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Eliot Elisofon Field collection

National Museum of African Art
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Object Details

Photographer
Elisofon, Eliot
Place
Africa
Congo (Democratic Republic)
Mali
Ghana
Côte d'Ivoire
Benin
Burkina Faso
Egypt
Kenya
Liberia
Niger
Nigeria
Rwanda
Senegal
South Africa
Sudan
Tanzania
Togo
Uganda
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Central African Republic
Topic
Body arts
Photographer
Elisofon, Eliot
See more items in
Eliot Elisofon Field collection
Summary
This collection is comprised of photographic and manuscript materials, primarily created by Eliot Elisofon to document his travels and work. The images portray many aspects of African life and culture including agriculture, wildlife, archaeology, architecture, art and artisans, children, cityscapes and landscapes, leaders, markets, medicine, recreation, ritual and celebration, and transportation. The manuscript materials include correspondence, essays, clippings, puobligations, notes, research, and itineraries.
Biographical/Historical note
A photographer best known for his work in Life magazine. Elisofon worked as a free-lance magazine photographer from 1933 to 1937, as a staff photographer for Life from 1933 to 1937 and on photographic assignments for various magazines, including the Smithsonian magazine, from 1942 to 1945. Elisofon traveled extensively in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America documenting the peoples of these lands as well as their arts and environments. A founding member and curatorial associate of the private Museum of African Art, which in 1981 became the National Museum of African Art (NMAfA), Elisofon bequeathed his collection of African photographs to the museum when he died in 1973. To honor Elisofon's contribution to the understanding of African art and culture, NMAfA named its archives after him.
Extent
14000 Negatives (photographic) (b&w, 35mm)
30000 Slides (photographs) (color)
80,000 Photographic prints (b&w, 25 x 20 cm. or smaller.)
Date
circa 1935-1978
Custodial History note
Photographs from this collection appeared in Life magazine and in the following publications; Color Photography by Eliot Elisofon (London: Thames & Hudson, 1962), The Nile by Eliot Elisofon (New York: Viking Press, 1964), Zaire: A Week in Joseph's World by Eliot Elisofon ((New York: Crowell-Collier Press, 1973), Africa by Eliot Elisofon edited by Tom Maloney (New York: U.S. Camera Annual, 1953-54) and Memorable Life Photographs by Edward Steichen (New York: Museum of Modern Art, 1951).
Archival Repository
Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art
Identifier
EEPA.1973-001
Type
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Negatives (photographic)
Slides (photographs)
Photographic prints
Negatives
Color slides
Black-and-white negatives
Black-and-white photographs
Citation
Eliot Elisofon Field Collection, EEPA 1973-001, Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution
Rights
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
Genre/Form
Negatives
Photographic prints
Color slides
Black-and-white negatives
Black-and-white photographs
Scope and Contents
This collection is comprised of circa 14,000 negatives, 30, 0000 slides, 8,000 photographic prints, and 14 boxes of manuscript materials that date from circa 1945-1978. The photographs document Eliot Elisofon's travels and work in Africa. The images portray many aspects of African life and culture including agriculture, wildlife, archaeology, architecture, art and artisans, children, cityscapes and landscapes, leaders, markets, medicine, recreation, ritual and celebration, and transportation. Artisans shown include an Asante weaver making kente cloth in Ghana; a Dogon carver in Mali making a kanaga mask; an Ebrie goldsmith in Cote d'Ivoire; Hausa dyers in Kano, Nigeria; and Nupe beadmakers in Nigeria; as well as artists at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Kinshasa, Congo. Portraits of leaders include the Asante court at Kumase in Ghana; Ebrie chiefs and notables in Cote d'Ivoire; the timi (king) of Ede, a Yourba town, Nigeria; the emir of Katsina, Nigeria; and the Kuba king and his court in the Congo. There are informal portraits showing children of the Kuba royal court dancing, Fulbe women with gold earrings in Mali, Mangbetu women in the Congo, and Maasai elders in Kenya. Masked dances documented include a Dogon dama festival celebration in Mali, an Igbo festival in Nigeria, and Kuba and Pende masked dancers in the Congo. There are also images of Yoruba gelede (men's association) masks in Nigeria. Non-masked dancers shown include Dan professional acrobatic dancers in Cote d'Ivoire, Irigwe dancers in Nigeria, Mangbetu dancers in the Congo, Mbuti dancers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Wodaabe men dancing in Nigeria. Events shown include Hausa riders in chain mail during the Independence Day celebration in Katsina, Nigeria. Images of art in situ include ancestral altars in the King of Benin's palace in Nigeria; Dogon rock paintings in Mali; and Yoruba Shango shrine sculptures in the palace courtyard of timi (king) of Ede in Nigeria. Landscapes include views of mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. Animals shown include birds, buffalos, elephants and giraffes. Traditional architecture shown includes Asante shrine houses with raised wall decorations in Ghana, Dogon villages in Mali and mosques in Mopti. The manuscript materials include correspondence, essays, clippings, puobligations, notes, research, and itineraries.
Restrictions
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Related link
Record ID
ebl-1536870822481-1536871012384-0
Metadata Usage
CC0
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/xo763575c19-5f10-470a-af8b-75ebd1c82664

In the Collection

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  • The Festival Temple of Thutmose III at the temple of Amon. Karnak, Egypt

  • Maasai elder preparing blood mixture, Olengaitoli village, Kenya

  • Fishermen at Vitshumbi. Virunga National Park, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Tuareg arched mat tents, beehive straw huts, and houses built of mud, Tombouctou region, Mali

  • Ejagham girls of the Qua clan doing the Ekombi dance, Big Qua Town, Nigeria

  • A view of the city central market known as Grand Marché, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Mahogany logs lashed along the banks of the Ethiope River, near Sapele, Nigeria

  • Mangbetu court music, Medje village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Marching band at Parade of the "Corps des Volontaires de la République," Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Female soldiers at parachute troops training camp, CIPA, near Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Asante man watching wari players, Besease, Ghana

  • Sneferu Bent pyramid, close to the cultivation, Dahshur, Egypt

  • Congolese woman feeding her baby, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The funerary chapel of the south tomb at the complex of the Step Pyramid of Djoser, Ṣaqqārah, Egypt

  • Mangbetu woman's negbe, Medje village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Woman preparing igname, Tano Sakassou village, Ivory Coast

  • Soccer game at Kashama commune Stadium, Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Gecamines concentrator plant, Kolwezi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Masked dancers during a Gelede performance, Meko, Nigeria

  • Kumase chief, Kumasi, Ghana

  • Shovel at work, Kamoto open pit copper mine, Kolwezi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Aissa Alimiri playing single-stringed lute, Tombouctou, Mali

  • Baule woman with traditional hairstyle, Kondeyaokro village, Ivory Coast

  • Zarma women carrying decorated water pot on head, near Niamey, Niger

  • Kuba sculptor carving a ndop, Mushenge, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Man playing a flute, Senou village, Mali

  • The carving of a Kanaga mask, Ogol du Haut village, Mali

  • Sirige, Kanaga and stilt masqueraders during the Dama ceremony, Sanga, Mali

  • Mangbetu woman's negbe, Medje village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The Emir of Katsina, Sir Alhaji Usman Nagogo, holding a morning greeting ceremony, Katsina, Nigeria

  • Man using shadoof, near Idfū, Egypt

  • Domestic scenes in front of house of Latifu Awoyale, Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Asante countryside, near Kumasi, Ghana

  • The African Timber & Plywood Limited plant on the Ethiope River, Sapele, Nigeria

  • Kingulube Village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Kyaman goldsmiths, Anna village, Ivory Coast

  • Women carrying pots on their way to the local market, Kivu Province, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Kanaga masqueraders during the Dama ceremony, Sanga, Mali

  • Women carrying pots on their way to the local market, Kivu Province, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Players in action at Nigeria vs. Dahomey (Benin) soccer game, Lagos, Nigeria

  • Shovel and 100-ton truck at work, Kamoto open pit copper mine, Kolwezi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Horse-drawn carriage. Alexandria, Nile Delta region, Egypt

  • A worker at the Calabar Oil Palm Estate (COPE) carrying big bunches of oil palm fruit to a central collection point, Calabar, Nigeria

  • Kuba man at his loom, Nemwele village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Cane sugar plantation owned by the Compagnie Sucrière, Kwilu-Ngongo, near Mbanza-Ngungu, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Hausa armed horsemen in quilted armour during 10th anniversary of independence celebration, Niamey, Niger

  • Caravan of dromedary camels. Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

  • Excavated houses, ruins of the walled city of Gedi, south of Malindi, Kenya

  • Joseph Mokobi and his family, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The carving of a Kanaga mask, Ogol du Haut village, Mali

  • Montane grasslands with giant senecio and lobelia plants, Ruwenzori Mountains, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Joseph Mokobi with family, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Catholic mission school, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Dogon rock paintings on the great vault, Songo village, Mali

  • Saqiya, or water-wheel. Al Uqsur and Karnak village, Egypt

  • Pwo mask dancer, near Gungu, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Polychrome low relief in tomb of Ptahhotep, Ṣaqqārah, Egypt

  • Remains of the enclosure of Ptah, Mit Rahina, Egypt

  • Sail boat on Lake Nokwe, near Ganvie, Benin

  • Lulua woman burnishing pottery before firing, Bakwa Balaie village, near Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • New Law Courts building, Kaduna, Nigeria

  • Awka Improvement Union meeting to discuss new hospital proposal, Awka, east of Onitsha, Nigeria

  • The House on the Wall, ruins of the walled city of Gedi, south of Malindi, Kenya

  • Woman paratrooper at parachute troops training camp, CIPA, near Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Pwoom Itok mask dancer, Muentshi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The Caves of Mount Hoyo, Virunga National Park, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Food distribution in a refugee camp, Kibentile near Mbanza-Ngungu, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Plant nutrition experiment at West African Institute for Oil Palm Research, near Benin City, Nigeria

  • Street parade, Al Uqsur, Egypt

  • Drummers performing for John Adetoyese Laoye I, Timi of Ede, Ede, Nigeria

  • Masked performers and balaphon players at Tiebleke dance, Bin village, Mali

  • Enya fishermen on fish-trap constructions in the cataracts, near Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Longhorn cattle, Mount Nyiragongo in the background, the Virunga Mountains, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Overnight camp on the mountain slopes, Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

  • Mangbetu woman pounds manioc leaves, Medje village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • First version of the new Nigerian flag, Lagos, Nigeria

  • Catholic mission school, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Sir Adesoji Aderemi, Oni of Ife, Ife, Nigeria

  • Elder wearing traditional cloth, Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Dogon Children, near Sanga, Mali

  • Raised granary made of woven flax mats, Bougouni village, Mali

  • The making of dugout canoe, near Mbandaka, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Door of the Palace of the Ewi, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

  • The Shango shrine of the Timi of Ede, Ede, Nigeria

  • Copper plant (Sodimiza Co.) owned and operated by a Japanese consortium, Musoshi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Dancers performing Minganji face mask, near Gungu, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Girl with wooden writing board (Koranic Board), Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Aerial view of Sophiatown, as it was left after removal of the population under the Western Areas Removal Scheme, Johannesburg, South Africa

  • The precinct of Amon, Karnak, Egypt

  • Dance of the women warriors, Abomey, Benin

  • Wholesale plantain market, Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Hausa man writing on wood board, Chadawanka village, Niger

  • Kamoto open pit copper mine, Kolwezi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Group of Egyptian children, Egypt

  • Music orchestra performing during women dance, near Gungu, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Stone-edged fields, Ogol du Haut village, Mali

  • Army newspaper, "Armée Congolaise", Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Young Lega woman with plantains, Shabunda, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Rural vernacular settlement. Qurna, Egypt

  • Joseph Mokobi and his father, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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Woman dancing at the royal palace, Abomey, Benin
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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