Statues Hardly Ever Smile

Source catalog description

This description refers to material held by Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Visual details below describe the original material.

A short film with the title Statues Hardly Ever Smile. It was directed by Stan Lathan and produced by Chamba Productions about a program to bring children from the local community into the Brooklyn Museum to create performance art. There are four (4) prints of it: an answer print (2012.79.1.63.1a), an original print (2012.79.1.63.2a), and two other prints (2012.79.1.63.3a) and (2012.79.1.63.4a), all of which are 16mm acetate film with color and sound. The film begins with the camera panning around a room with many cases in the Brooklyn Museum. Children are heard in the voiceover narration describing the statues. The footage also includes close-ups of some of the statues. The next scene shows children and young adults following spoken directions to pretend they are holding various objects in their hands.

Explore Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture ↗