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Catalog Data

Artist:
Unidentified Artist  Search this
Copy after:
Jean-Paul Goude, born 8 Dec 1940  Search this
Sitter:
Grace Jones, born 19 May 1948  Search this
Medium:
Color photolithograph with halftone
Dimensions:
Sheet: 81.7 x 53.1cm (32 3/16 x 20 7/8")
Board: 86.4 x 58.4cm (34 x 23")
A to G Depth: 7/8"
Type:
Print
Date:
c. 1981
Exhibition Label:
Born Spanish Town, St. Catherine, Jamaica
Singer-performer Grace Jones firmly established her signature androgynous look with this iconic image advertising her 1981 album, Nightclubbing, and subsequent concerts. With her gleaming dark skin, geometric high-top fade hairstyle, and broad-shouldered masculine jacket with its plunging neckline, Jones satirized gender and racial stereotypes with a fashion-conscious theatricality that became part of her performance. The bold yellow background of the poster sets off the dark, gender-bending silhouette and underscores Jones’s sometimes confrontational style.
Jones had been a successful model in Paris in the early 1970s and then part of Andy Warhol’s circle and New York City’s disco scene. Her performance style has been likened to that of African American singer and dancer Josephine Baker in 1920s Paris, mixing Baker’s African-inspired geometric stylization with a minimalist aesthetic all her own.
Nacida en Spanish Town, St. Catherine, Jamaica
La cantante y actriz Grace Jones implantó su singular estilo andrógino con esta icónica imagen promocional para su álbum de 1981, Nightclubbing, y los conciertos siguientes. Con su reluciente piel oscura, corte de pelo geométrico y chaquetas masculinas de hombros anchos y gran escote, Jones satirizó los estereotipos de raza y género con un teatral sentido de la moda que se hizo parte integral de su imagen. El fondo amarillo vivo del cartel destaca la silueta oscura, sexualmente ambigua de Jones y su estilo desafiante.
Jones fue una modelo exitosa en París a principios de la década de 1970 y luego parte del círculo de Andy Warhol y la escena disco de Nueva York. Su estilo de interpretación se ha comparado con el
de la cantante y bailarina afroamericana Josephine Baker en el París de los años veinte, combinando la estilización geométrica de inspiración africana de Baker con una estética minimalista muy suya.
Topic:
Equipment\Smoking Implements\Cigarette  Search this
Poster  Search this
Grace Jones: Female  Search this
Grace Jones: Performing Arts\Performer\Actor  Search this
Grace Jones: Performing Arts\Performer\Actor\Movie actor  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Chisholm Larsson Gallery, New York City
Object number:
S/NPG.2006.41
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Location:
Currently not on view
Data Source:
National Portrait Gallery
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4429f63d3-6eb9-4cf3-a143-3cd9024ff824
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_S_NPG.2006.41