Music & Musical Instruments

Jesse Fuller's Silvertone Guitar

The Museum's music collections contain more than 5,000 instruments of American and European heritage. These include a quartet of 18th-century Stradivari stringed instruments, Tito Puente's autographed timbales, and the Yellow Cloud guitar that belonged to Prince, to name only a few. Music collections also include jukeboxes and synthesizers, square-dancing outfits and sheet music, archival materials, oral histories, and recordings of performances at the museum. The vast Sam DeVincent Collection of Illustrated Sheet Music is a remarkable window into the American past in words, music, and visual imagery. The Duke Ellington and Ruth Ellington Boatwright collections contain handwritten music compositions, sound recordings, business records, and other materials documenting the career of this renowned musician. In various ways, our collections find expression in performances of the Smithsonian Chamber Players, the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, and in other public programs.

Topic: Photography

Beastie Boys, Spring 1985

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1985
depicted (sitter)
Beastie Boys
maker
Friedman, Glen E.
ID Number
2010.0173.05
catalog number
2010.0173.05
accession number
2010.0173

Women in uniform gathered around a piano

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940s
ID Number
2017.0309.0010
accession number
2017.0309
catalog number
2017.0309.0010

Selena in spangled purple jacket

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date printed
2020
date made
1993
depicted (sitter)
Selena
maker
Rendon, Al
ID Number
2020.0085.0015
accession number
2020.0085
catalog number
2020.0085.0015

Two African American Men Performing

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1994 (Negative)
2011 (Print)
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2013.0148.04
catalog number
2013.0148.04
accession number
2013.0148

Women in military band

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940s
ID Number
2017.0309.0055
accession number
2017.0309
catalog number
2017.0309.0055

Television Screen

image of television screen surrounded by wooden case; opening for screen is flat on top and bottom edge and curved along sides; man at center of image holds a straw hat in his right hand while young girl to the right is wearing a dark dress with white polka dots and a hat with a
Description (Brief)
image of television screen surrounded by wooden case; opening for screen is flat on top and bottom edge and curved along sides; man at center of image holds a straw hat in his right hand while young girl to the right is wearing a dark dress with white polka dots and a hat with a flower on the brim; men in background are playing musical instruments; white border with scalloped edges; photograph made of snapshot; television show
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2019.0013.0011
accession number
2019.0013
catalog number
2019.0013.0011

Woman standing in front of music store window

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1984
maker
Zalesky, Roy Joseph
ID Number
2017.0306.0030
catalog number
2017.0306.0030
accession number
2017.0306

The Tender Chord

hand colored stereograph; printed on verso "The Tender Chord.
Description (Brief)
hand colored stereograph; printed on verso "The Tender Chord. / (La Corde Sensible.)"; man and woman seated in an interior room, in an embrace; man wearing blue breeches, white stockings, and lavendar jacket sitting on a chair leaning towards a woman whom he has his arms wrapped around; woman is wearing a green and cream colored dress is seated on a bench in front of a piano or harpsichord; music book open on instrument
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th-early 20th century
ID Number
2012.3033.0488
nonaccession number
2012.3033
catalog number
2012.3033.0488

Group portrait of Selena Y Los Dinos

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date printed
2020
date made
1994
depicted (sitter)
Selena
maker
Rendon, Al
ID Number
2020.0085.0017
accession number
2020.0085
catalog number
2020.0085.0017

Edith Taliaferro

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
photographer
Schwarz, Ira
ID Number
2014.0112.406
catalog number
2014.0112.406
accession number
2014.0112

"Subdued"

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1890s
ID Number
2010.0182.0030
accession number
2010.0182
catalog number
2010.0182.0030

Jook Savages in Law tipi, with baby Pilar Law

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1968
date printed
1998
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0139.145
catalog number
1998.0139.145
accession number
1998.0139

Country Music Performers Photograph Album

Photo album of country music performers. Ninety-three (93) color photographs labeled with performers name, date, and occasionally venue.
Description
Photo album of country music performers. Ninety-three (93) color photographs labeled with performers name, date, and occasionally venue. Performers include: Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner (May 27, 1972), Mack Magaha, Buck Trent, Jane Downing and Brother Mack, Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter (May 29, 1972), Billy Reynolds, Liz Anderson, Cathy Glick, The Carter Brother's Show, The Sheltons, Crazy Elmer, Jean Valli, Jim Ed Brown (June 17,1972) and the Gems, Melba Montgomery and Del Reeves and the Good Time Charlies (June 24, 1972), Susan Oliver, Bob Luman, Gus and Joanne Thomas, and Wilma Burgess. Locations: Richland, Boscov's East, Schaefferstown, Ontalaune, Shartlesville (state or states unknown) USA. May 27, 1972--Aug. 3, 1975, months range March--September.
These snapshots were taken in the summer of 1972 by an unidentified fan. The album documents a variety of country music performances in small, local venues, from a time when fans could easily take snapshots and gather autographs of favorite performers. It is likely the woman in the upper left corner is the maker of the album, and perhaps the young man in brown, right edge, is her son.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1972-1975
1972-05-27 through 1975-08-03
depicted (sitter)
Parton, Dolly
Wagoner, Porter
Trent, Buck
Jennings, Waylon
Colter, Jessi
Reynolds, Billy
Anderson, Liz
Carter Brothers
Shelton Brothers
Crazy Elmer
Brown, Jim Ed
Gems
Montgomery, Melba
Reeves, Del
Luman, Bob
Burgess, Wilma
maker
unknown
ID Number
2001.0291.01
catalog number
2001.0291.01
accession number
2001.0291

Tom Law and Tom Watson playing drums at a gathering at the Hog Farm Commune, Llano, NM. 1969

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1969
date printed
1998
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0139.121
catalog number
1998.0139.121
accession number
1998.0139

Tom Law putting up the first tipi at Woodstock, Yasgur's cow looking on. Bethel, New York, 1969

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1969
date printed
1998
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0138.07
catalog number
1998.0138.07
accession number
1998.0138

The Beatles, Cow Palace, San Francisco, 1965

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1965
date printed
1994
depicted (sitter)
Beatles
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0139.011
accession number
1998.0139
catalog number
1998.0139.011

Bob Dylan, Tom Law, and Robbie Robertson at the Castle, Las Feliz, Los Angeles, 1965

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1965
date printed
1998
depicted (sitter)
Dylan, Bob
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0139.021
catalog number
1998.0139.021
accession number
1998.0139

Big Brother and the Holding Company with Janis Joplin

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1967
date printed
1994
depicted (sitter)
Joplin, Janis
Big Brother and the Holding Company
maker
Law, Lisa Bachelis
ID Number
1998.0139.031
accession number
1998.0139
catalog number
1998.0139.031

Bobby Bare

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1974 (negative), 2003 (print)
1979 (negative), 2003 (print)
depicted (sitter)
Bare, Bobby
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2003.0169.001
accession number
2003.0169
catalog number
2003.0169.001

Quill, playing on stage at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. Bethel, NY August 16, 1969

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1969-08-16
date printed
1998
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0139.163
catalog number
1998.0139.163
accession number
1998.0139

Porter Wagoner

One of the most recognizable figures in country music, Porter Wagoner was known as the "Thin Man from West Plains, Missouri." He began recording music in 1954 after several years of singing on a local radio station. In 1961, Wagoner (b.
Description
One of the most recognizable figures in country music, Porter Wagoner was known as the "Thin Man from West Plains, Missouri." He began recording music in 1954 after several years of singing on a local radio station. In 1961, Wagoner (b. 1927) began to host his own country music television show, which was syndicated for 21 years.
Location
Currently not on view
negative
1972
print
2003
depicted (sitter)
Wagoner, Porter
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2003.0169.022
accession number
2003.0169
catalog number
2003.0169.022

Loretta Lynn

Loretta Lynn is a classic country singer whose life--from her autobiography, Coal Miner's Daughter--is a well-known story. She was one of the first stars to sing with a feminist point of view.
Description
Loretta Lynn is a classic country singer whose life--from her autobiography, Coal Miner's Daughter--is a well-known story. She was one of the first stars to sing with a feminist point of view. Her songs, like "Don't Come Home a-Drinkin' (with Lovin' on Your Mind)" and "The Pill," broke new ground in country music. Lynn (b. 1935) and Conway Twitty were named Vocal Duo of the Year by the Country Music Association for years in a row in the early 1970s.
Location
Currently not on view
negative
1971
print
2003
depicted (sitter)
Lynn, Loretta
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2003.0169.011
accession number
2003.0169
catalog number
2003.0169.011

Jimmy Martin

Jimmy Martin (James Henry Martin, 1927-2005) has been described as "the king" of the bluegrass lead singers. Early in his career, Martin played and wrote with Bill Monroe, and worked briefly with the Osborne Brothers.
Description
Jimmy Martin (James Henry Martin, 1927-2005) has been described as "the king" of the bluegrass lead singers. Early in his career, Martin played and wrote with Bill Monroe, and worked briefly with the Osborne Brothers. In 1955 he began to lead his own group, the Sunny Mountain Boys.
Location
Currently not on view
negative
1972
print
2003
depicted (sitter)
Martin, Jimmy
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2003.0169.012
accession number
2003.0169
catalog number
2003.0169.012

Janis Joplin and Big Brother, Woodacre, CA, 1967.

With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture.
Description
With her camera, Lisa Law documented history in the heart of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s as she lived it, as a participant, an agent of change and a member of the broader culture. She recorded this unconventional time of Anti-War demonstrations in California, communes, Love-Ins, peace marches and concerts, as well as her family life as she became a wife and mother. The photographs were collected by William Yeingst and Shannon Perich in a cross-unit collecting collaboration. Together they selected over two hundred photographs relevant to photographic history, cultural history, domestic life and social history.
Law’s portraiture and concert photographs include Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Lovin Spoonful and Peter, Paul and Mary. She also took several of Janis Joplin and her band Big Brother and the Holding Company, including the photograph used to create the poster included in the Smithsonian’s American Art Museum’s exhibition 1001 Days and Nights in American Art. Law and other members of the Hog Farm were involved in the logistics of setting up the well-known musical extravaganza, Woodstock. Her photographs include the teepee poles going into the hold of the plane, a few concert scenes and amenities like the kitchen and medical tent. Other photographs include peace rallies and concerts in Haight-Ashbury, Coretta Scott King speaking at an Anti-War protest and portraits of Allen Ginsburg and Timothy Leary. From her life in New Mexico the photographs include yoga sessions with Yogi Bhajan, bus races, parades and other public events. From life on the New Buffalo Commune, there are many pictures of her family and friends taken during meal preparation and eating, farming, building, playing, giving birth and caring for children.
Ms. Law did not realize how important her photographs were while she was taking them. It was not until after she divorced her husband, left the farm for Santa Fe and began a career as a photographer that she realized the depth of history she recorded. Today, she spends her time writing books, showing her photographs in museums all over the United States and making documentaries. In 1990, her video documentary, “Flashing on the Sixties,” won several awards.
A selection of photographs was featured in the exhibition A Visual Journey: Photographs by Lisa Law, 1964–1971, at the National Museum of American History October 1998-April 1999.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1967
date printed
1998
depicted (sitter)
Joplin, Janis
maker
Law, Lisa
ID Number
1998.0139.032
catalog number
1998.0139.032
accession number
1998.0139

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