Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Peggie L. Hartwell, 2002 June 3 and July 10. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Carolyn Mazloomi, 2002 September 17-30. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Extent:
14 Pages
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Date:
1988 Aug. 17
Scope and Contents:
A transcript of an interview Nancy Crow conducted 1988 Aug. 17 by Jean Robertson. Interview was conducted as part of Robertson's research for the book, "Nancy Crow: Quilts and Influences:, which was released in Dec. 1989, written by Crow and Robertson, Collector Books, Dec. 1989. Crow speaks about her childhood and early artistic aspirations; her dissatisfaction with her first quilts in the early 1970s; traditional quiltmaking; her work in tapestry weaving; meeting Francoise Barnes and Virginia Randles and learning to quilt; the difference between the weaving and quilting process; working in series; her interest in Mexican folk art and African American quilts; living on an isolated farm and drawing inspiration from nature; her use of titles, colors, patterns, scale, and fabrics; the importance of her training in ceramics; and she compares her work to quilts by Michael James.
Biographical / Historical:
Nancy Crow (1943-) is a quiltmaker from Baltimore, Ohio.
Interviewer Jean Robertson is an art critic and curator from Indianapolis, Ind.
Provenance:
Donated 2003 by Jean Robertson as part of the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America. Researchers note: A separate 2002 interview of Crow, also conducted by Robertson and a part of the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America is also available.
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.
An exhibition on the history of African American quilt-making. The show was organized by the Kentucky Quilt Project, Inc., Louisville, Kentucky and exhibited at the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum from July 1993 to October 1993. These records document the planning, organizing, execution, and promotion of the exhibition. Materials include correspondence, photographs, brochures, educational materials, and floor plans.
Restrictions:
Use of materials is restricted. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution. Anacostia Community Museum Search this
Extent:
2 Video recordings (VHS)
Type:
Archival materials
Video recordings
Place:
Anacostia (Washington, D.C.)
Washington (D.C.)
United States
Date:
1993
Scope and Contents:
Dr. Raymond Dobard, quilter and art historian, provided a historical overview of African American quilts and detailed explanations regarding the ways in which the quilts were constructed. After the lecture, Robert Hall led the docents on a tour through the exhibition 'Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts.'
Lecture and exhibition tour. Related to exhibition 'Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts.' Dated 19930717.
Biographical / Historical:
'Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts' displayed 27 quilts with photographs and related objects, and surveyed 200 years of black quiltmaking. The quilts, images and artifacts in the exhibit were presented within a dual framework of black history and quilt history. Profiled quiltmakers included Mary Bell Berry, Jessie Telfair, Dorothy Nelle Sanders, parents of school children at P.S. 48 in New York City, Michael Cummings, Carolyn Mazloomi, Lillian Beattie, Jim Smoote, and Carole Harris. The exhibition was organized by the Kentucky Quilt Project, Inc. in Louisville, Kentucky, and on display at the Anacostia Museum from July 15 to October 17, 1993.
Local Numbers:
ACMA AV002165
Collection Restrictions:
Use of materials is restricted. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Names:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Extent:
80 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2002 June 3 and July 10
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Peggie Hartwell conducted 2002 June 3-July 10, by Patricia Malarcher, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in the artist's apartment, on Central Park West, New York, N.Y.
Hartwell speaks of growing up on a farm with her extended family in Springfield, S.C.; female quiltmakers and male storytellers in her family; drawing in sand as a child; her mother's move to Brooklyn; joining her mother and father in New York; growing up in Brooklyn; her awareness of the many cultures in New York and being surrounded by art, including her mother's crocheting and her father's a cappella group; taking tap dancing lessons; experimenting with art in public school; working at various factory jobs after high school until "reconnecting" with art; studying with dancer Syvilla Fort at the Katherine Dunham School of Dance in New York; Fort encouraging her to draw on the studio walls and sew costumes; touring internationally with the theater group Harlem Rhythm USA from 1965 to 1972; her return to the U.S. and receiving a theater degree at Queens College; working at an insurance company to support her art; exhibiting her black and white, pen-and-ink drawings; the narratives and "oral histories" in her quilts; the meaning of various fabrics and colors; participating in "quilting communities" such as the Women of Color Quilters Network, Empire Quilters, and the American Quilter's Society; her lectures, workshops, and residencies; working with children;narratives inspired by childhood memories; her move back to South Carolina; themes in her quilts and "quilting styles" (improvisational, traditional, contemporary, and African American); serving on the board of the New York Chapter of the Women of Color Quilters Network; and planning the exhibition "Threads of Faith" for the New York Bible Association. She also comments on John Cage, Cuesta Benberry, Asadata Dafora, Francelise Dawkins, Carolyn Mazloomi, Edjohnetta Miller, Arthur Mitchell, Harriet Powers, Faith Ringgold, Marie Wilson, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Peggie L. Hartwell (1939- ) is an African American quiltmaker of Summerville, S.C. Patricia Malarcher is a fiber artist.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 50 min.
Provenance:
This interview is 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 administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
An interview of Carolyn Mazloomi conducted 2002 September 17 and 30, by Joanne Cubbs, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in West Chester, Ohio. Mazloomi speaks of growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with a family of self-taught artists; the positive influence of her aunt and teacher Dr. Carter; the generation of African American quilt-makers who followed a gap in quilt-making post-slavery; she describes her previous career as an aeronautical engineer and her transition to quilt-making; how she identifies herself as a craftsperson, not an artist; her experience with Baltimore album and Appalachian quilts; learning to quilt; the Women of Color Quilter's Network and its economic and social development programs; her book, "Spirits of the Cloth"; the positive and negative aspects of travel; the false generalizations of African American quilts in academic circles; the importance of gender, race, and ethnicity in her work; her connection to "praise songs"; she discusses functional vs. nonfunctional quilts; the market for "hand-crafted" quilts; agents and galleries; she describes her working environment; adopting the use of a sewing machine in her work; the importance of community; her technique; her accomplishment of placing African-American quilts in the Renwick Gallery; the influence of magazines, including "Raw Vision;" her aversion to commissions; expanding her use of materials and technology; her exhibitions; her role as an advocate and dealer; finding inspiration in black and white linocuts and her use of color in quilts; and making a connection with her audience. Mazloomi also recalls Marie Wilson, Cuesta Benberry, Edjohnetta Miller, Roland Freeman, Robert Cargo, Martha Connell, Penny Sisto, Minnie Adkins, Nkosi Johnson, and Lauryn Hill.
Biographical / Historical:
Carolyn Mazloomi (1948- ) is a quilt maker from West Chester, Ohio.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 16 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hrs., 33 min.
Provenance:
This interview is 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 administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
The Museum of Craft and Folk Art records measure 28.9 linear feet and 12.48 GB and date from 1970 to 2012. The museum was established in 1982 in San Francisco, California and exhibited local and national craft and folk art collections until it closed in 2012. The collection includes administration records, extensive exhibition files, artists' files, museum publications, printed material, video recordings, born digital items, and photographic material.
Scope and Contents:
The Museum of Craft and Folk Art records measure 28.9 linear feet and 12.48 GB and date from 1970 to 2012. The museum was established in 1982 in San Francisco, California and exhibited local and national craft and folk art collections until it closed in 2012. The collection includes administration records, extensive exhibition files, artists' files, museum publications, printed material, video recordings, born digital items, and photographic material.
Administration records include museum bylaws, lists of early exhibitions, education program evaluations, documents related to public programs, and printed materials.
Exhibition files comprise the largest group of materials in the collection. Notable exhibitions documented include Who'd A Thought It: Improvisation in African-American Quiltmaking (1987-1988), MetalSpeaks: The Unexpected (1997), and Warren MacKenzie: Legacy of an American Potter (2009). There are also video recordings and born digital content scattered throughout the series. Though most of the material is related to the MOCFA exhibitions, there are a few files on exhibitions at other galleries and museums. The exhibition files contain a wide variety of correspondence, art inventories, price lists, printed and digital materials, guest registers, photographic materials, and video recordings, electronic discs, videodiscs, and floppy discs.
Artists' files are found for a handful of artists, including Bennett Bean, Ralph Fasanella, Bill Graham, Ron Kovatch, Mike Moran, and Salvador V. Ricalde. The files contain primarily video recordings of artist performances and interviews, but also include resumes and inquiries.
Museum of Craft and Folk Art publications consist of exhibition catalogs, newsletters, reports, and announcements. There are several video recordings of events, such as fashion shows, that were held at the museum.
Printed materials and commercial video recordings include an oversize scrapbook, binders of exhibition press clippings, and folders of clippings on various topics, as well as documentaries and news coverage of the museum.
Photographic materials consist of slides, negatives, photographs, transparencies, and a photo album. The images are of artwork, exhibition installations, events, artists, and museum offices and staff.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Administration Records, circa 1988-circa 2010 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1, 0.004 GB; ER01-ER02)
Series 2: Exhibition Files, 1976-2012 (22.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-24, 12.14 GB; ER03-ER50)
Series 3: Artists' Files and Video Recordings, 1983-2007 (0.6 linear feet; Box 24)
Series 4: Museum of Craft and Folk Art Publications, 1977-2012 (1.4 linear feet; Boxes 24-25, OV 31-32, 0.003 GB; ER51)
Series 5: Printed Materials and Commercial Video Recordings, 1983-2007 (2.7 linear feet; Boxes 26-28, OV 33-35, 0.050 GB; ER52)
Series 6: Photographic Materials, 1970-2011 (2 linear feet; Boxes 28-30, 0.282 GB; ER53)
Biographical / Historical:
The Museum of Craft and Folk Art was established in San Francisco, California by painter and sculptor Gertrud Parker in 1982. The museum was originally located in a house on Balboa Street and then moved to the Fort Mason Center where it operated for over twenty years before relocating to Yerba Buena Lane in 2006.
Notable exhibitions organized or held at the museum include Innerskins/Outerskins: Gut and Fishskin (1987), Who'd A Thought It: Improvisation in African-American Quiltmaking (1987-1988) which was a traveling exhibition, Folk Art of the Soviet Union (1990), MetalSpeaks: The Unexpected (1997), Emblems of Passage: Art of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas (2002), The Art of Gaman: Arts and Crafts From the Japanese Internment Camp 1942-1946 (2006), and Warren MacKenzie: Legacy of an American Potter (2009).
The museum also worked with artists on commission and regularly offered public programs, workshops, and educational outreach events for visitors of all ages. They also partnered with the website Etsy on a popular monthly "Craft Bar" series where people could gather, socialize, and create something handmade.
The Museum of Craft and Folk Art closed in December of 2012. The final exhibition was Fiber Futures: Japan's Textile Pioneers.
Provenance:
The Museum of Craft and Folk Art records were donated by Jennifer McCabe, former executive director of the museum, in 2014.
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. 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.
Smithsonian Institution. Anacostia Community Museum Search this
Extent:
1 Video recording (VHS)
Type:
Archival materials
Video recordings
Place:
Anacostia (Washington, D.C.)
Washington (D.C.)
United States
Date:
1993
Scope and Contents:
During an interview for a news segment on FOX News 5, Anacostia Museum Director Steven Newsome talked about the exhibition 'Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts' and African American quilt techniques; and a provided an explanation of story quilts. The news segment also included footage of the quilts which were on display throughout the exhibit.
News program. Related to exhibition 'Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts.' Dated 1993.
Biographical / Historical:
'Always There: The African American Presence in American Quilts' displayed 27 quilts with photographs and related objects, and surveyed 200 years of black quiltmaking. The quilts, images and artifacts in the exhibit were presented within a dual framework of black history and quilt history. Profiled quiltmakers included Mary Bell Berry, Jessie Telfair, Dorothy Nelle Sanders, parents of school children at P.S. 48 in New York City, Michael Cummings, Carolyn Mazloomi, Lillian Beattie, Jim Smoote, and Carole Harris. The exhibition was organized by the Kentucky Quilt Project, Inc. in Louisville, Kentucky, and on display at the Anacostia Museum from July 15 to October 17, 1993.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of materials is restricted. Please contact the archivist to make an appointment: ACMarchives@si.edu.
101 Mohawk Lacrosse Stick Makers / Frank Benedict, Owen Benedict.
102 Native American Art for Ceremony and Dance / Nathan Jackson, Vanessa Paukeigope Morgan.
103 African-American Quilting / Arbie Williams.
Local Numbers:
FP-1993-CT-0030
Date/Time and Place of an Event Note:
Recorded in: Washington (D.C.), United States, January 18, 1993.
General:
tape 5/6
Restrictions:
Restrictions on access. Some duplication is allowed. Use of materials needs permission of the Smithsonian Institution.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
103 Generation to Generation / Eppie Archuleta, Harry V. Shourds, Newton Washburn.
Local Numbers:
FP-1994-CT-0158
Date/Time and Place of an Event Note:
Recorded in: Washington (D.C.), United States, July 3, 1994.
Restrictions:
Restrictions on access. Some duplication is allowed. Use of materials needs permission of the Smithsonian Institution.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
101 Frames, Fames and Aims: History & Goals of the Heritage Prog / Daniel Edward Sheehy, Bess Lomax Hawes, Barry Bergey.
102 Santa Clara Pueblo Pottery / Margaret Tafoya.
103 African-American Quilting / Arbie Williams.
Local Numbers:
FP-1994-1/2VHS-0027
Date/Time and Place of an Event Note:
Recorded in: Washington (D.C.).
Restrictions:
Restrictions on access. Some duplication is allowed. Use of materials needs permission of the Smithsonian Institution.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
102 From Generation to Generation: Family Tradition / Newton Washburn, Eppie Archuleta, Harry V. Shourds.
103 Art for Community Celebrations: Puerto Rican Carnival Masks / Juan Alindato.
Local Numbers:
FP-1994-1/2VHS-0028
Date/Time and Place of an Event Note:
Recorded in: Washington (D.C.).
Restrictions:
Restrictions on access. Some duplication is allowed. Use of materials needs permission of the Smithsonian Institution.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
