Peaceful Family

Artist James Van Der Zee (American, 1886-1983)

Date1936

Dimensions(Sheet) H: 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm); W: 4 3/4 in. (12.1 cm);
(Frame) H: 16 1/4 in. (41.3 cm); W: 21 1/4 in. (54 cm)

MediumGelatin-silver print.

ClassificationPhotographs

Credit LineCarl B. Spitzer Fund

Object number

2005.319

Not on View

Label TextJames Van Der Zee was one of the most important and influential African American photographers of the 20th century. He worked as a commercial photographer during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 30s, a period that saw a flowering of Black culture in the New York City neighborhood. In addition to depicting major religious, political, and artistic figures of the time, Van Der Zee also produced hundreds of photographs of Harlem’s growing middle class, like the family in this photograph. While Van Der Zee enjoyed wide recognition in Harlem, it was not until 1967, when he was in his early 80s, that his six decades of photographs were recognized by the wider art world, and he gained new fame.