On this day in 1906, Paul Laurence Dunbar tragically passed away at the young age of 33 due to tuber
On this day in 1906, Paul Laurence Dunbar tragically passed away at the young age of 33 due to tuberculosis. In his short life, Dunbar’s exceptional literary talents earned him international fame and distinction. Though he was best known for his Black dialect poetry, he also wrote novels, short stories, musical lyrics, and poetry in other styles.The first edition of Dunbar’s Li’l’ Gal, a collection of dialect verse, was published by Dodd, Mead and Co. in 1904. Margaret Armstrong designed the Art Nouveau daffodil binding as well as the floral patterns that frame the text and illustrations throughout. The illustrations are half-tone reproductions of the work of Leigh Richmond Miner, a photographer who famously depicted the Gullah people of St. Helena Island, South Carolina. Dunbar frequently collaborated with Miner’s employer, the Hampton Institute (later, Hampton University), to raise funds to support the HBCU.Including Li’l’ Gal, Dunbar published six photo-illustrated poetry collections from 1899 to 1906 (the year he died), and taken all together, the over 450 images make up one of the largest publications of photographs depicting Black Americans. Later Black creatives such as Langston Hughes, Roy de Carava, Gordon Parks, Richard Wright, and Walter Dean Myers would also adopt Dunbar’s style of combining poetry and photography. Without a doubt, Paul Laurence Dunbar’s photo-texts constitute a landmark in American publishing and book history. Images from: Dunbar, Paul Laurence. Li'l’ Gal. New York: Dodd, Mead and Co., 1904.Call number: PS1556 .L5 1904Catalog record: https://bit.ly/34DiDEZ -- source link
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