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

  • High-altitude tea plantation, near Virunga National Park, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Sarkin Musulmi alhaji Sir Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, with his retinue in the walled (old) town, Sokoto, Nigeria

  • Dancing at La Cote nightclub, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The minaret of the DjinguereBer Mosque, Tombouctou, Mali

  • The minaret of Shiathna-Asheri Mosque at Shela, near Lamu, Kenya

  • Yoruba woman and children carrying wood, near Oshogbo, Nigeria

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

  • A view of the city market, Lubumbashi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Fish transported on deck of Congo River steamer Colonel Ebeya, near Kisangani, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Elderly man with turban, Egypt

  • Ancestral shrines, House of the Oba, Benin City, Nigeria

  • Maasai girl drawing cow's blood into a calabash gourd, Olengaitoli village, Kenya

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

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

  • Portrait of a middle-class family, Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Twins Seven Seven at work, Oshogbo, Nigeria

  • Académie des Beaux-Arts, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Polychrome low relief in tomb of Princess Udud, daughter of Unas, Ṣaqqārah, Egypt

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

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

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

  • British breed of Large White sows at a privately owned farm, Kano, Nigeria

  • Angolan refugees at Kabentle camp, Wanie Rukula, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Statue of Henry Morton Stanley, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Diamonds are sorted by hand on tables, Société Minière de Bakwanga (MIBA), Mbuji Mayi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Marketplace on the Niger riverbanks, north of Niamey, Niger

  • Irigwe women watching male dancers, Jos Plateau, Nigeria

  • Skins folded in sixes and beaten over a special stone, Kano, Nigeria

  • Dance celebration among the Mbuti people, Ituri Forest, near Beni, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Lumber and rubber businessman Joseph Asaboro, with crepe rubber bundles, Sapele, Nigeria

  • Mende masqueraders from the Liberian National Dance Troupe

  • Portrait of an expatriate, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

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

  • Boating and sailing in Malebo Pool, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Lumber and rubber businessman Joseph Asaboro, with crepe rubber bundles, Sapele, Nigeria

  • Yoruba man with facial scarifications, Meko, Nigeria

  • Paratroopers using round parachutes at parachute troops training camp, CIPA, near Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Lamidi Olonade Fakeye, at work, Ibadan, Nigeria

  • Interior of Khafre's valley temple. Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

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

  • Welder at work, at riverport facilities, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Kuba elders and warriors dressed for the state visit of the Nyim (ruler) Kot a Mbweeky III, Bungamba village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Baule woman holding gilded wood fly whisks of dignitary N'Goran Koffi, Kouassiblekro, Ivory Coast

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

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

  • Aerial view of the city, Lubumbashi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Paratroopers, using round parachutes, jump from cargo aircraft, near Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Women selling palm nuts at Basoko market, near Mbandaka, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • The burial chamber and antechamber of the pyramid of Unas, Ṣaqqārah, Egypt

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

  • Cattle from Rwanda on road to Kalima, near Shabunda, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Military training on the field, Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

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

  • Preparing new palm leaves to place on roofs, Shamanyingidi village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Children on a swing. Nile Delta region, Egypt

  • The Emir of Katsina and members of the High court of Justice of the Northern Region of Nigeria, Kaduna, Nigeria

  • Kyaman goldsmith, Anna village, Ivory Coast

  • Mbuti bow-hunters, near Beni, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Town planning class taught by Mallam Yusufu Kasaure, at the Institute of Administration, Zaria, Nigeria

  • Removing Kimberlite ore with shovel at diamond mine, Société Minière de Bakwanga (MIBA), Mbuji Mayi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • People waiting for food distribution in a refugee camp from Eastern Congo's rebellions, Wanie Rukula, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Diamonds are sorted by hand on tables, Société Minière de Bakwanga (MIBA), Mbuji Mayi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Harvesting beans. Kurat, near Mit Rahina, Egypt

  • University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria

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

  • Residence built for the premier of the Northern region, Kaduna, Nigeria

  • Placing new leaves on roof, Demba village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Paratroopers using round parachutes at parachute troops training camp, CIPA, near Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Yoruba weaver, Nigeria

  • Female lion with cub, Virunga National Park, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Burial chamber with decoration on its vaulted ceiling, in the tomb of Rameses VI, Valley of the Kings, Necropolis of Thebes, Egypt

  • Dance celebration among the Mbuti people, Ituri Forest, near Beni, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Initiation rituals among Ndaka people, near Epulu, Ituri Forest, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Young Wodaabe men with facial and torso scarifications, Abouza, Zinder-Tanout region, Niger

  • Drummers during funeral rites among the Dogon people, Sanga, Mali

  • Thatched roof shelter of a Zande family, Gangala-Na-Bodio, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Sunday service at White Fathers Mission, Shabunda, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Man using ax to fell a tree. Near Benin City, Nigeria

  • Ntore dancer, Goma, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Masked performer wearing vertical Chi wara headdress, Bougouni village, Mali

  • Cattle in the surrounding plains, Mount Kilimanjaro region, Tanzania

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

  • Dance of the mukyeem (mukenga) mask, Muentshi, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Pyramids of Giza by the dawn's early light, Giza Plateau, Egypt

  • Mangbetu people picking cotton, Mongomasi village, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Riverport facilities, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Kimbanguist church people, dedication of new religious headquarters and theological school, Kinshasa, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • People waiting for food distribution in a refugee camp from Eastern Congo's rebellions, Wanie Rukula, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Kanya Bayonga village, near Beni, Congo (Democratic Republic)

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

  • Hairdressing among the Kuba people, Mushenge, Congo (Democratic Republic)

  • Placing new leaves on roof, Demba village, 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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