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Collage of five diverse artworks from the Hammer Museum Collections side by side. From left to right: 1) Contemporary painting of two embracing figures with surreal elements. 2) Post-impressionist style painting of trees with vibrant blues and greens. 3) Black and white illustration of a face with intricate patterns. 4) Japanese woodblock print style image of a figure in a checkered robe. 5) Photograph of a couple dancing, the woman in a black dress and the man in white

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Digital Archive Now Dig This!: Art and Black Los Angeles 1960–1980
Art Charles White, Eartha Kitt (From "Anna Lucasta")
Eartha Kitt (From "Anna Lucasta"), by Charles White, 1958

Charles White, Artist
Eartha Kitt (From "Anna Lucasta") , 1958

Medium
Wolff crayon on board
Dimensions
48 5/8 x 27 1/8 in. (123.5 x 68.9 cm)
Credit Line
Private collection. Photo by Ed Glendinning

This drawing portrays a young Eartha Kitt playing the role of Anna Lucasta, a young woman from Los Angeles who makes a living on the streets of San Diego after her father kicks her out of his house. Anna seduces many men, eventually finding true love, but her father tries to sabotage her relationship, only giving up on his deathbed. Anna Lucasta was originally produced by the American Negro Theatre Company in Harlem, whose mission was to "to break down the barriers of black participation in the theater; to portray Negro life as they honestly saw it; to fill in the gap of a black theater which did not exist." Anna Lucasta was adapted for film in 1958, with Kitt and Sammy Davis Jr. in the leading roles.