists
- African American gay men
- Lectures and lecturing
- Autographing
- Meetings
- Travel -- 1960-1989
- African Americans -- France
- African Americans -- Turkey
- African Americans -- Social life and customs
- Theatrical productions -- 1960-1969
- Genres
- Portraits
- Group portraits
- Publicity photographs
- Snapshots
- Photographs
- Notes
- Content: The collection depicts aspects of the personal life, literary career, and some civil rights activities of writer and activist James Baldwin. Depictions of Baldwin's personal life before the 1960s, his family, and his civil rights activities are limited. The personal photographs consist of portraits and views of Baldwin at home; engaged in social activities with relatives, friends, and colleagues; traveling; and individual and group portraits of friends and some family members. Some of the portraits of Baldwin (in the "Portraits of James Baldwin" group") may have been taken for publicity or photojournalistic purposes. Included in this material are views of Baldwin at his residence in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France; documentation of Baldwin in Turkey; and views of Baldwin visiting his friend, painter Beauford Delaney, at Sainte-Anne Hospital in Paris, France. Among the other individuals depicted with Baldwin are Maya Angelou, Harry Belafonte, Bernard Hassell, and David Baldwin, James's brother. The professional photographs consist of portraits of Baldwin used to promote his various publications; candid shots and views of Baldwin engaged in activities and events related to his literary endeavors, including book signings, lectures, meetings and interviews; and views of theatrical productions of his plays. A significant portion of the promotional material was created by the Dial Press, publisher of the majority of Baldwin's books from 1956 to 1979. Of note is a photo album depicting Baldwin's participation at the October 1986 Issyk-Kul Forum, held on Lake Issyk-Kul in Soviet-era Kyrgyzstan, with other intellectuals from around the world. Also present are scenes and other images -- mainly in the form of contact sheets -- relating to different productions of his plays The Amen Corner and Blues for Mister Charlie, including a production starring Claudia McNeil, and a production directed by Frank Silvera and starring Beah Richards. Of note are a group of negatives depicting Pentecostal church services, some identified as Fireside Pentecostal Assembly, in Harlem, taken by photographer Theodore Pelatowski, Baldwin's collaborator on an unpublished book entitled Unto the Dying Lamb (circa 1948), for which Baldwin was awarded a Rosenwald Fellowship. The Civil Rights Movement material (1960s-1980s) consists of images of Baldwin, mainly in the form of contact sheets, conducting interviews, at an unidentified rally, and engaged in related activities, primarily in Louisiana and North Carolina. Included are publicity photographs for the 1982 documentary I Heard It Through the Grapevine, in which Baldwin retraces his time in the South during the Civil Rights Movement.
- Content: Many photographs bear photographer's, photography studio's or photo agency's hand stamp on verso; some items bear photographer's signature on verso or recto.
- Content: Many items bear handwritten captions on verso; some items bear typewritten caption labels on verso; some items bear printed captions on either verso or recto. Some items bear inscriptions.
- Content: Some items have been cropped or bear cropping marks. Some items are mounted; one item is matted. Some items have been folded. Some items are duplicates.
- Content: Collection contains work by Jerry Bauer, Jill Krementz, Sedat Pakay, Max Petrus, Steve Schapiro, and Sam Shaw, among others.
- Biographical/historical: James Baldwin (1924-1987) was an African American writer and Civil Rights Movement activist born in Harlem, New York City. Baldwin's written work, including six novels, eight essay collections, two plays, a book of poems, a children's book, and various other texts, explored the complexities of race, sexuality, and class in the United States. While still a teenager, Baldwin was active as a preacher in a small Pentecostal church. He began publishing reviews and essays after graduating high school, and in 1948 moved to Paris, France in an effort to escape the racism of the United States. His first several major publications -- Go Tell It on the Mountain, The Amen Corner, Notes of a Native Son, and Giovanni's Room -- were published while Baldwin was living in Paris and demonstrated his creative range across novels, plays, and nonfiction. Baldwin returned to the United States in 1957 and participated in the Civil Rights Movement, including speaking at various events through 1968. He quickly became close with movement leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Medgar Evers and spent significant time in the South. Beginning in 1969 Baldwin, referring to himself as a "transatlantic commuter," began living in the town of Saint-Paul-de-Vence in the south of France, with frequent long trips to the northeastern United States. Baldwin also spent periods of time in Turkey. Baldwin died in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in 1987, and is buried at Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York.
- Content: Forms part of the James Baldwin Papers, 1936-1992.
- Content: Title taken from James Baldwin Papers.
- Physical Description
- Gelatin silver prints
- Dye coupler prints
- Film negatives
- Extent: 719 items (2.5 cubic ft., six boxes)
- Extent: 283 photographic prints :gelatin silver, black and white ;36 x 28 cm and smaller.
- Extent: 183 photographic prints :color ;21 x 26 cm and smaller.
- Extent: 74 contact sheets :gelatin silver, black and white ;36 x 28 cm and smaller.
- Extent: 13 photographic prints :inkjet, black and white ;31 x 23 cm and smaller.
- Extent: 154 film negatives :gelatin silver, black and white ;26 x 21 cm and smaller.
- Extent: 11 miscellaneous :photomechanical prints, photographic postcard, and dye diffusion prints, black and white ;15 x 23 cm and smaller.
- Extent: 1 photo album (20 pages) ;31 x 41 cm
- Organized into three series: I. Personal, 1940s-2000s ; II. Professional, 1949-1987; III. Civil rights activities, 1960s.
- Type of Resource
- Still image
- Identifiers
- RLIN/OCLC: 984698840
- NYPL catalog ID (B-number): b21257041
- MSS Unit ID: 533478
- Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 0b4eb800-a8d6-013c-6ddb-0242ac110006
