February 1, 2016
Found in the Archives - Jack Mitchell's First Magazine Cover Shot
February is Black History Month, also known as African-American History Month in America
and just a few days ago I made an amazing discovery in the archives:
Jack Mitchell's first ever cover photograph for a major magazine was for the May 1951 issue of Color Magazine.
Jack Mitchell's photographs were published in major African American publications beginning in 1949.
He was Alvin Ailey's photographer from the inception of his dance company.
For nearly five decades his work celebrated many of the top African American artists,
dancers, writers, musicians and performers. Following are a few examples:
Alvin Ailey, 1962:
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Harry Belafonte, 1970:
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Roberta Flack, 1971:
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Gloria Foster, 1966:
Morgan Freeman, 1987:
Geoffrey Holder, 1975:
Whitney Houston, 1982:
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Judith Jamison, 1980:
Carmen De Lavallade, 1962:
Toni Morrison, 1979:
Leontyne Price, 1982:
Public Enemy, 1987:
Willi Smith, 1984:
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Gregory Hines, 1980:
Ellen Stewart, 1974:
Donna Summer, 1977:
Cicely Tyson, 1976:
Ben Vereen, 1972:
Shirley Verett, 1973:
All Photographs © 2016 Jack Mitchell • All Rights Reserved
