Summary

Note: This object depicts people wearing 'black face'. Such activities are not condoned by Museums Victoria which considers them to be racist. Historical distance and context do not excuse or erase this fact.

One of approximately 85,000 negatives from the Laurie Richards Collection taken by the Melbourne based Laurie Richards Studio between the 1950s -1970s.

Laurie Richards was a professional photographer who began his career as a photo-journalist, working for the Advertiser newspaper in Adelaide, and the Argus and the Herald newspapers in Melbourne. In 1953, he opened his own business and set up a photographic studio at his home at 4 Tower Avenue, Alphington, an inner suburb of Melbourne. At its peak, in the late 1960s, the Laurie Richards Studio was one of Melbourne's pre-eminent commercial photographic studios, employing twelve photographers. The Laurie Richards Studio worked mainly in advertising and public relations, and had a broad clientele which included commercial companies, government institutions and the entertainment industry.

Description of Content

A group of six men are pictured with painted faces and holding banjos. All men are wearing a top hat, suit and bow tie.

Physical Description

Black and white 5" x 4" cellulose acetate negative.

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