Visual Materials

A free man [graphic], 1868

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Description: A watercolor and graphite drawing depicting a formerly enslaved Black family with their animals outside their home. Illustration is centered by a Black man in the foreground chopping a log of wood to add to a pile of logs and kerosene. To his right is a small dog, and presumably his two children, a young Black girl dressed in red, and a Black boy in yellow holding a red bucket. The left side of the illustration is partially torn but depicts a horse in a fenced enclosure looking towards the family. The background includes a cabin with a smoking chimney in front of a hilly enclosure. The drawing's paper is fragile and deteriorating on all edges; a signature and date by the artist is partially visible on the lower right corner, reading, "Caleb Brown, 1868." Titled, "A Free MAN" towards the lower center of the drawing. Verso of drawing includes a partial portrait of a woman titled "Eliza," lithographed by James Baillie.
Type: Visual Materials(Opens in new tab)
Date: 1868
Call number: priPEF 47
Creator: Brown, Caleb(Opens in new tab)
Provenance: Purchased from Michael Brown Rare Books, July 2024. Michael Brown Rare Books acquired the drawing from Robert Fraker of Savoy Books in 2022.
Restrictions: RESTRICTED. Use facsimile reproduction. Fragile, original available by special permission only.
Rights: The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining permission rests with the researcher.
Dimensions: 20 x 19 cm
Associated people: Brown, Caleb,
Find out more: View in the Huntington Digital Library(Opens in new tab); View in the Library catalog(Opens in new tab)

Theodore Roethke [graphic]

Visual Materials

A sitting portrait of poet Theodore Roethke done in black ink by Don Bachardy. Roethke is depicted in profile looking towards his lower right while dressed in a single-button jacket and decorative tie. The illustration is signed in ink by Bachardy on the lower left. The verso of the item is signed "Theodore Roethke" in pencil on the lower right. Paper is embossed with a watermark reading, "Strathmore Seconds." The date of the item is based on additional portraits of Theodore Roethke in the same outfit and similar poses found in the Don Bachardy papers.

priPEF 110

Image not available

Kindred [graphic]

Visual Materials

A watercolor and pencil sketch for the book jacket of Octavia E. Butler's novel, Kindred (1979). The illustration depicts two profiles of Black women with their backs parallel to one another, centered by an image of a flowing hourglass. The woman on the left is accessorized and in modern attire, while the woman on the right is in lace-collared clothing. Signed in pencil on the lower right by the artist, "L. Schwinger."

priPEF 46

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"Come, fellow Americans, let us worship!" [graphic] / Interlandi

Visual Materials

An ink drawing by Frank Interlandi for the Los Angeles Times. The drawing is a paste-up which included a glued clipping of a revolver (now loose), originally placed on top of a drawn column labeled "God." Additional loose clippings include a typed paper slip of the title, and another typed slip reading, "Below Olympus... By Interlandi." The cartoon is signed and dated by Interlandi on the left corner of the image. Signed text towards the lower right of the image also reads, "With best wishes, from Frank Interlandi." The title, "Come, fellow Americans, let us worship!" is written in blue pencil below the image. Verso of drawing includes a blue note from the Los Angeles Times with information regarding the original order request.

priPEF 5

Image not available

Los dos pajaros de una especie. Se llaman tucanos, son de tamaño casi de una gallina aunque no tienen mas carne que una paloma, les hai de pico verde pero los del negro son mas hermosos ... [graphic]

Visual Materials

A pencil and watercolor drawing illustrating two "tucanos," likely the Channel-billed toucan, and a "picapau," possibly the Red-necked woodpecker, perched on a tree in Santa Catalina, Brazil (now Florianópolis in Santa Catarina). The drawing is accompanied by handwritten text in black ink above and below the illustration describing observations of the birds' diets, habits, behaviors, and physical characteristics. Signed by the artist, Bernardo de Velasco, in brown ink on the bottom of the drawing reading, "Dibujados de los originales en la Ysla de Sta, Catalina por Dn. Bernardo Velasco Teniente del Regimento de Ynfanteria de Murcia." Illustrated by Bernardo de Velasco in Brazil likely while on voyage to Paraguay.

priPEF 72

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Colored man is no slacker [graphic]

Visual Materials

A color offset lithograph poster depicting an African American man and woman in embrace. The male partner is dressed in infantry uniform, while the female partner is dressed in a blue-and-white dress and spatterdashes. They are illustrated as holding hands and parting with one another, assumably the man enlisted to join the group of African American infantrymen marching with a 42-star U.S. flag behind them. The couple is centered below a doorstep on a walkway surrounded by columns, red and yellow roses, and white and blue flowers. The background includes blue skies with green foliage and trees. The title, "Colored Man is No Slacker" is printed in blue below the couple. Signed and copyrighted on lower left corner by artist, "1918. E.G. Renesch, Chicago."

priPEF 55

Image not available

Ching How Menu

Visual Materials

A menu for James Wong Howe's and Sanora Babb's Ching How restaurant in Los Angeles, California. The cover is printed with green and black border illustrations of stylistic Chinese motifs, including birds, dragons, and women in dress. Center of cover reads "Ching How Menu" and the illustration is signed by an unknown artist, "Sally" towards the lower right. Interior pages include variations of food entrees, appetizers, soups, and other dishes with their prices. The menu is bilingual, with the original dish names listed in Chinese and English descriptions below, for example, "Git Lic Gai...Fried breaded boneless chicken with sweet and sour sauce." Some items are crossed out in black pen, noting name changes or when the restaurant was out of a specific item. The menu promotes "Chinese food in the Chinese manner," while having "the chef of a thousand dishes," and an introduction to "the best in Chinese food." The approximate date of the item is based on text in the lower center of the menu, which mentions pricing being high in April 1943.

priPEF 111

A free man [graphic], 1868

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Theodore Roethke [graphic]

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"Come, fellow Americans, let us worship!" [graphic] / Interlandi

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