A consortium of four foundations has acquired the archive of Johnson Publishing Company, publisher of Ebony and Jet magazines for $30 million. The archive includes more than 4 million prints and negatives, recently described by The New York Times as "the most significant collection of photographs depicting African-American life."
The Ford Foundation, The J. Paul Getty Trust, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation jointly announced the acquisition today, saying the materials would in turn be donated to public institutions such as Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Getty Research Institute.
Martin Luther King's widow and daughter, Coretta Scott and Bernice King, at his funeral. Photo: Moneta Sleet Jr.
Some feared the archive, which includes Moneta Sleet Jr.'s 1969 Pulitzer-winning image of Coretta Scott King and her young daugher Bernice at Martin Luther King Jr.'s funeral, originally published in Ebony.
“The preservation and accessibility of this singular and remarkable photographic archive exemplifies Mellon’s values and is of immeasurable service to picturing the vast and varied range of African American life,” said Mellon President Elizabeth Alexander, who is also a Pulitzer finalist and board member.
According to the Times' reporting, some had feared the archive would land in private hands, thus limiting future access to it. According to Mellon's release on the sale, the consortium will work to ensure its use "for the public benefit to ensure the broadest access for the general public and use by scholars, researchers, journalists, and other interested parties."