Photograph by
Platon, British, born 1968
Subject of
McNair, Chris, American, 1926 - 2019
McNair, Maxine, American, 1928 - 2021
McNair, Denise, American, 1951 - 1963
16th Street Baptist Church, American, founded 1873
Date
2010; printed 2019
Medium
pigment on paper
Dimensions
H x W (image): 19 3/4 × 14 3/16 in. (50.2 × 36.1 cm)
H x W (sheet): 24 × 20 in. (61 × 50.8 cm)
H x W (matted): 22 × 28 in. (55.9 × 71.1 cm)
Description
A black-and-white photograph of Chris and Maxine McNair, by Platon. The McNair’s are depicted holding each other in front of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama; the site where their daughter, Carol Denise McNair, was killed during the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Bombing that took place on September 15, 1963. The photograph’s perspective is from an angle that looks up at the couple from about knee level. Chris McNair stands at the center left. Maxine stands on his proper left side. Her eyes are closed ,and face is turned, resting her head on his proper left shoulder. Her proper left hand is resting on the side of her husband’s face and his proper right hand is resting on her proper left forearm. Chris McNair is wearing a black suit with thin, white pinstripes, a white dress shirt, and a black tie with small white polka dots. His body is partially turned towards the right edge of the photograph and is looking into the distance to the right. Maxine McNair is wearing a white, long sleeve sweater, a black coat, and a fur hat. The pair are standing at the corner of the Romanesque and Byzantine style church, in front of one of the church’s two, front, twin towers. Two pairs of round top shuttered window are visible at the top of the tower, above two rectangular stained-glass windows. In the background on the left is the other tower with its pointed dome is visible. The sky appears cloudy, and the photograph is spotted with black and white speckles. The photograph has a thick white border. The edition number, [5/12], is printed in the bottom left corner. The photographer’s signature and date, [Platon 19], is handwritten in the bottom right corner. Inside the border, at the bottom center, is the photographer’s embossed mark: [PLATON ? / EDITIONED ? / PRINT ?[encircled between two bands of embossed dots]]. The back of the photograph is plain and white.
Place printed
New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
Classification
Photographs and Still Images
Type
pigment prints
portraits
Topic
Activism
Baptist
Civil rights
Hate crimes
Parenthood
Photography
Race discrimination
Religion
Violence
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Platon
Object number
2021.33.17
Restrictions & Rights
© Platon
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd575a998b4-0115-4944-be79-0b2cf23de31a

Cataloging is an ongoing process and we may update this record as we conduct additional research and review. If you have more information about this object, please contact us at NMAAHCDigiTeam@si.edu

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