The collection is arranged into four series. Series 1: Artists and Exhibition Files, 1970-1979 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1) Series 2: Business Records, 1971-1980 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1) Series 3: Printed Materials, 1975-1978 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1) Series 4: Photographic Material, 1972-1978 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1)
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 records of the ThomasLewallen Gallery measure 1.0 linear feet and date from 1970 to 1980. The records catalog the history of the gallery through artist and exhibition files; correspondence, receipts, ledgers, and other business records; clippings, exhibition announcements, and other printed material; and photographs, slides, and negatives of exhibitions and artwork.
Citation:
ThomasLewallen Gallery records, 1970-1980. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
Portions of the collection are available on 35mm microfilm reels 3985-3986 available at 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.
Biography Note:
ThomasLewallen Gallery was a contemporary art gallery located at 2919 Santa Monica Boulevard in Santa Monica, California. It was founded by Morgan Thomas in 1975 under the name Morgan Thomas Gallery. In 1977 Constance Lewallen became an equal partner in the gallery, which was subsequently renamed ThomasLewallen Gallery. Around the same time, Lewallen and Thomas teamed up with fellow gallery owner Claire Copley to start the Foundation for Art Resources (FAR), a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting experimental art projects incongruous with the traditional gallery system. Lewallen and Copley shifted their focus from the financially unsuccessful ThomasLewallen Gallery to FAR, as the latter organization allowed them more flexibility when working with artists. In 1979, Lewallen moved from Southern California to the Bay Area and leadership of FAR was transferred to the artist Dorit Cypis. Thomas continued to collaborate with FAR until 1984.
Morgan Thomas (1944-2025) worked for Southern California art dealer Jack Glenn before starting her own gallery. From the 1970s through the 2000s, Thomas worked on several documentary film projects and collaborated with artists to create multimedia exhibitions and performances. She later worked as an artist, curator, and digital media instructor in Napa, California.
Constance Mae Lewallen (1939-2022) worked at galleries in New York City and Los Angeles before joining the ThomasLewallen Gallery. After moving to the Bay Area, she became a curator at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA), where she would remain for around three decades. During her tenure as senior curator, Lewallen organized over one hundred exhibitions and pioneered support for conceptual art.
Provenance:
Donated 1981 and 1983 by Morgan Thomas and Constance Lewallen, owners of the gallery.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Topic:
Art, Modern -- California -- Santa Monica Search this
