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Catalog Data

Creator:
Davis, Jim, 1901-1974  Search this
Subject:
Marin, John  Search this
Wright, Frank Lloyd  Search this
Type:
Drawings
Place of publication, production, or execution:
Other
Physical Description:
3.8 Linear feet
Arrangement:
This collection consists of seven series. Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1954-1966 (.1 Linear feet: Box 1) Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1940-1969 (.6 Linear feet: Box 1) Series 3: Writings, circa 1920-1960 (.8 Linear feet: Boxes 1 and 2) Series 4: Personal Business Records, circa 1956-1967 (.1 Linear feet: Box 2) Series 5: Printed Material, circa 1945-1969 (.2 Linear feet: Box 2) Series 6: Photographic Material, circa 1919-1970 1(.9 Linear feet: Boxes 2-5) Series 7: Artwork, circa 1946 (.1 Linear feet: Box 5)
Access Note / Rights:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Summary:
The papers of painter, photographer, and filmmaker James Edward Davis measure 3.8 linear feet and date from circa 1917-1970. They highlight Davis's career through biographical material, correspondence, writings, personal business records, printed and photographic material, and artwork.
Citation:
James Edward Davis papers, circa 1917-1970. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
Portions of the collection and material lent for microfilming are available on 35mm microfilm reels N172, N68-86A, N738, and 430-433 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
Funding:
The processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.
Use Note:
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.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also hold an oral history interview with James Edward Davis conducted 1971, August 10 by Paul Cummings. The Archives of American Art holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reels N172, N68-86A, and N738) including sketches, designs, working papers related to Davis's art films, the John Marin letters, and drawings. Loaned materials were returned to the lender.
Biography Note:
James Edward Davis (1901-1974) was a painter, photographer, and filmmaker who worked primarily in New Jersey. Born in Clarksburg, West Virginia, Davis specialized in the abstract and surrealist styles and his artwork was heavily inspired by the zeitgeist of the 1920s. He graduated from Princeton University in 1923 and studied painting and sculpture in France with Andre Lhote for three years. Davis taught at multiple places during his career including Lawrenceville School (1933-1936), Princeton (1936-1942), and the Moholy-Nagy Institute of Design (1947). Davis is also known for his experimental abstract films that use mobile designs of transparent plastics and controlled illumination. His paintings have been shown at the Museum of Modern Art, the Addison gallery, and the Princeton and Yale University Art Museums. He died in Princeton, New Jersey at the Princeton Medical Center at the age of 73 on September 20, 1974.
Language Note:
English .
Provenance:
Sketches, designs, working papers related to Davis's art films, the John Marin letters, and drawings were lent for microfilming by James E. Davis in 1967 and 1968. Papers were donated in 1969 by James E. Davis and Rosalind Kossoff.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Theme:
Photography  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)7390
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209547
AAA_collcode_davijame
Theme:
Photography
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209547