Take a picture of me, James VanDerZee

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

SYNOPSIS

James VanDerZee was just a young boy when he saved enough money to

buy his rst camera. He took photos of his family, classmates, and anyone

who would sit still for a portrait. By the fth grade, James was the school

photographer and unocial town photographer.

Eventually he outgrew his small town and moved to the exciting, fast-

paced world of New York City. After being told by his boss that no one

would want his or her photo taken “by a black man,” James opened

his own portrait studio in Harlem. There he perfected his craft and

took photographs of legendary gures of the Harlem Renaissance—

politicians such as Marcus Garvey, performers including Florence Mills,

Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, and Mamie Smith—and ordinary folks in the

neighborhood too. Everyone wanted fancy portraits by James VanDerZee.

Winner of Lee & Low’s New Voices Award, Take a Picture of Me, James

VanDerZee! tells the story of a groundbreaking artist who chronicled an

important era in Harlem and showed the beauty and pride of its people.

TEACHER’S GUIDE

About the Book

Genre: Nonction/Biography

*Reading Level: Grades 3-4

Interest Level: Grades 2-5

Guided Reading Level: S

Accelerated Reader® Level/

Points: N/A

Lexile™ Measure: N/A

*Reading level based on the Spache

Readability Formula

Themes: Art/Photography, New

York/Harlem Renaissance, Pride,

Perseverance/Overcoming

Obstacles, Pursuing a Dream,

African American Interest

Take a picture of me,

James VanDerZee

written by Andrea J. Loney

illustrated by Keith Mallett

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

BACKGROUND

James VanDerZee (Adapted from Afterword): In 1884,

John and Susan Elizabeth VanDerZee, the butler and

maid for President Ulysses S. Grant, left their posts in

his New York residence to start a family. They moved to

Lenox, Massachusetts, a sleepy, multicultural town that

became a vacation retreat for wealthy aristocrats in the

summer. A year after their rst child, Jennie, arrived,

James Augustus Joseph VanDerZee was born on June

29, 1886. The next year, their son Walter was born, and

three more children followed – Charles, Johnny (who

died at age six, when James was 10), and Mary.

James’s rst working camera was a four-by-ve-inch

box camera, operated on a stand. With supplies from

the local drugstore, he developed his own pictures

by following the directions that came with his rst

camera—the broken one. James was only a fth grader

when he became his school’s photographer. He was

also the unocial town photographer, and even took

portraits of vacationing aristocrats.

Eventually, James outgrew life in his small town.

In 1904, eighteen-year-old James and his brother

Walter decided to join their father, who was working

as a waiter at the Knickerbocker Trust in New York

City. James took on many jobs. He played the violin

and piano with the Fletcher Henderson and John

Wanamaker Orchestras. In 1911, James got a job as an

assistant photographer in a portrait studio in Newark,

New Jersey. The next year, he joined his sister Jennie

at the Toussaint Conservatory of Art and Music, where

James photographed her young students. James honed

his craft there until 1915, when he opened the Guarantee

Photo Studio at 109 West 135th Street in Harlem with his

new business partner, Gaynella Greenlee. Then James

and Gaynella moved to a better location – the renamed

G.G.G. Photo Studio at 272 Lenox Avenue. James and

Gaynella were married for more than fty years.

From 1915 through the 1980s, James took pictures of

families, churches, businesses, soldiers, professional

organizations, performers, athletes, religious leaders,

and more. Marcus Garvey’s “Back to Africa” movement,

the Universal Negro Improvement Association, hired

James as the organization’s ocial photographer.

But as cameras became smaller, cheaper, and easier to

use, James’s business declined. He went through hard

times—losing his home, his wife Gaynella, and even

the rights to his own photographs. Then, in 1978, he

married Donna Mussenden, and everything changed.

With his new wife’s encouragement and support, James

regained the rights to his work, returned to his career,

and started taking pictures again. At ninety years old,

James created portraits for many celebrities, including

Jean-Michel Basquiat, Lou Rawls, and Muhammad Ali.

He passed away in 1983 at the age of ninety-six.

James VanDerZee saw himself as an artist rst, then a

photographer. He was a master at transforming simple

photographs into elaborate works of art. The camera

was only one part of a complete set of tools he used to

create portraits. First came the special lighting, clothing,

backgrounds, and props. Second, James’s humor and

warmth helped his customers relax for the camera.

Finally, after the pictures were taken, James used a

couple of techniques to perfect the portraits in the

darkroom. He used an etching knife and a retouching

pencil to erase parts of images, such as wrinkles, or

draw in “corrections,” such as straight teeth.

During his lifetime, James VanDerZee created thousands

of portraits, took more than 75,000 photographs,

and created more than 125,000 plates, negatives,

transparencies, and prints. Each image shared an

extraordinary story about the people of Harlem, the

quiet beauty of their everyday lives, the grandeur of

their hopes and dreams, and, most of all, their inherent

dignity and pride.

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

BEFORE READING

Prereading Focus Questions

(Reading Standards, Craft & Structure, Strands 4–5 and Integration of Knowledge & Ideas,

Strand 7)

Before introducing this book to students, you may wish to develop

background knowledge and promote anticipation by posing questions

such as the following:

1. What hobbies or interests do you enjoy? Have you ever thought

about pursuing them as a career?

2. What is photography? How is photography an art?

3. What do you know about photography or taking pictures? What do

you use to take pictures? Have you ever used a lm or digital camera?

What do you enjoy taking pictures of? Are pictures important to you?

Why or why not?

4. What do you know about biographies? What are the typical text

features of biographies? What are some things that will not happen

in biographies?

5. What was the Harlem Renaissance? What did it celebrate?

6. What does success and achievement mean to you? What are some

examples?

Exploring the Book

(Reading Standards, Key Ideas & Details, Strand 1, Craft & Structure, Strand 5, and

Integration of Knowledge & Ideas, Strand 7)

Read and talk about the title of the book. Ask students what they think

the title Take a Picture of Me, James VanDerZee! means. Then ask them

what and whom they think this book will most likely be about. What

places or situations might be talked about in the text? What do you think

might happen? What information do you think you might learn? What

makes you think that?

Take students on a book walk and draw attention to the following

parts of the book: front and back covers, inside front cover, title page,

acknowledgements, dedications, illustrations, and afterword.

Setting a Purpose for Reading

(Reading Standards, Key Ideas & Details, Strands 1–3)

Have students read to nd out about:

• James VanDerZee

• why James VanDerZee is an important gure in US art history

VOCABULARY

(Language Standards, Vocabulary Acquisition

& Use, Strands 4–6)

The story contains several content-

specic and academic words and

phrases that may be unfamiliar to

students. Based on students’ prior

knowledge, review some or all of

the vocabulary below. Encourage

a variety of strategies to support

students’ vocabulary acquisition:

look up and record word denitions

from a dictionary, write the

meaning of the word or phrase in

their own words, draw a picture of

the meaning of the word, create a

specic action for each word, list

synonyms and antonyms, and write

a meaningful sentence that

demonstrates the denition of the

word.

Content Specic

Lenox, Massachusetts, violin,

piano, contraption, camera,

photograph, sachets, darkroom,

segregated, New York City, Harlem,

pianist, elevator operator, assistant

photographer, portraits, portrait

studio, Harlem Renaissance,

Marcus Garvey, Joe Louis, New

York Black Yankees, Florence Mills,

Bill “Bojangels” Robinson, Mamie

Smith, city dwellers, props, street

photography, passport photos,

Metropolitan Museum of Art,

exhibit, photomontage

Academic

nestled, captured, develop,

spinning, rushing, brightened,

straightened, glamour, fancy,

distinguished, grim, depictions,

struggling, combined, elegant,

pride, proudly, displayed, faraway,

transforming

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

• how James chronicled an important era in Harlem

• how James overcame discrimination

Encourage students to consider why the author, Andrea

J. Loney, would want to share this story with young

people and adapt a Japanese crane story for today’s

readers.

AFTER READING

Discussion Questions

After students have read the book, use these or

similar questions to generate discussion, enhance

comprehension, and develop appreciation for the

content. Encourage students to refer to passages and/

or illustrations in the book to support their responses.

To build skills in close reading of a text, students should

cite evidence with their answers.

Literal Comprehension

(Reading Standards, Key Ideas & Details, Strands 1–3 and Craft &

Structure, Strand 4)

(Language Standards, Vocabulary Acquisition & Use, Strand 4)

1. Where is James VanDerZee from?

2. What does James enjoy doing as a young child?

How was drawing hard for him?

3. How does James react to the photographer’s

camera?

4. How does James earn a camera? How much was it?

5. What is a darkroom?

6. Why does James move to Harlem?

7. What type of job does James get?

8. Why does James’s boss not allow him to take

customers’ portraits?

9. How does the way James take photographs

dier from his boss? How does James make the

photographs special?

10. Where does James open a photography studio?

11. Who does James photograph? What types of

people?

12. How does taking photos of mostly middle-class

black people distinguish James from other

photographers?

13. What techniques and tools does James use to

create “perfect portraits”?

14. Why does James’ photography studio eventually

decline in business?

15. Why are James’ photographs shown at the

Metropolitan Museum of Art? What do they depict?

How are they a part of history?

Extension/Higher Level Thinking

(Reading Standards, Key Ideas & Details, Strands 1–3, Craft &

Structure, Strands 4–6, and Integration of Knowledge & Ideas, Strand

(Language Standards, Vocabulary Acquisition & Use, Strand 4)

1. Why were many black families moving from the

South to the North? What was happening during

this time period? Was the North free of racism and

prejudice?

2. How do you think James felt being forced to go to

the dark room by his boss?

3. How is James an artist rst and a photographer

second?

4. How does James use photography to tell or share a

story?

5. What was the Harlem Renaissance? How were

James VanDerZee and other artists an integral part

of this cultural movement?

6. Why does Harlem become a social and cultural

center for African Americans in the 1920s-1930s?

7. How do James’s photographs capture the pride,

beauty, and joy of Harlem?

8. How does James help bring the African American

experience into the art world?

9. How is James a trailblazer in photography? What

was innovative about his photographing style and

technique?

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

10. How does the Harlem Renaissance aect or

inuence James’s career?

11. Why is it important that James took photographs of

mostly the middle class and not just the very rich or

poor?

12. How is James VanDerZee an important gure in

chronicling African American history and culture?

13. How does technological innovation hurt James’s

business?

14. How has photography evolved since the 1920s?

How has the way people take pictures and the

quality of cameras changed?

15. How do you think James VanDerZee felt seeing

his photographs displayed in an exhibit at the

Metropolitan Museum of Art?

16. What message does this story send about pursuing

your dreams and aspirations?

Reader’s Response

(Writing Standards, Text Types & Purposes, Strands 1 and 2 and

Production & Distribution of Writing, Strands 4–6)

(Speaking & Listening Standards, Comprehension & Collaboration,

Strand 1 and Presentation of Knowledge & Ideas, Strands 4 and 6)

Use the following questions and writing activities to

help students practice active reading and personalize

their responses to the book. Suggest that students

respond in reader’s response journals, essays, or oral

discussion. You may also want to set aside time for

students to share and discuss their written work.

1. James VanDerZee pursued his dream of becoming

a photographer. What are your dreams and

aspirations? What do you hope to accomplish in the

future? How do you hope or plan to do so?

2. What does the word persistence mean to you?

Describe a time that you demonstrated persistence.

How did you overcome any obstacles or challenges?

What motivated or helped?

3. Personal cameras are more common and available

than ever before. Why do you think people enjoy

taking pictures? What do people hope to capture in

photos? Why are photographs important or special

to you or others you know? What makes them

valuable?

4. James VanDerZee used techniques to edit peoples’

imperfections in photos—it can be considered

an early form of modern-day Photoshop. Do you

think it is right to use digital editing to retouch

photographs? Why or why not? Do you or anyone

you know use photo applications on their phone

or computer to improve or edit pictures? If so, how

and why are they used?

5. James VanDerZee’s legacy is celebrated and

honored in museums and special exhibitions today.

How do you hope to be remembered? What type of

legacy do you hope to leave behind?

H“VERDICT: Vivid visuals

and comprehensive text

combine for an excellent

resource for biography

collections.”

–School Library Journal

“The vibrant illustrations

paired with the lively text

make [this text] a picture

book biography that

truly shares the beauty

VanDerZee saw in his

heart.”

–Shelf Awareness

“Children will be drawn

in by VanDerZee’s

struggles, inspirations, and

achievements as well as

the idea that photographs

can be both works of art

and enduring historical

records.”–Kirkus Reviews

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

ELL/ESL Teaching Activities

(Speaking & Listening Standards, Comprehension & Collaboration,

Strands 1–3 and Presentation of Knowledge & Ideas, Strands 4–6)

(Language Standards, Vocabulary Acquisition & Use, Strands 4–6)

These strategies might be helpful to use with students

who are English Language Learners.

1. Assign ELL students to partner-read the story with

strong English readers/speakers. Students can

alternate reading between pages, repeat passages

after one another, or listen to the more uent

reader.

2. Have each student write three questions about

the story. Then let students pair up and discuss the

answers to the questions.

3. Depending on students’ level of English prociency,

after the rst reading:

• Review the illustrations in order and have

students summarize what is happening on each

page, rst orally, then in writing.

• Have students work in pairs to retell either the

plot of the story or key details. Then ask students to

write a short summary, synopsis, or opinion about

what they have read.

4. Have students give a short talk about what they

admire or learned about James VanDerZee.

5. The book contains several content-specic and

academic words that may be unfamiliar to students.

Based on students’ prior knowledge, review some

or all of the vocabulary. Expose English Language

Learners to multiple vocabulary strategies. Have

students make predictions about word meanings,

look up and record word denitions from a

dictionary, write the meaning of the word or phrase

in their own words, draw a picture of the meaning

of the word, list synonyms and antonyms, create

an action for each word, and write a meaningful

sentence that demonstrates the denition of the

word.

INTERDISCIPLINARY

ACTIVITIES

(Introduction to the Standards, page 7: Students who are college and

career ready must be able to build strong content knowledge, value

evidence, and use technology and digital media strategically and

capably)

Use some of the following activities to help students

integrate their reading experiences with other

curriculum areas. These can also be used for extension

activities, for advanced readers, and for building a

home-school connection

English Language Arts

(Writing Standards, Text Types & Purposes, Strands 1–3, Production

& Distribution of Writing, Strand 4, and Research to Build & Present

Knowledge, Strands 7–9, Range of Writing, Strand 10)

(Reading Standards, Key Ideas and Details, Strands 1–3, Craft and

Structure, Strands 4–6, Integration of Knowledge & Ideas, Strands 7–9,

Range of Reading of Text Complexity, Strand 10)

1. Ask students to use the Bio Cube tool (http://www.

readwritethink.org/parent-afterschool-resources/

games-tools/cube-a-30180.html) and planning sheet

from ReadWriteThink.org to write a biography

based on Take a Picture of Me, James VanDerZee!

(https://www.leeandlow.com/books/take-a-picture-

of-me-james-van-der-zee) and additional resources.

2. Encourage students to write a diary entry from the

perspective of James VanDerZee. Students should

include multiple dates and passages both before

and after James returns to the spotlight. How does

James feel while pursuing his dream and about the

various obstacles he faces? How does he persevere?

What does he hope or wish for? How does James

measure his success? How does James feel about

the renewed attention his work receives? Does he

feel any dierent? Why or why not?

3. Ask students to imagine they are going to interview

the author and illustrator of Take a Picture of

Me, James VanDerZee! Students should develop

interview questions to ask the author and illustrator

if they were on a talk show, news show, or radio

show. What do students want to learn more about

in terms of the writing process, the illustration

process, inspiration or research for the story, James

VanDerZee, photography careers, the Harlem

Renaissance, discrimination, and so on?

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

4. Have students read additional books about

pursuing your dreams and overcoming obstacles:

Little Melba and Her Big Trombone (https://www.

leeandlow.com/books/little-melba-and-her-big-

trombone) and Tiny Stitches: The Life of Medical

Pioneer Vivien Thomas (https://www.leeandlow.

com/books/tiny-stitches). Ask students to compare

and contrast each story to Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee! What is the central idea of each

book? How are the books connected? What themes

or ideas do they share?

Social Studies/Geography

(Reading Standards, Craft and Structure, Strand 4, Integration of

Knowledge & Ideas, Strands 7 and 9)

(Writing Standards, Text Types & Purposes, Strands 1 and 2, Production

& Distribution of Writing, Strand 4, and Research to Build & Present

Knowledge, Strands 7–9)

(Speaking & Listening Standards, Comprehension & Collaboration,

Strands 1–3 and Presentation of Knowledge & Ideas, Strands 4–6)

1. Encourage students to research the Harlem

Renaissance (1920s-1930s) and its eect on African-

American society and culture. What led to or

inuenced the Harlem Renaissance? What was the

Great Migration and what part did it play in this

movement? What factors inuenced the Great

Migration? What was the immediate and long-term

impact of the Harlem Renaissance on African-

American culture and American society? How did

it aect art, music, and literature? Black pride

and identity? What led to the end of the Harlem

Renaissance?

2. Ask students to investigate other African American

artists during the Harlem Renaissance and their

portrayals of historic events, individuals, cultural

perspectives, and the experiences and struggles

of minorities through their artwork. How do their

contributions inuence or aect others today?

What can we learn from their art? What themes

or messages are still just as powerful or relevant

today?

3. Explore The Harlem Renaissance Primary Sources

(http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/

primarysourcesets/harlem-renaissance/) and

Teacher’s Guide from the Library of Congress

(http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/

primarysourcesets/harlem-renaissance/pdf/teacher_

guide.pdf ) for further ideas and activities.

4. Have students learn more about African American

life during the early 20th century. Make a chart

with the following topics: Housing, School, Jobs,

Segregation. Encourage students to explore “The

Segregation Era (1900-1939)” from the Library of

Congress for more information (https://www.loc.

gov/exhibits/civil-rights-act/segregation-era.html).

Art/Media

(Reading Standards, Integration of Knowledge & Ideas, Strand 7)

(Speaking & Listening Standards, Comprehension & Collaboration,

Strands 1–3, Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas, Strands 4-6)

1. Provide students with images or digital access

to view artwork/photographs from the Harlem

Renaissance, such as James VanDerZee’s. In a

graphic organizer, have students identify their rst

impressions, the mood or feelings expressed in the

artwork/photograph, historical details that reect

the time period, and nally how the mood and

historical details relate to each other.

2. Ask students to compare and contrast James

VanDerZee’s photographs with other photographs

of African Americans during the 1920s and 1930s.

How are African Americans depicted in the

photographs? What is dierent? How are African

Americans viewed or treated based on your

interpretation of the dierent photographs?

3. Why does art help individuals and groups express

their history, frustrations, and their hopes for

the future? Have students research and present

contemporary examples of art that capture the

hopes, dreams, fears, and anger of dierent

groups of people today. What does the imagery,

symbolism, colors, and words convey?

4. Provide each student with a dierent photograph

depicting various people, things, interactions, and

settings. Ask each student to infer and expand upon

the information derived from the photograph. Who

or what is this photograph of? What is happening

before, during, and after the photograph? Where

was the photograph taken? Who is the individual in

the photograph? What is his or her story?

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

Home-School Connection

(Speaking & Listening Standards, Comprehension & Collaboration,

Strands 1–3, Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas, Strand 4)

(Writing Standards, Text Types & Purposes, Strand 2, Production &

Distribution of Writing, Strand 4, and Research to Build & Present

Knowledge, Strands 7–8)

1. If possible, have students visit or obtain digital

access to a museum with a photography exhibit.

Provide students with an analysis sheet to review

and critically examine the photograph series. Who

or what is the object of the photograph? How are

lighting, perspective, size, and frame used to create

dierent moods or eects? Where and when were

these photographs taken? What evidence in or

about the photograph indicates that? Are these

photographs a form of art, history, or both? Why?

2. Encourage students to take photographs of their

neighborhood/community that capture or express

the essence and reality of where they live. Who is

a part of your community? What is it known for?

What do you want people to know about your

neighborhood/community? Why is it unique, special,

or meaningful to you? What is well known about

your city/town? What is unknown? How are these

pictures connected? How do they tell a story? Have

students present their photography series in a

digital slideshow presentation.

3. Ask students to create a photo story that

chronicles their journey about who they are.

Using photographs from birth to the present,

have students assemble a physical or digital

photo album. The photographs chosen should

have signicance to each student’s personal

life experiences. Students will then present and

share their albums with the class, explaining how

the photographs are connected and depict their

individual narratives.

4. Have students ask their family members for copies

or access to old photographs of their parents,

grandparents, great-grandparents, and other

relatives across the early to late 1900s or earlier.

What can you determine about the individuals and

the time period from the photographs? Where and

what time period did they live? What do you think

they were like? When and where do you think this

photo was taken? What evidence in or about the

photograph indicates the time period? Then have

students interview their family members about the

individuals in these photographs and compare their

results. How similar or dissimilar were your results?

Why do you think this is?

5. Ask students to take pictures of members of their

family that capture the personality of the individual,

and depict them in a way that best expresses who

they are. Encourage students to also take a self-

portrait. Students should consider lighting, frame,

size, viewpoint, perspective, and other eects for

each photograph. Students will then display and

discuss their photography series in a class exhibit.

Additional titles to teach Biography:

Tiny Stitches written by Gwendolyn Hudson

Hooks , illustrated by Colin Bootman

https://www.leeandlow.com/books/tiny-stitches

How We Are Smart written by W. Nikola-Lisa,

illustrated by Sean Qualls

https://www.leeandlow.com/books/how-we-are-

smart

Ira’s Shakespeare Dream written by Glenda

Armand, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

https://www.leeandlow.com/books/ira-s-

shakespeare-dream

Little Melba and her Big Trombone written by

Katheryn Russell-Brown, illustrated by Frank

Morrison

https://www.leeandlow.com/books/little-melba-

and-her-big-trombone

questions, comments, and/or more information, please contact us at [email protected]. Visit us online at leeandlow.com.

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

All guided reading level placements

may vary and are subject to revision.

Teachers may adjust the assigned

levels in accordance with their own

evaluations.

ABOUT LEE & LOW BOOKS

LEE & LOW BOOKS is the largest children’s book publisher specializing

in diversity and multiculturalism. Our motto, “about everyone, for

everyone,” is as urgent today as it was when we started in 1991. It is

the company’s goal to meet the need for stories that children of color

can identify with and that all children can enjoy. The right book can

foster empathy, dispel stereotypes, prompt discussion about race and

ethnicity, and inspire children to imagine not only a world that includes

them, but also a world where they are the heroes of their own stories.

Discover more at leeandlow.com.

ORDERING INFORMATION

On the Web:

www.leeandlow.com/contact/ordering (general order information)

https://www.leeandlow.com/books/take-a-picture-of-me-james-van-der-

zee (secure online ordering)

By Phone: 212-779-4400

By Fax: 212-683-1894

By Mail: Lee & Low Books, 95 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016

Book Information for

Take a Picture of Me,

James VanDerZee!

$18.95, HARDCOVER

978-1-62014-260-8

40 pages, 9 X 10-1/2

*Reading Level: Grade 3-4

Interest Level: Grades 2–5

Guided Reading Level: S

Accelerated Reader® Level/

Points: N/A

Lexile™ Measure: N/A

THEMES: Art/Photography,

New York/Harlem Renaissance,

Pride, Perseverance/Overcoming

Obstacles, Pursuing a Dream,

African American Interest

RESOURCES ON THE WEB:

https://www.leeandlow.com/

books/take-a-picture-of-me-

james-van-der-zee

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrea J. Loney is a screenwriter with an MFA in dramatic

writing from New York University. She won the 2014 Lee & Low

New Voices Award for Take a Picture of Me, James Van Der Zee!.

Loney lives in California.

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Keith Mallett has been drawing and painting for as long as

he can remember. As an artist and designer, he has created

posters and ne art prints for more than thirty years. He had

the pleasure of attending the original James VanDerZee exhibit,

Harlem on my Mind, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and was

delighted to work on this biography. Mallett lives in San Diego,

California, with his wife and their German Shepherd.