11 March, 2007

To Whom It May Concern:

The Museum of the City of New York has been most fortunate in having been able to feature the extraordinary portrait images of Martine Barrat in our exceptionally successful and well-received benchmark exhibition, Black Style Now, which ran from Sept. 9, 2006 - Feb. 19, 2007. As an interdisciplinary overview of the impact of African American culture on the way that New York City and the world perceive fashion and style, the exhibition constituted a massive interplay of clothing, accessories, images, interpretive text, and media. Perhaps the most sensitive and revealing image-based essay in the installation, Ms. Barrat's opening wall of twenty-five large-scale black & white and color prints greeted the visitor within the Museum's rotunda and exhibition's prologue. In dramatic contrast with the frenzied tone of the balance of clothing and candid snapshots comprising this section, these serenely poignant portraits beckoned the viewer to partake of the timeless nature of the Harlem community, and its formidable contribution to contemporary style. Black Style Now simply would not have presented as potent a perspective without this vital interjection of grace into the mix. We look forward to continuing our long-standing relationship with Ms. Barrat, and hope to be able to include her images in many future projects.