The papers of New York painter, Charles Cajori measure 7.3 linear feet and 0.070 GB and date from 1940-2015. The collection documents Cajori's activities as a painter, educator, and co-founder of the Tanager Gallery that was located on the Lower East Side in New York through correspondence; writings and notes; interviews, talks, and panel discussions, one digitized, on art and artists; and printed materials. There is a 2.3 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2015 and 2021 that includes correspondence consisting of postcards from Barbara Grossman to Charles Cajori, 1967-1968, and condulences to Barbara regarding Cajori's death; writings; printed material and a sound recording relating to Charles Cajori and the Tanager Gallery; printed material regarding works of art and exhibition reviews; thumb drives and DVDs containing interviews, works of art, installations, Cajori memorial; photographs are of Cajori (several BW oversized), with family and friends, black and white and color photographs of works of art, events and exhibition installations, slides of works of art including masters, and three black and white photographs of Franz Kline and Willem de Kooning and Franz Kline's studio; biographical information; printed material; files regarding the New York Studio School and the conservation of paintings. Material dates from circa 1940-2015.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of New York painter, Charles Cajori measure 7.3 linear feet and 0.070 GB and date from 1940-2015. The collection documents Cajori's activities as a painter, educator, and co-founder of the Tanager Gallery that was located on the Lower East Side in New York through correspondence; writings and notes; interviews, talks, and panel discussions on art and artists; and printed materials.
Correspondence is personal and professional and consists of mostly incoming letters to Cajori from artists, friends, family, art historians, and academic institutions. There are a few letters from Charles Cajori, including draft of his letters. Among the correspondents are Pat Adams, Leland Bell, Bernard Chaet, Cooper Union, Cleve Gray, Louis Finkelstein, Philip Pearlstein, Sidney Simon, Norman Turner, and the University of California at Berkeley. Of interest, are letters from the founders of the Tanager Gallery, such as Lois Dodd, Angelo Ippolito, and William King. Correspondence also documents Cajori's dealings with galleries and museums as well as his involvement in arts organizations; included are letters from American University, Watkins Gallery; Bertha Schaffer Gallery; Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center; Gallery Association of New York; Museum of Modern Art; Roko Gallery; Stable Gallery; and the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Writings and notes are and about Charles Cajori. Cajori's writings include drafts on painting and drawing that Cajori prepared for classroom lectures and panel discussions; essays on Paul Cézanne and Chaim Soutine; and his account of the founding of the Tanager Gallery. Cajori's writings also include a biographical account and an artist's statement. There are writings by Louis Finkelstein, Andrew Forge, and Mercedes Matter about Cajori's work. Included are several guest registers for Cajori's exhibitions at the David Findlay Gallery, Lohin Geduld Gallery, and the New York Studio School.
Interviews, talks, and panel discussions include a transcript of an interview with Charles Cajori, audiotaped and videotaped interviews with Charles Cajori, and panel discussions with Cajori and others. Panel discussions with Cajori and others cover such topics as the New York school artists and Chaim Soutine. Many of recordings focus on Cajori's association with the Tanager Gallery, the art scene in New York during the 1950s, and his reflections on art. Also included are miscellaneous videotaped recordings. One panel discussion is digitized.
Printed material contains exhibition catalogs, checklists, announcements, invitations, press releases, clippings, reviews, brochures, and miscellaneous printed material. A file of printed materials on the Tanager Gallery includes exhibition catalogs and clippings.
There is a 2.3 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2015 and 2021 that includes correspondence consisting of postcards from Barbara Grossman to Charles Cajori,1967-1968 and condulences to Barbara regarding Cajori's death; writings; printed material and a sound recording relating to Charles Cajori and the Tanager Gallery; printed material regarding works of art and exhibition reviews; thumb drives and DVDs containing interviews, works of art, installations, Cajori memorial; photographs are of Cajori (several BW oversized), with family and friends, black and white and color photographs of works of art, events and exhibition installations, slides of works of art including masters, and three black and white photographs of Franz Kline and Willem de Kooning and Franz Kline's studio; biographical information; printed material; files regarding the New York Studio School and the conservation of paintings. Material dates from circa 1940-2015.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 5 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1942-2011 (Boxes 1-2; 1.1 linear feet)
Series 2: Writings and Notes, 1949-2010 (Box 2; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 3: Interviews, Talks, and Panel Discussions, 1983-2010 (Boxes 2-3; 1.2 linear feet, ER01; 0.070 GB)
Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1950s-2010 (Boxes 3-4; 1.4 linear feet)
Series 5: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1940-2015 (Boxes 5-11; 2.3 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Painter and teacher Charles Cajori (1921-2013) worked in New York City and Connecticut.
Born in Palo Alto, California in 1921, Charles Cajori studied painting at Colorado College and the Cleveland Art School. Cajori served in the United States Air Force during World War II. Upon his return, he attended Columbia University and then spent two years at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, where he became acquainted with Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, and other Abstract Expressionist artists.
Charles Cajori was one of the founding members of the Tanager Gallery, an early artists' cooperative gallery, originally located at 90 East Tenth Street in New York, which provided a venue for contemporary artists to exhibit their work. In 1956, Charles Cajori had his first solo exhibition at the Tanager Gallery and since then, he continuously showed his work in numerous solo and group exhibitions in the United States and abroad including American University, Bertha Schaeffer Gallery, David Findlay Jr. Gallery, El Museo de Bellas Artes de Caracas, Ingber Gallery, Lohin Geduld Gallery, Mattatuck Museum, New Arts Gallery, Paesaggio Gallery, Sala di Esposizione della Biblioteca Americana, Stable Gallery, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. Charles Cajori's work is represented in a number of public and private collections including the Ciba-Geigy Corporation, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Academy of Design, Walker Art Center, and the Weatherspoon Museum.
In conjunction with his activities as an artist, Charles Cajori taught painting and drawing at major academic institutions and art schools: Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, Cooper Union, Cornell University, and the University of California at Berkeley. Cajori was a co-founder of the New York Studio School, where he continues to serve on the faculty.
Charles Cajori received many honors for his work including the 1959 Distinction in the Arts, Yale University; Benjamin Altman, Figure Prize at the National Academy, 1983, 1987; the Childe Hassam Purchase Award by the Institute of Art and Letters Award, 1975-1976, 1980; and the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award, 1979. Also, Cajori was awarded a Fulbright grant to Italy, 1952-1953 and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1981.
Charles Cajori was married to the painter Barbara Grossman and they lived in Watertown, Connecticut.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Charles Cajori in 2011 and by Barbara Grossman in 2015 and 2021.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
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:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Sound recordings
Interviews
Video recordings
Transcripts
Citation:
Charles Cajori papers, 1940-2015. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Ledgers detailing the art purchases of John Quinn. Entries include the Association of American Painters and Sculptors listing purchases from the Armory Show, February to June 1913, of works by Cezanne, Renoir, Raymond Villon-Duchamp, Andre Derain, Jules Pascin, Odilon Redon, Walt Kuhn, Jacques Villon and others. Also entered are purchases from Alfred Stieglitz's Photo-Secession Gallery for paintings by Marsden Hartley, John Marin, Severini and Stanton Macdonald-Wright. Purchases from art dealers include M. Knoedler & Co. (for works by Morton Schamberg), Montross Gallery (for works by Arthur B. Davies, Maurice Pendergast, Walt Kuhn, Charles Sheeler, Max Weber), William Macbeth Gallery, Durand Ruel & Sons, and Ambroise Vollard.
Other entries of note include those for Jacob Epstein, one for Tiffany Studios detailing extensive refurbishing and refinishing of numerous items of furniture, and one for the Penguin Club enumerating the cost incurred for the installation of the VORTICIST EXHIBITION.
Biographical / Historical:
Art patron and lawyer; New York, N.Y.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1986 by Thomas F. Conroy, Quinn's nephew by marriage. Mr. Conroy intends to donate these papers to the New York Public Library where the John Quinn Memorial Collection is housed.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
An interview of Abraham Walkowitz conducted by Abram Lerner and Mary Bartlett Cowdrey for the Archives of American Art.
Walkowitz discusses his childhood and schooling; travelling abroad; influence of Claude Monet exhibit; his book, "Artists of Walkowitz: 100 Portraits"; Paul Cezanne's death; meeting artists in Europe; his 1908 exhibition of modern art at the Julius Haas Gallery, New York; getting Max Weber a show at the Haas Gallery; Steiglitz and his "291" Gallery; the Armory Show, especially the roles of Arthur B. Davies, Walt Kuhn, and Walter Pach; reactions to Nude Descending a Staircase; the Society of Independent Artists; thoughts on criticism of his work; his relationship with the critic Peyton Boswell; the importance in his work of dancer Isadora Duncan; opinions on American art, modern art, art schools, students and patrons; good art versus bad art; and the role of critics. Among others he recalls are Lizzie Bliss, William Merritt Chase, Kenyon Cox, The Eight, Jacob Epstein, Childe Hassam, and Georgia O'Keeffe.
Biographical / Historical:
Abraham Walkowitz (1880-1965) was a painter in New York, New York.
General:
Sound has been lost on tape reels; reels discarded.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
