1926 (ca.), Archibald J. Motley, Jr., Cocktails -- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) (special exhibition)
From the exhibition label: Motley's portrayal of stylishly attired women socializing over cocktails in an elegant interior, a butler at their service, captures the affluence of the Black upper class, which expanded in Chicago and other cities during the interwar years. The production and sale of alcoholic beverages was illegal during Prohibition, but these people evade the law by drinking in a private home. The scene suggests a commentary on moral impropriety, juxtaposing a possibly inebriated woman on the sofa with a painting depicting monks on the wall.
1926 (ca.), Archibald J. Motley, Jr., Cocktails -- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) (special exhibition)
From the exhibition label: Motley's portrayal of stylishly attired women socializing over cocktails in an elegant interior, a butler at their service, captures the affluence of the Black upper class, which expanded in Chicago and other cities during the interwar years. The production and sale of alcoholic beverages was illegal during Prohibition, but these people evade the law by drinking in a private home. The scene suggests a commentary on moral impropriety, juxtaposing a possibly inebriated woman on the sofa with a painting depicting monks on the wall.