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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 John T. Riddle Jr., Ghetto Merchant
Ghetto Merchant, by John T. Riddle Jr., 1966

John T. Riddle Jr., Artist
Ghetto Merchant , 1966

Medium
Mixed media
Dimensions
41 in. (104.1 cm) tall
Credit Line
Courtesy of Claude and Anne Booker, Los Angeles. Photo by Ed Glendinning

John Riddle created Ghetto Merchant from the debris of a cash register he found in a burned-out storefront during the Watts rebellion. He turned to assemblage for its ability to communicate the physicality of black Los Angeles in the wake of the Watts uprising.