Created by
Smith, Art, American, 1917 - 1982
Date
ca. 1971
Medium
silver and glass
Dimensions
Archives: 7.8Feet (0.1Meters)
H x W x D (Lady Day necklace): 7 1/16 × 4 1/8 × 1 3/16 in. (18 × 10.5 × 3 cm)
Caption
Like Smith’s ‘Baker’ Cuff was named in honor of Josephine Baker, this necklace has Billie Holiday, often called Lady Day, as its namesake. Smith did not have a habit of naming his individual pieces, but his partner, Charles Russell, designated names for many of the designs years after Smith’s death.
Russell may have been inspired by Smith’s love of jazz and connections to Holiday when naming this piece. An abiding jazz aficionado, jazz was one of the inspirations for Smith’s work. He liked to attend live jazz performances in Harlem and collected record albums by his favorite artists. Smith began his career working as an apprentice to modernist jewelry designer, Winifred Mason Chenet, who counted Billie Holiday among her high profile clientele. Holiday wore pieces likely designed by Smith in a December 1946 Ebony magazine article about Mason and her work.
Description
A silver collar-style necklace composed of two separate semi-circular metal pieces conjoined by a metal connector clasp set with a marble of clear and gold glass. The connector clasp allows for the bottom semi-circular portion to move freely while the piece is worn.
The artist has no mark engraved into this particular piece.
Place made
New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
Collection title
Art Smith Archive
Classification
Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design
Type
necklaces
Topic
Art
Craftsmanship
Design
Fashion
Ornamentation
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Charles L. Russell
Object number
A2018.110.1.3
Restrictions & Rights
© Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd54e1c934e-4d19-4c0a-aaea-ad0ef91f0f00

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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