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Creator:
Landgren, Marchal E.  Search this
Names:
American Abstract Artists  Search this
Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Artists Equity Association  Search this
Contemporary Arts (Gallery)  Search this
Joseph Mitchell Gallery  Search this
Municipal Art Committee (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Old Print Shop (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
University of Maryland at College Park  Search this
Washington, D.C.. Public Library  Search this
Abbott, Berenice, 1898-1991  Search this
Albers, Josef  Search this
Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this
Beaton, Cecil Walter Hardy, Sir, 1904-  Search this
Constant, George  Search this
Cox, George Collins, 1851-1902  Search this
De Laittre, Eleanor, 1911-1998  Search this
Fitch, Clyde, 1865-1909  Search this
Force, Juliana, 1876-1948  Search this
Fruhauf, Aline, 1909-1978  Search this
Gallatin, A. E. (Albert Eugene), 1881-1952  Search this
Geist, Sidney  Search this
Gershwin, George, 1898-1937  Search this
Glackens, Ira, 1907-1990  Search this
Greene, Balcomb, 1904-1990  Search this
Harari, Hananiah, 1912-2000  Search this
Higgins, Eugene, 1874-1958  Search this
Holtzman, Harry  Search this
Hunt, William Morris, 1824-1879  Search this
Janauschek, Francesca Romana Magdalena, 1830-1904  Search this
Kane, John, 1860-1934  Search this
Kipling, Rudyard, 1865-1936  Search this
Laufman, Sidney, 1891-  Search this
Logasa, Charles, 1883-1936  Search this
Mitchell, Donald Grant, 1822-1908  Search this
Newman, Robert Loftin, 1827-1912  Search this
Orr, Elliot, 1904-1997  Search this
Portinari, Cândido, 1903-1962  Search this
Ryder, Albert Pinkham, 1847-1917  Search this
Saint-Gaudens, Augustus, 1848-1907  Search this
Sprinchorn, Carl, 1887-1971  Search this
Extent:
15.3 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Christmas cards
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Sketches
Drawings
Date:
1881-circa 1982
bulk 1930-1975
Summary:
The papers of Washington, D.C. art historian, librarian, author, educator, and art consultant Marchal Landgren measure 15.3 linear feet and date from 1881 to circa 1982, with the bulk of the material dating from 1930 to 1975. Included are biographical materials, correspondence, writings and notes, professional and organization files, research projects' files, scattered personal business records, printed materials, two clippings scrapbooks, photographical materials, and scattered artwork.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Washington, D.C. art historian, librarian, author, educator, and art consultant Marchal Landgren measure 15.3 linear feet and date from 1881 to circa 1982, with the bulk of the material dating from 1930 to 1975. Included are biographical materials, correspondence, writings and notes, professional and organization files, research projects' files, scattered personal business records, printed materials, two clippings scrapbooks, photographical materials, and scattered artwork. Biographical material includes address cards, an appointment book, curriculum vitaes, genealogical materials, and military records. Correspondence is with artists, clients, colleagues, museums, and universities, and is predominantly professional in nature. Correspondents include Albert E. Gallatin, George Gershwin, Ira Glackens, Sidney Laufman, Elliot Orr, Candido Portinari, and Carl Sprinchorn, among others. Writings include miscellaneous published and unpublished writings and drafts by Marchal Landgren primarily those not associated with his major research projects. These include various articles written for magazines and journals, manuscript drafts, research notes, and notebooks. There is also a file of writings by others that includes the John Mitchell Gallery Notes. Professional and organizational files document Landgren's positions and work for educational institutions and arts organizations, including the American Abstract Artists Group, Art Students League of New York, Association of Artists Equity of Washington D. C., Contemporary Arts, D. C. Public Library, Library Journal, New York City Municipal Art Committee, Old Print Shop, Inc., and the University of Maryland, among others. These files also contain correspondence, perhaps the most notable found in the file on the American Abstract Artists Group which includes letters from Josef Albers, Eleanor de Laittre, Sidney Geist, Balcomb Greene, Hananiah Harari, and Harry Holtzman. Well over one-half of the collection consists of files for Landgren's ongoing research projects on numerous artists and photographers, Latin American art, as well as his bibliographic reference projects. The bulk of the files cover his research, writing, and curatorial work on Robert Loftin Newman. Files are also found for Berenice Abbott, Milton Avery, George Constant, George Collins Cox, Aline Fruhauf, Eugene Higgins, William Morris Hunt, John Kane, Charles Logasa, Elliot Orr, and Albert Pinkham Ryder, among many others. Personal business records include personal and general expense documentation and scattered exhibition price lists. Printed materials include clippings, exhibition catalogs, and miscellaneous published articles and essays. There are two scrapbooks of clippings. There are photographs, slides, and negatives of images of Landgren, other artists and notable figures in the art world, and of artwork. Of note is a portrait photograph of Juliana Force by Cecil Beaton, one photograph by Berenice Abbott, "Barclay Street Ferry", and 14 taken by George C. Cox of Rudyard Kipling, Clyde Fitch, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Madame Fanny Janauschek, Donald G. Mitchell, and others. The papers also include scattered artwork, including holiday cards illustrated by artists, and sketches and drawings by other artists.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 10 series. Missing Title Series 1: Biographical Materials, circa 1890-circa 1981 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1) Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1930-circa 1982 (0.6 linear feet; Box 1) Series 3: Writings and Notes, circa 1932-circa 1982 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-3) Series 4: Professional and Organizational Files, circa 1910-circa 1977 (3.4 linear feet; Boxes 3-6) Series 5: Research Projects' Files, 1881-circa 1982 (6.9 linear feet; Boxes 6-13, 15) Series 6: Personal Business Records, circa 1934-circa 1982 (0.4 linear feet; Box 13) Series 7: Printed Material, circa 1927-circa 1981 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 13-14) Series 8: Scrapbooks, circa 1931-circa 1979 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 14-15) Series 9: Photographic Materials, circa 1930s-circa 1978 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 14-15) Series 10: Artwork, circa 1930s-circa 1940s (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 14-15)
Biographical / Historical:
Marchal E. Landgren (1907-1983) was an art historian, librarian, educator, author, and art consultant, active in New York and Washington, D. C. As associate director and board member of Contemporary Arts, Inc. in New York, Landgren established a program for providing artists with their first solo exhibition in New York, including those of John Kane and Mark Tobey. In 1932, he directed the exhibition schedule at the New School for Social Research; and in 1935, Landgren served as the director of art activities for the New York City Municipal Art Committee where he facilitated many exhibitions over the course of five years, including Recent Paintings by Boris Aronson at Babcock Galleries in 1938. Working as a freelance art consultant, researcher, and author, Landgren organized numerous exhibitions between 1932 and 1950 of the work of Milton Avery, George C. Cox, Elliot Orr, Robert Loftin Newman, and Albert Pinkham Ryder. He also edited several arts publications, including the Old Print Shop Portfolio, John Mitchell Gallery Notes, and arts manuscripts for Oxford University Press. In 1939, Landgren was selected by the New York World's Fair Commision to prepare historical notes on Latin American art for the exhibition catalogs of the Latin American art exhibition. After the Fair, he continued his research on this topic and wrote several articles, as well as lecturing on Latin American painting at the Art Students League of New York, the Newark Art Club, and the National Education Association at the Boston Museum. After serving in the U. S. Army Air Force during World War II, Landgren moved to Washington, D. C. in 1950 and began work as the arts division readers' advisor for the D. C. Public Library. For seventeen years, he built up the library's general collection of art books and created extensive files of art exhibition catalogs. In 1967, he took a position as a bibliographic consultant for the fine arts department at the University of Maryland. He became director of the University's art gallery and of the art department museum training program. During his tenure at the University of Maryland, Landgren conducted graduate seminars in art history, edited and published exhibition catalogs, and organized exhibitions, including The Late Landscapes of William Morris Hunt in 1976. Landgren was a visiting scholar at the Smithsonian Institution's National Collection of Fine Arts and curated an exhibition of paintings by Robert Loftin Newman held there from 1973 to 1974 and at the Tennessee Fine Arts Center in 1974. Marchal Landgren authored two books: Years of Art: The Story of the Art Students League of New York (Robert M. McBride and Company, 1940), and Robert Loftin Newman (Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974). He was a regular reviewer of art books for the Library Journal from 1958 to 1972, and contributed reviews to Trend, Magazine of Art, and other journals. He was awarded a research grant by the American Council of Learned Societies in 1963 for his study of George C. Cox and did a great deal of research in American art and American art institutions for an unfinished manuscript. He also worked on a bibliography of art literature which he never completed.
Provenance:
The Marchal Landgren papers were donated by Landgren in 1974, and by the Landgren estate via David Huddle in 1983.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference 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:
Librarians -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Educators -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Authors -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Art historians -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Art consultants -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Topic:
Art, American  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Christmas cards
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Sketches
Drawings
Citation:
Marchal Landgren papers, 1881-circa 1982, bulk 1930-1975. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.landmarc
See more items in:
Marchal Landgren Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw946a644a0-83cc-46a7-8c56-e9c63db0e1b4
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-landmarc