Untitled (Central African Ngbaka bow-harp, Kuba cammwood powder container and Kongo clay vessel)

Marjorie Griffiths—who, as staff photographer for the Harmon Foundation, documented the activities of Harlem Renaissance artists—was engaged by the foundation to create a set of twenty-six photographs of works from the Blondiau-Theatre Arts Collection. These images were meant to circulate along with a text by Alain Locke in exhibitions promoting African art to a larger audience.
In this balanced still life, Griffiths carefully arranged before a contrasting background the bow-harp, camwood-powder container, and ceramic also on view in the exhibition. Since the photograph was taken, both the bow-harp and the vessel have endured losses: the strings of white beads that once adorned the harp’s waist and ankles are now missing, while the neck and edges of the vessel have experienced significant breaks.