This collection consists of six series. Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1925-1938 (.1 Linear feet: Box 1) Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1882-1947 (.9 Linear feet: Box 1) Series 3: Personal Business Records, circa 1900-1940 (.5 Linear feet: Box 2) Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1884-1968 (.4 Linear feet: Box 2) Series 5: Photographic Material, circa 1888-1941 (.4 Linear feet: Boxes 2-4) Series 6: Artwork, circa 1882-1940 (.5 Linear feet: Boxes 3-4, OV 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 mural painter and art critic Edgar Spier Cameron measure 2.8 linear feet and date from circa 1868-1968. They detail Cameron's life and career through biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, printed material, photographic material, and artwork.
Citation:
Edgar Spier Cameron papers, circa 1868-1968. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
Portions of the collection are available on 35mm microfilm reels 4290-4292 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.
Biography Note:
Edgar Spier Cameron (1862-1944) was a muralist and art critic who worked primarily in Chicago. He was born in Ottawa, Illinois in 1862 and, while growing up, was heavily encouraged to become an artist by his stepmother. In 1882 he joined the Art Students League in New York where Thomas W. Dewing took him on as a student. Prior to 1890 Cameron became a student of renowned French painters Boulanger, Lefebvre, Laurens, and Benjamin Constant alongside his future wife Marie Gelon in Paris. In 1900 he returned to Paris for the Paris Exposition where he won the silver medal. Before dedicating his time strictly to art, Cameron was also an art critic for the Chicago Tribune . Cameron, among others, was commissioned to work on the cyclorama The Chicago Fire which started his path of painting murals, after which he became one of the most successful muralists in the Midwest.
Language Note:
This collection is in English and French.
Provenance:
The Edgar Spier Cameron microfilmed materials on reels 4290-4292 and papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by Arthur B. Carpenter and Marjorie L. Kimberlin, Cameron's nephew and niece, in 1988.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
