The oldest object on view documents an ugly reality, showing on brown paperboard one of the earliest known images of a slave in the US, accompanied by a bill of sale.
Claire Voon
Claire Voon is a former staff writer for Hyperallergic. Originally from Singapore, she grew up near Washington, D.C. and is now based in Chicago. Her work has also appeared in New York Magazine, VICE, Gothamist, Artnews, Smithsonian Magazine, and The Village Voice. Find her on Twitter and Instagram.
Posted inArt
A Deep Dive into the Library of Congress Photo Archives, from Harriet Tubman to Architectural Hats
An exhibition of photographs in the collection of the Library of Congress celebrates “the humanistic and funny part of America.”
Posted inArt
You Can Finally Listen to the Instruments at the Metropolitan Museum
Now, for the first time, visitors are able to hear the sounds of the historical instruments on display in The Art of Music.
Posted inBooks
An Early 19th-Century Flower Painter’s Guide to Identifying Colors of the Natural World
Published in 1814 by a Scottish flower painter, ‘Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours’ was one of the world’s first systemic taxonomy of colors.
Posted inBooks
A Compendium of Places with Sad Names, from Despair Island to Mount Hopeless
For Triste Tropique, Topographies of Sadness, Damien Rudd sought out the world’s glummest-sounding spaces.
Posted inArt
A Photographer Gets Rare Access to the Interiors of Moshe Safdie’s Iconic Habitat 67
While the exterior of this renowned building is well know, the interiors are rarely seen, until now.
Posted inNews
New Database Highlights Overlooked European Avant-Garde Artists
Forgotten Heritage offers visitors around 800 records to explore, from documentation of artworks to texts.
Posted inNews
A Rare Collection of 19th-Century Photographs of Native Americans Goes Online
Digitized by the American Antiquarian Society, the 225 vintage images were intended for non-Native audiences and were reproduced in government reports, illustrated newspapers or mounted on stereo cards.
Posted inArt
Long Disputed, a Painting In Massachusetts Is Now Attributed to Leonardo da Vinci
Long attributed to Lorenze di Credi, new research suggesting a small panel painting at the Worcester Art Museum is actually by one of the greatest masters of the Italian Renaissance.
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Newly Digitized Collection of Early 20th-Century Lakota Drawings Tells a Curious History
The collection has been digitized by the Newberry Library, as part of its new open access policy.
Posted inArt
Researchers Believe They’ve Identified the World’s Oldest Tattoo Kit
The findings lend insight into ancient Native American inking traditions.
Posted inIn Brief
Sacré Bleu! French Museum Is Full of Forgeries
The Musée Terrus in Elne recently brought in an art historian to examine its holdings; he found that 82 of the 140 works in the museum’s collection are fake.