Harry Smith (1923-1991), Anthropologist, entho-musicologist, bibliophile, innovative animator & film-maker, painter, designer, metaphysician & hermetic alchemist. Made over 1500 recordings for "restricted scientific use", 120 cuts commercially released. Mr. Smith's work collecting and preserving American oral song literature and artifacts was a primary source for post-mid-century folk music revival; Bob Dylan and others drew inspiration from his historic 3-box 6-record _Anthology of American Folk Music_ Collection made available 1952 on Folkways (FA 2951, 2&3) Records. First recordings of Charlie Parker, of the Fugs, of the Kiowa Peyote Ceremony (FE 4601, 1965 Folkways). Lived in poverty on New York's Bowery, awarded a Grammy 1991 for his "advancement of American Folk Music". Equally celebrated as avant-garde film-maker.

Provenance

Allen Ginsberg Estate; Ellen and Gary Davis, Greenwich, CT (through Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York); gift to NGA, 2008.

Harry Smith (1923-1991), Anthropologist, entho-musicologist, bibliophile, innovative animator & film-maker, painter, designer, metaphysician & hermetic alchemist. Made over 1500 recordings for "restricted scientific use", 120 cuts commercially released. Mr. Smith's work collecting and preserving American oral song literature and artifacts was a primary source for post-mid-century folk music revival; Bob Dylan and others drew inspiration from his historic 3-box 6-record _Anthology of American Folk Music_ Collection made available 1952 on Folkways (FA 2951, 2&3) Records. First recordings of Charlie Parker, of the Fugs, of the Kiowa Peyote Ceremony (FE 4601, 1965 Folkways). Lived in poverty on New York's Bowery, awarded a Grammy 1991 for his "advancement of American Folk Music". Equally celebrated as avant-garde film-maker.

Ginsberg, Allen

1985, printed 1995

Accession Number

2008.131.19

Medium

gelatin silver print

Dimensions

image: 32.1 x 32 cm (12 5/8 x 12 5/8 in.) | sheet: 50.5 x 40.5 cm (19 7/8 x 15 15/16 in.)

Classification

Photograph

Museum

National Gallery of Art

Washington, D.C., United States

Credit Line

Gift of Gary S. Davis

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Herbert E. Huncke, author _The Evening Sun Turned Crimson_, who introduced "hip" vocabulary & attitudes to writers later labeled "Beat", his room Hotel Elite, N.E. corner 8th Avenue and 51'st street diagonally opposite Madison Square Garden. Rare glimpse of Huncke, then hustling bread on Times Square, strung-out - he fixed at the sink. Saw him infrequently that season, though we'd known each other well since 1945, found his room to say good bye, leaving New York to hitch south, Mexico and Bay area, here just before Christmas, Manhattan 1953.

Herbert E. Huncke, author _The Evening Sun Turned Crimson_, who introduced "hip" vocabulary & attitudes to writers later labeled "Beat", his room Hotel Elite, N.E. corner 8th Avenue and 51'st street diagonally opposite Madison Square Garden. Rare glimpse of Huncke, then hustling bread on Times Square, strung-out - he fixed at the sink. Saw him infrequently that season, though we'd known each other well since 1945, found his room to say good bye, leaving New York to hitch south, Mexico and Bay area, here just before Christmas, Manhattan 1953.

Ginsberg, Allen