James Van Der Zee - Collecting History

This focused exhibition highlights WCMA’s recently-acquired portfolio of eighteen photographs by James Van Der Zee (1886-1983) during the first half of the 20th century. Born and raised in Lenox, Massachusetts, Van Der Zee established a thriving photography studio in Harlem by 1916, and served as the foremost chronicler of black life in New York City during the early 20th century. The photographs from Van Der Zee’s portfolio, as well as one photograph already in WCMA’s collection, are shown alongside three works from the special collections of Chapin Library.