{The most noted
photographer of the Harlem Renaissance, James Van Der Zee had his G.G.G.
Photo Studioin the basement of this
building designed by Charles H. Beer, 1885-86. Van Der Zee's most famous
photographs chronicle the Harlem Community of the 1920's and 30's. From
birth to death, in church and on the street, Van Der Zee recorded how
people inhabited Harlem and its buildings. The Schomburg Center for
Research in Black History has many of his photographs in their collection.