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Eliot Elisofon Field collection

National Museum of African Art

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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  • Joseph Mokobi playing soccer, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Mud bricks for home construction near Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

  • Musicians accompanying Senufo dancers, Boundiali village, Ivory Coast

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

  • Door of the Palace of the Alaiye, Effon-Alaiye, Nigeria

  • Ge Gblin stilt-dancer mask, Man region, Ivory Coast

  • Asante man watching wari players, Besease, Ghana

  • Linguist staff held by Michel Afram, Anna village, Ivory Coast

  • American tourists. Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

  • Women preparing a meal. Jos Plateau, Nigeria

  • A children's fair. Damanhur, Egypt

  • Three Kanaga masqueraders during the Dama ceremony, near Sanga, Mali

  • Eternal Sacred Order of the Cherubim & Seraphim, on Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria

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

  • Divisional chief of Dagomba, Kumasi, Ghana

  • Regalia accompanying Baule dignitary N'Goran Koffi, Kouassiblekro, Ivory Coast

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

  • Dogon women dancing with whisk in hand. Near Sanga, Mali

  • Blind man, Senou village, Mali

  • Yoruba woman with hair wrapped in black thread, Ife, Nigeria

  • Eternal Sacred Order of the Cherubim & Seraphim, on Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria

  • Masked performers with antelope headdress (Ciwara). Bamako region, Mali

  • Nupe bead-makers around glass melting furnace, Bida, Nigeria

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

  • Asante countryside, near Kumasi, Ghana

  • Tahrir Bridge. Cairo, Egypt

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

  • Footbridge across the river, Man region, Ivory Coast

  • Dyoboli dancer wearing metal-covered masks, Cercle of San, Mali

  • Musician accompanying Irigwe dancers of Miango village, Jos Plateau, Nigeria

  • Granaries, part of family compound. Sanga, Mali

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

  • Dr.Nnamdi Azikiwe (in purple robe), Premier of Eastern region, on his way to meet local notables, Akokwa, Nigeria

  • Osiride statues in the court of the temple of Ramses III, Karnak, Egypt

  • Wall decoration on the entrance to the triple barque shrine within the Great Court of Ramses II, Luxor, Egypt

  • Caravan of dromedary camels passing at dawn, Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

  • Street vendors in front of new public administration building, Kaduna, Nigeria

  • Lovanium University, building under construction, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Dance performer from the Liberian National Dance Troupe

  • Carvers making Asante royal stools, near Kumasi, Ghana

  • Nufori acrobat-mask performs the final rituals of a Senufo funeral, near Korhogo, Ivory Coast

  • Woman carrying a basket, near Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Form of boxing fights organized by the Amalaita migrant association, near Pretoria, South Africa

  • Woman on Air Mali Flight from Niger, Tombouctou, Mali

  • Twins Seven Seven, Oshogbo, Nigeria

  • Gwari women carrying firewood in basket, near Kaduna, Nigeria

  • Fishing boat, Elmina, Ghana

  • Congolese war veteran, Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Modern constructions. Cairo, Egypt

  • Standing obelisk of Hatshepsut at the temple of Amon, Karnak, Egypt

  • The rock-cut tomb of Sirenput I at Qubbet al-Hawa. Near Aswan, Egypt

  • Massive papyrus columns of the Great Hypostyle Hall at the temple of Amon, Karnak, Egypt

  • Mangbetu musicians, Medje village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Smoke-cooking of an antelope among the Mbuti people, Epulu, Ituri Forest, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Dakpa men blowing into wooden trumpet known as ongo, Ubangi-Shari region, Central African Republic

  • Yoruba farmer, with his family members, removing beans from cocoa pods, Adamo village, Nigeria

  • Irigwe dancers of Miango village, Jos Plateau, Nigeria

  • Dolo, a blacksmith and woodcarver, making a Kanaga mask, Ogol du Haut village, Mali

  • From the plain, trees at the edge of the village, Ogol du Haut village, Mali

  • Dan acrobatic dancers, Man region, Ivory Coast

  • Joseph Mokobi and his father, near Albert, Lake, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Private dispensary, Bunia, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Tourist art, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Students at Protestant secondary school, with elaborate hairstyles, Mbandaka, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Monique Mbuni, age 6, a Lulua girl, carrying water in Congo beer bottle, Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Joint canoeing to the fish-traps in the cataracts, near Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Waterfalls on the Tshopo River, Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The drawing and porterage of water, Man region, Ivory Coast

  • Dogon family compounds at the base of the Bandiagara escarpment, Sanga region, Mali

  • Felucca on the Nile. Al Fashn, Egypt

  • Rural Hausa family compounds walled with traditional seccos or mud brick fences, Gungu village, near Jebba, Nigeria

  • Dromedary camels walking to market loaded with ground nuts, Sokoto, Nigeria

  • View of a daily food market, Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Central African Republic

  • President Mobutu, Mont Ngaliema, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Mural paintings on traditional dwelling. Near Karnak, Egypt

  • Young Senufo dancer, Boundiali village, Ivory Coast

  • Dolo, a blacksmith and woodcarver, Ogol du Haut village, Mali

  • Students at May Day celebration, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Lamidi Olonade Fakeye, at work, Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Eleventh Foundation Day anniversary at University College, academic procession going into Trenchard Hall for the graduation ceremony, Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Open public space (mulungu) of the town, Shabunda, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Parade in support of the "African Authenticity" movement, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Kuba women cooking in the open air, Mushenge, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Irigwe dancers of Miango village, Jos Plateau, Nigeria

  • Mangbetu women removing seeds from cotton pods, Mongomasi village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Fishing boat, Elmina, Ghana

  • Preparing and manuring fields, Bougouni village, Mali

  • Woman displaying pottery for sale, Lubumbashi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Congolese woman on their way to the fields, Kaina village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • North court of the seventh pylon of the temple of Amon. Karnak, Egypt

  • Woman with elaborate hairstyle, Mushenge, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Children playing soccer, near Mushenge, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Joint canoeing to the fish-traps in the cataracts, near Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • John Adetoyese Laoye I, Timi of Ede, in courtyard of Ede palace Ede, Nigeria

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

  • Kamoto open pit copper mine, Kolwezi, 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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