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Catalog Data

Creator:
Camblin, Bob Bilyeu, 1928-2010  Search this
Names:
Staley, Earl, 1938-  Search this
Tate, Joe  Search this
Extent:
3.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Moving images
Date:
1951-1985
Summary:
The Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers measure 3.1 linear feet and date from 1951 to 1985. The papers provide a snapshot of Camblin's career as an artist and educator through personal papers, printed material, artwork, photographs, and motion picture film and video recordings.
Scope and Contents:
The Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers measure 3.1 linear feet and date from 1951 to 1985. The papers provide a snapshot of Camblin's career as an artist and educator through personal papers, printed material, artwork, photographs, and motion picture film and video recordings. Personal papers include resumes and printed material such as exhibition catalogs and announcements and clippings. Camblin's artwork includes sketches, expressive writings, drawings, and prints. Photographic material includes images of artwork, friends, family, trips, and miscellany; and moving images include home videos of art, art techniques, leisure activities, and autobiographical films.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 4 series. Series 1: Personal Papers, 1951-1985 (5 folders; Box 1) Series 2: Artwork, 1951-1985 (8 folders; Box 1) Series 3: Photographs, 1951-1980 (1 linear foot; Box 1, 2) Series 4: Moving Images, circa 1970-1976 (1.8 linear feet; Box 2; FCs 3-19)
Biographical / Historical:
Bob Bilyeu Camblin (1928-2010) was a modernist painter and educator active in Houston, Texas. Camblin experimented with a wide variety of media and is known for collaborative projects with many artists, including a collective known as The Holding Firm with Earl Staley and Joe Tate in Houston. Born in Ponca City, Oklahoma, Camblin served in the United State Army (1948-1949) and Air Force (1950-1951) before receiving his bachelor of fine arts in 1954, and his master of fine arts degree in 1955. He worked as a map make from 1955-1958 before holding teaching posts at multiple institutions including the Kansas City Art Institute, the Ringling School of Art, Sarasota Florida, the University of Illinois, the University of Detroit, the University of Utah, and Rice University in Houston. While living in Houston Camblin collaborated with artists Earl Staley and Joe Tate, as the B. E. and J. Holding Firm, or The Holding Firm. The collective worked on multiple projects including paintings, drawings, art excursions, and exhibitions. Camblin's first one-man show was held in 1955 at the Kansas City Art Institute and his work has been exhibited in other solo exhibitions including at Oklahoma State University (1961), Plumtree Gallery, Salt Lake City, Utah (1965-1966), Windsor College, Canada (1965), David Gallery, Houston (1969-1970), and the Graham Gallery in Houston (1989). Camblin participated in many group exhibitions including ART:USA 58 (1958), Fulbright Artists Exhibition, Nelson Gallery of Art, Kansas City (1958), Childe Hassam Purchase Fund Show, American Academy of Arts and Letters (1958), and Printmaking in Texas: The 1980s Modern Art Museum, Fort Worth (1990).
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming by Mrs. Eldon Jensen on Reel 2248, including six sketchbooks, 1979-1980, containing sketches, writings, and a few letters. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory. Some of the material from reels 3461 and 3462 including correspondence, clippings, files on the Document Show, the Barter Show, B. E. and J. Holding Firm and the Venice Venture are available for use only at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and through interlibrary loan, and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Sandra Curtis Levy in a series of accessions between 1979-1986.
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.
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:
Painters -- Texas -- Houston  Search this
Educators -- Texas -- Houston  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Moving images
Citation:
Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers, 1951-1985. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.cambbob
See more items in:
Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw97a6fd7c8-6f2e-4062-853a-d77d5375f0ee
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-cambbob