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Two weights used for measuring gold dust

Photograph
1935 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This Walker Evans photograph depicts two weights used for measuring gold dust, possibly from the Ivory Coast (Baule) or from the Gold Coast (Ashanti).


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleTwo weights used for measuring gold dust (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Photograph
Brief description
Photograph by Walker Evans depicting two weights used for measuring gold dust by the Baule or Ashanti people of Ivory Coast, in an exhibition entitled 'African Negro Art'. New York, 1935.
Physical description
Photograph of two decorative bronze weights carved in the shape of seated figures, made using the 'lost wax' technique, from an exhibition of African art
Dimensions
  • Image length: 17.4cm
  • Image height: 8.5cm
  • Mount length: 26.5cm
  • Mount height: 32.9cm
Dimensions taken from departmental notes
Object history
NB: The term "negro" was used historically to describe people of black African heritage but, since the 1960s, has fallen from usage and, increasingly, is considered offensive. The term is repeated here in its original historical context.

Historical significance: The Museum of Modern Art hired Walker Evans to photograph its African Negro Art exhibition, from which he produced 477 images. 17 sets of these images were printed, one of which the V&A bought for $50.
Historical context
Photograph of two weights used for measuring gold dust, exhibited in African Negro Art at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1935. Objects from Ivory Coast (Baule); or Gold Coast (Ashanti), bronze, lost wax technique (photo actual size), collections of Louis Carre and Charles Rutton, Paris (Nos 230 and 187 in catalogue).
Subjects depicted
Summary
This Walker Evans photograph depicts two weights used for measuring gold dust, possibly from the Ivory Coast (Baule) or from the Gold Coast (Ashanti).
Bibliographic references
  • AFRICAN NEGRO ART Photographs by Walker Evans List of Photographs The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1935
  • African Negro Art Edited by James Johnson Sweeney, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1935
Collection
Accession number
2152-1936

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Record createdJune 7, 2007
Record URL
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