Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Cynthia Bringle, 1992 January 22. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with David Ellsworth, 2007 July 16. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Garry Knox Bennett papers, 1917-2017. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of woodworker, turner, and educator Merryll Saylan measure 4.7 linear feet and date from 1975 to 2008. The collection documents Saylan's career through biographical materials; personal and professional correspondence including with artists Connie Mississippi, Betty Scarpino, Kay Sekimachi, and Susan Working; writings including notebooks with diary entries and sketches for projects; gallery files including inventory and sales records; files documenting a variety of Saylan's professional activities; and printed materials recording Saylan's career.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of woodworker, turner, and educator Merryll Saylan measure 4.7 linear feet and date from 1975 to 2008. The collection documents Saylan's career through biographical material including certificates, appointment books, curriculum vitae, and photocopies of diplomas and student records; correspondence with collectors, woodworking organizations and publications, family, friends, and artists Connie Mississippi, Betty Scarpino, Kay Sekimachi, and Susan Working; writings consisting of drafts, typescripts, and notes for articles and lectures, and including 18 notebooks containing diary entries and sketches for projects; gallery files that include inventory and sales records, printed materials, and correspondence documenting Saylan's activities with numerous galleries; files documenting a variety of Saylan's professional activities including memberships, teaching, workshops and private classes, auctions, financial records, grants and artist residencies, and drawings for projects; and printed materials such as clippings, exhibition announcements, press releases, and miscellaneous items.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as six series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1980-2005 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1985-2008 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Writings, 1987-2007 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 4: Gallery Files, 1984-2008 (0.4 linear feet; Box 2)
Series 5: Professional Files, 1975-2008 (2.7 linear feet; Boxes 2-4, OVs 5-6, RD 7)
Series 6: Printed Materials, 1980-2008 (0.5 linear feet; Box 4, RD 7)
Biographical / Historical:
Merryll Saylan (1936-) is a woodworker, turner, and educator based in California. She helped to pioneer the popularization of the woodturning field and the application of color in wood art.
Saylan was born in the Bronx, New York City, in 1936 but settled in California after moving there in her youth. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from UCLA in 1973 and a Master of Arts degree from California State University Northridge in 1979.
Saylan began turning wood in the 1970s, becoming one of few women in the field. Her use of modern lines and textures was inspired by the simplicity of Japanese design. Saylan was an active member of the Wood Turning Center, American Association of Woodturners, and Collectors of Wood Art. She was artist-in-resident at the Grizedale Sculpture Park, Cumbria, England, from 1990 to 1991, and visiting artist at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center. She was also a visiting artist and taught at the California College of the Arts, San Francisco.
Saylan's works are in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Detroit Institute of Arts, Renwick Gallery, and the Mint Museum of Craft and Design which houses one of her most well-known works, Jelly Donut.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an interview of Merryll Saylan conducted on May 20-June 5, 2006 by Glenn Adamson for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 2008 by Merryll Saylan.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References 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.
This collection is temporarily closed to researchers due to archival processing. Contact Reference
Services for more information.
Collection 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 donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own in the following material: all drawings and photocopies of drawings.
Collection Citation:
William P. Daley papers, 1905-2016 (bulk 1951-2001). Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
This collection is temporarily closed to researchers due to archival processing. Contact Reference
Services for more information.
Collection 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 donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own in the following material: all drawings and photocopies of drawings.
Collection Citation:
William P. Daley papers, 1905-2016 (bulk 1951-2001). Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
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 and born-digital records with no duplicate copy requires advance notice.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Don Reitz papers, circa 1935-2015. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
William Christenberry Papers, circa 1917-2018. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Italo Scanga papers, circa 1930-2001. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
An interview of David Ellsworth conducted 2007 July 16, by Josephine Shea, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at Ellsworth's home, in Quakertown, Pennsylvania.
Ellsworth speaks of living and growing up in Iowa for the first fourteen years of his life; moving to Boulder, Colorado when his father became the director of libraries; being the youngest of two boys; his parents meeting at Oberlin College; his early interest and skill in leatherwork and woodwork as a child; spending time with the family at their cabin up in the mountains in Colorado; his experiences with music, vocals, and woodshop in junior high; attending a preparatory high school that had a very strong art program; singing in the Army for the Army Air Defense Command; traveling around with the band; being sent to the headquarters of United States Army of Europe in Heidelberg as a speed typist; studying and learning German while abroad; getting admitted into the architecture department at Washington University in St. Louis; flunking out after three semesters; going to New York City to follow a love interest as well as to study art; attending The New School for Social Research; moving back to the Midwest due of the heavy toll of city life; enrolling in the sculpture department at the University of Colorado and receiving both a bachelor of fine arts and a master of fine arts; his first independent show at Metropolitan State College in Denver, Colorado; working as a designer for a stainless steel food services equipment company called Green Brothers; working at the Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass, Colorado; opening up a private studio in Boulder; partaking in various craft shows; working with the Belles Artes Gallery in New York City and Santa Fe, the Del Mano Gallery in Los Angeles, The Hand and the Spirit Gallery in Scottsdale which became Materia Gallery, the Gargoyle Gallery in Aspen; and the Cooper-Lynn Gallery in New York City; working as a teacher at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg; his experiences working with resin; his past experiences working with various kinds of wood; his past divorce; the influence of Native American and Southwest architecture and landscape on his work; the lack of reviews on woodturners and woodturning exhibitions; the difficulty of writing about craft art because of the lack of language; turning down commission work because of the limitations it imposes on the artist or creator; the direction in which he believes the craft of woodturning is going; woodturning as predominantly a hobby for retirees seeking to satisfy a need for creative energy; woodturning as a male-dominated craft; the surprisingly large number of well-known men in the fiber field today; designing and making his own line of tools; creating tutorial videos; holding woodturning classes at his home studio; his working process and how it has changed over time; how he and his wife Wendy ended up in Quakertown, Pennsylvania; and how he came up with his various series and how each developed. Ellsworth also recalls Ed Moulthroup, Melvin and Mark Lindquist, JoAnn Rapp; Steven Hogbin, Lois Moran, James Prestini, Irving Lipton, Albert LeCoff, Rick Mastelli, Clay Foster, Michelle Holzapfel, Mark Sfirri, Virginia Dodson, Betty Scarpino, Bonnie Klein, Arthur and Jane Mason, Fleur and Charlie Bressler, Giles Gibson, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
David Ellsworth (1944- ) is a studio woodworker from Quakertown, Pennsylvania. Josephine Shea (1958- ) is a curator from Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan.
General:
Originally recorded 3 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 41 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.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Merryll Saylan papers, 1975-2008. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
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.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Ellen Lanyon papers, circa 1880-2015, bulk 1926-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
An interview of Cynthia Bringle conducted 1992 January 22, by Liza Kirwin, for the Archives of American Art.
Bringle discusses her childhood and education in Memphis, Tennessee; her admiration for Memphis artist Dorothy Sturm; meeting Francis Merritt, the director of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and his assistant William (Bill) Brown; attending Haystack in Liberty, Maine in 1960 as a scholarship student; her graduate studies in ceramics at Alfred University; attending a Shoji Hamada workshop in Seattle in 1963; building the first gas kiln at the Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina; teaching at Penland; establishing a pottery studio in Tennessee; Brown's management style as the director of Penland from 1962 to 1983, and conflicts with the Board of Trustees that led to his resignation; Verne Stanford's tenure as director of Penland from 1984 to 1989; Hunter Kariher's role as the director of Penland after Stanford's resignation; and Penland in comparison with other craft schools including Haystack, Arrowmont, and Anderson Ranch. She recalls Lucy Morgan (the founder of Penland), Bonnie Ford (Penland administrator), Jane Brown, Joy Stanford, Harvey Littleton, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Cynthia Bringle (1939- ) is a potter, in Penland, N.C.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound tape cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 20 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 collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Robert Chapman Turner papers, circa 1917-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of ceramicist Robert Chapman Turner measure 13.3 linear feet and date from circa 1917 to 2005. The papers document Turner's career as an educator and studio potter through biographical material, correspondence, writings, teaching files, professional files including lectures, subject files, printed material, and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of ceramicist Robert Chapman Turner measure 13.3 linear feet and date from circa 1917 to 2005. The papers document Turner's career as an educator and studio potter through biographical material, correspondence, writings, teaching files, professional files including lectures, subject files, printed material, and photographs.
The bulk of Turner's papers relate to his role as an educator and a lecturer at various institutions including Alfred University, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Black Mountain College, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and Penland School of Crafts. Records, including two sound cassettes, regarding his time at these institutions may be found among his teaching and professional files as well as among photographs. Turner's professional files document his long affiliations with professional organizations such as the York State Craftsmen, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, and the International Academy of Ceramics. Correspondence is with artists, family, and friends. Notable correspondents include Margaret Carney, Kenneth Ferguson, Alice Parrott, Toshiko Takaezu, and Frans Wildenhain among many others and may be found in both the correspondence series and professional files. Photographs of note are by John Wood and depict the building of the pottery studio at Black Mountain College.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 8 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1930-2002 (0.4 linear feet; Boxes 1, 14)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1938-2005 (1.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1950s-2000s (0.6 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 4: Teaching Files, 1957-2005 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 3-4)
Series 5: Professional Files, 1952-2005 (5.5 linear feet; Boxes 4-9)
Series 6: Subject Files, 1950s-2000 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 9-10)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1939-2000s (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 10-12, 14)
Series 8: Photographs, circa 1917-2000s (1.9 linear feet; Boxes 12-14)
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Chapman Turner (1913-2006) was a ceramicist who was known for functional and abstract pottery. He was active in Alfred Station, New York where he was a longtime faculty member at Alfred University.
Robert Turner was born in Port Washington, New York in 1913. He attended Swarthmore College and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts where he studied economics and painting. With his wife Sue Turner, Robert lived in Europe to study Old Master paintings but returned to the United States after the start of World War II. A Quaker, Turner was a conscientious objector and served at multiple Civilian Public Service (CPS) camps in the United States during the war.
After leaving the CPS camps, Robert Turner enrolled at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University to study ceramics and graduated in 1949. Turner was a faculty member at Black Mountain College (1949-1951) and Alfred University (1958-1979). He conducted numerous ceramics workshops throughout his career at many institutions including Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and Penland School of Crafts. Additionally, he was an active member of the (New) York State Craftsman.
Turner died in 2005 in Sandy Spring, Maryland.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview of Robert Turner conducted 2001 June 11, by Margaret Carney, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America,
Provenance:
Robert Chapman Turner donated some of his papers in 1982. Additional materials were donated in 2005-2006 by Rosalind Turner Zuses, Turner's daughter.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. 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:
Ceramicists -- New York (State) -- Alfred Station Search this
Turner's teaching files contain material directly related to teaching classes and workshops. Grading information, lecture notes, a cassette tape likely containing a lecture from the Anderson Ranch Arts Center, and syllabi may be found.
Arrangement:
Files for institutions where Turner taught and gave workshops may also be found in Series 5 and are more general and are typically administrative.
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Robert Chapman Turner papers, circa 1917-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
