Art

Panorama of the Army of the Cumberland

The National Museum of American History is not an art museum. But works of art fill its collections and testify to the vital place of art in everyday American life. The ceramics collections hold hundreds of examples of American and European art glass and pottery. Fashion sketches, illustrations, and prints are part of the costume collections. Donations from ethnic and cultural communities include many homemade religious ornaments, paintings, and figures. The Harry T Peters "America on Stone" collection alone comprises some 1,700 color prints of scenes from the 1800s. The National Quilt Collection is art on fabric. And the tools of artists and artisans are part of the Museum's collections, too, in the form of printing plates, woodblock tools, photographic equipment, and potters' stamps, kilns, and wheels.

Bone Dice

Gambling usually was banned aboard whaling ships, on the grounds that it could cause too much strife among the crew.
Description
Gambling usually was banned aboard whaling ships, on the grounds that it could cause too much strife among the crew. But “bones” or dice were easily concealed from a ship’s officers, and crews found out-of-the way places to spend their free time wagering their earnings, tobacco or other assets.
date made
19th Century
ID Number
AG.024849.3
catalog number
24849.3
accession number
1875.4423

Whalebone and Bone Umbrella

The bony substance from the mouths of whales known as baleen is formed of keratin, like human hair and nails. It hangs in long, parallel sheets from the upper jaws of the blue, right, and minke whales, as well as other lesser-known species.
Description
The bony substance from the mouths of whales known as baleen is formed of keratin, like human hair and nails. It hangs in long, parallel sheets from the upper jaws of the blue, right, and minke whales, as well as other lesser-known species. Its hairy fringe filters food from seawater.
Dried out, baleen’s strength and flexibility made it ideal for buggy whips, corset busks, and umbrella ribs before the advent of plastic. A whale’s bone could actually be worth more than its oil. This man’s large umbrella has a wooden shaft, heavy hinged baleen ribs made in short sections, and an ivory handle. Marked “G. Hobbs, Barre,” it belonged to the donor’s grandfather, who lived in Barre, Massachusetts, until around the end of the Civil War.
Date made
ca 1835-1865
user
Hobbs, George
ID Number
AG.169283.01
accession number
169283
catalog number
169283.01

dice, ivory (pair)

ID Number
AG.024849.2
catalog number
24849.2
accession number
1875.4423

Bone Dice

Gambling usually was banned aboard whaling ships, on the grounds that it could cause too much strife among the crew.
Description
Gambling usually was banned aboard whaling ships, on the grounds that it could cause too much strife among the crew. But “bones” or dice were easily concealed from a ship’s officers, and crews found out-of-the-way places to spend their free time wagering their earnings, tobacco, or other assets.
date made
1800s
ID Number
AG.024849.1
accession number
1875.4423
catalog number
24849.1

USS Alaska Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth

The wooden screw sloop of war USS Alaska was built in 1868 and spent much of her career in the southern Pacific and Far East representing the American nation in foreign ports.
Description
The wooden screw sloop of war USS Alaska was built in 1868 and spent much of her career in the southern Pacific and Far East representing the American nation in foreign ports. In June 1878, she cleared New York for San Francisco and stopped at several South American ports on the way.
One of Alaska's port calls from 20-29 September 1878 was to Talcahuano, in the center of Chile's coast and that nation's main naval port. It also was one the principal stops for American whalers in the Pacific seeking fresh supplies and entertainment. This massive sperm whale's tooth was probably purchased there and engraved by one of Alaska's crew to commemorate his visit. While the carver of this tooth is unknown, it may have been one of the officers who kept the official ship's logbooks, because the calligraphy on the covers of the logs for this voyage is exceptionally elaborate and colorful.
As this tooth indicates, the Talcahuano visit and liberty calls were memorable. Sent ashore on liberty, 54 of Alaska's crew went AWOL (Absent WithOut Leave), and three more were confined to double irons (feet and hand cuffs) for drunk and boisterous behavior or fighting.
Date made
1878
USS Alaska port call to Chile, Talcahuano
1878-09
ID Number
DL.374477
catalog number
374477
accession number
136263

Photograph of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy

President-elect John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline, were photographed by well-known photographer Richard Avedon on January 3, 1961 for a photo essay in Harper's Bazaar.
Description
President-elect John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline, were photographed by well-known photographer Richard Avedon on January 3, 1961 for a photo essay in Harper's Bazaar. This photograph of the confident and handsome 35th president and first lady was the sixth and last in the printed series.
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, John F.
Kennedy, Jacqueline Bouvier
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.078
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.78

John F. Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy

This portrait by Richard Avedon of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his daughter Caroline is from an exclusive 1961 pre-inaugural sitting at the Kennedy compound in Florida. The photo session included Jacqueline Kennedy and their son John Jr.
Description
This portrait by Richard Avedon of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his daughter Caroline is from an exclusive 1961 pre-inaugural sitting at the Kennedy compound in Florida. The photo session included Jacqueline Kennedy and their son John Jr. This is one of six photographs of John Kennedy and his family that appeared in the February 1961 issue ofHarper's Bazaar as the first in a series of Observations by Avedon. The collection of Avedon photographs at the National Museum of American History includes photographs, tearsheets, contact prints, and negatives.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Caroline
photographer
Avedon, Richard
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.076
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.76

The Archer

Nickolas Muray bromide print of a muscled man ca. 1921. The man is wearing a helmet and holding a bow. He is posed kneeling on one leg.Mount recto: Dated and signed by artist (pencil). Mount verso: "Title: The Archer, By Nickolas Muray.
Description (Brief)
Nickolas Muray bromide print of a muscled man ca. 1921. The man is wearing a helmet and holding a bow. He is posed kneeling on one leg.
Mount recto: Dated and signed by artist (pencil). Mount verso: "Title: The Archer, By Nickolas Muray. 124 Macdougal Street New York." (black pen). "London Salon, 1921. Canadian National, Toronto 1921." (black pen).
Description
Nickolas Muray was born in Szeged, Hungary on February 15, 1892. Twelve years after his birth, Muray left his native town and enrolled in a graphic arts school in Budapest. Enrolling in art school was the first step on a road that would eventually lead him to study a photographic printing process called three-color carbro. In the course of his accomplished career, Muray would become an expert in this process and play a key role in bringing color photography to America.
While attending art school in Budapest, Muray studied lithography and photoengraving, earning an International Engraver's Certificate. Muray was also introduced to photography during this time period. His combined interest in photography and printmaking led him to Berlin, Germany to participate in a three-year color-photoengraving course. In Berlin, Muray learned how to make color filters, a first step in the craft that would one day become his trademark. Immediately after the completion of the course, Muray found a good job with a publishing company in Ullstein, Germany. However, the threat of war in Europe forced Muray to flee for America in 1913. Soon after his arrival in New York, Muray was working as a photoengraver for Condé Nast. His specialty was color separations and half-tone negatives.
By 1920, Muray had established a home for himself in the up-and-coming artists' haven of Greenwich Village. He opened a portrait studio out of his apartment and continued to work part time at his engraving job. Harper's Bazaar magazine gave Muray his first big assignment in 1921. The project was to photograph Broadway star Florence Reed. The magazine was so impressed with his photographs that they began to publish his work monthly. This allowed him to give up his part time job and work solely as a photographer. It did not take long for Muray to become one of the most renowned portrait photographers in Manhattan. Muray spent much of the early 1920s photographing the most famous and important personalities in New York at the time.
In his spare time Muray enjoyed fencing. In 1927, he won the National Sabre Championship and in 1928 and 1932, he was on the United States Olympic Team. During World War II, Muray was a flight lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1921
maker
Muray, Nickolas
ID Number
PG.003533
catalog number
3533
accession number
67799

Enlarged Contact Sheet of Caroline holding John, Jr.

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Caroline
Kennedy, Jr., John
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.062
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.62

Photograph of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy

President Elect John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline pose for photographer Richard Avedon. Although this photograph was considered for Avedon's photo-essay, "Observations", in the February 1961 issue of Harper's Bazaar, it was not selected.Currently not on view
Description
President Elect John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline pose for photographer Richard Avedon. Although this photograph was considered for Avedon's photo-essay, "Observations", in the February 1961 issue of Harper's Bazaar, it was not selected.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Jacqueline Bouvier
Kennedy, John F.
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.079
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.79

Portrait of an Unknown Man

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Maker
MacDonald, Pirie
ID Number
PG.004279.04
accession number
162945

Teddy Roosevelt

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1915
Subject
Roosevelt, Theodore
Maker
MacDonald, Pirie
ID Number
PG.004279.05
accession number
162945

Photograph of Caroline Kennedy holding her father's hand to her cheek

This portrait by Richard Avedon of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his daughter Caroline is from an exclusive 1961 pre-inaugural sitting at the Kennedy compound in Florida. The photo session included Jacqueline Kennedy and their son John Jr.
Description
This portrait by Richard Avedon of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his daughter Caroline is from an exclusive 1961 pre-inaugural sitting at the Kennedy compound in Florida. The photo session included Jacqueline Kennedy and their son John Jr. This is one of six photographs of John Kennedy and his family that appeared in the February 1961 issue ofHarper's Bazaar as the first in a series of Observations by Avedon. The collection of Avedon photographs at the National Museum of American History includes photographs, tearsheets, contact prints, and negatives.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Caroline
photographer
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.075
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.75

Frida Kahlo de Rivera

A 3-color Carbro photograph: "Frida Kahlo de Rivera," by Nickolas Muray, 1946. Color carbro portrait of artist Frida Kahlo de Rivera ca. 1946. Kahlo wears a pink scarf around her head and neck.Recto: Signed and dated by artist (pencil). Verso: Muray label.
Description (Brief)
A 3-color Carbro photograph: "Frida Kahlo de Rivera," by Nickolas Muray, 1946. Color carbro portrait of artist Frida Kahlo de Rivera ca. 1946. Kahlo wears a pink scarf around her head and neck.
Recto: Signed and dated by artist (pencil). Verso: Muray label. "Frida Kahlo de Rivera" (red marker). "Painter - wife of Diego Rivera - Friend" (red marker). "1946" (pencil).
Description
Nickolas Muray was born in Szeged, Hungary on February 15, 1892. Twelve years after his birth, Muray left his native town and enrolled in a graphic arts school in Budapest. Enrolling in art school was the first step on a road that would eventually lead him to study a photographic printing process called three-color carbro. In the course of his accomplished career, Muray would become an expert in this process and play a key role in bringing color photography to America.
While attending art school in Budapest, Muray studied lithography and photoengraving, earning an International Engraver's Certificate. Muray was also introduced to photography during this time period. His combined interest in photography and printmaking led him to Berlin, Germany to participate in a three-year color-photoengraving course. In Berlin, Muray learned how to make color filters, a first step in the craft that would one day become his trademark. Immediately after the completion of the course, Muray found a good job with a publishing company in Ullstein, Germany. However, the threat of war in Europe forced Muray to flee for America in 1913. Soon after his arrival in New York, Muray was working as a photoengraver for Condé Nast. His specialty was color separations and half-tone negatives.
By 1920, Muray had established a home for himself in the up-and-coming artists' haven of Greenwich Village. He opened a portrait studio out of his apartment and continued to work part time at his engraving job. Harper's Bazaar magazine gave Muray his first big assignment in 1921. The project was to photograph Broadway star Florence Reed. The magazine was so impressed with his photographs that they began to publish his work monthly. This allowed him to give up his part time job and work solely as a photographer. It did not take long for Muray to become one of the most renowned portrait photographers in Manhattan. Muray spent much of the early 1920s photographing the most famous and important personalities in New York at the time.
In his spare time Muray enjoyed fencing. In 1927, he won the National Sabre Championship and in 1928 and 1932, he was on the United States Olympic Team. During World War II, Muray was a flight lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1946
depicted (sitter)
Kahlo, Frida
maker
Muray, Nickolas
ID Number
PG.69.247.24
accession number
287542
catalog number
69.247.24

Aztec Dancer, Blanche Oterson

Nickolas Muray bromide print entitled 'Aztec Dancer' ca. 1921. The dancer, Blanch Oterson, in ornate headress posed in mid-dance.Mount Recto: Dated and signed by artist (pencil). Verso: "Aztec Dancer (Blanche Oterson of the Fokine Ballet. Hippodrome, New York 1921)" (black pen).
Description (Brief)
Nickolas Muray bromide print entitled 'Aztec Dancer' ca. 1921. The dancer, Blanch Oterson, in ornate headress posed in mid-dance.
Mount Recto: Dated and signed by artist (pencil). Verso: "Aztec Dancer (Blanche Oterson of the Fokine Ballet. Hippodrome, New York 1921)" (black pen). "By Nickolas Muray. 124 Macdougal Street New York." (black pen).
Description
Nickolas Muray was born in Szeged, Hungary on February 15, 1892. Twelve years after his birth, Muray left his native town and enrolled in a graphic arts school in Budapest. Enrolling in art school was the first step on a road that would eventually lead him to study a photographic printing process called three-color carbro. In the course of his accomplished career, Muray would become an expert in this process and play a key role in bringing color photography to America.
While attending art school in Budapest, Muray studied lithography and photoengraving, earning an International Engraver's Certificate. Muray was also introduced to photography during this time period. His combined interest in photography and printmaking led him to Berlin, Germany to participate in a three-year color-photoengraving course. In Berlin, Muray learned how to make color filters, a first step in the craft that would one day become his trademark. Immediately after the completion of the course, Muray found a good job with a publishing company in Ullstein, Germany. However, the threat of war in Europe forced Muray to flee for America in 1913. Soon after his arrival in New York, Muray was working as a photoengraver for Condé Nast. His specialty was color separations and half-tone negatives.
By 1920, Muray had established a home for himself in the up-and-coming artists' haven of Greenwich Village. He opened a portrait studio out of his apartment and continued to work part time at his engraving job. Harper's Bazaar magazine gave Muray his first big assignment in 1921. The project was to photograph Broadway star Florence Reed. The magazine was so impressed with his photographs that they began to publish his work monthly. This allowed him to give up his part time job and work solely as a photographer. It did not take long for Muray to become one of the most renowned portrait photographers in Manhattan. Muray spent much of the early 1920s photographing the most famous and important personalities in New York at the time.
In his spare time Muray enjoyed fencing. In 1927, he won the National Sabre Championship and in 1928 and 1932, he was on the United States Olympic Team. During World War II, Muray was a flight lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1921
maker
Muray, Nickolas
ID Number
PG.003536
catalog number
3536
accession number
67799

Locomotion, Plate 55 "Walking, Turning Around, Action of Aversion"

Eadweard Muybridge's cyanotypes are working proofs (contact prints) made from the more than 20,000 negatives he took at the University of Pennsylvania from 1884 to 1886.
Description
Eadweard Muybridge's cyanotypes are working proofs (contact prints) made from the more than 20,000 negatives he took at the University of Pennsylvania from 1884 to 1886. There Muybridge photographed human and animal subjects in motion from lateral (parallel), front and rear positions. For the lateral views he used up to 36 lenses in 12 to 24 cameras placed at 90-degree angles to his subjects. Muybridge added two more cameras, each holding up to 12 lenses and placed at 60-degree angles, for the front and rear "foreshortening" views.
Since the original negatives no longer exist, the cyanotypes record complete images before Muybridge edited and cropped them for publication. The mounted cyanotypes for plate 55 represent one of over 750 sets of proofs in this unique collection of early photography of motion at the Smithsonian. Comparisons between Muybridge's working cyanotype proofs and his final collotype prints prove that he freely reprinted, cropped, deleted or substituted negatives to make the assemblage of 781 collotype in the portfolio "Animal Locomotion."
In plate 55, frame 3 of the rear views is blank and crossed out, indicating a camera malfunction. The remaining 11 frames were reassembled and renumbered for the final print.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1885-07-28
maker
Muybridge, Eadweard
ID Number
PG.003856.0049
accession number
98473
catalog number
3856.0049
maker number
1017

Enlarged Contact Sheet of John F. Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Caroline
Kennedy, John F.
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.065
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.65

Edwin Dickinson

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1960
maker
Newman, Arnold
ID Number
PG.69.233.26
catalog number
69.233.26
accession number
288722

Alexander Calder

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1957
maker
Newman, Arnold
ID Number
PG.69.233.03
catalog number
69.233.03
accession number
288722

Enlarged Contact Sheet of John F. Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Caroline
Kennedy, John F.
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.066
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.66

Photograph of John F. Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, John F.
Kennedy, Caroline
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.072
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.72

The Brigand

Nickolas Muray bromide print of a man in profile, creeping along a wall. He has a turban on his head and a sheath in his hand, he is poised on his toes.Mount recto: Dated and signed by artist (pencil). Mount verso: "Title: The Brigand." (black pen) "By Nickolas Muray.
Description (Brief)
Nickolas Muray bromide print of a man in profile, creeping along a wall. He has a turban on his head and a sheath in his hand, he is poised on his toes.
Mount recto: Dated and signed by artist (pencil). Mount verso: "Title: The Brigand." (black pen) "By Nickolas Muray. 124 Macdougal Street New York." (black pen) "London Salon, 1921." (black pen)
Description
Nickolas Muray was born in Szeged, Hungary on February 15, 1892. Twelve years after his birth, Muray left his native town and enrolled in a graphic arts school in Budapest. Enrolling in art school was the first step on a road that would eventually lead him to study a photographic printing process called three-color carbro. In the course of his accomplished career, Muray would become an expert in this process and play a key role in bringing color photography to America.
While attending art school in Budapest, Muray studied lithography and photoengraving, earning an International Engraver's Certificate. Muray was also introduced to photography during this time period. His combined interest in photography and printmaking led him to Berlin, Germany to participate in a three-year color-photoengraving course. In Berlin, Muray learned how to make color filters, a first step in the craft that would one day become his trademark. Immediately after the completion of the course, Muray found a good job with a publishing company in Ullstein, Germany. However, the threat of war in Europe forced Muray to flee for America in 1913. Soon after his arrival in New York, Muray was working as a photoengraver for Condé Nast. His specialty was color separations and half-tone negatives.
By 1920, Muray had established a home for himself in the up-and-coming artists' haven of Greenwich Village. He opened a portrait studio out of his apartment and continued to work part time at his engraving job. Harper's Bazaar magazine gave Muray his first big assignment in 1921. The project was to photograph Broadway star Florence Reed. The magazine was so impressed with his photographs that they began to publish his work monthly. This allowed him to give up his part time job and work solely as a photographer. It did not take long for Muray to become one of the most renowned portrait photographers in Manhattan. Muray spent much of the early 1920s photographing the most famous and important personalities in New York at the time.
In his spare time Muray enjoyed fencing. In 1927, he won the National Sabre Championship and in 1928 and 1932, he was on the United States Olympic Team. During World War II, Muray was a flight lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1921
maker
Muray, Nickolas
ID Number
PG.003532
catalog number
3532
accession number
67799

Enlarged Contact Sheet of John F. Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy

This contact sheet shows a relaxed, comfortable President-elect Kennedy playing with his daughter Caroline.In frame 190, they are looking at a cross necklace Caroline is wearing.Currently not on view
Description
This contact sheet shows a relaxed, comfortable President-elect Kennedy playing with his daughter Caroline.
In frame 190, they are looking at a cross necklace Caroline is wearing.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1961-01-03
depicted
Kennedy, Caroline
Kennedy, John F.
photographer
Avedon, Richard
maker
Avedon, Richard
ID Number
PG.67.102.067
accession number
270571
catalog number
67.102.67

Willem DeKooning

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1959
maker
Newman, Arnold
ID Number
PG.69.233.27
catalog number
69.233.27
accession number
288722

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