Research Catalog

Details

Description

1. 33 items (.2 cubic ft., one box); 26 x 18 cm and smaller.

Summary

1. Depictions of residents of Ghana, in 1967, and African Americans living in Brooklyn, New York, in 1969, consisting primarily of portraits and candid shots of men, women and children in their daily lives. Images of Ghana consist of portraits and views of a mother and child, children playing, an elderly man, and a woman having her hair braided; and views of a dance troupe rehearsing, hospital patients and activities in a delivery room. Images of Brooklyn consist of portraits of individuals and a family; and views of street life, patrons at a local drinking establishment, a local business, children playing at school recess or in the street, and a storefront displaying a large political banner. Also of note are some images that feature cigarette ads that are marketed to African Americans.

Subject

1. Gelatin silver prints > 1960-1979
2. Group portraits > 1960-1979
3. Portrait photographs > 1960-1979
4. Ghana
5. Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.)
6. City & town life > New York (State) > New York > 1960-1969
7. African Americans > Children > New York (State) > New York > 1960-1969
8. Families, Black > Ghana
9. Delivery (Obstetrics)
10. Health care > Ghana > 1960-1969
11. Ghanaians > Health & welfare > 1960-1969
12. Ghanaians > Social life > 1960-1969
13. African Americans > Social life > New York (State) > New York > 1960-1969

Genre/Form

1. Portrait photographs – 1960-1979.
2. Group portraits – 1960-1979.
3. Gelatin silver prints – 1960-1979.

Call number

1. Sc Photo Portfolio (Semak, M.)

Note

1. Title based on photo captions.
2. Some photographs bear photographer's hand stamp on verso. All items bear photographer's signature and handwritten captions on verso. Most items appear to have been cropped; some images are printed full frame. Some items are mounted.
3. Images were originally captured in 1967 and 1969, and may have been printed later.

Terms of use (note)

1. Collection is under copyright; permission of the copyright holder is required for duplication.

Biography (note)

1. Michael Semak, born in Welland, Ontario, in 1934, is a Canadian photographer. In 1958, Semak graduated from Ryerson Institute of Technology, in Toronto, with a degree in architectural technology. He is a self-taught photographer, though he received some technical training as an emplopyee at Canadian Kodak. Semak worked as a freelance photographer from 1963 to 1973, on assignment for the Still Photography Division of the National Film Board of Canada, and for various photography publications. He also taught for almost thirty years in the Department of Visual Arts at York University, Toronto, until his retirement in 1999.

Author

1. Semak, Michael, 1934- , photographer.

Title

1. Photographs of Ghana and Brooklyn, New York, 1967-1969 / Michael Semak.

Copyright date

1. ©1969, 1973

Type of content

1. still image

Type of medium

1. unmediated

Type of carrier

1. sheet

Terms of use

1. Collection is under copyright; permission of the copyright holder is required for duplication.

Biography

1. Michael Semak, born in Welland, Ontario, in 1934, is a Canadian photographer. In 1958, Semak graduated from Ryerson Institute of Technology, in Toronto, with a degree in architectural technology. He is a self-taught photographer, though he received some technical training as an emplopyee at Canadian Kodak. Semak worked as a freelance photographer from 1963 to 1973, on assignment for the Still Photography Division of the National Film Board of Canada, and for various photography publications. He also taught for almost thirty years in the Department of Visual Arts at York University, Toronto, until his retirement in 1999.

Connect to:

1. Request Appointment

Research call number

1. Sc Photo Portfolio (Semak, M.)