Accession Number
1943.100

Title
Harlem Dancers

Artist(s)
Elizabeth Olds

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1939

Medium & Support
woodcut on paper

Dimensions
10 1/16 in x 14 ⅛ in (25.56 cm x 35.88 cm)

Credit Line
Allocated by the U.S. Government Commissioned through the New Deal art projects

Subject matter
Elizabeth Olds worked for the Graphic Arts Division of the Federal Arts Program in New York City from 1935-1940. The program was one of the many Works Progress Administration Initiatives to support artists during the Great Depression. Interested in racial injustice, Olds produced several prints of primarily African Americans participating in cultural events like dances. This woodcut shows young men and women, possibly doing the jitterbug, which was a new and popular dance at the time.

Physical Description
Seven figures wearing brightly colored clothes dance together in a room.

Primary Object Classification
Print

Collection Area
Modern and Contemporary

Rights
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Keywords
Entertainment
WPA
abstraction
communities (inhabited places)
dance halls
dancers
dancing (activity)
groups
interiors
males
modern and contemporary art
social dances
standing