“There may be no such thing as a perfect stranger after James Baldwin has passed through. In public places he seems open to the world at large, stranger or friend, and listens actively as he talks.", Robert Adelman

Artwork Overview

Robert Adelman, “There may be no such thing as a perfect stranger after James Baldwin has passed through. In public places he seems open to the world at large, stranger or friend, and listens actively as he talks."
Robert Adelman, “There may be no such thing as a perfect stranger after James Baldwin has passed through. In public places he seems open to the world at large, stranger or friend, and listens actively as he talks."
Robert Adelman
“There may be no such thing as a perfect stranger after James Baldwin has passed through. In public places he seems open to the world at large, stranger or friend, and listens actively as he talks."
circa 1964
Robert Adelman
1930–2016
“There may be no such thing as a perfect stranger after James Baldwin has passed through. In public places he seems open to the world at large, stranger or friend, and listens actively as he talks.", circa 1964
Where object was made: New York, New York, United States
Material/technique: gelatin silver print
Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 16.8 x 31.9 cm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 6 5/8 x 12 9/16 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 22.2 x 35.4 cm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 8 3/4 x 13 15/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 16 x 20 in
Credit line: Gift of Esquire, Inc.
Accession number: 1980.1032
Not on display
Add to portfolio

If you wish to reproduce this image, please submit an image request

Images

Label texts

Politics, Race, Celebrity: Photographs from the Esquire Collection
By 1963, when he was featured on the cover of TIME magazine, James Baldwin had already garnered widespread attention for his writings and activism within the Civil Rights Movement. Baldwin’s collection of essays Nobody Knows My Name: More Notes of a Native Son was published in 1961, and he had written several articles for Esquire before Marvin Elkoff unflatteringly profiled him in an Esquire piece titled, “Everybody Knows His Name.” The backdrop for the story is the rehearsal for Baldwin’s play, Blues for Mr. Charlie. Elkoff questioned Baldwin’s current fame and influence, asking “How does a man of so unorthodox and disorderly a mode of life become so persuasive and pertinent a spokesman for the Negro protest movement, so respected an envoy to the white middle class. It helps, of course, that he is a famous and talented writer, driven up on the crest of concern for the Negro revolution to become the hottest property in publishing.” Baldwin was under a great deal of stress during the play’s rehearsals and the photographs accompanying the article capture dramatic facial expressions that seem belligerent and confrontational. Baldwin would not contribute to Esquire again for eight years after the article’s publication.
Politics, Race, Celebrity: Photographs from the Esquire Collection
By 1963, when he was featured on the cover of TIME magazine, James Baldwin had already garnered widespread attention for his writings and activism within the Civil Rights Movement. Baldwin’s collection of essays Nobody Knows My Name: More Notes of a Native Son was published in 1961, and he had written several articles for Esquire before Marvin Elkoff unflatteringly profiled him in an Esquire piece titled, “Everybody Knows His Name.” The backdrop for the story is the rehearsal for Baldwin’s play, Blues for Mr. Charlie. Elkoff questioned Baldwin’s current fame and influence, asking “How does a man of so unorthodox and disorderly a mode of life become so persuasive and pertinent a spokesman for the Negro protest movement, so respected an envoy to the white middle class. It helps, of course, that he is a famous and talented writer, driven up on the crest of concern for the Negro revolution to become the hottest property in publishing.” Baldwin was under a great deal of stress during the play’s rehearsals and the photographs accompanying the article capture dramatic facial expressions that seem belligerent and confrontational. Baldwin would not contribute to Esquire again for eight years after the article’s publication.

Exhibitions

Brosseau Center for Learning: In Conversation with Black Writing
2023
Politics, Race, Celebrity: Photographs from the Esquire Collection
Luke Jordan, curator
Kate Meyer, curator
2019