by Claire O'Neill

A new exhibition opens at the Smithsonian tomorrow. "The Scurlock Studio and Black Washington: Picturing the Promise" will offer a rare view of what life was like for African-Americans in Washington, D.C., throughout most of the 20th century. For nearly 100 years, two generations of the Scurlock family documented cultural change with their cameras. As a successful portrait studio, the Scurlock business was renowned for its portraiture, but also left behind a legacy of documentary photography.

The images range from performances to civil protests to high-society events, and number in the thousands. Some notable portrait subjects include Marian Anderson, W.E.B. Du Bois, Duke Ellington and Muhammad Ali. A selection of these images will be on display at the Smithsonian, coupled with photography antiques. Here's a small selection of the Scurlock images.

  • A group from the YWCA camp for girls poses at Highland Beach, Md. in 1931. All images courtesy of the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
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    A group from the YWCA camp for girls poses at Highland Beach, Md. in 1931. All images courtesy of the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
  • Addison Scurlock poses with an early studio camera.
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    Addison Scurlock poses with an early studio camera.
  • Cooks in a train dining car pose for the camera in February 1949.
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    Cooks in a train dining car pose for the camera in February 1949.
  • Marian Anderson performs at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday in 1939.
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    Marian Anderson performs at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday in 1939.
  • Students chat outside of the Founders Library at Howard University in the 1960s.
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    Students chat outside of the Founders Library at Howard University in the 1960s.
  • Members of the NAACP gather for the Midwinter's Ball in Baltimore in 1912.
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    Members of the NAACP gather for the Midwinter's Ball in Baltimore in 1912.
  • George (from left), Robert and Addison Scurlock gather around a magazine in 1950.
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    George (from left), Robert and Addison Scurlock gather around a magazine in 1950.
  • Esther Popel Shaw and her daughter, Patricia, sit for a portrait in 1930.
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    Esther Popel Shaw and her daughter, Patricia, sit for a portrait in 1930.

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