Whitney, Gertrude Vanderbilt, 1875-1942 Search this
Extent:
11.8 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Video recordings
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1857-circa 2010
Summary:
The Avis Berman research material on Juliana Force, inaugural director of the Whitney Museum of American Art, measures 11.8 linear feet and dates from 1857 to circa 2010. The collection is comprised of Berman's research and writing files in preparation for her book, Rebels on Eighth Street: Juliana Force and the Whitney Museum of American Art, published in 1990. Included are manuscript drafts, correspondence, photographs, photocopies of archival material, notes, printed material, and theirty-seven recordings of interviews with numerous artists, as well as a few unidentified recordings. Berman's manuscript is also contained in digital format on twenty-three electronic disks. Research topics include Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, the Whitney Museum, Whitney Studio Galleries and Club, MacDougal Alley, Force and the Rieser family, and historical events of the early 1900s.
Scope and Contents:
The Avis Berman research material on Juliana Force, inaugural director of the Whitney Museum of American Art, measures 11.8 linear feet and dates from 1857 to circa 2010. The collection is comprised of Berman's research and writing files in preparation for her book, Rebels on Eighth Street: Juliana Force and the Whitney Museum of American Art, published in 1990. Included are manuscript drafts, correspondence, photographs, photocopies of archival material, notes, printed material, and theirty-seven recordings of interviews with numerous artists, as well as a few unidentified recordings. Berman's manuscript is also contained in digital format on twenty-three electronic disks. Research topics include Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, the Whitney Museum, Whitney Studio Galleries and Club, MacDougal Alley, Force and the Rieser family, and historical events of the early 1900s.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as two series.
Series 1: Writing Project Files, circa 1980s (1.6 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 2: Research and Subject Files, 1857-circa 2010 (10.2 linear feet; Boxes 2-13, OVs 14-15)
Biographical / Historical:
Avis Berman (1949- ) is a writer, curator, and historian of American art, architecture and culture based in New
York, N.Y. She holds a bachelor's degree from Bucknell University and an master's degree from Rutgers
Univerisy, both in English literature. She is the author of numerous books including Rebels on Eighth Street:
Juliana Force and the Whitney Museum of American Art; James McNeill Whistler; and Edward Hopper's
New York. She was also co-author and editor of Katharine Kuh's memoir, My Love Affair with Modern Art:
Behind the Scenes with a Legendary Curator.
Berman has written numerous articles on subjects including painting, sculpture, photography, illustration,
design, architecture, and the social history of the visual arts for a broad range of publications including The
New York Times, The New York Review of Books, The Washington Post, Smithsonian, Saturday Review,
The Boston Book Review, American Art, ARTnews, The San Francisco Examiner, The Boston Globe, The
Philadelphia Inquirer, The Baltimore Sun, Art in America, Art & Antiques, House & Garden, and Architectural
Digest.
Throughout the 1980s 1990s and 2000s Avis served as a consultant for the Archives of American Art,
Washington, D.C., in her capacity as interviewer for the oral history project for which she has researched and
interviewed countless artists, collectors, and other figures in the art world in Europe and the United States.
Related Materials:
Also in the Archives are the Avis Berman research material on Katharine Kuh, 1939-2006, research material on art and artists, 1976-1994, research material on Elie Nadelman, 2001, and an interview of Reuben Nakian conducted by Berman for the Archives Oral History Program, June 1981.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 2020 and 2021 by Avis Berman.
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.
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.
The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own in the following material: all writings by Avis Berman.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
