Slow Fade to Black: Dorothy Jean Dandridge

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.

Black and white inkjet print (a) of Dorothy Jean Dandridge in a green frame (b). The photograph (a) is intentionally out of focus. The figure of Dorothy Jean Dandridge is dressed as the title character from the 1954 film "Carmen Jones." Dandridge is standing with her feet shoulder width apart in the center of the image. She has her hands on her hips and is looking toward the camera. She is wearing a dark short sleeve top and a knee-length light colored skirt in front of a white background. In the original photograph, Dandridge can be seen smiling broadly and her bare feet are visible. She is wearring drop earrings, a large bracelet, and a thin anklet. The photograph is inset in the frame (b). The back borders of the frame are raised and have paper tape around the edges. At the top is a sticker with the TransArt International shipping label.

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