The papers of curator and museum director Marcia Tucker measure 2.4 linear feet and date from 1973-1994. The collection documents Tucker's tenure as the Director of the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York through artists' files, correspondence, project files, printed material, and photographs. The papers also reflect Tucker's activities as an advocate for women in the arts.
Scope and Contents note:
The papers of curator and museum director Marcia Tucker measure 2.4 linear feet and date from 1973-1994. The collection documents Tucker's tenure as the Director of the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York through artists' files, correspondence, project files, printed material, and photographs. The papers also reflect Tucker's activities as an advocate for women in the arts.
Artists' files include correspondence, artists' statements, exhibition lists, press releases, printed material, and photographs of artwork. There is extensive correspondence with Richard M. Allen, James W. Johnson, Bruce Melamid, and Earl and Suzanne Staley.
Correspondence consists of a mix of professional and personal letters between Tucker and artists, business colleagues, and friends. Correspondence relating to the founding of the New Museum includes draft versions of the mission statement. Among the notable correspondents are: Louise Bourgeois, Joan Brown, Howardena Pindell, Markus Raetz, Joan Snyder, and Idelle Weber. Project files reflect Marcia Tucker's activities as an educator, writer, and advocate for women's role in the arts.
Photographs include an inscribed photograph to Marcia Tucker from Raymond Lark.
Arrangement note:
The collection is organized into 5 series. The papers are arranged by material type and chronologically thereafter.
Missing Title
Series 1: Artists' Files, 1976-1994 (Boxes 1-2; 1.3 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1976-1994 (Box 2; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 3: Project Files, 1973-1990 (Boxes 2-3; 0.15 linear feet)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1984-1994 (Box 3; 0.15 linear feet)
Series 5: Photographs, 1985-1994 (Box 3: 0.2 linear feet)
Biographical/Historical note:
Curator and museum director Marcia Tucker (1940-2006) lived and worked in New York.
In 1961, Marcia Tucker received her Bachelor of Arts from Connecticut College. She then went on to earn a Masters of Art from New York University's Institute of Fine Arts in 1965. In 1969, Tucker became curator of Painting and Sculpture at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Influenced by the political ferment of the 1960s, Marcia Tucker directed her curatorial efforts to organizing exhibitions that reflected the political and social currents of the day. An early exhibit that she co-curated with James Monte, "Anti-Illusion: Procedures/Materials," was one of the first major exhibitions dedicated to Process Art or Post Minimalism. She curated major surveys for the work of Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Bruce Nauman, Richard Tuttle, and Jack Tworkov. Some of Marcia Tucker's curatorial choices were critically received by colleagues and others in the artistic community. In 1977, she left the Whitney Museum to take on the role of founding director at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York. At the time, the New Museum was one of the few experimental centers for contemporary and emerging artists working in graphic arts, video, and film, serving as a venue for artists outside the mainstream, gay artists, and members of radical Hispanic and feminist groups. During her tenure at the New Museum, Tucker directed a number of major exhibitions, such as "Bad Girls," 1994; "A Labor of Love," 1996; "The Times of Our Lives," 1999, among others.
Marcia Tucker's interests extended to writing and teaching. She was the series editor for the New Museum's Documentary Sources in Contemporary Art. Tucker was also a freelance art critic; her criticism appeared in such publications as Art in America, Artforum, and ArtNews. Tucker also taught and lectured at academic institutions and art schools, including the School of Visual Arts, Bard Center for Curatorial Studies, Cornell University, and Colgate University.
In 1999, Marcia Tucker left her post as Director of the New Museum, though she continued to be engaged in the contemporary art scene. In recognition of her innovative practices as a curator, Tucker received a number of awards, including the Skowhegan Governors Award for Lifetime Services to the Arts, 1988; Bard College Award for Curatorial Achievement and the Art Table Award for Distinguished Service to the Visual Arts, 2000. She was also the recipient of three Yaddo fellowships from 2003-2005.
In 2006, Tucker died in Santa Barbara, California. She is survived by her husband, Dean McNeill, an artist and their daughter, Ruby Tucker.
Related Archival Materials note:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Marcia Tucker conducted by Paul Cummings, August 11-September 8, 1978.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Marcia Tucker to the Archives of American Art in 2000.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
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:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of Perry Townsend Rathbone conducted 1975 Aug. 8-1976 Sept. 24, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Perry speaks of his childhood in New York City and upstate New York; his parents; his education at Harvard University; his experience taking a museum course with Paul Sachs at Harvard; working in the education department and under William Valentiner at the Detroit Institute of the Arts during the Depression; assisting Valentiner in organizing the 1939 World's Fair art exhibitions; directing the St. Louis Museum of Art; funding strategies and practices for art museums; working for the Combat Artists' Program in the military during World War II; leaving St. Louis to direct the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; initiating museum membership programs and women's committees in St. Louis and Boston; leading the American Association of Museum Directors; traveling to Washington, DC to advocate for art museums during the 1969 income tax reform committee sessions; retiring early from the Boston Museum; assuming the directorship of Christie's in New York; notable acquisitions throughout his career; relationships with museum donors and boards of trustees; and exhibitions including Westward the Way, Mississippi Panorama, Sport in Art, European Masters of the 20th century, Art of Ancient Peru, Gold of Ancient Americas, and Masterpieces of Primitive Art. Perry also recalls Donald Oenslager, Bud Reed, John Mason Brown, Arthur Pope, Paul Sachs, Edward Forbes, William Valentiner, John Newberry, Louis LaBeaume, Lionberger Davis, Meyric Rogers, Curt Valentin, Max Beckmann, Henry McIlhenny, Joseph Pulitzer, Charles Norgle, Lansing Thoms, Etta Steinberg, Richard Weil, Gertrude Townsend, John W. Coolidge, Harold Edgell, W.G. Constable, Henry Rossiter, Gertrude Townsend, Carl Zahn, Hanns Swarzenski, Dows Dunham, Richard McLanathan, Walter Whitehill, Tenley Albright, Maxim Karolik, Nathaniel Saltonstall, Walter Chrysler, George Seybolt, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Perry Townsend Rathbone (1911-2000) was a museum director from New York, N.Y. He was a curator at the Detroit Institute of Art, 1936-1940, director of the City Art Museum of St. Louis, 1940-1955, and director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1955-1972. At the time of the interview, Rathbone was director of the auction house, Christie's USA (1973-1977). He went on to become senior vice-president from 1977-1987, and a consultant beginning in 1987.
General:
Originally recorded on 11 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 20 digital wav files. Duration is 16 hr., 43 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art 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.
An interview of Harry Dobson Miller Grier conducted 1970 Apr. 21-June 11, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Grier discusses his study of architecture at Princeton University, teachers and events that influenced him, and the Carnegie Fellowship programs designed to help American students study abroad. He recalls his work with the military during World War II recovering works of art, and speaks of museum operations especially concerning new acquisitions. He talks specifically of his activities as director of the Frick Collection.
Biographical / Historical:
Harry Dobson Miller Grier (1914-1972) was a museum director from New York, N.Y. Director of the Frick Collection, from 1964 until his death in 1972.
Provenance:
These interviews are 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.
An interview of Lloyd Goodrich conducted 1962 June 13-1963 March 25, by Harlan Phillips, for the Archives of American Art. Goodrich speaks of his youth in Nutley, New Jersey; his family background; his father's influence; his friendship with Reginald Marsh; studying at the Art Students League under Kenneth Hayes Miller; attending the National Academy of Design; his interest in music and poetry; deciding upon a career in art; working as a writer, editor, and critic for "The Arts"; his travels for "The Arts"; critics he knew; his book on Thomas Eakins; his work with the Public Works of Art Project; political problems with government support of the arts in the 1930s through the 1950s; working as a curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art; the problem of forgeries; the Whitney's relationship with other museums; and politics at the Whitney. He recalls Juliana Force, Forbes Watson, Alfred Stieglitz and Hamilton Easter Field.
Biographical / Historical:
Lloyd Goodrich (1897-1987) was a museum director and art historian living in New York, New York.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art 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:
This transcript is open for research. No audio exists. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Interview of Frederick J. Dockstader conducted 1970 June 16-July 2, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Frederick J. Dockstader (1919-1998) was an art consultant, museum director, and silversmith from New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 51 min.
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.
Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979 Search this
Extent:
69 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1974 February 22-May 13
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Margaret Scolari Barr conducted 1974 February 22-1974 May 13, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
The interview primarily concerns her husband, Alfred Hamilton Barr, Jr., the director of the Museum of Modern Art, but also touches upon her childhood in Italy, her educational background, and teaching at Vassar. She discusses her husband's career with the Museum of Modern Art, including his travel and entertaining for the museum, borrowing works of art, installing exhibitions, his work methods and published writings, the Rescue Committee for European Artists in World War II, and the 1958 fire at the Museum of Modern Art. She describes Alfred Barr's firing from the Museum of Modern Art in 1943. She recalls Steven Clark, Rene D'Harnoncourt, Henry Russell Hitchcock, Philip Cortelyou Johnson, Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Margaret Scolari Barr (1901-1987) was married to Alfred Barr, the director of the Museum of Modern Art and lived in New York. Mrs. Barr taught at Vassar (Italian) and the Spence School (art history), wrote several books, and translated others. She worked closely with her husband, on numerous of his projects.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 46 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are 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.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.) Search this
Extent:
0.2 Linear feet ((on partial microfilm reel))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1950-1958
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence concerning the acquisition of Taylor's papers by the Archives; typescripts of "Life Round Table Conference on Modern Art," 1948; and a large file of clippings relating to Taylor's work with the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Museum director, Metropolitan Museum of Art; New York, N.Y.
Provenance:
Donated 1958 by Pamela Taylor, Taylor's wife.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
REEL 74: Exhibition announcements, postcards, and catalogs from the Guggenheim Foundation Museum of Non-Objective Painting, including exhibitions for Bauhaus artist Laszlo Maholy-Nagy and Rebay; a 1921 issue of "Der Sturm," a modern art magazine from Berlin; and photographs of Rebay and the architectural model of the new Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
REEL 3481: A record (171 p.) of the hearing before the Tax Court of the United States, "Hilla Rebay, Petitioner, vs. Commissioner of the Internal Revenue, Respondent," January 1963. The case involved the Government dispute over the value of art work claimed as deductions for tax purposes.
Biographical / Historical:
Abstract painter, art collector, museum director; New York, N.Y. Born in France. Active in Germany, Switzerland and France from 1910-1920 in the abstract art movement. Rebay worked with Solomon Guggenheim to form a collection of Non-Objective paintings. This collection became the basis of the Guggenheim Museum; Rebay served as its first director.
Provenance:
Provenance of material on reel 74 is unknown. Material on reel 3481 donated by the Art Dealers Association of America, 1963, who participated in the legal case by designating expert witness for the government to testify as to the market value of paintings.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Topic:
Painting, Abstract -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art as an investment -- Taxation -- Law and legislation -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
One of the founders and president of Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1889-1902; New York, N.Y.
Provenance:
Purchased 1956 by funds donated by a Mr. (?) Brayer.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Correspondence; files on the Public Works of Art Project and WPA-FAP; notes; scrapbook; exhibition catalogs; and miscellany.
REEL NWH 4 (frames 318-382): Notes by Force about Whitney Museum of American Art exhibitions, 1916-1920.
REELS NWH 6 (frames 707-766)-NWH 7 (frames 1-63): A scrapbook of clippings, 1933-1934, relating to Force's involvement in the Public Works of Art Program; and a P.W.A.P. exhibition catalog, 1934.
REELS N614-N615: Exhibition catalog, "Juliana Force and American Art," a memorial exhibition at the Whitney Museum, 1949; miscellaneous correspondence and memorabilia; and a file of writings, clippings, and letters about Juliana Force.
REEL 2396: Correspondence; files on P.W.A.P., WPA-FAP, Committee for a New York State Art Program, Saint-Gaudens Memorial Committee, and Force's private art collection and sale at auction.
Biographical / Historical:
Director of the Whitney Museum of Art, 1931-ca. 1947.
Provenance:
Notes on reel NWH 4 lent for microfilming 1964 by the Whitney Museum of American Art. Scrapbook on reels NWH 6-NWH 7 lent for microfilming 1964 and subsequently donated 1981. Material on reels N614-N615 lent for microfilming 1967, however portions of the correspondence were subsequently donated 1981 with additional material, and re-microfilmed on reel 2396.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Included are extensive memoirs of William Henry Fox director of the museum for over 25 years; scattered records of the Brooklyn Institute, 1823-1873; catalogs for Brooklyn Museum exhibits (4 1/2 reels) and for exhibits held in various galleries and museums, primarily in N.Y. (14 reels); brief records of the Dept. of Painting and Sculpture primarily relating to Gilbert Stuart's portrait of George Washington; records of the Dept. of Prints and Drawings, mainly regarding exhibitions, including correspondence, much of it with curator Una Johnson, correspondence with art dealers, files on artists, and statistics on exhibitions, 1936-1939; and records of the Registrar's office, 1933-1936, regarding the museum's involvement in the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration, mainly the Graphic Arts Division.
Dept. of Prints & Drawings artists files relate to: Grace Albee, Josef Albers, Glen Alps, Maxil Ballinger, Leonard Baskin, Wilfred Roloff Beny, Fiske Boyd, Robert Broner, Edmond Casarella, Minna Citron, Robert Conover, Worden Day, Arthur Deshaies, Werner Drewes, Antonio Frasconi, Leon Goldin, William Gropper, Stanley William Hayter, Helen West Heller, Margo Hoff, John Paul Jones, Misch Kohn, David Lang, Ezio Martinelli, Seong Moy, Danny Pierce, Rudolph Pozzatti, Peter Sager, Louis Schanker, Karl Schrag, Susanne Suba, Maltby Sykes, Peter Takal, John Von Wicht, Sylvia Wald, Hyman Warsager, Max Weber, Toshi Yoshida, Richard Zoellner, and others.
Other correspondents of note (reels BR21-22) include John Taylor Arms, Mary Cassatt (1 letter, 1903), George Overbury "Pop" Hart, Mrs. Gaston Lachaise, Joseph Pennell (re Whistler), and a group from art dealers.
Also included are papers of and related to Austrian artist Emil Fuchs, including letters regarding commissions, a list of books and prints, and miscellany.
Biographical / Historical:
The Brooklyn Museum had its roots in the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, founded 1823. The Museum was formed in 1889.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1964-1965 by Brooklyn Museum.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Cooper Union Museum for the Arts of Decoration Search this
Extent:
0.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1961-1977
Scope and Contents:
Papers generated through her directorship of the Cooper Union and Busch-Reisinger museums. Included are letters, writings, photographs, and printed matter.
Biographical / Historical:
Hedy Backlin-Landman (1920- 2014) was a museum director (Cooper Union and Busch-Reisinger museums) and author. Backlin-Landman was also known professionally as Hedy Landman.
Other Title:
Hedy B. Landman papers (box label)
Provenance:
Donated 1977 by Hedy Backlin-Landman.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Occupation:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of art historian and museum director Wilhelm Reinhold Valentiner measure 6.9 linear feet and date from 1853 to 1977. Found within the collection are biographical materials, including information on the Lepsius and Valentiner families; correspondence with family, friends, art collectors, and art historians; seven diaries; additional writings and notes; printed materials; three clippings scrapbooks; artwork in the form of prints and woodcuts; and photographs of Valentiner and his family and friends, including two photograph albums.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of art historian and museum director Wilhelm Reinhold Valentiner measure 6.9 linear feet and date from 1853 to 1977. Found within the collection are biographical materials, including information on the Lepsius and Valentiner families; correspondence with family, friends, art collectors, and art historians; seven diaries; additional writings and notes; printed materials; three clippings scrapbooks; artwork in the form of prints and woodcuts; and photographs of Valentiner and his family and friends, including two photograph albums.
Biographical materials include certificates, membership cards, a curriculum vitae, and genealogical information on the Valentiner and Lepsius families.
Correspondence includes letters in German from Valentiner's parents, siblings, extended family members, and his wife and daughter. General correspondence includes letters and cards in German and English from art historian mentors and peers, including Wilhelm von Bode, Cornelius Hofstede de Groot, Carl Heise, and Herman Colenbrander, as well as art collectors and friends, including John McIlhenny, Andrew Mellon, Edsel Ford, Maria Sarre, and Helen Wills Moody Roark.
Seven diaries dated 1910-1939 were written in German, some of which also contain sketches, photographs, and other enclosures. Additional writings and notes consist of autobiographical writings, numerous essays, lectures, and monographs on Italian and Dutch art and artists, and reports and lectures on exhibitions at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Detroit Institute of Arts. Lecture seminar notes appear to have been written while Valentiner was a student in Germany, and materials related to Arbeitsrat für Kunst date from the period after Valentiner's military service when he served as a chairman to the newly formed Working Council for the Arts, prior to his return to America in 1921.
Printed material includes bulletins, exhibition catalogs, clippings, and three clippings scrapbooks, which document Valentiner's professional career in New York and Detroit.
Photographic materials are of Wilhelm Valentiner, his immediate and extended family members, and his friends. Photos of Valentiner are from his youth, military service in Germany, and his personal and professional career in the U.S. Photographs of friends include art scholars, collectors, and family friends, including Maria Sarre, Helen Wills Moody Rorke, and Anne Morgan, the daughter of Pierpoint Morgan. There are also a handful of reproductions of artwork used as scholarly references in his writings. The two photo albums focus on Valentiner's family and friends from his youth in Germany, and Valentiner with family members later in his life.
Artwork in the collection consists of prints from a page in a German book, a bookplate, and two woodcuts by unidentified artists.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 8 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1853-1976 (8 folders; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1860-1974 (3.4 linear feet; Box 1-4)
Series 3: Diaries, 1910-1939 (7 folders; Box 3)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1890-1970 (1.7 linear feet; Box 4-6, 9)
Series 5: Printed Material, 1915-1977 (0.2 linear feet; Box 6)
Series 6: Scrapbooks, 1908-1933 (0.4 linear feet; Box 6, 9)
Series 7: Photographic Materials, 1840-1970 (0.8 linear feet; Box 6-8)
Series 8: Artwork, 1890-1960 (3 folders; Box 8)
Biographical / Historical:
Art historian and museum director Wilhelm Reinhold Valentiner (1880-1958) lived in New York City, N.Y., Detroit, Michigan, and Raleigh, North Carolina and was known for his leadership and collection development during his tenure at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Detroit Institute of Arts.
Valentiner was born in Karlsruhe, Germany to Karl Wilhelm Valentiner, a professor of astronomy at Heidelberg University, and his wife, Anna Lepsius Valentiner. The youngest of four children, Valentiner attended the University of Leipzig and continued studies in art history at the University of Heidelberg, where he received his doctorate in 1905 under the mentorship of Henry Thode. His relationship with Thode and with fellow students Edwin Redslob and Hermann Voss would eventually lead to lifelong friendships with a network of European scholars and historians, including Wilhelm von Bode and Cornelius Hofstede de Groot.
Upon von Bode's recommendation to J.P. Morgan, then President of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Valentiner joined the staff of the Metropolitan in 1908 as the curator for Decorative Arts. In 1913, he founded the journal Art in America, where he would remain as editor until 1931. At the onset of World War I, Valentiner returned to Germany to enlist and served until the war's end, at which point he spent a brief period working at the Kaiser Friedrich Museum and participated in the Arbeitsrat für Kunst, a new group that questioned the traditional relationship between artists and established art institutions. Though shortlived, his participation as a chairmen for the Working Council for the Arts introduced him to leading German artists and architects, including Walter Gropius, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Käthe Kollwitz, and Lyonel Feininger. At this time, he also met his future wife, Cecelia Odefay, who he married in 1919.
In 1921, Valentiner returned to the U.S. and was asked to serve as a collecting advisor to the Detroit Institute of Arts. In 1924, he was appointed the Institute's director, a position he held until his retirement in 1944. During his tenure, he oversaw the opening of a new wing, the first acquisition of pre-Columbian and African art, the strengthening of Chinese and Islamic art collections, significant acquisitions of European Modernists, and the development of the museum's education and conservation divisions.
In 1937, Valentiner founded the Art Quarterly journal for the College Art Association, which he edited until 1949. After his retirement from the Institute, Valentiner was called from retirement to serve as director for the Los Angeles County Museum and the Getty Museum in California, and the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh. Valentiner died from complications of pneumonia in 1958.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art are the Mary E. Adams letters from Wilhelm Valentiner and an oral history interview with Mary and Clinton Adams conducted by Paul Karlstrom, April 24, 1998. The North Carolina Museum of Art also holds papers of Wilhelm Valentiner, most of which are also available at the Archives on microfilm reels D31 and 2140-2144.
Separated Materials:
In 1981 and earlier, the Archives microfilmed the William R. Valentiner papers that were on deposit from the North Carolina Museum of Art onto reels D31 and 2140-2144. The papers were returned to the North Carolina Museum of Art, but the microfilm is still available for use at the Archives research centers and for interlibrary loan.
Reel D31 includes diary entries, 1914-1957, describing Valentiner's service in the German army, 1914-1918, with the War Information Office in Berlin, the overthrow of the monarchy and German politics, relations between Germany and Russia and communist activity in Germany, the administration of Berlin museums and radical artists' activities, his work with the L.A. County Museum, Detroit Institute of Fine Arts, the North Carolina Museum of Art, and private collectors, impressions of friends, including Henry Ford, Carl Hamilton, the Hohenzollerns, Franz Marc, Rainer Maria Rilke, Walter Rathenau, Helen Wills, Benjamin Altman, J. Pierpont Morgan, and recollections of women art collectors, including Mrs. August Belmont, Rita Lydig, and Mrs. Leonard Thomas. A very small portion of the filmed materials may be found among the Valentiner papers at the Archives, but most of the materials were returned to the North Carolina Museum of Art.
Loaned materials on reels 2140-2144 consist of 26 diaries, 1904-1958; autobiographical writings; manuscripts and lectures by Valentiner; correspondence with family, friends, authors, museums, galleries, and dealers, including Harry Bertoia, Charles Culver, Lyonel and Julia Feininger, Walter Gropius, Paul and Mary Weschler, and Morris Graves; and a scrapbook containing clippings, drafts of speeches, and invitations.
Provenance:
From 1972 to 1977, Valentiner's papers were gathered from various sources by historian Margaret Sterne who was researching and writing a biography of Valentiner. Sterne died just prior to publication and the papers were sorted by Archives' staff and returned to the lender when known. After publication of the biography, the bulk of the papers were returned to their respective lenders (primarily the University of North Carolina) and the remaining papers were sorted and accessioned by the Archives. Donors are listed as unknown or anonymous.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archvies' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of curator and museum director James J. Rorimer measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1921 to 1982, with the bulk from 1943-1950. The papers include documentation of James J. Rorimer's World War II service in the Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section of the U.S. Army and his activities protecting historic and cultural sites from bombing, and locating and recovering art work and cultural icons stolen by the Nazis. Found within the papers are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, writings include draft versions of Rorimer's book Safe-Keeping or Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, financial records, photographic materials including a photo album containing photographs of European art work and cultural sites where Rorimer worked, newsclippings and additional printed materials, and one scrapbook of clippings dating from World War II.
Scope and Contents note:
The papers of curator and museum director James J. Rorimer measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1921 to 1982, with the bulk from 1943-1950. The papers include documentation of James J. Rorimer's World War II service in the Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section of the U.S. Army and his activities protecting historic and cultural sites from bombing, and locating and recovering art work and cultural icons stolen by the Nazis. Found within the papers are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, writings include draft versions of Rorimer's book Safe-Keeping or Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, financial records, photographic materials including a photo album containing photographs of European art work and cultural sites where Rorimer worked, newsclippings and additional printed materials, and one scrapbook of clippings dating from World War II.
Scattered biographical materials include a college transcript and various certificates. Much of the correspondence is comprised of army directives but also includes some personal letters from Rorimer's wife Katherine.
Writings by Rorimer include several handwritten manuscripts and drafts of his book Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, which was originally titled Safe-Keeping. There is one folder of miscellaneous financial records, mostly dating from Rorimer's time in the army. There is also one folder of minutes of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Board of Trustees meetings.
Photographic materials include black and white photographs, negatives, contact prints, postcards, and one photo album. The photograph album was given to Rorimer from the headquarters of the Office of Military Government in Baden-Wurttemberg and is titled War Damage in Wurtemmberg: A Selection of Photographs. Many of the photographs document bomb damage to European cultural monuments and historic sites. There are photographs of Nazi stolen art repositories discovered by Rorimer and fellow Monuments Men at Buxheim monastery and Neuschwanstein castle, art recovery and transportation, and restitution work at Wiesbaden Central Collecting Point. Photographs of people, such as Edith Standen, Rose Valland, and Rorimer, are scattered throughout the series.
Printed materials include newspaper and magazine clippings, mostly related to The Cloisters or the activities and achievements of the Monuments Men. Printed materials also includes bulletins, brochures, and press releases. There is also a war-time scrapbook and two handbooks of maps showing historic monuments and sites in France and Germany.
Arrangement note:
The collection is arranged as 7 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1942-1946 (Box 1, 4; 8 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1927-1982 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, circa 1946-1950 (Box 1; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 4: Financial Records, 1943-1946 (Box 1; 1 folder)
Series 5: Administrative Files, 1940 (Box 1; 1 folder)
Series 6: Photographic Materials, 1921-1966 (Box 1-2, 4; 0.7 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Materials, 1923-1966 (Box 3-4, OV 5-6; 0.7 linear feet)
Biographical/Historical note:
James J. Rorimer (1905-1966) was a museum director and curator of medieval art working in New York City. Rorimer was the primary force and first director of The Cloisters at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. During World War II, Rorimer served in the U.S. Army Monuments, Fine Art and Archives Section protecting cultural sites and recovering stolen art work.
James J. Rorimer was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1905 and attended the University School there until he left in 1921 in order to study abroad in Europe. He studied at the Ecole Gory in Paris for two years, then returned to the United States to finish his studies at the University School in Cleveland. In 1927, Rorimer graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. Soon after, he began working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City where he worked his way up from a position as an assistant to Head Curator of Medieval Art, a position he filled from 1934 to 1955, director of The Cloisters, and eventually director and trustee of the museum.
Rorimer was heavily involved with the planning and development of The Cloisters, working closely with the architect Charles Collens. When The Cloisters opened in 1938, Rorimer worked there as a curator and later became the first director in 1949. During this time, Rorimer developed a professional relationship with John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who donated to New York City a large tract of land, a portion of which was given to the Metropolitan Museum as a location to build The Cloisters. The Cloisters' collections evolved into a world renown collection of medieval art under Rorimer's curatorship and directorship.
As the director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1955-1966, Rorimer nearly doubled membership and attendance, raised a substantial amount of endowment funding, renovated almost half of the galleries, and increased the exhibition space.
Rorimer married Katherine Newton in 1942. They had two children, Anne and Louis.
During World War II, from 1943 to 1946, Rorimer served in the U.S. Army's Monuments, Fine Art and Archives (MFAA) Section. The "Monuments Men" of the U.S. Army were charged with locating and protecting historical sites, monuments, artwork, and buildings from Allied bombing. Towards the end of the war, the section led recovery efforts to locate and retrieve Nazi stolen art works and other cultural heritage items. Rorimer served as a MFAA officer in Normandy and Paris, and, while in Germany, was promoted to chief of the MFAA Section of the 7th Army Western Military District.
While in Paris, Rorimer worked closely with Rose Valland, an employee of the Jeu de Paume Museum in Paris who spied on the Nazis and recorded in detail the movements of artwork stolen by members of the Nazi party, including Hermann Wilhelm Goering and Joseph Goebbels. With Valland's assistance, Rorimer discovered a large cache of stolen and confiscated artwork at the Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps. He and his team also recovered other artwork, European antiquities, and cultural icons that were stored in nearby salt mines. Rorimer and the other Monuments Men arranged the recovery and removal of the cache of stolen goods.
Rorimer received numerous awards for his work during World War II including, the French Cross of War in 1945, Chevalier in 1947, and officer of the French Legion of Honor in 1957. Rorimer wrote about his work as a Monuments Man in his book Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War, published by Abelard Press in 1950. James J. Rorimer died in 1966.
Related Archival Materials note:
Among the holdings of the Archives of American is an oral history interview with Anne Rorimer, James' daughter, conducted in 2010 by the Archives of American Art. The Archives also holds the papers of several members of the World War II Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) Section of the U.S. Army, including S. Lane Faison, Walker Hancock, Walter Horn, Thomas Carr Howe, George Stout, and Otto Wittman. as well as oral history interviews with some of them.
The official government records for James Rorimer's service during World War II in the MFAA Section of the U.S. Army are maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration.
James J. Rorimer Papers, 1927-1966, are also located at Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries.
Provenance:
The James J. Rorimer papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by his wife, Katherine Serrell Rorimer, in 2 installments in 1983.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
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.
The papers of museum director, professor, writer, and post-World War II Monuments Men Andrew Carnduff Ritchie measure 10.3 linear feet and date from 1907 to 1983. Found within the papers are biographical material, including materials and photographs concerning his military service in the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Section of the U.S. Army; correspondence, including letters from numerous artists; writings; committee and organization files; exhibition and project files, teaching files; printed material; and photographs, including portrait images of Ritchie taken by Hans Namuth.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of museum director, professor, writer, and post-World War II Monuments Men Andrew Carnduff Ritchie measure 10.3 linear feet and date from 1907 to 1983. Found within the papers are biographical material, including materials and photographs concerning his military service in the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Section of the U.S. Army; correspondence, including letters from numerous artists; writings; committee and organization files; exhibition and project files, teaching files; printed material; and photographs, including portrait images of Ritchie taken by Hans Namuth.
Biographical materials include birth certificates, passports, academic records, biographical profiles, and awards. There are files documenting Andrew Carnduff Ritchie's post-World War II military service in 1945-1946 as a "Monuments Men" in the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) section of the U.S. Army, including correspondence, forms, reports, photographs (including 7 of paintings looted from Holland), and awards. There is also a file on the Fogg conference on the emergency protection of artwork dated 1939-1942 and one file regarding the Frick Collection's orders for protecting art. There is also a folder of material on his wife Jane Ritchie.
Alphabetical and chronological correspondence is with artists, museums, galleries, universities, and colleagues. The bulk of the alphabetical correspondence consists of letters from artists such as Afro, Alexander Calder, Dimitri Hadzi, Russell Lynes, Eduardo Paolozzi, Theodore Roszak, and others. There are also condolence letters addressed to Jane Ritchie. Chronological correspondence includes Ritchie's correspondence on the subject of travels, lectures, projects, and exhibitions.
Writings include one disbound notebook, papers from college and graduate studies, lecture drafts, outlines, and notes. There are a few writings by others.
Committee and organization files document Ritchie's work on advisory panels, trustee boards, councils, board of directors, and committees. There are meeting minutes, bulletins, reports, studies, and correspondence. Some of the more voluminous files include the College Art Association's study on "The Visual Arts in Higher Education" as well as the Museum of Modern Art's committee on museum collections.
Exhibition and project files include correspondence, printed material, photographs, catalogs, and assorted documents. Among the projects and exhibitions in this series are Ritchie's work on the Alfred E. Burr Memorial in Connecticut and the Middelheim Sculpture exhibition.
Teaching files contain correspondence, program outlines, course materials, recommendations, and a few student papers from universities and programs where Ritchie taught, including Yale University Art Gallery.
Printed material consists of news clippings, some of which are arranged by subject, along with articles by Andrew Ritchie, press releases, magazines, bulletins, and a few exhibition catalogs.
Photographs are of Andrew Ritchie, and of friends and artists at various art openings and events.
There is one small album of photographs of a birthday party for Jane Ritchie. Also included are photographs of artwork.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 8 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1907-1978 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1, OV 11)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1928-1983 (2.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 3: Writings, 1927-1978 (2.9 linear feet; Boxes 3-6, OV 11)
Series 4: Committee and Organization Files, 1948-1971 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 6-7)
Series 5: Exhibition and Project Files, 1949-1978 (1.6 linear feet; Boxes 7-9, OV 12)
Series 6: Teaching Files, 1957-1974 (0.5 linear feet; Box 9)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1928-1978 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 9-10)
Series 8: Photographs, 1935-1982 (O.9 linear feet; Box 10, OV 13)
Biographical / Historical:
Andrew Carnduff Ritchie (1907-1978) was a museum director, professor, and art historian based in New York and Connecticut. He served as director of the Albright Knox Gallery in Buffalo, N.Y., director of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, and director of the Yale University Art Gallery.
Andrew Carnduff Ritchie was born in Bellshill, Scotland, in 1907 to Andrew and Jeanie Gilchrist Ritchie. The family immigrated to the United States when he was 15 and settled in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He attended the University of Pittsburgh and received a bachelor's and master of arts degrees in medieval art, and his doctoral degree from the University of London in 1935. That same year, he married Jane Thompson.
From 1935 to 1942, Ritchie was a researcher and lecturer at the Frick Collection in New York City and faculty member at New York University, as well as a visiting lecturer at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
In 1942, Ritchie was appointed director of the Albright Knox Gallery in Buffalo, New York where he stayed until 1949 when he became the director of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art.
In 1945-1946, directly following World War II, Ritchie served with the U.S. Army's Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section in Austria and helped with the restitution of art looted by the Nazis, returning paintings and cultural artifacts back to their country of origin. He was later honored by France and the Netherlands for this work.
In 1957, Ritchie accepted the postion of director of the Yale University Art Gallery where he stayed until 1971. While there, he acquired notable works of art for the Gallery's collections by David Smith, Noguchi, and Maillol. Thanks to Ritchie's efforts and guidance, art collector and patron Paul Mellon donated his collection of British art and established the Yale Center for British Studies. In 1971, Ritchie also became the Clark Professor at Williams College, Massachusetts, and, in 1972, he was a visiting professor at the University of Sydney, Australia. Ritchie retired from Yale in 1973.
Ritchie was also awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Pittsburgh and the Royal College of Art in London. He wrote several books over the course of his career and passed away in Canaan, Connecticut, in 1978.
Related Materials:
Among the holding at the Archives of American Art is an interview of Andrew Carnduff Ritchie conducted in 1977 June 16-17 by Paul Cummings.
The Albright-Knox Gallery Archives in Buffalo, New York has a collection of Andrew Carnduff Ritchie papers, which include administrative records and correspondence.
Provenance:
This collection was donated in multiple installments in 1979 and 1981 by Andrew Ritchie's widow, Jane T. Ritchie, and by her estate in 1986. Five letters from Alfred Hamilton Barr to Andrew and Jane Ritchie were donated in 1974 by Andrew Ritchie through Russell Lynes.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. research facility.
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.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- Connecticut -- Canaan Search this
The papers of New York art historian, museum director, curator, writer, and educator, Alan R. Solomon, measure 9.9 linear feet and date from 1907-1970, with the bulk of the material dating from 1944-1970. Through biographical material, correspondence, interview transcripts, writings and notes, teaching and study files, subject files, exhibition files, business records, printed material, and photographs, the collection documents Solomon's education, his early teaching appointments at Cornell University, and his subsequent direction of many diverse curatorial and research projects relating to contemporary American art, particularly the transition from Abstract Expressionism to later modern movements, and the thriving New York City art scene.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of New York art historian, museum director, curator, writer, and educator, Alan R. Solomon, measure 9.9 linear feet and date from 1907-1970, with the bulk of the material dating from 1944-1970. Through biographical material, correspondence, interview transcripts, writings and notes, teaching and study files, subject files, exhibition files, business records, printed material, and photographs, the collection documents Solomon's education, his early teaching appointments at Cornell University, and his subsequent direction of many diverse curatorial and research projects relating to contemporary American art, particularly the transition from Abstract Expressionism to later modern movements, and the thriving New York City art scene.
Biographical material includes résumés, an engagement book, and a monthly planning book from 1965, identification cards, and educational transcripts.
Correspondence documents Solomon's education at Harvard College and Harvard University, and his teaching appointments at Cornell University. Correspondence also provides some documentation of his involvement with museums and arts organizations, including the Jewish Museum, Stedlijk Museum, the San Francisco Art Institute, the University of California, and Centro de Artes Visuales; his submission of writings for publications including Artforum, Art International, and Konstrevy; and his relationships with artists and colleagues including Jim Dine, Joan Kron, Audrey Sabol, and Ileana Sonnabend. Also found is correspondence related to Solomon's work for Mary Sisler, who employed Solomon to sell her collection of artwork by Marcel Duchamp in the late 1960s.
One series comprises transcripts of interviews with many of the artists who were central to the transition from Abstract Expressionism to later modern movements that occurred in the 1950s and 1960s, such as Neo-Dada and Pop art. Artists represented in the interviews include Jim Dine, Helen Frankenthaler, Jasper Johns, Barnett Newman, Kenneth Noland, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella, and Andy Warhol.
Solomon's writings include many of his essays for exhibition catalogs, magazines, and journals, and are in a combination of annotated manuscript and published formats. There are writings on Jim Dine, Barnett Newman, Robert Rauschenberg, and Jasper Johns, and on the new movements in theater and performance art of the 1960s. His writings also document the art history education which informed all of his later work, with the inclusion of papers written as a student and teacher, his honors thesis on Odilon Redon, and his dissertation on Pablo Picasso. This material is supplemented by notes, and teaching and study files, documenting courses taken and taught at Harvard and Cornell universities. Also found is the manuscript of the text for New York: The New Art Scene, accompanied by a partial published copy of the book and photographs by Ugo Mulas.
Solomon's subject files augment several of the other series, comprising material on various art related subjects and individual painters and sculptors, arranged alphabetically. Material found here includes printed matter documenting exhibitions and other events, scattered letters from artists, related writings, and photographs.
One series documents Solomon's involvement with the First New York Theater Rally, which he co-produced with Steve Paxton in 1965. This material includes a drawing each by Jim Dine and Alex Hay, pieces of a combine by Robert Rauschenberg, and photographs of the group including Dine, Hay, and Rauschenberg, as well as Lucinda Childs, Judith Dunn, Deborah Hay, Robert Morris, Claes Oldenburg, the Once Group, Steve Paxton, Yvonne Rainier, Alan Solomon, and Robert Whitman. The series includes multiple contact sheets of photos of First New York Theater Rally events, by Peter Moore, Elizabeth Novick, and Terry Schute.
Exhibition files document Solomon's role as an organizer and curator for some of his most well-known exhibitions, including American Painting Now (1967) for Expo '67 in Montreal; Andy Warhol (1966) at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston; Dine-Oldenburg-Segal (1967) at the Art Gallery of Ontario and Albright-Knox Gallery; the American exhibition at the 1964 Venice Biennale; Young Italians (1968) at the Institute of Contemporary Art; and Painting in New York 1944-1969, a major retrospective installed for the opening of the new Pasadena Art Museum in fall, 1969. Records include correspondence, lists and notes, financial records, printed material, and photographs of artists and installations, including a series by Ugo Mulas taken at the Venice Biennale.
Solomon's business records include lists, notes, contracts, expense forms, vouchers, purchase orders, and receipts. They provide scattered documentation of exhibition-related expenses and purchases of artwork, as well as Solomon's income from teaching appointments, lectures, honorariums, and writings. Amongst Solomon's general business records is an American Federation of Musicians agreement between the Institute of Contemporary Art and "Louis Reed," with booking agent Andy Warhol, for a performance by the Velvet Underground and Nico, performing as The Exploding Plastic Inevitable on October 29, 1966. This seemingly mundane item documents an event that accompanied Solomon's landmark Warhol exhibition of nearly forty iconic works, and the accompanying show by The Exploding Plastic Inevitable was hailed by the Boston Phoenix newspaper as one of the greatest concerts in Boston history.
Printed material includes announcements, catalogs, and posters for exhibitions and art related events, including two Jasper Johns lithographs for a 1960 exhibition at Galerie Rive Droite, and a 1963 exhibition at Leo Castelli Gallery. Also found are news clippings, press releases, and other publications.
Photographs are of Solomon, artists, friends and colleagues, exhibitions and other events, and artwork. They include snapshots of Solomon, and a series of photographs of him at various events and parties, many taken by Ugo Mulas, as well as a photo taken by Robert Rauschenberg of Ugo Mulas, Michele Provinciali, and Solomon. Additional photos by Ugo Mulas include some which were probably taken for New York: The New Art Scene, and a series of photos of Robert Rauschenberg and others at the Venice Biennale. Photos of artists include Lee Bontecou, John Chamberlain, Jim Dine, Marcel Duchamp, Öyvind Fahlström, Laura Grisi, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Morris Louis, Barnett Newman, Kenneth Noland, Claes and Patty Oldenburg, Larry Poons, James Rosenquist, George Segal, Frank Stella, and Andy Warhol and The Factory. Photos of others include Leo Castelli, Clement and Jeanine Greenberg, and Ethel and Robert Scull. Also found are photos of the exhibition Toward a New Abstraction (1963), at The Jewish Museum, photos of Venice, and photos of artwork by many of the above named, and other, artists. In addition to Ugo Mulas, photographers represented in this series include Nat Finkelstein, Robert R. McElroy, and Hans Namuth.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as eleven series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1938-1968 (5 folders; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1930-1970 (0.66 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Interviews, 1965-1969 (0.25 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1945-1969 (1.35 linear feet; Boxes 1-3, 11)
Series 5: Teaching and Study Files, 1944-1958 (0.25 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 6: Subject Files, 1907-1969 (2.92 linear feet; Boxes 3-6, 1, OV 12)
Series 7: First New York Theater Rally, 1963-1965 (0.15 linear feet; Boxes 6, 11)
Series 8: Exhibition Files, 1954-1969 (1.42 linear feet; Boxes 6-7, 11, OV 12)
Series 9: Business Records, 1945-1970 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 7-8)
Series 10: Printed Material, 1914-1970 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 8-9, OV 12)
Series 11: Photographs, circa 1951-circa 1970 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 9-11, OV 13)
Biographical / Historical:
New York art historian, museum director, art consultant, educator, writer, and curator, Alan R. Solomon (1920-1970), organized over two hundred exhibitions in the course of his career. He was known for his skill in exhibition design, and for bringing the perception and understanding of an art historian to the field of contemporary art.
Solomon was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, and educated at Harvard College and Harvard Graduate School. In 1953, during his 1952-1962 tenure with the Cornell University department of art history, he established the Andrew Dickson White Museum of art. Solomon served as the museum's first director until 1961, whilst simultaneously pursuing his doctorate, which he received from Harvard University in 1962.
In 1962 Solomon was hired by the Jewish Museum in New York, New York, and immediately began to take the institution in a more contemporary direction, mounting Robert Rauschenberg's first retrospective in 1963, and a major Jasper Johns retrospective in 1964. Also, in 1963, Solomon was appointed the United States Commissioner for the 1964 Venice Biennale. He was determined to show "the major new indigenous tendencies, the peculiarly America spirt of the art" in works by two consecutive generations of artists, including Jasper Johns, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, and Robert Rauschenberg. With this in mind, and given the inadequacy of the existing space to house the installation he envisaged, Solomon secured a verbal agreement from Biennale officials to approve additional space for the American exhibition in an annex at the former American Consulate. The agreement was never formalized, however, and a series of administrative problems and controversies over the eligibility of the American submissions threatened to undermine Solomon's efforts. Nevertheless, Robert Rauschenberg became the first American to take the Grand Prize for foreign artist, and the attention garnered by the American exhibition monopolized press coverage of the Biennale. In response, Solomon stated publicly that "it is acknowledged on every hand that New York has replaced Paris as the world art capital."
Solomon subsequently left the Jewish Museum, having engendered resistance to leading the museum in a more experimental direction, away from the traditional Jewish educational aspects of its mission. In the mid-sixties he worked as a consultant and writer for a National Educational Television series entitled "U. S. A. Artists," which drew on artist interviews, many conducted by Solomon. He also wrote the text for Ugo Mulas's classic photographic study, New York: The New Art Scene (1967: Holt Rinehart and Winston).
In 1966 Solomon was hired by the United States Information Agency to organize the United States contribution to the Canadian World Exhibition in Montreal, known as Expo '67. His stunning American Painting Now installation placed large scale paintings by twenty-three artists, including Jim Dine, Ellsworth Kelly, Roy Lichtenstein, Barnett Newman, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Rauschenberg, and James Rosenquist, inside Buckminster Fuller's twenty-story Biosphere of Montreal.
Other important exhibitions organized by Solomon included Andy Warhol (1966) at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, which was only the second of two exhibitions dedicated to the artist; Dine-Oldenburg-Segal (1967) at the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Albright-Knox Art Gallery; and Young Italians (1968) at the Institute of Contemporary Art.
Solomon was also interested in contemporary theater and organized the First New York Theater Rally with Steve Paxton in 1965, a series of performances which combined new dance and a revival of the Happenings of the early 1960s, in which Claes Oldenburg, Jim Dine and others were involved.
Following a six-week appointment as a senior lecturer at the University of California, Irvine, in spring 1968, Solomon became chairman of the University's art department and director of the art gallery. His last exhibition, Painting in New York, 1944-1969 (1969-1970), was held at the Pasadena Art Museum and closed in January 1970, just a few weeks before Solomon's sudden death at the age of forty-nine.
Provenance:
The Leo Castelli Gallery served as executor of Solomon's estate, and donated his papers to the Archives of American Art in 1974 and 2007.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of architectural historian, author, critic, teacher, and museum director, Henry-Russell Hitchcock, date from 1919-1987 and measure 24.8 linear feet. Almost all of the collection is comprised of Hitchcock's correspondence files relating to academic research, teaching, curatorial interests, and professional associations. Letters are from prominent architectural historians, architects, artists, preservationists, museum directors and curators, and family and friends. Also found are two feet of writings by Hitchcock and others, scattered biographical information, printed material, and photographs of Hitchcock and architecture.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of architectural historian, author, critic, teacher, and museum director, Henry-Russell Hitchcock, date from 1919-1987 and measure 24.8 linear feet. Almost all of the collection is comprised of Hitchcock's correspondence files relating to academic research, teaching, curatorial interests, and professional associations. Letters are from prominent architectural historians, architects, artists, preservationists, museum directors and curators, and family and friends. Also found are two feet of writings by Hitchcock and others, scattered biographical information, miscellaneous records, printed material, and photographs of Hitchcock and architecture.
Among the biographical documents are Hitchcock's birth certificate, passport, and wills. Awards, citations, honorary degrees and commendations are from the University of Pennsylvania, Wesleyan University, the Friends of Cast Iron Architecture, National Institute of Arts and Letters, and the Victorian Society in America.
Chronological name and subject files consist mostly of correspondence and printed material along with a small number of photographs. They include personal and professional correspondence and subject files relating to academic research, teaching, curatorial interests, and professional associations. The correspondence includes large numbers of letters from prominent architectural historians, architects, artists, preservationists, museum directors and curators. Also included are students, friends, relatives, publishers, and representatives of organizations and institutions. Among those of note are: Jere Abbott, Everett A. (Chick) Austin, Alfred H. Barr, Bernard Berenson, Eugene Berman, Leonid Berman, Lyonel Feininger, Henry (Harry) Sayles Francis, Brendan Gill, Robert Goldwater, George Howe, Philip C. Johnson, Edgar Kaufmann, Jr., Lincoln Kirstein, Thomas J. McCormick, Lewis Mumford, J.J.P. Oud, Erwin Panofsky, Nikolaus Pevsner, Kingsley Porter, Paul J. Sachs, R. M. Schindler, Vincent Scully, Jr., Theodore Sizer, E. Baldwin Smith, Peter van der Meulen Smith, James Soby, Victor Spark, Harold Sterner, John Summerson, Virgil Thomson, Paul Vanderbilt, Theo Van Doesburg, Helmut von Erffa, Gordon Washburn, Rudolf Wittkower, and Frank Lloyd Wright.
Writings by Hitchcock consist of manuscripts and drafts of numerous published and unpublished articles, book chapters, and his masters thesis. Other writings by Hitchcock include lecture notes and texts, book reviews, notes, outlines, photo lists, and a bibliography. Among the other authors represented in this series are John Coolidge and Sir Wilfred Green.
Miscellaneous records consist of the alien registration card of Hitchcock's friend Peter van der Meulen Smith, architectural drawings by Hitchcock, book contracts, and a small number of receipts and invoices.
Printed material consists of articles about, by, or mentioning Henry-Russell Hitchcock, along with advertisements for his books, and postcards of architectural subjects.
Photographs are of architecture, art work, events, people, places, and miscellaneous subjects; also included are color slides, negatives, and transparencies. Architectural subjects include the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and Gaudi, as well as interior and exterior views of buildings identified only by location. Photographs of people include Henry-Russell Hitchcock, Chick Austin and Ernestine Carter, Alexander Dorner, Tammy Grimes, Lincoln Kirstein, the Steinway family, and Edgar Tafel. Events recorded include the Society of Architectural Historians at the Newport Casino, Hitchcock receiving honorary degrees at the University of Glasgow and Wesleyan University, and a high tea sponsored by the Victorian Society in America. Family houses and views of Greece are among the photographs of places. Miscellaneous subjects include exhibition installations and family heirlooms.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Information, 1922-1984 (Box 1; 0.1 linear ft.)
Series 2: Chronological Name and Subject Files, 1919-1987 (Boxes 1-22; 21.9 linear ft.)
Series 3: Writings, 1922-circa 1978 (Boxes 23-24; 2.0 linear ft.)
Series 4: Miscellaneous Records, 1928-1977 (Box 25; 0.1 linear ft.)
Series 5: Printed Material, 1922-1984 (Boxes 25-26; 0.4 linear ft.)
Series 6: Photographs, circa 1926-1979 (Box 26; 0.3 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Henry-Russell Hitchcock, considered the "father" of modern architectural historiography, played a major role in bringing modern architecture to the United States. As an eminent professor for more than forty years, Hitchcock trained and influenced several generations of scholars and critics. He combined a love of architecture with criticism and scholarship to produce a large number of distinguished monographs and articles on a broad range of styles and periods.
Born in Boston in 1903, Henry-Russell Hitchcock was the son of Mayflower descendants. At Harvard University, he studied medieval history with A. Kingsly Porter as his mentor and completed the undergraduate curriculum in three years. Hitchcock spent his senior year studying architecture, graduated in 1924, and stayed to study for a master's degree, which was awarded in 1927. During his years at Harvard, he wrote for Hound and Horn and knew Alfred Barr, T. S. Eliot, Philip Johnson, Lincoln Kirstein, Virgil Thomson, and others who became leaders in the modernist movement.
Henry-Russell Hitchcock's teaching career began when he was appointed an assistant professor at Vassar College for the academic year 1927-28. In 1929, he joined the faculty of Wesleyan University, where he remained for two decades before moving to Smith College in 1949. During his tenures at Wesleyan and Smith, his services as a visiting lecturer were employed on many occasions by Cambridge University, Connecticut College, Harvard University, the Institute of Fine Arts, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Yale University. Upon retiring from Smith College in 1968, Hitchcock moved to New York City and taught briefly at Columbia University, the Institute of Fine Arts, and the University of Massachusetts, at Amherst.
Best known as a proponent of modernism, Hitchcock wrote more than two dozen books about a wide range of styles and periods, and most are considered standard works on their subjects. His first, Modern Architecture: Romanticism and Reintegration, appeared in 1929 and was the first book on the subject to be published in English; his final book, German Renaissance Architecture, was published in 1981.
Henry-Russell Hitchcock served as director of the Smith College Museum between 1949 and 1955. In addition, he was curator of several exhibitions, the first and most important of which was Modern Architecture: International Exhibition, organized in collaboration with Philip C. Johnson and held at the Museum of Modern Art. Their book, The International Style: Architecture Since 1922, was published in 1932 in conjunction with the exhibition.
During World War II, Hitchcock's civilian service included working as director of the U. S. Navy's Photographic Library and writing Pratt and Whitney aircraft engine manuals.
Henry-Russell Hitchcock was an active member of many professional associations. He served as president of the Society of Architectural Historians from 1952 to 1954. In addition, he was a founding member of The Victorian Society in Great Britain, and between 1969 and 1974 was president of its sister organization, The Victorian Society in America.
During his long and illustrious career, Henry-Russell Hitchcock won many awards and honors. Awards for Early Victorian Architecture in Britain and Architecture: Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries were conferred by the Society of Architectural Historians (1955) and College Art Association (1960), respectively. Hitchcock received the Royal Society of Arts Medal for Best Lecture (1956) and its Benjamin Franklin Medal (1970), in addition to the American Institute of Architects' Architectural Critics' Medal (1970). Other awards include: National Institute of Arts and Letters Award (1956), American Council of Learned Societies Prize for Distinguished Accomplishment in Humanistic Scholarship (1961), Friends of Cast-Iron Architecture Certificate of Commendation (1978), the American Institute of Architects Award of Merit (1978), and Municipal Art Society Certificate of Merit (1978).
He received honorary degrees from Glasgow University and the University of Pennsylvania in 1973, and in 1979 from Wesleyan University. In Search of Modern Architecture: A Tribute to Henry-Russell Hitchcock, edited by Helen Searing, was published by The Architectural History Foundation in 1982.
Due to declining health, Henry-Russell Hitchcock lectured rarely and wrote little in the three years preceding his death from cancer. He died in New York City, February 19, 1987.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds Henry-Russell Hitchcock letters to Dorothy Stroud and John N. Summerson, 1946-1949. Additional Henry-Russell Hitchcock papers (circa 8 linear feet) are in the Special Collections division of Wesleyan University Library.
Provenance:
Mosette Broderick, assistant to Hitchcock and his literary executor, donated the papers to the Archives of American Art in 1988.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment.
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.
Occupation:
Architectural historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Topic:
Museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Genre/Form:
Writings
Photographs
Citation:
Henry-Russell Hitchcock papers, 1919-1987. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The papers of art historian, educator, editor, and museum director Robert John Goldwater measure 5.4 linear feet and date from 1902-1974. Found are correspondence, subject files, teaching records, writings, and printed material. Also included are the papers, primarily correspondence, of Goldwater's father, S. S. Goldwater, M. D., a nationally recognized expert in the fields of public health, hospital administration, and hospital design and construction.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of art historian, educator, editor, and museum director Robert John Goldwater measure 5.4 linear feet and date from 1902-1974. Found are correspondence, subject files, teaching records, writings, and printed material. Also included are the papers, primarily correspondence, of Goldwater's father, S. S. Goldwater, M. D., a nationally recognized expert in the fields of public health, hospital administration, and hospital design and construction.
The bulk of Robert John Goldwater's correspondence focuses on his writings and editing work, including his work for Magazine of Art and the Museum of Primitive Art. It is with academic colleagues, art museums, colleges and universities, publishers, former students, and family. There is also scattered correspondence with artists. A list of correspondents is found at the end of this finding aid.
Subject files concern topics of interest to Goldwater as well as exhibitions and organizations with which he was involved, and include correspondence, printed material, and notes. Teaching records are from Goldwater's work at both Queens College and New York Universtity and consist mainly of course syllabi, bibliographies, and notes, as well as some administrative records.
The largest series in the collection consists of Goldwater's writings, including drafts, manuscripts, and notes for several books, reviews, and talks and lectures. Found here are complete and partial manuscript versions of his books Artists on Art; From David to Delacroix; Jacques Lipchitz; Paul Gaugin; Rufino Tamayo; and Symbolism. Printed material includes many items about or mentioning Goldwater, as well as printed or published articles and reviews written by him.
The papers of S. S. Goldwater, M. D. (1873-1942) consist primarily of correspondence documenting his work as a hospital administrator, public health expert, and New York City's Commissioner of Hospitals. They also include biographical information, legal documents, photographs, printed material, and writings.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1934-1973 (Box 1; 0.5 linear ft.)
Series 2: Subject Files, 1931-1973 (Box 1; 0.3 linear ft.)
Series 3: Teaching Records, 1935-1973 (Boxes 1-2; 1.2 linear ft.)
Series 4: Writings, 1932-1973 (Boxes 3-5; 2.2 linear ft.)
Series 5: Printed Material, 1931-1974 (Box 5; 0.3 linear ft.)
Series 6: Papers of S. S. Goldwater, M.D., 1902-1956 (Boxes 5-6; 0.9 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Robert John Goldwater (1907-1973), a native New Yorker, studied art history at Columbia College (B.A., 1929), Harvard University (M.A., 1931), and New York University (Ph.D., 1937). Goldwater was a Carnegie Corporation Fellow, 1930-31, a Guggenheim Fellow, 1944-45, and a Fulbright Fellow in France, 1944-45. He was especially interested in primitive art, primitivism and symbolism in modern art, and the history of art criticism.
His teaching career began at New York University in 1934. Five years later, Goldwater moved to Queens College. In 1957, he joined the faculty of the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, where he remained until his death in 1973.
Goldwater wrote a large number of articles, books, and reviews on a variety of art topics. His books include: Primitivism in Modern Painting (1938), Artists on Art from the XIV to the XX Century (1945), Rufino Tamayo (1947), Modern Art in Your Life (1949), Vincent van Gogh (1954), Jacques Lipchitz (1954), Paul Gauguin (1957), Senufo Sculpture from West Africa (1964), Space and Dream (1968), What Is Modern Sculpture (1969), and Symbolism (1979).
From 1957-1963 Goldwater was Director of the Museum of Primitive Art, and for the next decade was Chairman of its administrative committee. In addition, Goldwater served as book review editor of the College Art Association's Art Bulletin from 1944-1947, and from 1947-1953 he was editor of the American Federation of Art's Magazine of Art.
Provenance:
The Robert John Goldwater papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 1976 by Goldwater's widow, Louise Bourgeois.
Restrictions:
This material is ACCESS RESTRICTED; permission; written permission is required. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Occupation:
Editors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Topic:
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of art historian, writer, and museum administrator Lloyd Goodrich measure 35.7 linear feet and date from 1884 to 1987 with the bulk of the material dating from 1927 to 1987. Materials include biographical material, extensive correspondence, writings and research files, organization and committee files, exhibition files, printed material, a scrapbook, and photographic material. The collection is particularly rich in research files on Winslow Homer, Thomas Eakins, Albert Pinkham Ryder, and Reginald Marsh, as well as correspondence with additional notable artists and art figures.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of art historian, writer, and museum administrator Lloyd Goodrich measure 35.7 linear feet and date from 1884 to 1987 with the bulk of the material dating from 1927 to 1987. Materials include biographical material, extensive correspondence, writings and research files, organization and committee files, exhibition files, printed material, a scrapbook, and photographic material. The collection is particularly rich in research files on Winslow Homer, Thomas Eakins, Albert Pinkham Ryder, and Reginald Marsh, as well as correspondence with additional notable artists and art figures.
Scattered biographical materials include biographical sketches, an interview transcript, personal business records, documents relating to Goodrich's service on art juries, and awards and honors.
Correspondence is with friends, family, artists, museums, collectors, galleries, and arts organizations. Correspondents include The Arts Magazine, Whitney Museum of Art, Olin Dows, Philip Evergood, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Reginald Marsh, Kenneth Hayes Miller, Elias Newman, Daniel Catton Rich, and Raphael Soyer among many others. Research related correspondence arranged here concerns work on a catalogue raisonné of Winslow Homer. This material was originally arranged in the correspondence files by Goodrich prior to the later donation that included additional research files on Homer found in Series 3. There are also condolence letters from notable figures in American art.
Writings and research files include major writings, such as books and articles, and book reviews, essays, exhibition text, catalog entries, and lectures. In addition to the writings, Goodrich's research files for the writings are arranged here and include research, notes, correspondence, photographs, illustrations, printed materials, and bibliographies. There are also book agreements. There are extensive files for Goodrich's books on Winslow Homer (see also correspondence in Series 2) and Reginald Marsh; articles, catalog entries, and other writings on Winslow Homer, Albert Pinkham Ryder, Kuniyoshi, Reginald Marsh, and American art in general; lectures and talks; research files on other artists, and notes and notebooks.
Organization and committee files document Goodrich's service on boards, commissions, committees, organizations, and associations, such as the American Federation of Arts, the Association of Art Museum Directors, the Carnegie Study in American Art, the National Council on the Arts and Government, American Art Research Council, Artists Equity Association, Artist Tenants Association, the selection committee of the American National Exhibition (1959), and others are found within organization and committee files. Agendas, correspondence, meeting minutes, and printed material are found within the files.
Exhibition files are found only for several Winslow Homer shows. Printed materials include clippings, publicity materials, and printed copies of his writings. Photographic material includes scattered photographs of Goodrich and others, and extensive negatives of works of art, likely by Homer. Also found are x-rays of paintings by Ralph Blakelock.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 8 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1946-1984 (Boxes 1; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1920-1987 (Boxes 1-3; 1.8 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings and Research Files, 1884-1987 (Boxes 3-17, 38; 14.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Organization and Committee files, 1933-1982 (Boxes 17-31, 37; 14.5 linear feet)
Series 5: Exhibition Files, 1944-1986 (Boxes 31-32; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 6: Printed Material, circa 1920s-1979 (Boxes 32-33; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 7: Scrapbook, 1952-1959 (Box 33; 2 folders)
Series 8: Photographic Materials, circa 1910-1987 (Boxes 33-37; 3.1 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Lloyd Goodrich (1897-1987) was a prominent and influential art historian, writer, and director of the Whitney Museum of Art in New York City, New York, from 1958-1968.
Lloyd Goodrich was born in Nutley, New Jersey in 1897. He studied under Kenneth Hayes Miller at the Art Students League from 1913-1915 and also took courses at the National Academy of Design. Rather than pursue a career as an artist, however, he decided that his real talent was writing about art. He began his long and prolific writing career in 1923-24 and married Edith Havens in 1924. Inspired by the work and writings of European art scholars and a desire to address the need for a body of scholarship on American Art, Goodrich began to research and write about American artists Kenneth Hayes Miller, Winslow Homer, and Thomas Eakins.
Goodrich's first article on Winslow Homer was published in 1924 by The Arts, a magazine financed by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney and edited by Forbes Watson, who soon hired Goodrich as associate editor. By 1929, Goodrich was also working as assistant art critic for the New York Times while continuing work at The Arts as contributing editor. One year later, The Arts commissioned Goodrich to write a book on Kenneth Hayes Miller. And, around the same time Goodrich became interested in Thomas Eakins, and with the encouragement and financial support from his boyhood friend, artist Reginald Marsh, he began work on a monograph about Eakins.
In 1930, Goodrich joined the staff of Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney's new American art museum in New York City, the Whitney Museum of American Art. The museum provided him with the funds he needed to research and complete his book on Thomas Eakins, which he achieved in 1933. In 1935, he became curator of the museum, and associate director in 1948. He served as director from 1958-1968. The bequest of the Edward Hopper collection to the Whitney was the result of Goodrich's reputation as a scholar of Edward Hopper. After retiring, Goodrich continued his association with the Whitney as advisory director and director emeritus.
Goodrich was instrumental in starting the American Art Research Council in 1942, a group of museums devoted to collecting scholarly records about American art. He sat on the advisory panels for the New York State Council on the Arts and the Fine Arts Advisory Committee to the White House. In 1933, he was in charge of the New York regional office of the Public Works of Art Project. He also served as chairman of the National Council on the Arts and Government from 1948 to 1954 and was a major force in the creation of the National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities. He was a member of the Artists Equity Association, Artist Tenants Association, and numerous other arts organizations and a strong advocate for the promotion and support of American art and artists.
Throughout his long and distinguished career as a writer and museum administrator, Lloyd Goodrich worked to build a body of scholarship related to the history of American art and artists. He published several important monographs, including works on Thomas Eakins, Edward Hopper, Albert Pinkham Ryder, Winslow Homer, and Reginald Marsh, and organized major exhibitions about these and many other artists during his 57-year association with the Whitney Museum of American Art. At the time of his death, Goodrich was considered a preeminent figure in the American art world, and one of the foremost authorities on Eakins, Ryder, and Homer, artists on which he kept extensive research files throughout his life.
Lloyd Goodrich died March 27, 1987.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Lloyd Goodrich, 1962-1963 by Harlan Phillips for the Archives of American Art.
Additional Lloyd Goodrich papers are located at the Whitney Museum of American Art Archives, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art Archives.
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reel 4468) including a photocopy of the manuscript "Albert Pinkham Ryder: The Man and His Art," Goodrich's contribution to the book "Albert Pinkham Ryder: Painter of Dreams" co-authored with William I. Homer. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
The Lloyd Goodrich papers were given to the Archives of American Art in several different acquisitions. Lloyd Goodrich first donated material in 1983. David Goodrich, Lloyd Goodrich's son, gave more material between 1988 and 2007 while additional papers were lent for microfilming by William I. Homer in 1990. Finally, the Whitney Museum of American Art donated papers in 1996, and Polly Thistlethwaite gave further material in 2015.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
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.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Museum curators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Museum administrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Topic:
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
