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Catalog Data

Creator:
Penney, Charles Rand, 1923-2010  Search this
Names:
Charles Rand Penney Collection  Search this
Arp, Jean, 1887-1966  Search this
Audubon, John James, 1785-1851  Search this
Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this
Bertoia, Harry  Search this
Burchfield, Charles Ephraim, 1893-1967  Search this
Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this
Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this
Evergood, Philip, 1901-1973  Search this
Ganso, Emil, 1895-1941  Search this
Goodnough, Robert, 1917-  Search this
Grooms, Red  Search this
Hopper, Edward, 1882-1967  Search this
Marin, John, 1870-1953  Search this
Marsh, Reginald, 1898-1954  Search this
MirĂ³, Joan, 1893-  Search this
Moore, Henry, 1898-1986  Search this
Nevelson, Louise, 1899-1988  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988  Search this
Pepper, Beverly  Search this
Segal, George, 1924-2000  Search this
Sloan, John, 1871-1951  Search this
Stamos, Theodoros, 1922-1997  Search this
Steinberg, Saul  Search this
Wilke, Ulfert, 1907-1987  Search this
Extent:
23.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1923-1994
bulk 1945-1994
Summary:
The papers of art collector Charles Rand Penney measure 23.1 linear feet and date from 1923 to 1994 with the bulk of the collection dating from 1945 to 1994. The majority of the collection consists of Penney's art collection files, which include printed materials, correspondence, notes, and photographic materials. Also found within the papers are catalogs from exhibitions that featured artwork from Penney's collection.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of art collector Charles Rand Penney measure 23.1 linear feet and date from 1923 to 1994 with the bulk of the collection dating from 1945 to 1994. The collection consists primarily of Penney's art collection files which include printed materials, correspondence, notes, and photographic materials. Also found within the papers are catalogs from exhibitions that featured artwork from Penney's collection. Artists of significance represented in Penney's art collection files include Jean Arp, John James Audubon, Milton Avery, Harry Beroia, Alexander Calder, Stuart Davis, Philip Evergood, Emil Ganso, Robert Goodnough, Red Grooms, Edward Hopper, John Marin, Reginald Marsh, Joan Miro, Henry Moore, Louise Nevelson, Isamu Noguchi, Beverly Pepper, George Segal, John Sloan, Theodoros Stamos, Saul Steinberg, and Ulfert Wilke, among many others. Also included are files for artists that participated in theToronto 20 portfolio project in 1965. The files do not include Penney's files relating to Charles Burchfield, Wester New York state artists, or objects from the Arts and Craft movement. A few notable exhibition catalogs found in the series of catalogs of the Charles Rand Penney art collection are Charles Burchfield: The Charles Rand Penney Collection, The Graphic Art of Emil Ganso, Drawings from the Collection of Charles Rand Penney, Quilts Coverlets Hooked Rugs from the Collection of Charles Rand Penney, The Charles Rand Penney Collection: Twentieth Century Art, and An American Visionary: Watercolors and Drawings of Charles E. Burchfield.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 2 series. Missing Title Series 1: Art Collection Files, 1923-1994 (Box 1-23, OV 24; 22.7 linear feet) Series 2: Catalogs of the Charles Rand Penney Art Collection, 1966-1991 (Box 23, 0.2 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Charles Rand Penney (1923-2010) was an art collector from Buffalo, New York. He was well known for his collection of art by Western New York artists, but also collected art from Europe, Africa, Oceania, and other regions of the United States. His travels contributed to the eclectic mix of paintings, drawings, sculptures, hooked rugs, quilts, and tribal art found within his art collection. Penney cited receiving the watercolor Warrior in 1933 from Western New York artist Bob Blair as the beginning of his life as an art collector. Years later, Penney served in World War II, attended law school, and began practicing law in the 1950s. His collections grew quickly during the late 1950s through 1970s. Penney collected over 100,000 works of art during his lifetime, much of it guided by dealers James and Merle Goodman. In 1963, Penney began donating artwork to the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester, New York. In total, approximately 400 works of art were donated to the gallery including Big Diamond by David Smith and Beverly Pepper's Vertical Ventaglio (1967-1968). Penney also donated over 1000 works of art to the Burchfield Art Center in Buffalo, New York.
Related Materials:
Also found at the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Charles Rand Penney conducted by Robert F. Brown on August 14-16, 1981. Additional files relating to the Charles Rand Penney Foundation (1963-1976) are located at the Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester in Rochester, N.Y. Files relating to Western New York state artists, Charles Burchfield, and American Arts and Crafts are located at the Burchfield-Penney Center at Buffalo State College, Buffalo, New York.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 1993-1994 by Charles Rand Penney.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the 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.
Topic:
Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Citation:
Charles Rand Penney Papers, 1923-1994, bulk 1945-1994. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.pennchar
See more items in:
Charles Rand Penney papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw972c049ec-5929-47d4-a5d2-e8041e6394e0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-pennchar