Pete Seeger in Beacon, NY, photographed by Bruce Mondschain.: 3 November 2005
Bruce Mondschain has been an active photographer in the Chicago area for over 30 years. His work focuses on portraiture and fine arts figure study.
In the fall of 2005, Mondschain was invited to photograph folk singer Pete Seeger at his home in Beacon, NY after writing him a fan letter. Mondschain and his wife Ellen donated five of the photographs to the Center of Folklife and Cultural Heritage in 2008.
The Bruce Mondschain Photographs are a collection of 5 born digital photographs and corresponding photographic prints of Pete Seeger taken at his home in Beacon, NY, on November 3, 2005. Each photograph (prints and digital files) has a sepia and a black-and-white toned version as prepared by the photographer. The shots include close-up portraits of Seeger, and close-up shots of his hands playing his banjo.
Digital files are maintained in the Smithsonian's Digital Asset Management System.
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our
Bruce Mondschain Photographs, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Photographs donated by the photographer and his wife, Ellen Mondschain, March 21, 2008.
Born digital photographs and prints were processed by archivist Stephanie Smith in 2008.
The Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage acknowledges and respects the right of artists, performers, Folklife Festival participants, community-based scholars, and knowledge-keepers to collaboratively steward representations of themselves and their intangible cultural heritage in media produced, curated, and distributed by the Center. Making this collection accessible to the public is an ongoing process grounded in the Center's commitment to connecting living people and cultures to the materials this collection represents. To view the Center's full shared stewardship policy, which defines our protocols for addressing collections-related inquiries and concerns, please visit