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Josephine Baker

Adolf de Meyer American, born France
1925–26
Not on view
The Saint Louis, Missouri–born Josephine Baker arrived in Paris in 1925 and quickly made a sensation as part of the all-black Revue Nègre, a musical entertainment that capitalized on the French craze for American Jazz. Famously donning a banana skirt for her danse sauvage, Baker crafted performances that astutely deployed the stereotypes white Europeans associated with blackness, recouping them as instruments of her own empowerment and success. Baker shines amid the glittering backdrop and soft focus of de Meyer’s photograph, creating an iconic image of stardom.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Josephine Baker
  • Artist: Adolf de Meyer (American (born France), Paris 1868–1946 Los Angeles, California)
  • Date: 1925–26
  • Medium: Direct carbon print
  • Dimensions: Overall: 17 13/16 × 11 5/8 in. (45.2 × 29.5 cm)
    Mount: 21 15/16 in. × 16 in. (55.7 × 40.6 cm)
  • Classification: Photographs
  • Credit Line: Ford Motor Company Collection, Gift of Ford Motor Company and John C. Waddell, 1987
  • Object Number: 1987.1100.16
  • Curatorial Department: Photographs

More Artwork

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Coco Chanel, Adolf de Meyer American, born France, Gelatin silver print
Coco Chanel
Adolf de Meyer
1930s
Florence Blumenthal in the Library at 50 East 70th Street, Adolf de Meyer American, born France, Platinum print
Florence Blumenthal in the Library at 50 East 70th Street
Adolf de Meyer
[Woman in Hat], Adolf de Meyer American, born France, Gelatin silver print
[Woman in Hat]
Adolf de Meyer
Le Prelude à l'Après-Midi d'un Faune, Adolf de Meyer American, born France, Collotypes
Le Prelude à l'Après-Midi d'un Faune
Adolf de Meyer
1914
L'Après-midi d'un Faune - Nijinsky 1912, Adolf de Meyer American, born France, Palladium prints
L'Après-midi d'un Faune - Nijinsky 1912
Multiple artists/makers
1978

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