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Meet Grace Hartigan

Creator:
Smithsonian American Art Museum  Search this
Type:
Interviews
YouTube Videos
Uploaded:
2009-01-16T14:50:13.000Z
YouTube Category:
People & Blogs  Search this
Topic:
Art, American  Search this
See more by:
americanartmuseum
Data Source:
Smithsonian American Art Museum
YouTube Channel:
americanartmuseum
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:yt_e-mzSLQL1nk

Jack Tworkov papers, 1926-1993

Creator:
Tworkov, Jack, 1900-1982  Search this
Subject:
Forge, Andrew  Search this
Dickinson, Edwin Walter  Search this
Demarco, Ricky  Search this
Knaths, Karl  Search this
Katz, Paul  Search this
Herzbrun, Helene  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Bartlett, Jennifer  Search this
Ashton, Dore  Search this
Ashbury, John  Search this
Cézanne, Paul  Search this
Cavallon, Giorgio  Search this
Calfee, William H. (William Howard)  Search this
Blinken, Donald M.  Search this
Ponsold, Renate  Search this
Praeger, David A.  Search this
Westenberger, Theo  Search this
Summerford, Joe  Search this
Thorne, Joan  Search this
Matter, Herbert  Search this
Lindeberg, Linda  Search this
Osborn, Robert Chesley  Search this
Newman, Arnold  Search this
Newman, Michael  Search this
Wise, Howard  Search this
Wheeler, Dennis  Search this
Yunkers, Adja  Search this
Rothko, Mark  Search this
Egan Gallery  Search this
Stable Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Nancy Hoffman Gallery  Search this
Leo Castelli Gallery  Search this
Poindexter Gallery  Search this
Zabriskie Gallery  Search this
Type:
Photographs
Sketchbooks
Video recordings
Interviews
Motion pictures (visual works)
Sound recordings
Sketches
Diaries
Citation:
Jack Tworkov papers, 1926-1993. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Painting -- New York (State)  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Artists' studios -- Photographs  Search this
Theme:
Diaries  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)13402
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211452
AAA_collcode_tworjack2
Theme:
Diaries
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211452
Online Media:

Jack Tworkov papers

Creator:
Tworkov, Jack  Search this
Names:
Egan Gallery  Search this
Leo Castelli Gallery  Search this
Nancy Hoffman Gallery  Search this
Poindexter Gallery  Search this
Stable Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Zabriskie Gallery  Search this
Ashbury, John  Search this
Ashton, Dore  Search this
Bartlett, Jennifer, 1941-  Search this
Blinken, Donald M., 1925-  Search this
Calfee, William H. (William Howard), 1909-1995  Search this
Cavallon, Giorgio, 1904-1989  Search this
Cézanne, Paul, 1839-1906  Search this
Demarco, Ricky  Search this
Dickinson, Edwin Walter, 1891-1978  Search this
Forge, Andrew  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Herzbrun, Helene  Search this
Katz, Paul  Search this
Knaths, Karl, 1891-1971  Search this
Lindeberg, Linda, 1915-1973  Search this
Matter, Herbert, 1907-1984  Search this
Newman, Arnold, 1918-2006  Search this
Newman, Michael  Search this
Osborn, Robert Chesley, 1904-1994  Search this
Ponsold, Renate  Search this
Praeger, David A.  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Summerford, Joe  Search this
Thorne, Joan, 1943-  Search this
Westenberger, Theo  Search this
Wheeler, Dennis  Search this
Wise, Howard  Search this
Yunkers, Adja, 1900-1983  Search this
Extent:
9.7 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Sketchbooks
Video recordings
Interviews
Motion pictures (visual works)
Sound recordings
Sketches
Diaries
Date:
1926-1993
Summary:
The Jack Tworkov papers measure 9.7 linear feet and are dated 1926-1993. Tworkov's work as a painter and influential teacher, as well as his personal life, are documented by extensive journals and substantive correspondence that record his ideas about art and teaching, and illuminate his relationships with friends, colleagues, and students. Many sketchbooks, writings, interviews, photographs, and moving images are also included.
Scope and Content Note:
The Jack Tworkov papers measure 9.7 linear feet and are dated 1926-1993, with the bulk from the period 1931-1982. Tworkov's work as a painter and influential teacher, as well as his personal life, are documented by extensive journals and substantive correspondence that record his ideas about art and teaching, and illuminate his relationships with friends, colleagues, and students. Many sketchbooks, writings, interviews, photographs, and moving images are also included.

Biographical material includes Tworkov's citizenship certificate, awards, diplomas, a copy of Jack Tworkov: Video Portrait, produced by Electronic Arts Intermix, and a motion picture film, USA Artists: Jack Tworkov, produced by National Education Television.

Correspondence consists largely of incoming letters. It is both professional and personal in nature and often combines both spheres. Correspondents include artists Jennifer Bartlett, William H. Calfee, Giorgio Cavallon and Linda Lindeberg, Grace Hartigan, Helene Herzbrun (also named Helene McKinsey), Karl Knaths, Joe Summerford, Joan Thorne, and Adja Yunkers; cartoonist Robert C. Osborn; collectors Donald M. Blinken and David A. Praeger (who was also Tworkov's lawyer); illustrator Roger Dovoisin; critics Dore Ashton and Andrew Forge; critic and poet John Ashbury; galleries that represented Tworkov: Egan Gallery, Leo Castelli, Nancy Hoffman Gallery, Poindexter Gallery, Stable Gallery and Zabriskie Gallery; and many museums, arts organizations, colleges and universities.

Interviews with Tworkov include one with Ricky Demarco videotaped in 1979 and two conducted on video by Twokov's daughter Helen in 1975. The remaining interviews are sound recordings, one conducted by Grace Alexander for the show Artists in New York in 1967, one conducted by Michael Newman in 1980, and the remainder by unidentified interviewers. None have transcripts.

All writings are by Tworkov and include poems, an artist's statement, and documentation for two children's books by Tworkov illustrated by Roger Duvoisin. Two additional notebooks contain miscellaneous notes, teaching notes, and some specific to identified courses. Lectures exist as untranscribed sound recordings.

Tworkov's journals (33 volumes) span a period of 35 years, from 1947 until 1982, with the final entry dated a few weeks before his death. They record his reflections on painting, his challenges as a painter, aesthetics, the role of the artist in society, Jewish identity, painters he admired (especially Cézanne and Edwin Dickinson), politics, and teaching. They also recount everyday life: the comings and goings of friends and family members, social engagements, professional activities, illness, and travel.

The lone subject file concerns Mark Rothko and includes a photograph of Rothko and the guest list for the dedication of the Rothko Chapel in Houston.

Artwork consists of a small number of sketches by Tworkov in pencil and ink. Tworkov's sketchbooks (28 volumes) contain sketches and some finished drawings. Most are in pencil, but scattered throughout are a few pencil sketches embellished with colored marker or pastel, and a small number in ink.

Photographs are of people, places and events. Most photographs are of Tworkov alone and with others including Giogio Cavallon, though most friends and students are unidentified. Of note are views of Tworkov producing a series of prints at Tamarind Institute. Also found is an informal portrait of Wally Tworkov. Events recorded include the jurying of "Exhibition Momentum" in Chicago, 1956. Among the places shown are Tworkov's studios at Black Mountain College and in Provincetown. When known, photographers are noted; among them are Paul Katz, Herbert Matter, Arnold Newman, Renate Ponsold, Theo Westenberger, Dennis Wheeler, and Howard Wise.

A separate series of audiovisual recordings was established for those recordings that could not be readily identified to be arranged in other series. They consist of three videocassettes (2 VHS and 1 miniDV).
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 11 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1933-1981 (Boxes 1, 9, 11, FC 13; 0.7 linear ft.)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1926-1993 (Boxes 1-5; 3.8 linear ft.)

Series 3: Interviews, 1978-1982 (Boxes 5, 9-10; 1 linear ft.)

Series 4: Writings, Notes, and Lectures, 1955-1982 (Boxes 5, 9; 0.5 linear ft.)

Series 5: Journals, 1947-1982 (Boxes 5-7; 2.0 linear ft.)

Series 6: Subject File, 1961-1977 (Box 7; 1 folder)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1952-1981 (Box 7, OV 12; 0.1 linear ft.)

Series 8: Artwork, circa 1950s-1960s (Box 7: 3 folders)

Series 9: Sketchbooks, circa 1950s-1960s (Boxes 7-8, 11; 1.0 linear ft.)

Series 10: Photographic Materials, 1941-1981 (Boxes 8-9; 0.5 linear ft.)

Series 11: Audiovisual Recordings, 1961-1975 (Box 9; 0.1 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
New York School painter Jack Tworkov (1900-1982), best known for his Abstract Expressionist paintings and as a highly regarded teacher, lived and worked in New York City and Provincetown, MA.

At age 13, Tworkov (born Yakov Tworkovsky) emigrated from Poland with his mother and sister to join his father already in the United States. In America, they chose to use the name of distant relatives, the Bernsteins, who were their sponsors. Eventually, Jack and his sister, Janice, reclaimed and shortened their name to Tworkov; later, she adopted the name of their hometown in Poland and became the painter Janice Biala.

As a high school student in New York City, Tworkov attended drawing classes. After graduating from Columbia University, where he had been an English major and considered becoming a writer, Tworkov instead turned to art. He studied with Ivan Olinsky at the National Academy of Design between 1923 and 1925, and from 1925 to 1926 attended painting classes taught by Guy Péne Du Bois and Boardman Robinson at the Art Students League. During his college years, Tworkov began visiting museums and became a great admirer of Cézanne. Tworkov's early paintings - still life, landscapes, and portraits - showed the influence of European modernism and Cézanne.

Tworkov spent his first summer in Provincetown while still a student and subsequently returned to study with Ross Moffet. In Provincetown he met and was greatly influenced by Karl Knaths and developed a lifelong friendship with Edwin Dickinson. By 1929, Tworkov was painting there year round. Over the years, Tworkov and his family continued to return for long stretches, and in 1958 he purchased a house in Provincetown.

During the Great Depression, Tworkov participated in the Treasury Department's Public Works of Art Project until 1934, and then moved to the easel division of the WPA Federal Art Project. He felt uncomfortable with the growing ideological and political influences on art and found it depressing to paint for the WPA rather than for himself, so he left the WPA in 1941. Tworkov, who had studied mechanical drawing while in high school, spent most of the War years employed as a tool designer and draftsman at an engineering firm with government contracts.

By the 1940s, Tworkov was painting in the Abstract Expressionist style. Between 1948 and 1953, he leased a studio on Fourth Avenue that adjoined that of his friend Willem de Kooning. During this time, they mutually influenced each other as they developed into mature Abstract Expressionists. At Yale in the 1960s, Tworkov became close friends with fellow student Josef Albers. Alber's influence on Tworkov resulted in a turn to geometric compositions of small, systematic, and repetitive strokes defined by a grid. He experimented with diagonal compositions, and later geometric work that featured large areas of color and soft texture.

Tworkov's first teaching experience was during 1930-1931 when he served as a part-time painting instructor at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School. His teaching career began in earnest when he joined the faculties of Queens College, 1948-1955, and Pratt Institute, 1955-1958. During the summers he taught at various schools, most notably Black Mountain College's 1952 summer session. Tworkov was a visiting artist at the Yale University School of Art and Architecture, 1961-1963, and became chairman of its Art Department from 1963 until his retirement in 1969. In retirement he lived in Provincetown and was a visiting artist for both short and extended periods at various universities and art schools.

An avid reader of literature and poetry, Tworkov also wrote poems and essays. He published essays in It Is, Art Digest, and Art In America; his most notable piece, "The Wandering Soutine," appeared in Art News, November 1950. Tworkov also kept a journal for 35 years (1947-1982) that recorded his thoughts on a wide range of subjects concerning professional, personal, and philosophical issues, as well as details of everyday life.

Tworkov was among the founders of the Artists' Club or The Club in 1949, and for a decade actively participated in the stimulating discussions for which the group was known. In 1968 he helped to establish the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. Its residency program enabled younger artists and writers to advance their careers and kept Provincetown's historic artists' colony active year round.

He was the recipient of the William A. Clark Award and Corcoran Gold Medal from the Corcoran Gallery of Art, 1963; Skowhegan School of Art's Painter of the Year Award, 1974; and Distinguished Teaching of Art Award from College Art Association, 1976. Tworkov was appointed to serve on the Massachusetts Art Commission, 1970-1971, and in 1981 was named a Fellow of The Cleveland Museum of Art and of the Rhode Island School of Design.

Following his second divorce in 1935, Rachel (Wally) Wolodarsky became Tworkov's third wife and their marriage endured. They had two daughters. Hermine Ford (b. 1939) is an artist married to fellow painter Robert Moskowitz. Helen Tworkov (b. 1943) is the founder of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review and the author of a book about yoga.

Tworkov remained physically and intellectually active after a diagnosis of bone cancer around 1980, and continued to paint until shortly before his death in Provincetown on September 4, 1982.
Related Material:
Among the holdings of the Archives of American Art are two oral history interviews with Jack Tworkov, one conducted by Dorothy Seckler, Aug. 17, 1962, and another by Gerald Silk, May 22, 1981. There is also a small collection of three letters written by Jack Tworkov to friend Troy-Jjohn Bramberger.
Separated Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming (reel N70-38 and 62) including writings by Tworkov, notebooks, notes for teaching and talks, notes on art and miscellaneous subjects, poems, artist's statements, biographical data, the transcript of a 1970 interview with Tworkov conducted by Phyllis Tuchman, and a few letters and drafts of letters, 1950-1963. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
Jack Tworkov lent the Archives of American Art papers for microfilming in 1970-1971. Jack Tworkov's daughters, Hermine Ford and Helen Tworkov, donated the rest of the collection in 2009, which included some of the material from the original loan.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Rights:
Reels N70-38 and 62: Authorization to publish, quote, or reproduce requires written permission from Helen Tworkov or Hermine Ford. Contact Reference Services for more information.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Painters -- Massachusetts  Search this
Topic:
Painting -- New York (State)  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Artists' studios -- Photographs  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Sketchbooks
Video recordings
Interviews
Motion pictures (visual works)
Sound recordings
Sketches
Diaries
Citation:
Jack Tworkov papers, 1926-1993. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.tworjack2
See more items in:
Jack Tworkov papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9345f5838-057f-4572-8063-0df7b8d00ad0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-tworjack2
Online Media:

H

Collection Creator:
Parsons, Betty  Search this
Extent:
(3 folders)
Container:
Box 23, Folder 35-37
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1948-1978
Scope and Contents note:
Haberman, Daniel

Hadwen, J. G.

Haggerty, Margaret

Halff, Robert H.

Hall, Lee

Hall, Martha

Hall, Mrs. Thomas S.

Halperin, Lawrence

Hamilton, Frank

Hamon, Mr. and Mrs. Jake

Hansen, Ejnar

Harding, Helen Mary

Hare, David

Harney, John

Hartigan, Grace

Hartley, Marie

Hartmann, Georg

Hartwell, Patricia

Harvey, Jason

Hang, Donald R.

Hawkins, Lester

Hector, Louis

Hein, Rosemary

Heller, Benjamin

Henkes, Robert

Hennessy, Timothy

Hero, Martha Miles

Herskovitz, Mrs. Arthur

Hertz, Richard

Hess, Thomas

Heygate, John

Heywood, D. C.

Hickey, Mrs. Jerrold

Higginson, Mrs. Alexander (Mary Newcomb)

Hill, Clinton

Hiller, Susan

Hilles, Sue

Hillman, Kay

Hipp, David

Hirshhorn, Joseph and Olga

Hoagland, Elizabeth

Hoff, Margo

Holbrook, Hollis

Holmes, Reginald

Holzer, Jane

Hornick, Morton J.

Hoving, Walter

Howard, Charles

Howard, Robert

Howard, Sue

Howell, Douglass

Hughes, John Besseman

Hunter, Sam
Collection Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.

Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers, 1916-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers
Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers / Series 3: Correspondence Files / 3.2: Individuals and Collectors
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw950071062-a923-4c64-b3ac-124c11edcdb3
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-parsbett-ref973
Online Media:

Hartigan, Grace

Collection Creator:
Henri Gallery (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Container:
Box 22, Folder 33
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1959
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Henri Gallery records, circa early 1900s, 1940-1996, bulk 1957-1995. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Henri Gallery records
Henri Gallery records / Series 2: Alphabetical Files / 2.1: Name Files
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f5998e0b-b5ce-4a5b-b808-d85905abd8e5
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-henrgall-ref462

Oral history interview with Tibor de Nagy

Interviewee:
De Nagy, Tibor, 1908-1993  Search this
Interviewer:
Cummings, Paul  Search this
Names:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery  Search this
Andre, Carl, 1935-  Search this
Bates, Alex  Search this
Castelli, Leo  Search this
Frankenthaler, Helen, 1928-2011  Search this
Freilicher, Jane, 1924-2014  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Hess, Thomas B.  Search this
Myers, John Bernard  Search this
Nivola, Costantino, 1911-1988  Search this
O'Hara, Frank, 1926-1966  Search this
Rivers, Larry, 1925-2002  Search this
Extent:
41 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1976 March 29
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Tibor de Nagy conducted 1976 March 29, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. de Nagy disusses his family and educational background; his partnership with John Myers; exhibitions by Carl Andre, Helen Frankenthaler, Jane Freilicher, Grace Hartigan, Constantino Nivola, and Larry Rivers at the Tibor de Nagy Gallery; the gallery's clientele including Leo Castelli, Frank O'Hara, Alex Bates, Thomas Hess, and others. De Nagy also speaks of his relationship with museum curators and changes in the art market during the 1950s.
Biographical / Historical:
Tibor de Nagy (1908-1993) was an art dealer from New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 56 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Economic aspects  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.denagy76
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9e69ebba4-731f-45ff-939f-3348bbd7f5da
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-denagy76
Online Media:

Self Portrait in Fur

Artist:
Grace Hartigan, 1922 - 15 Nov 2008  Search this
Sitter:
Grace Hartigan, 1922 - 15 Nov 2008  Search this
Medium:
Oil on Masonite
Dimensions:
Board: 36.8 × 35.6cm (14 1/2 × 14")
Type:
Painting
Date:
c. 1952
Topic:
Self-portrait  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Female  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Visual Arts\Artist\Painter  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Education and Scholarship\Educator\Teacher  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Visual Arts\Artist\Abstract Expressionist  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Education and Scholarship\Educator\Professor\Art  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
Owner: Unknown Owner
Object number:
DLR01891
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
Catalog of American Portraits
Data Source:
Catalog of American Portraits
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4b084b013-d5f9-4851-b6eb-33416571523d
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_DLR01891

Self-portrait with Fur Collar

Artist:
Grace Hartigan, 1922 - 15 Nov 2008  Search this
Sitter:
Grace Hartigan, 1922 - 15 Nov 2008  Search this
Medium:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
35.6 x 35.6cm (14 x 14")
Type:
Painting
Date:
1952
Topic:
Self-portrait  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Female  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Visual Arts\Artist\Painter  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Education and Scholarship\Educator\Teacher  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Visual Arts\Artist\Abstract Expressionist  Search this
Grace Hartigan: Education and Scholarship\Educator\Professor\Art  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
Owner: Mrs. Armand G. Erpf
Object number:
EXH.713
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
Catalog of American Portraits
Data Source:
Catalog of American Portraits
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm43a25c83a-acdf-438d-9784-6dc6c258724e
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_EXH.713

Dorothy C. Miller papers, 1853-2013, bulk 1920-1996

Creator:
Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-2003  Search this
Subject:
Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich)  Search this
Cahill, Holger  Search this
Rothko, Mark  Search this
Coggeshall, Calvert  Search this
Hicks, Edward  Search this
Still, Clyfford  Search this
Calder, Alexander  Search this
Gorky, Arshile  Search this
Charlton, Maryette  Search this
Feininger, Lyonel  Search this
Pereira, I. Rice (Irene Rice)  Search this
Johns, Jasper  Search this
Horwitt, Will  Search this
DeFeo, Jay  Search this
Christo  Search this
Nevelson, Louise  Search this
Sheeler, Charles  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert  Search this
Karpel, Bernard  Search this
Copley, Alfred L.  Search this
Davis, Stuart  Search this
Newman, Barnett  Search this
Sage, Kay  Search this
Byars, James Lee  Search this
Mather, Eleanore Price  Search this
Barr, Alfred H., Jr.  Search this
Feitelson, Lorser  Search this
O'Keeffe, Georgia  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu  Search this
Chryssa  Search this
Levy, Julien  Search this
Asher, Elise  Search this
Reinhardt, Ad  Search this
Scharf, William  Search this
Matisse, Pierre  Search this
Bontecou, Lee  Search this
Canady, John  Search this
Picasso, Pablo  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy  Search this
Sterne, Hedda  Search this
World Trade Center (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Federal Art Project  Search this
Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this
Rockefeller University  Search this
Smith College. Museum of Art  Search this
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey  Search this
Chase Manhattan Bank  Search this
Municipal Art Exhibition (1st : 1934 : New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Mark Rothko Foundation  Search this
Smith College  Search this
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden  Search this
PepsiCo, Inc.  Search this
Type:
Photographs
Sketches
Christmas cards
Drawings
Citation:
Dorothy C. Miller papers, 1853-2013, bulk 1920-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art museum curators -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Corporations -- Private collections  Search this
Art -- Private collections  Search this
Folk art  Search this
Women museum curators  Search this
Women art historians  Search this
Theme:
Women  Search this
Research and writing about art  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)6469
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)215653
AAA_collcode_milldoro
Theme:
Women
Research and writing about art
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_215653
Online Media:

Dorothy C. Miller papers

Creator:
Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-2003  Search this
Names:
Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this
Chase Manhattan Bank -- Art collections  Search this
Federal Art Project  Search this
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden  Search this
Mark Rothko Foundation  Search this
Municipal Art Exhibition (1st : 1934 : New York, N.Y.)  Search this
PepsiCo, Inc.  Search this
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey -- Art collections  Search this
Rockefeller University  Search this
Smith College -- Students  Search this
Smith College. Museum of Art  Search this
World Trade Center (New York, N.Y.) -- Art collections  Search this
Asher, Elise, 1914-  Search this
Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981  Search this
Bontecou, Lee, 1931-  Search this
Byars, James Lee  Search this
Cahill, Holger, 1887-1960  Search this
Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this
Canady, John  Search this
Charlton, Maryette  Search this
Christo, 1935-  Search this
Chryssa, 1933-  Search this
Coggeshall, Calvert, 1907-1990  Search this
Copley, Alfred L.  Search this
Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this
DeFeo, Jay, 1929-1989  Search this
Feininger, Lyonel, 1871-1956  Search this
Feitelson, Lorser, 1898-1978  Search this
Gorky, Arshile, 1904-1948  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Hicks, Edward, 1780-1849  Search this
Horwitt, Will  Search this
Johns, Jasper, 1930-  Search this
Karpel, Bernard, 1911-1986  Search this
Levy, Julien  Search this
Mather, Eleanore Price, 1910-  Search this
Matisse, Pierre, 1900-1989  Search this
Nevelson, Louise, 1899-1988  Search this
Newman, Barnett, 1905-1970  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988  Search this
O'Keeffe, Georgia, 1887-1986  Search this
Pereira, I. Rice (Irene Rice), 1902-1971  Search this
Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert, 1925-2008  Search this
Reinhardt, Ad, 1913-1967  Search this
Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979 -- Art collections  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Sage, Kay  Search this
Scharf, William, 1927-  Search this
Sheeler, Charles, 1883-1965  Search this
Sterne, Hedda, 1910-2011  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-1980  Search this
Extent:
34.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Sketches
Christmas cards
Drawings
Date:
1853-2013
bulk 1920-1996
Summary:
The papers of contemporary and folk art curator, historian, and consultant Dorothy C. Miller measure 34.6 linear feet and date from 1853-2013, with the bulk of the material dating from 1920 to 1996. The papers primarily concern Miller's private art consulting work outside of her curatorial work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Found are scattered biographical materials, extensive correspondence and subject files, and project files for her art consulting work for the Rockefeller family, Rockefeller University, Chase Manhattan Bank, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the World Trade Center, and other miscellaneous corporate and private clients. Miller's work as a trustee and committee member of various public and private boards and commissions is also represented here. Additionally, the papers contain Miller's research files on Edward Hicks and folk art, and a small number of files of her husband Holger Cahill about his work as Director of the Federal Art Project. There is a scattered documentation of Miller's early curatorial work with Holger Cahill on the First Municipal Art Exhibition (1934) held at the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center. Also found is Dorothy Miller's collection of artists' Christmas cards and photographs of Miller and others. An addition to the papers includes biographical material; family papers; correspondence; professional files; art collection and client files; printed material; and photographic material. While a small number professional files are included, the majority of the addition relates to her personal life, including correspondence with her husband Holger Cahill, and files pertaining to her personal art collection.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of contemporary and folk art curator, historian, and consultant Dorothy C. Miller measure 34.6 linear feet and date from 1853-2013, with the bulk of the material dating from 1920 to 1996. The papers primarily concern Miller's art consulting work outside of her curatorial work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York city. Found are scattered biographical materials, extensive correspondence and subject files, and project files for her art consulting work for the Rockefeller family, Rockefeller University, Chase Manhattan Bank, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and other miscellaneous corporate and private clients. Her work as a trustee and committee member of various public and private boards and commissions is also represented here. Additionally, the papers contain Miller's research files on Edward Hicks and folk art, and a small number of files related to Miller's husband Holger Cahill and his work as Director of the Federal Art Project. There is important documentation of Miller's early curatorial work with Holger Cahill on the First Municipal Art Exhibition (1934) held at the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center. Artwork includes scattered sketches and drawings enclosed with correspondence and original Christmas cards sent to Miller by various artists. Photographs of Miller date from 1926 - circa 1950.

Scattered biographical material mostly concerns Miller's education at Smith College and awards and honorary degrees that she received. Extensive correspondence and subject files document her professional and personal relationships with family, friends, colleagues, museums, art dealers and artists, as well as her research interests. Individual files may contain a mix of correspondence with, as well as about, the person or subject, compiled research documents, printed materials, and scattered photographs. Files are found for Lewin Alcopley, Alfred Barr, Betty Parsons Gallery, Cahill family members, Lee Bontecou, James Byars, Holger Cahill, Alexander Calder, Christo, Chryssa, Calvert Coggeshall, John Canaday, Maryette Charlton, Stuart Davis, Jay DeFeo, Lorser Feitelson, Arshile Gorky, Peggy Guggenheim, Grace Hartigan, Will Horwitt, Jasper Johns, Julien Levy, Pierre Matisse, Louise Nevelson, Barnett Newman, Isamu Nauchi, Georgia O'Keeffe, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, Ad Reinhardt, Kay Sage, Charles Sheeler, Hedda Sterne, travel, Clyfford Still, William Scharf, among many others.

Detailed records of Miller's art consulting and advisory work for the Rockefeller family include correspondence with Nelson A. Rockefeller and David Rockefeller about building their personal collections of contemporary and folk art, meeting notes and minutes, research notes and writings, and printed materials. The largest group of records concerns the writing and publication of The Nelson A. Rockefeller Collection: Masterpieces of Modern Art. Miller's curatorial work for David Rockefeller and the Rockefeller University's Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Hall art collection is documented in Series 4 through curatorial files, correspondence, printed materials, photographs and slides, artists files, and design records.

Series 5 contains files relating to Miller's work as the first art consutant to the Chase Manhattan Bank and the building of the corporation's extensive collection of contemporary art. There is a draft of Miller's text for the bank's published catalog, Art At Work: Chase Manhattan Bank Collection. A smaller set of records is found in Series 6 documenting Miller's work on the Art Committee of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, including files about selecting artwork for the World Trade Center during the early 1970s. Files concerning Miller's advisory work with additional public and private clients, boards, and commissions are arranged in Series 7 and 8 and concern the Amstar Corporation, Fidelity International Bank, First National Bank of Tampa, First National City Bank, Inmont Corporation, Pepsico, United Mutual Savings Bank, the Empire State Plaza Art Commission, the Hancock Shaker Village, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Mark Rothko Foundation, the Museum of American Folk Art, and the Smith College Museum of Art.

Miller's papers include a small group of files relating to the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP)created by her husband Holger Cahill when he was director of the FAP, Holger Cahill. A small series is devoted to Miller's work with Eleanore Price Mather researching and writing Edward Hicks: His Peaceable Kingdom and Other Paintings. A series of general research files contain miscellaneous research notes and photographs related to Miller's interests in early American art and folk art. Series 12 contains important documentation of Miller's early curatorial work with Holger Cahill on the First Municipal Art Exhibition (1934) held at the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center.

Works of art are primarily in the form of Christmas cards sent to Miller by various artists including Elise Asher, Lyonel Feininger, Bernard Karpel, and Irene Rice Pereira. A small group of photographs includes photographs of Miller from 1926-circa 1950 and a few photographs of others.

The addition includes biographical material; family papers; correspondence; professional files; art collection and client files; printed material; and photographic material. While a small number of professional files are found here, the majority of material relates to Miller's personal life, including correspondence with her husband Holger Cahill, and files pertaining to her personal art collection. Scattered correspondence, inventories, research, and notes created by curator and donor of the papers, Wendy Jeffers, are found throughout the collection. These materials date from the 1980s-2000s.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 15 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1917-1986 (Box 1; 0.3 linear ft.)

Series 2: Correspondence and Subject Files, circa 1912-1992 (Boxes 1-8, OV 27; 7.2 linear ft.)

Series 3: Rockefeller Family Art Collections, circa 1949-1985 (Boxes 8-12, 25; 3.9 linear ft.)

Series 4: Rockefeller University Collection, 1923-1984 (Boxes 12-13, OV 27; 1.0 linear ft.)

Series 5: Chase Manhattan Bank Collection, 1959-circa 1985 (Boxes 13-14, 26; 1.4 linear ft.)

Series 6: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Art Committee, circa 1965-1987 (Boxes 14-15, OV 27; 0.8 linear ft.)

Series 7: Other Corporate and Private Clients, 1968-1984 (Boxes 15-16; 1.3 linear ft.)

Series 8: Other Boards, Committees and Commissions, 1925, 1949-1985 (Boxes 16-20; 3.6 linear ft.)

Series 9: Works Project Administration Federal Art Project Files, 1935-1979 (Box 20, OV 27; 0.5 linear ft.)

Series 10: Edward Hicks Catalog, 1934-1984 (Boxes 20-22; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 11: Research Files, 1930s-1980 (Boxes 22-23; 0.8 linear ft.)

Series 12: Exhibition Files, 1932-1986 (Box 23; 0.6 linear ft.)

Series 13: Works of Art, circa 1924-circa 1982 (Boxes 23-25; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 14: Photographs, 1926-circa 1970s (Boxes 24-25; 0.3 linear ft.)

Series 15: Addition to the Dorothy C. Miller Papers, 1853-2003, bulk 1920-1996 (Boxes 28-38, OVs 39-41; 9.9 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Dorothy Canning Miller (1904-2003) worked in New York City as a highly influential curator of contemporary and folk art at the Museum of Modern Art and as the first curator of the museum. Later, she was the primary art consultant for Nelson A. Rockefeller, the Rockefeller family, Rockefeller University, Chase Manhattan Bank, and the Port Authority of and New Jersey. Dorothy Miller was also married to Holger Cahill, director of the WPA Federal Art Project.

Dorothy C. Miller was born in Hopedale, Massachusetts in 1904 and received her Bachelor of Arts from Smith College in 1925. She was first introduced to modern art through classes at the Newark Museum taught by John Cotton Dana and Holger Cahill. Miller joined the curatorial staff of the Newark Museum in 1926. The museum was one of the first to organize exhibitions of American folk art, American Primitives (1930-1931) and American Folk Sculpture (1931-1932). Miller worked with Cahill and others on the exhibition and developed a life-long interest in folk art.

After four years at the Newark Museum, Miller moved to New York city, hoping to get involved with the newly opened Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and, likely, to be with Holger Cahill, with whom she lived with on 8th Street prior to their marriage in 1938. Between 1930 and 1932 she took odd jobs and worked with Mrs. Henry Lang cataloging, researching and installing Lang's collection of Native American art Lang donated to the Montclair Art Museum. At the same time, Holger Cahill was serving as Acting Director of the Museum of Modern Art during an absence of Director Alfred H. Barr. In 1932, Cahill asked Miller to assist him with curating the American Painting and Sculpture, 1862-1932 exhibition at MoMA, and together they also curated the First Municipal Art Exhibition, 1934 at the Rockefeller Center.

In 1934, Barr hired Miller as his assistant and one year later appointed her as MoMA's first curator. Miller spent the next 35 years organizing many of this country's most important exhibitions of contemporary art and building personal relationships with new artists and photographers, as well as the collections of MoMA. Miller retired from MOMA in 1969 and focused more on her art consulting work begun in the late 1950s.

Dorothy Miller's most notable client was Nelson A. Rockefeller. She assisted and advised Rockefeller as he acquired a vast personal collection of modern art - some of which was later donated to MoMA. Just prior to her retirement, Miller organized a large exhibition of Rockefeller's collection. The exhibition catalog written by Miller was the basis for the book she worked on with Rockefeller up until and following his death in 1979, ultimately published as The Nelson A. Rockefeller Collection: Masterpieces of Modern Art. In the preface, Rockefeller credited Miller with being one of the four people to whom he was indebted "for the understanding and endless joy I have found in the collecting of modern art in all forms."

Miller also served as the primary art consultant for projects to furnish federal spaces, including Henry Kissinger's State Department office suite, and the official Vice-Presidential residence at the Admiral's House in Washington D.C.

In 1959 Miller was invited to join the art collection committee of the Chase Manhattan Bank and served on the committee until the mid-1980s, contributing her expertise to the development of one of this country's oldest and largest corporate collections of modern and contemporary art.

Miller was also an advisor to other members of the Rockefeller family, including David Rockefeller, and assisted with developing the art collections of Rockefeller Institute/University. From 1960 through the late 1980s Miller was a member of the art committee for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANJY) and was responsible for selecting much of the artwork for the World Trade Center in the 1970s. She served on numerous boards and commissions, including the Hancock Shaker Village, the Smithsonian Institution's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Empire State Plaza in Albany, Smith College Museum of Art, and the Museum of American Folk Art. She also became a member of the Mark Rothko Foundation Board of Directors after the litigation following Rothko's death between Rothko's executors and his daughter.

In the mid-1970s Miller assisted the Whitney Museum of American with planning an exhibition and supporting catalog of the work of folk artist Edward Hicks. Although the exhibition and catalog were only partially realized in 1980, Miller and Eleanore Price Mather compiled and published a book on Hicks, Edward Hicks: His Peaceable Kingdoms and Other Paintings, published in 1983.

In 1982-1983 Miller received the Art Dealers Association Special Award, an honorary degree from Williams College, and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture governor's award. In 1984 she was named honorary trustee of the Museum of Modern Art. In 1985 the Smith College Museum of Art honored her important contributions to museum connoisseurship with the exhibition Dorothy C. Miller: With An Eye to American Art.

Dorothy Miller died in 2003 at the age of 99 at her home in Greenwich, New York.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art holds two oral history interviews with Dorothy C. Miller. The first was conducted by Paul Cummings between May 26, 1970 and September 28, 1971, and details Miller's life from childhood up to, and including, her years at the Museum of Modern Art. The second was conducted by Avis Berman on May 14, 1981 and covers Miller's relationships with Mark Rothko and Clyfford Still. Also found among the holdings of the Archives are the papers of Holger Cahill, Dorothy Miller's husband and colleague.

The Museum of Modern Art Achives holds Dorothy Miller's papers related to her curatorial work at the museum.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Dorothy C. Miller via Wendy Jeffers between 1986 and 1997, and Reid White, Executor of Miller's estate, in 2004. Two subsequent additions were donated by Wendy Jeffers in 2014 and 2015.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Art museum curators -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Corporations -- Private collections  Search this
Art -- Private collections  Search this
Folk art  Search this
Women museum curators  Search this
Women art historians  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Sketches
Christmas cards
Drawings
Citation:
Dorothy C. Miller papers, 1853-2013, bulk 1920-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.milldoro
See more items in:
Dorothy C. Miller papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f1ed6cb6-f194-4b76-a8dd-fce3352c09b8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-milldoro
Online Media:

Research material on Martha Jackson

Creator:
Rand, Harry  Search this
Names:
Martha Jackson Gallery  Search this
National Museum of American Art (U.S.) -- Exhibitions  Search this
Breeskin, Adelyn Dohme, 1896-1986  Search this
Brooks, James, 1906-1992  Search this
Calcagno, Lawrence, 1913-  Search this
Diebenkorn, Richard, 1922-1993  Search this
Dine, Jim, 1935-  Search this
Falkenstein, Claire, 1908-1997  Search this
Gilhooly, David  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Hultberg, John, 1922-2005  Search this
Jackson, Martha Kellogg  Search this
Jenkins, Paul, 1923-2012  Search this
Katz, Alex, 1927-  Search this
Nevelson, Louise, 1899-1988  Search this
Stanczak, Julian, 1928-2017  Search this
Wayne, June, 1918-2011  Search this
Extent:
0.4 Linear feet ((on 2 microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1953-1984
Scope and Contents:
Research material for an exhibition THE MARTHA JACKSON MEMORIAL COLLECTION held at the National Museum of American Art, June 21-September 15, 1985, and a catalog (Smithsonian Institution Press, 1985). Included are clippings and press releases, 1953-1975, and letters, 1979-1984, from artists and Jackson's colleagues and employees including Herb Aach, Garo Antreasian, Amy Baker, Dorothy Beskind, Dennis Bing, Norman Bluhm, Naomi Blum, Grace Borgegenicht, Mrs. Toni Borgzinner, Keith Boyle, Charles Brady, Adelyn Breeskin, James Brooks, Fritz Bultman, Lawrence Calcagno, Christo Capralos, Vardea Chryssa, Christopher Colt, Richard Diebenkorn, Jim Dine, Hisao Domoto, Seymour Drumlevitch, Frank Duncan, Claire Falkenstein, David Gilhooly, Ives Goucher, Clement Greenberg, Grace Hartigan, Gottfried Honegger, John Hultberg,
Harry Jackson, Paul Jenkins, Alfred Jenson, Lester Johnson, Alex Katz, Lillian Kiesler, Kenneth Koch, Lee Krasner, Elaine Kurtz, Bruce Lowney, Alexandra Luke, Ed McGowin, Carlos Merida, Sadamasa Motonaga,Louise Nevelson, Tom Parish, Jackson Pollock (Betty Parsons Gallery concerning Pollock),Israel Rosen, John Salt, Peter Spinelli, Julian Stanczak, Francisco Toledo, June Wayne, and Edward Weiss. Several of the correspondents wrote brief memoirs of their relationships with Jackson.
Biographical / Historical:
Art historian, curator; National Museum of American Art, Washington, D.C. Jackson (1907-1969) was an art collector, dealer, and painter. She operated the Martha Jackson Gallery, New York City. Her collection was given to the National Museum of American Art in 1981 by her estate.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1988 by Harry Rand. The Martha Jackson memorial collection was donated to the National Museum of American Art in 1981 by Jackson's estate.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Art historians  Search this
Museum curators  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.randharr
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw989edfcdc-8f5d-4760-87a0-b924d52dae78
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-randharr

Gertrude Kasle Gallery records, 1949-1999, bulk 1964-1983

Creator:
Gertrude Kasle Gallery  Search this
Subject:
Bontecou, Lee  Search this
Frankenthaler, Helen  Search this
Shapiro, Babe  Search this
Tall, Bill  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert  Search this
Schmidt, Julius  Search this
Oldenburg, Claes  Search this
Pollock, Charles C.  Search this
Natkin, Robert  Search this
Guston, Philip  Search this
Todd, Mike  Search this
Tworkov, Jack  Search this
Goodyear, John L.  Search this
Goodnough, Robert  Search this
Nesbitt, Lowell  Search this
Goodman, Brenda Joyce  Search this
Dine, Jim  Search this
De Kooning, Willem  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Kasle, Gertrude  Search this
Johnson, Ray  Search this
Jenkins, Paul  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Grosman, Tatyana  Search this
Gottlieb, Adolph  Search this
Universal Limited Art Editions (Firm)  Search this
Type:
Interviews
Photographs
Sound recordings
Citation:
Gertrude Kasle Gallery records, 1949-1999, bulk 1964-1983. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Theme:
Art Gallery Records  Search this
Art Market  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)5704
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)208540
AAA_collcode_gertkasl
Theme:
Art Gallery Records
Art Market
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_208540
Online Media:

Gertrude Kasle Gallery records

Creator:
Gertrude Kasle Gallery (Detroit, Mich.)  Search this
Names:
Universal Limited Art Editions (Firm)  Search this
Bontecou, Lee, 1931-  Search this
De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this
Dine, Jim, 1935-  Search this
Frankenthaler, Helen, 1928-2011  Search this
Goodman, Brenda Joyce, 1943-  Search this
Goodnough, Robert, 1917-  Search this
Goodyear, John L., 1930-  Search this
Gottlieb, Adolph, 1903-1974  Search this
Grosman, Tatyana, 1904-1982  Search this
Guston, Philip, 1913-1980  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Jenkins, Paul, 1923-2012  Search this
Johnson, Ray, 1927-  Search this
Kasle, Gertrude, 1917-  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Natkin, Robert, 1930-  Search this
Nesbitt, Lowell, 1933-1993  Search this
Oldenburg, Claes, 1929-  Search this
Pollock, Charles C.  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert, 1925-2008  Search this
Schmidt, Julius, 1923-  Search this
Shapiro, Babe  Search this
Tall, Bill  Search this
Todd, Mike, 1935-  Search this
Tworkov, Jack  Search this
Extent:
8.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Interviews
Photographs
Sound recordings
Date:
1949-1999
bulk 1964-1983
Summary:
The records of the Gertrude Kasle Gallery of Detroit measure 8.1 linear feet and date from 1949-1999, with the bulk of records dating from 1964-1983. The collection documents the establishment and operations of this contemporary American art gallery and consists of artists files, business and administrative files, exhibition files, photographic materials, and interviews and lectures in the form of sound recordings.
Scope and Content Note:
The records of the Gertrude Kasle Gallery of Detroit measure 8.1 linear feet and date from 1949-1999, with the bulk of the records dating from 1964-1983. The collection documents the establishment and operations of this contemporary American art gallery and consists of artists files, business and administrative files, exhibition files, photographic materials, and interviews and lectures in the form of sound recordings.

The bulk of the records consist of Artists' Files that document the professional and personal relationships Kasle fostered with the artists represented by the gallery, including sales and exhibitions. The files contain a wide variety of materials and the amount of documentation for each artist also varies. Typically the files contain personal and business correspondence, sales documentation, exhibition photographs, photographs of works of art, family photographs, photographs of the artist, exhibition announcements and catalogs, other printed materials, greeting cards, and other documents. Some of the artists well-represented in the files include Lee Bontecou, Wilhem De Kooning, Jim Dine, Helen Frankenthaler, Brenda Goodman, Robert Goodnaugh, John Goodyear, Adolph Gottlieb, Philip Guston, Grace Hartigan, Ray Johnson, Robert Motherwell, Robert Natkin, Lowell Nesbitt, Claes Oldenburg, Charles Pollock, Robert Rauschenberg, Julius Schmidt, Babe Shapiro, Michael Todd, and Jack Tworkov. Additional general information about exhibitions is found in Series 3, Exhibition Files and additional photographs are filed in Series 4, Photographic Material.

Gallery and personal business and administrative files house documents relating to the founding and incorporation of the gallery and general operations, as well as some of Gertrude Kasle personal business files. Also found in this series are files related to fine art prints and the gallery's business relationship with Universal Limited Art Editions.

Scattered exhibition files are found for a few of the gallery's exhibitions and also include general exhibition related files, such as clippings, announcements, guest lists, and schedules. Most of the information about the gallery's exhibitions is found in the Artists Files. Photographs and slides are found throughout the collection, particularly in the Artists Files, but Series 4, Photographic Materials houses an extensive collection of slides documenting art work by artists represented by the gallery. There is also an autographed photograph portrait of Lowell Nesbitt.

Sound recordings are of interviews and lectures. Interviews are with Tatyana Grosman, Lowell Nesbitt, Paul Jenkins, and Bill Tall. There are recorded lectures by Paul Jenkins and Jack Tworkov. The sound recordings are on both audio cassette reel to reel tapes. Transcripts are not available.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 5 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Artists Files, 1949-1999 (Boxes 1-5, OV 11; 5.1 linear feet)

Series 2: Gallery and Personal Business and Administrative Files, 1961-1995 (Boxes 6-7, OV 12; 1.2 linear feet)

Series 3: Exhibition Files, 1963-1976 (Box 7; 7 folders)

Series 4: Photographic Materials, 1953-1985 (Boxes 7, 10; 18 folders)

Series 5: Sound Recordings, 1966-1971 (Boxes 7-9; 7 folders)
Historical Note:
Gertrude Kasle was born in New York City on December 2, 1917, and began her life-long career in the art world very early, taking art classes in high school and Saturday classes at the Art Students League. She began her formal studies in art education at New York University (NYU) and later transfered to the University of Michigan. Kasle interrupted her studies during World War II to devote herself to family work while her husband served as a military chaplain. The family returned to Detroit in 1947 and she began classes at the Society of Arts and Crafts. After raising her three children, she enrolled in Wayne State University in 1955, completing her degree in 1962.

While a student in Detroit, Kasle was active in the Friends of Modern Art group at the Detroit Institute of Art, and became Vice President. In 1962, she was approached by Detroit businessman Franklin Siden to help him open a gallery where she would have a one-third partnership. During the first year of Siden Gallery's operations, Kasle introduced Detroit to the work of many notable contemporay American artists, such as Larry Rivers, Grace Hartigan, Robert Goodnough, and Robert Natkin.

Her tenure with the Siden Gallery was short-lived and by 1964 she left and began to contemplate her next move. Several of the artists she had represented at Siden Gallery encouraged her to open her own gallery. Local art critic Joy Hakanson Colby who worked for the Detroit News interviewed Kasle and claimed that Kasle was "looking for gallery space". Responding to the article, the Fischer Building offered Kasle a very attractive lease in the "New Center" area of downtown Detroit that would later become known as the city's gallery center, housing several prominent galleries.

With the help of her husband and son, she opened the doors of the Gertrude Kasle Gallery on April 10, 1965. The opening exhibition featured Larry Rivers, Grace Hartigan, Robert Goodnough, Irving Kreisberg, and Manousher Yektai. Kasle's goal was to introduce the city of Detroit to the foremost contemporary artists in the country, some already well-established such as Wilhelm De Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Philip Guston, Grace Hartigan, Robert Motherwell, Lowell Nesbitt, Claes Oldenburg, Charles Pollock, Larry Rivers, and Jack Tworkov, as well as others just becoming known, such as Jim Dine. Through group and one-man shows, the Gertrude Kasle Gallery represented contemporary painting, mixed media, and sculpture, focusing primarily on the Abstract Expressionist movement. The gallery also fostered many local Detroit artists, giving them their first shows, including Al Loving and Brenda Goodman.

During her earlier tenure with the Siden Gallery Kasle had worked with Tatyana Grosman of Universal Limited Art Editions which produced original prints of contemporary artists including Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, and Jim Dine. In her own gallery, Kasle continued her business relationship with Grosman and fine art print publishers, allowing the gallery access to many artists that were previously unattainable.

For eleven years the Gertrude Kasle Gallery operated as a thriving contemporary art gallery, forming the nucleus for the growing Detroit modern and avant garde art scene during the sixties and seventies. Although financially the gallery was not as successful as hoped, it provided a cultural forum for artists and Detroit art enthusiasts to convene, learn, and celebrate. In April, 1976 the gallery closed. When asked why she was closing the gallery, Gertrude Kasle said, "Because the need for a gallery like mine isn't as great as it was in the 1960's. Today the public respects and understands more about creative innovation in contemporary art." (Hakanson Colby, March, 1976) Although the gallery formally closed, Kasle continues to work as a art consultant and live in Detroit.

This historical note relies heavily on the essays written by Gertrude Kasle's son, Stephen available on the Gertrude Kasle Gallery website.
Related Material:
Also available at the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Gertrude Kasle conducted by Dennis Barrie on July 24, 1975.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives of American Art in 1976 and 1982 by Mrs. Gertrude Kasle. A third accession was donated by the Cincinnati Art Museum in 2002.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Michigan
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Photographs
Sound recordings
Citation:
The Gertrude Kasle Gallery records, 1949-1999 (bulk 1964-1983). Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.gertkasl
See more items in:
Gertrude Kasle Gallery records
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw966a2f90b-2c81-4c74-85c0-150badf90c1d
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-gertkasl
Online Media:

Hartigan, Grace

Collection Artist:
Cornell, Joseph  Search this
Container:
Box 19, Folder 58
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1959-1963
Scope and Contents:
Oversized material housed in Box 86, Folders 6-7; includes collage by Grace Hartigan, sent to Cornell.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the collection requires an advanced appointment. Contact collection staff at least two weeks prior to preferred date, at AmericanArtCornellStudy@si.edu.

Series 9: Artifacts and Ephemera, Series 13: Personal Library and Book Collection, and Series 14: Record Album Collection, are still undergoing processing and preservation and may not be available for research use. Record albums are unavailable for playback. Contact collection staff for full lists of publications and record albums.
Collection Rights:
Unpublished materials are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Collection Citation:
Joseph Cornell Study Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum.
See more items in:
Joseph Cornell Study Center Collection
Joseph Cornell Study Center Collection / Series 8: Source Material / 8.1: Dossiers
Archival Repository:
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Research and Scholars Center
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ih7b977d2ad-7c21-410f-8582-2e11be958258
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-saam-jcsc-1-ref1761

Oversized Hartigan, Grace

Collection Artist:
Cornell, Joseph  Search this
Container:
Box 86, Folder 6-7
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1959-1963
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the collection requires an advanced appointment. Contact collection staff at least two weeks prior to preferred date, at AmericanArtCornellStudy@si.edu.

Series 9: Artifacts and Ephemera, Series 13: Personal Library and Book Collection, and Series 14: Record Album Collection, are still undergoing processing and preservation and may not be available for research use. Record albums are unavailable for playback. Contact collection staff for full lists of publications and record albums.
Collection Rights:
Unpublished materials are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Collection Citation:
Joseph Cornell Study Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum.
See more items in:
Joseph Cornell Study Center Collection
Joseph Cornell Study Center Collection / Series 8: Source Material / 8.1: Dossiers
Archival Repository:
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Research and Scholars Center
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ih73f55f186-7498-4836-bda6-954362d0c72e
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-saam-jcsc-1-ref1762

Hartigan, Grace

Collection Creator:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery  Search this
Container:
Box 19, Folder 8
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1957-1981
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. research facility. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery records, 1941-1993. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery records
Tibor de Nagy Gallery records / Series 3: Artist Files
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9cc332677-23e2-4583-8eed-9cf0d00a7ab3
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-tibode-ref409

Hartigan, Grace; Hatcher, Brower; Hennessy, Timothy; Hirsch, Gilah; Hood, Dorothy

Collection Creator:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery  Search this
Container:
Box 36, Folder 10
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1960-1981
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. research facility. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery records, 1941-1993. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Tibor de Nagy Gallery records
Tibor de Nagy Gallery records / Series 5: Inventory Records / 5.1: Artist Cards
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9376b8bae-4995-47f0-8c0e-f6eb94c99f43
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-tibode-ref556

Oral history interview with Tibor de Nagy, 1976 March 29

Interviewee:
De Nagy, Tibor, 1908-1993  Search this
Interviewer:
Cummings, Paul  Search this
Subject:
Andre, Carl  Search this
Bates, Alex  Search this
Castelli, Leo  Search this
Frankenthaler, Helen  Search this
Freilicher, Jane  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Hess, Thomas B.  Search this
Myers, John Bernard  Search this
Nivola, Costantino  Search this
O'Hara, Frank  Search this
Rivers, Larry  Search this
Tibor de Nagy Gallery  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Tibor de Nagy, 1976 March 29. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Economic aspects  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)12568
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)212028
AAA_collcode_denagy76
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_212028

Oral history interview with Robert Blackburn, 1970 December 4

Interviewee:
Blackburn, Robert Hamilton, 1920-2003  Search this
Interviewer:
Cummings, Paul  Search this
Subject:
Barnet, Will  Search this
Francis, Sam  Search this
Grosman, Tatyana  Search this
Harrison, Wallace  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Lawrence, Jacob  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert  Search this
Vytlacil, Vaclav  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Robert Blackburn, 1970 December 4. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Prints -- Technique  Search this
Art and race  Search this
African American artists  Search this
Theme:
African American  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)11446
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)212074
AAA_collcode_blackb70
Theme:
African American
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_212074

Oral history interview with Larry Aldrich, 1972 April 25-June 10

Interviewee:
Aldrich, Larry, 1906-2001  Search this
Interviewer:
Cummings, Paul  Search this
Subject:
Antonakos, Stephen  Search this
Baker, Richard Brown  Search this
Barr, Alfred H., Jr.  Search this
Castelli, Leo  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Hopkins, Budd  Search this
Indiana, Robert  Search this
Johns, Jasper  Search this
Lieberman, William Slattery  Search this
Miller, Dorothy Canning  Search this
Myers, John Bernard  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert  Search this
Smithson, Robert  Search this
Stella, Frank  Search this
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Larry Aldrich, 1972 April 25-June 10. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)12596
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)216586
AAA_collcode_aldric72
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_216586
Online Media:

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