Portrait photograph together with autograph slip.

HUGHES, Langston - VAN VECHTEN, Carl.

Published by New York: Carl Van Vechten, 1936

About this Item

Fine portrait of the great writer - the image used for his entry in American National Biography - captured by Van Vechten in 1936, here attractively presented with an autographed slip. The intriguing background to the portrait was created by Van Vechten as a "pastiche of clippings from newspapers all over the country" (Bernard). "It was arts patron Carl Van Vechten who gave Hughes's career its biggest boost in the white world by taking Hughes's first book to Knopf and establishing contacts for Hughes that would serve him personally and professionally. the two remained friends until Van Vechten's death in 1964" (ANB). Emily Bernard, Carl Van Vechten and the Harlem renaissance: A Portrait in Black and White, Yale University Press, 2012. Original vintage "8 x 10" print with studio wet-stamp and inked identification verso. Together with separate slip signed "Sincerely Langston Hughes". Framed in black gesso and gilt with conservation acrylic glazing, overall 461 x 328 mm. Very good.

Seller Inventory # 145542

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Portrait photograph together with autograph slip.
• Publisher: New York: Carl Van Vechten, 1936
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)