The papers of Reginald R. Isaacs measure 22.54 linear feet and date from 1842 to 1991, with the bulk of the material from 1928 to 1991. The collection includes Isaacs's personal and professional papers, as well as extensive research material he collected and created for his two-volume biography, Walter Gropius: The Man and His Work.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of of architect, instructor, writer, and city planner Reginald R. Isaacs (1911-1986) measure 22.54 linear feet and date from 1842 to 1991 with the bulk of the material dating from 1883 to 1985. The collection includes Isaacs's personal and professional papers, as well as extensive research material he collected and created for his two volume two-volume biography of Bauhaus architect, Walter Gropius: Walter Gropius: The Man and His Work. The bulk of Walter Gropius' papers are housed at the Busch Reisinger Museum at Harvard University, and the Bauhaus Archiv in Germany.
Series 1 to 12 contain contain biographical, legal, and financial material; personal and professional correspondence; project and subject files; writings and publications; teaching files; works of art; scrapbooks; printed material; and photographs relating to Isaacs' personal and professional career.
Series 13 forms the bulk of the collection and pertains specifically to the writing and publication of Isaacs' biography of Gropius. It contains research material, correspondence (much of it with Gropius), drafts of the manuscript, publication correspondence, photographs and illustrations, and printed material. Some of the research material, including some of the photographs and illustrations that were used in the biography, appear to have been original documents of Walter Gropius, while large portions of the material are photocopies of the originals, many of them in German.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into fourteen series. Glass plate negatives are housed separately and closed to researchers.
Series 7: Writings, 1940-1986, undated (Boxes 3-4, 22; 2.0 linear feet)
Series 8: Teaching Files, 1954-1973 (Boxes 4-5; 1.0 linear foot)
Series 9: Works of Art, 1965-1967, undated (Box 5, OV 23; 3 folders)
Series 10: Scrapbooks, 1929-1969 (Box 5; 2 folders)
Series 11: Printed Material, 1842-1844, 1913-1986, undated (Box 5; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 12: Photographs, 1959-1981, undated (Boxes 5, 22; 7 folders)
Series 13: Walter Gropius Biography, circa 1880s-1991, undated (Boxes 6-22, OV 23, MGP 1, MGP 2, MGP 4; 16.0 linear feet)
Series 14: Unprocessed Addition, 1974-1985 (Box 24; 1.0 linear foot)
Biographical Note:
Born in Canada in 1911, Reginald R. Isaacs began working in architectural offices at age 14, later coming under the influence of "Beaux-Arts diplomes" at the University of Minnesota and Harvard and subsequently under that of Walter Gropius at Harvard University. He later studied sociology and planning at the University of Chicago under Louis Wirth and Rexford Guy Tugwell.
Isaacs served on the staffs of city planning commissions in Minneapolis, Syracuse, and Chicago, and in the federal government in the National Youth Agency, Public Housing Authority, and Housing and Home Finance Agency. His architectural practice in Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., Chicago, and other cities included the design of housing, colleges, and hospitals. He was director of planning and development for Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago, 1945-1953, where Walter Gropius, planner Walter Blucher, and sociologist Louis Wirth collaborated with him as consultants. He was a United Nations expert on regional planning in South America, and a planning consultant for the Ford Foundation, the U.S. State Department, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
Recommended by Walter Gropius, Isaacs served as the Charles Dyer Norton Professor of Regional Planning at Harvard University from 1953-1978. He was also Chairman of the Graduate School of Design's Departments of City and Regional Planning as well as Landscape Architecture. Throughout his career he lectured at universities throughout the United States and in almost every country of Central and South America and in the Caribbean.
In 1962 Isaacs and Gropius began their collaboration on Walter Gropius: The Man and his Work, until the death of Gropius in 1969. The first volume of the biography was published in German in 1983, with the second volume following in 1984. Isaacs died of a massive heart attack in 1986, never realizing his goal to see an English-language edition which was published posthumously in 1991 by the Estate of Reginald Isaacs.
Missing Title
1911 -- Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
1935 -- Received Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Minnesota
1939 -- Received Masters of Architecture degree from Harvard University, Graduate School of Design
1947-1950 -- Studied sociology and planning with Louis Wirth and Rexford Guy Tugwell at the University of Chicago
1945-1953 -- Director of planning at Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago, Illinois
1951-1953 -- Guest lecturer at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design with Walter Gropius and also served a two-year term as a member of the Board of Overseers Committee to Visit the Graduate School of Design
1953-1978 -- Named the Charles Dyer Norton Professor of Regional Planning
1953-1964 -- Chairman of the Department of City and Regional Planning
1953-1958 -- Chairman of the Department of Landscape Architecture
1962 -- Began collaboration with Walter Gropius on the biography Walter Gropius - The Man and his Work
1969 -- Walter Gropius dies
1983 -- Walter Gropius, Der Mensch und Sein Werk, Volume 1 published by Gebr. Mann Nerlag, Berlin
1984 -- Walter Gropius, Der Mensch und Sein Werk, Volume 2, published by Gebr. Mann Nerlag, Berlin
1986 -- Isaacs dies
1991 -- Walter Gropius: An Illustrated Biography of the Creator of the Bauhaus, published by the Estate of Reginald Isaacs. The Papers of Reginald R. Isaacs donated to the Archives of American Art by his son, Henry Isaacs.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives of American Art by Henry Isaacs, son of Reginald Isaacs, in January 1991. An additional 1.0 linear foot was donated by Merry White, daughter of Reginald Isaacs, in 1997.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment and is limited to the 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.
REEL D10, frame 1394: Letter from Lancaster to Miriam L. Lesley about articles he had written for the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, 1947, the New India, Dance Magazine, and the American Antiques Journal. Reference is also made to Lancaster's upcoming book on Japanese influence.
UNMICROFILMED: Two printed maps by Lancaster; one entitled "An Architectural Ramble in Historic Ante-bellum Lexington," and the other, "Ante-bellum Suburban Villas and Rural Residences of Fayette County Kentucky and Some Outstanding Homes of Lexington."
Biographical / Historical:
Art and architectural historian, author; Brooklyn Heights, New York.
Related Materials:
Slides of Clay Lancaster, 1939-1992, are also located at the University of Kentucky Libraries.
Provenance:
Donated 1958 by Clay Lancaster.
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
Resumes; letters and greeting cards; photographs of works of art; clippings and articles; illustrations from publications; pencil drawings; exhibition catalogs; and miscellany; photographs of adobe houses designed by the Stedmans; architectural writings; and articles about the Stedmans' architectural projects.
Biographical / Historical:
Painters, designers; Santa Fe, N.M. Wilfred Stedman was trained as an architect, and did freelance work as an illustrator, including WPA projects in New Mexico. The Stedmans often collaborated in designing, building, and remodeling New Mexican adobe houses, in addition to their separate painting projects.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1984 by Myrtle Stedman.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
An interview of Esther McCoy conducted 1987 June 7-Nov. 14, by Joseph Giovannini, for the Archives of American Art.
McCoy speaks of her childhood and early education; moving to New York in the 1920s; meeting and getting to know various writers including Theodore Dreiser; beginning her own writing career; her involvement in radical politics; the beginning of her interest in architecture; working as a free-lance writer; working with the builder, Tim Robert, as a draftsman; writing a novel about architecture; southern California's role in the development of modernism; writing for magazines in the 1940s; writing several books on architecture, including one on Richard Neutra; current trends in architecture.
Biographical / Historical:
Esther McCoy (1904-1989) was an architectural historian from Santa Monica, California. McCoy was interested in both Italian and Mexican architecture as well as the folk art and crafts of Mexico and South America. Although her professional interests ranged from writing fiction to studying the folk architecture and crafts of Mexico, McCoy achieved her most notable success for her numerous articles, books, and exhibitions about Southern California architecture and the architects associated with the modernist movement.
General:
Originally recorded on 8 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 15 digital wav files. Duration is 7 hrs., 22 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:
Architectural historians -- California -- Interviews Search this
The papers of Southern California architectural historian, critic, and writer Esther McCoy measure 44.0 linear feet and date from 1876 to 1990 (bulk 1938-1989). McCoy was interested in both Italian and Mexican architecture as well as the folk art and crafts of Mexico and South America. The collection documents McCoy's career, as well as her family and personal life through biographical material, extensive correspondence, personal and professional writings, project files, Southern California architects' files, clippings and other printed material, a large collection of photographs and slides, and taped interviews of Southern California modern architects.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of Southern California architectural historian, critic, and writer Esther McCoy measure 44.0 linear feet and date from 1876 to 1990 (bulk 1938-1989). McCoy was interested in both Italian and Mexican architecture as well as the folk art and crafts of Mexico and South America. The collection documents McCoy's career, as well as her family and personal life through biographical material, extensive correspondence, personal and professional writings, project files, Southern California architects' files, clippings and other printed material, a large collection of photographs and slides, and taped interviews of Southern California modern architects.
Biographical and family material consists of awards, resumes, identification documents, and other documentation of McCoy's personal life. Included are a transcript of a 1984 interview of McCoy by Makoto Watanabe and material relating to her friend, Theodore Dreiser.
Correspondence focuses on her personal relationships with family, friends, and lovers, and general correspondence relating primarily to her work as a writer. McCoy's personal correspondence is valuable to researchers who are interested in her personal life, her struggles as a young writer, and the way in which her family, friends, lovers, mentors, and colleagues helped to shape her work and career. As documented in this correspondence, her life offers a glimpse into twentieth-century American social and political history, especially the radical leftist movements of the 1920s and 1930s. Researchers interested in the roots of feminism in the United States should also find these papers useful in documenting the life of a creative and productive woman who was successful in a field then almost entirely dominated by men. Correspondents of note include her husband Berkeley Tobey, lovers Geoffrey Eaton and Albert Robert, writers Ray Bradbury and Theodore Dreiser, and artists and architects, such as Dorothy Grotz, Craig Ellwood, A. Quincy Jones, Hans Hollein, and J. R. Davidson. General correspondence is primarily with researchers, professors, architects, publishers, and professional organizations.
Personal writings include McCoy's diaries, notebooks, and memoirs, and writings by others including friends, lovers, and colleagues. Also included are drafts of McCoy's fictional works, both published and unpublished, including short stories, teleplays, and novels.
The collection contains in-depth documentation of McCoy's pioneering study of the modernist work of twentieth-century architects in Southern California. The bulk of her papers consist of her writing files for books, exhibition catalogs, articles, and lectures on architecture. Because many of the architects about whom McCoy wrote were her contemporaries, she developed personal relationships with several of them through her research and writing. Her writing files include drafts, notes, research material, photographs, and correspondence. McCoy also traveled extensively, particularly in Italy and Mexico, and wrote about architecture, craft, and culture in those countries. Project files document McCoy's other activities related to architectural history, such preservation projects, juries, grants, the Dodge House Preservation Campaign and related film project, her work for the Society of Architectural Historians and the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), and her work at the UCLA School of Architecture and Urban Planning, compiling a slide library and cataloging the Richard Neutra's papers. McCoy also maintained architect files which may contain correspondence, notes, photographs, research material, interview transcripts, about architects and their works. Among these extensive records, the files documenting the careers of R. M. Schindler, Irving Gill, Richard Neutra, and Juan O'Gorman are particularly rich.
Printed material in this collection documents McCoy's career as well as her personal interests. Included are books, clippings, magazines, newsletters, press releases, as well as publications arranged by subject such as architecture, art, Italy, and Mexico. McCoy also collected literary and leftist publications. The small amount of artwork in this collection consists of artwork sent to her by friends, including a drawing of her by Esther Rollo and etchings by various artists including Thomas Worlidge.
There are personal photographs of family and friends and of McCoy at different times in her life, as well as photographs gathered during the course of her research on architecture. Found here are photographs of architects and their works, including a large number depicting the work of Gregory Ain, Luis Barragan, J. R. Davidson, Irving Gill, Bernard Maybeck, Juan O'Gorman, R. M. Schindler, and Raphael Soriano. Many of these photographs were taken by notable architectural photographers Julius Shulman and Marvin Rand. Also found are photographs of architecture designed for the Case Study House program of Arts & Architecture magazine; exhibition photographs, primarily for the exhibition "Ten Italian Architects" in 1967; and other research photographs primarily documenting architecture and craft in other countries and the history of architecture in California. This series also includes approximately 3,600 slides of architecture.
Audio and video recordings include a videocassette of McCoy's 80th birthday party and 55 taped interviews with architects, people associated with architectural projects, and artists.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 10 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical and Family Material, 1881-1989 (boxes 1, 48; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1896-1989 (boxes 1-6, 4.9 linear feet)
Series 3: Personal Writings, 1919-1989 (boxes 6-14; 8.1 linear feet)
Series 4: Architectural Writings, 1908-1990 (boxes 14-24, 42, 49, 50; 10.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Projects, circa 1953-1988 (boxes 24-26, 47, FC 53-56; 2.5 linear feet)
Series 6: Architect Files, 1912-1990 (boxes 26-28, 42; 2.2 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, circa 1885-1990 (boxes 28-31, 42; 2.9 linear feet)
Series 8: Artwork, 1924-1967, undated (box 31; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 9: Photographs and Slides, circa 1876-1989 (boxes 31-38, 41-46, 51; 8.3 linear feet)
Series 10: Audio and Video Recordings, 1930-1984 (boxes 38-40, 47; 2.5 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Esther McCoy (1904-1989) is remembered best for her pioneering work as an architectural historian, critic, and proponent of Southern California modern architecture of the early to mid-twentieth century. McCoy was interested in both Italian and Mexican architecture as well as the folk art and crafts of Mexico and South America. Although her professional interests ranged from writing fiction to studying the folk architecture and crafts of Mexico, McCoy achieved her most notable success for her numerous articles, books, and exhibitions about Southern California architecture and the architects associated with the modernist movement.
Born in Arkansas in 1904, Esther McCoy grew up in Kansas and attended various schools in the Midwest. In 1926 she left the University of Michigan to launch a writing career in New York, where she moved in avant-garde literary circles and conducted research for Theodore Dreiser. She began writing fiction in New York and continued to write after moving to Los Angeles in 1932, working on short stories, novels, and screenplays. She published numerous short stories between 1929 and 1962, with works appearing in the New Yorker, Harper's Bazaar, and university quarterlies. Her short story, "The Cape," was reprinted in Best Short Stories of 1950. Many of the novels that she wrote from the mid-1960s through the 1980s were related thematically to architects and architecture.
During the late 1920s and throughout the 1930s, McCoy participated in the politically radical movements of the period and wrote for leftist publications. Her interest in the lowcost housing projects of modern architects was prompted by one of her articles about slums for Epic News. During World War II she entered a training program for engineering draftsmen at Douglas Aircraft and in 1944 was hired as an architectural draftsman for the architect R.M. Schindler. As she became increasingly interested in modern architecture and design, she combined her two major career interests and began to focus her energies on architectural research, writing, and criticism. Her first article on architecture, "Schindler: Space Architect," was published in 1945 in the journal Direction.
McCoy began writing about architecture in earnest in 1950 as a free-lance contributor to the Los Angeles Times. From then until her death in 1989, she wrote prolifically for Arts & Architecture magazine, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Herald Examiner, Architectural Record, L'Architectura, Zodiac (Italy), Progressive Architecture, Lotus (Italy), and Architectural Forum. In addition to her numerous articles, McCoy wrote several books on Southern California modern architecture and architects. Her first major work, Five California Architects, published in 1960, is now recognized as a classic work in modern architectural history. It promoted a serious study of modern architecture in Southern California and introduced to the world several leading California architects and their work: Bernard Maybeck, Irving Gill, Charles and Henry Greene, and R.M. Schindler. That same year, she published another important book focusing on the work of the California architect Richard Neutra. Other books by McCoy include Modern California Houses: Case Study Houses (1962), Craig Ellwood (1968), Vienna to Los Angeles: Two Journeys (1979), and The Second Generation (1984).
In addition to these books, McCoy organized and wrote catalogs for several significant exhibitions focusing on contemporary architects. Her first was the R.M. Schindler Retrospective, a 1954 exhibition at the Landau Art Gallery in Los Angeles. Her other exhibitions and accompanying catalogs include Roots of California Contemporary Architecture, 1956, Los Angeles Municipal Art Department; Felix Candela, 1957, University of Southern California, Los Angeles; Irving Gill, 1958, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Juan O'Gorman, 1964, San Fernando Valley State College; and Ten Italian Architects, 1967, Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Moreover, McCoy contributed numerous essays to other exhibition catalogs and publications, lectured at the University of Southern California, participated in preservation projects, organized tours for the Society of Architectural Historians, and contributed to a number of documentary films. Her energy and interests also led her to catalog and transcribe Richard Neutra's papers at the University of California Los Angeles Archives.
McCoy received national recognition from the American Institute of Architects for her seminal and prolific work in the field of Southern California modern architectural history and criticism. Her interests, however, were not exclusively bound to California. She traveled the world and was interested in both Italian and Mexican architecture as well as the folk art and crafts of Mexico and South America. She made five extended trips to Italy during the 1950s and 1960s, publishing regularly about the architecture there and curating the exhibition Ten Italian Architects. She was a contributing editor to two Italian journals, Zodiac and Lotus, and was awarded the Star of Order of Solidarity in 1960 by the Republic of Italy for her research and writing.
Esther McCoy died of emphysema on December 30, 1989, at the age of eighty-five. Her last contribution was an essay for the exhibition catalog Blueprints for Modern Living: History and Legacy of the Case Study House. The show opened at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles one month before her death.
Missing Title
1904 -- Born November 18 in Horatio, Arkansas. Raised in Kansas.
1920 -- Attended preparatory school at Central College for Women, Lexington, Missouri.
1922-1925 -- College education: Baker University, Baldwin City, Kansas; University of Arkansas, Fayetteville; Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri; University of Michigan.
1924 -- Visited Theodore Dreiser in Michigan.
1926-1938 -- Began writing in New York City.
1926-1938 -- Researched and read for Theodore Dreiser.
1926-1938 -- Worked for editorial offices and publishers.
1926-1938 -- Traveled to write in Paris (1928), Key West, Florida (1930), and Los Angeles, California (1932-1935).
1938 -- Moved to Santa Monica, California.
1941 -- Married Berkeley Greene Tobey.
1942-1944 -- Employed as engineering draftsman at Douglas Aircraft.
1944-1947 -- Worked as architectural draftsman for R.M. Schindler.
1945 -- Began architectural writing career.
1950 -- Wrote script for film Architecture West.
1950 -- Joined editorial board of Arts & Architecture.
1950-1968 -- Worked as free-lance writer for the Los Angeles Times.
1951-1955 -- Traveled to, researched, and wrote about Mexico and Mexican art and architecture.
1954 -- R.M. Schindler Retrospective exhibition at the Landau Art Gallery, Los Angeles.
1956 -- Roots of California Contemporary Architecture exhibition, Los Angeles Municipal Art Department.
1957 -- Felix Candela exhibition, University of Southern California, Los Angeles.
1958 -- Irving Gill exhibition, Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Traveled to Italy.
1959-1968 -- Contributing editor to Italian periodicals Zodiac and Lotus.
1960 -- Five California Architects (New York: Reinhold).
1960 -- Richard Neutra (New York: G. Braziller).
1960 -- Awarded Star of Order of Solidarity by the Republic of Italy for reporting on arts and crafts in Italy.
1962 -- Death of Berkeley Greene Tobey.
1962 -- Modern California Houses: Case Study Houses (New York: Reinhold) (reprinted as Case Study Houses, Los Angeles: Hennessey and Ingalls, 1978).
1963 -- Resident Fellow at Huntington Hartford Foundation.
1964 -- Juan O'Gorman exhibition, San Fernando Valley State College, Northridge, Calif.
1965 -- Consultant for the California Arts Commission.
1965-1966 -- Wrote and produced the film Dodge House.
1965-1968 -- Lecturer at University of California at Los Angeles, School of Architecture and Urban Planning.
1966 -- Resident Fellow at MacDowell Colony, New Hampshire.
1967 -- Ten Italian Architects exhibition, Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
1967 -- Honorary Associate of the Southern California Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
1967 -- Regents' Lecturer at University of California, Santa Barbara.
1968 -- Craig Ellwood (New York: Walker).
1968 -- Distinguished Service Citation from the California Council of AIA.
1969-1970 -- Lecturer at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
1969-1989 -- Contributing editor of Progressive Architecture.
1971-1978 -- Graham Foundation Grants.
1974 -- Regents' Lecturer at the University of California,Santa Cruz.
1979 -- Vienna to Los Angeles: Two Journeys (Santa Monica, Calif.: Arts & Architecture Press).
1979 -- Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.
1981 -- Los Angeles Chapter Women's Architectural League Honorary Member.
1982 -- Los Angeles County Museum of Art's Modern and Contemporary Art Council Award for Distinguished Achievement.
1983 -- Home Sweet Home: The California Ranch House exhibition at California State University.
1984 -- The Second Generation (Salt Lake City: Peregrine Smith Books).
1985 -- American Institute of Architects, Institute Honor.
1986 -- High Styles exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
1987 -- Vesta Award for outstanding scholarship.
1989 -- Award from the Historical Society of Southern California.
1989 -- Award from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.
1989 -- Blueprints for Modern Living: History and Legacy of the Case Study House exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Died in Santa Monica, California, December 30.
Related Material:
Also in the Archives of American Art are eight sound cassettes of a transcribed interview with Esther McCoy conducted by Joseph Giovannini, June 8-November 14, 1987.
Provenance:
The collection was given to the Archives of American Art by Esther McCoy in 1986. Before her death in 1989, McCoy assisted in the organization and identification of the papers. Original pre-print film elements for Dodge House 1916 were donated to the Archives of American Art by the Academy Film Archive in 2018.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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.
Occupation:
Architectural historians -- California Search this
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
This series contains a large amount of printed material of interest to and collected by McCoy, much of it documenting her professional activities. Found here are books, clippings, magazines, postcards, newsletters, press releases, and publications by subject. News clippings include articles about McCoy, articles written by McCoy, articles about architecture not written by McCoy, and other miscellaneous subjects. Architecture, art, and literary magazines found here often include articles written by McCoy. Additionally, she collected leftist magazines such as New Masses and Left Front. Certain printed materials are arranged by subjects which were of interest to McCoy for her writing projects. Included are printed materials gathered during her travels to Italy, Mexico, and Israel. These files may contain brochures, exhibition announcements and catalogs, booklets, travel guides, newsletters and other miscellaneous items.
Arrangement note:
This series has been arranged alphabetically by type of item followed by an alphabetical arrangement of subject files. Items within each folder are arranged chronologically. Researchers should note that additional printed materials, especially clippings, are also found in Series 4: Architectural Writings, Series 5: Projects, and Series 6: Architect Files.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Found here are photographs of works by architects, which McCoy compiled for her books, exhibition catalogs, articles, and other professional projects. Photographs primarily depict architecture by Southern California architects, but also including works by architects working elsewhere in the United States, Italy, and Mexico. Some of these photographs also document architecture by young architects working in the U.S. during the mid-1960s. Photographs depict various interior and exterior views, construction, and occasionally found are photographs of the architect. A large number of photographs found here depict the work of Gregory Ain, Luis Barragan, J. R. Davidson, Irving Gill, Bernard Maybeck, Juan O'Gorman, R. M. Schindler, and Raphael Soriano. Photographs were taken by Esther McCoy, prominent architectural photographers Marvin Rand and Julius Shulman, and many others.
Arrangement note:
Files are arranged alphabetically by name of architect; works by that architect are arranged chronologically by construction date. Date of construction is included in parentheses when it is known. When only one or two photographs represent the work of an architect, it was placed in a file of "Miscellaneous Architects, A-Z." Researchers should note that additional photographs of architects and architecture can be found in Series 4: Architectural Writings, Series 5: Projects, and Series 6: Architect Files.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
This subseries primarily contains letters concerning McCoy's career in architectural history and criticism. Her career in fiction writing is covered to a lesser degree. Among the correspondents are researchers, writers, professors, architects, art professionals, publishers, and professional associations. Topics covered include research and writing projects, Los Angeles area preservation and restoration projects, and grant projects.
Major correspondents in this series include the American Institute of Architects, the Graham Foundation, City of Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Board, Domus Magazine, Los Angeles Times, editor Monica Pidgeon, architectural critics Reyner Banham, David Gebhard, William Jordy, Robin Middleton, Allan Temko, and Nathan Shapira, and architects J. R. Davidson, Craig Ellwood, Joseph Giovannini, Hans Hollein, A. Quincy Jones, and Bruno Zevi. Also found is extensive correspondence with the University of California, Berkeley, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz. Correspondence for 1959 contains a letter from Albert Camus requesting McCoy's assistance with helping Spanish refugees, and correspondence for 1989 contains photographs of Esther McCoy and others at the Athenaeum at Caltech for the third annual gala of the Historical Society of Southern California.
See Appendix for a list of selected correspondents from Series 2.3.
Arrangement note:
Material is arranged chronologically. The bulk of McCoy's correspondence with architects is arranged in Series 6: Architect Files. Additional correspondence pertaining to specific projects can be found in Series 4: Architectural Writings and in Series 5: Project Files. Correspondence in this series complements the files found in these other series and they should be consulted together for a better understanding of McCoy's career.
Appendix: Selected Correspondents from Series 2.3:
Abbot, Mary Squire (McIntosh and Otis, Inc.), 1949, 1950, 1953, 1957
Adahura, Yuki, 1942
Adams, Christopher, 1962
Albinson, Don, 1989
Alexander, Christopher, 1965
Allen, Albert, 1968
Amantea, Kirjah, 1982
Ambre, Reuth, 1986
American Academy in Rome, 1970
American Federation of Arts, 1966
American Film Institute, 1975
American Institute of Architects, 1959, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989
American Institute of Interior Designers, 1974
Anderson, Sherwood, undated
Andrews, Wayne, 1983
Architecture -- , 1985
Architecture in Australia, 1974
Architectural Forum -- , 1965, 1966, 1968
Architectural History Foundation, Inc., 1982, 1983, 1984
Architectural Publishing Co., 1967
Architectural Record -- , 1959
Archive of Women in Architecture, 1975
Archives of American Art, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989
Graham Foundation for Studies in the Fine Arts (Carter Manny), 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, undated
Granger, Kathleen, 1981
Gray, Paul, 1977
Greenbaum, Katherine, 1980
Greene, Herb, 1971, 1972, 1976, undated
Greenhill, Nigel, 1973
Gregory, Dan, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1987
Guss, Jack, 1961
Hall, Milly, 1970, 1976, 1977
Hanks, David, 1986
Harnish, John, 1960
Harper and Row, 1979
Harper's Bazaar -- , 1951, 1952, 1961
Harris, Robert, 1981, 1982
Harvard Architecture Review -- , 1977, 1979
Harvey, Harold E., 1972, 1973
Haupt, Peter, 1967
Hayden, Dolores, 1984, undated
Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of New Mexico, 1967, 1969
Hernandez, Diana, 1976, undated
Herron, Ron, 1969
Hess, Alan, 1985
Hillyer, Elinor, 1949
Hinerfeld, Susan and Robert, 1984
Hines, Tom, 1971, 1975
Historical Society of Southern California, 1988, 1989
University of California, Santa Barbara, 1966, 1969, 1972, 1982, 1987
University of California, Santa Cruz, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1979
University of Cambridge, Department of Architecture, 1975
University of Oklahoma, 1949, 1985
University of Pennsylvania, 1984
University of Southern California, 1970
University Press of Kentucky, 1974
University Prints, 1957
University Women's Club, 1972, 1975, 1983
Vaccarino, Donna, 1989
Van Doren, Phyllis, 1984
Veret, Jean-Louis, 1960
Ventre, Francis T., 1985
Veronesi, Giulia, 1966, 1974
Via -- , 1976
Victor Gruen Foundation for Environmental Planning, 1972
Victor, Michael, 1983
Voelcker, John, 1968
Von Breton, Harriette, 1969
Von Eckardt, Wolf, 1981, 1983, 1984
Vreeland, Thomas, 1965, 1969, 1974, 1984
W. W. Norton and Co., 1966
Walker Art Center, 1975
Walker, Derek, 1982
Walker, Sam, 1985
Walton, Billy, 1986
Ward, Robert and Sandra Williams Photography of Architecture, 1977, 1978
Ward, Robertson, 1981
Wasserman, Steve, 1984, 1985, 1986
Waugh, Arthur B., 1959
Wayne, June, 1981, 1985
Weirick, James, 1970, 1974
Weiss, Peggy, 1982, 1984
Wemple, Emmet L., 1974, undated
Western Association of Art Museums, 1967
Wicks, Ebba L., 1949
Wight, Frederick S., 1966
Wilk, Christopher, 1987
William Morris Agency, 1957
William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1950
Williams, Alexander Kruse, 1985
Williams, Wayne R., 1952, 1953, 1972
Wills, David, 1969
Wilson, Forrest, 1972, 1975, 1983,1987
Wilson, Richard Guy, 1981
Winslow, Carleton Monroe, 1969, undated
Winter, Bob, 1964, 1975, 1976, undated
Woman's Building, 1987
Woman's Day -- , 1957
Women's Architectural League, 1981
Wood, Donna, 1981
Woodbridge, Sally, 1977, 1982
Woollen, Evans, 1983, 1984
Wright, Eric Lloyd, 1984
Writers Guild of America, West, 1967, 1969
Wurster, William, 1964
Zevi, Bruno, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1965, 1974
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
This subseries consists of exhibition photographs, the bulk of which document the 1967 exhibition "Ten Italian Architects" at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Photograph documentation of this exhibition includes installation views and photographs used for the exhibition catalog. Other photographs related to this exhibition are arranged by name of architect. Not all of the photographs found here were used in the catalog. Researchers should note that additional documentation of this exhibition catalog, written by McCoy, can be found among her architectural writings in Series 4.2: Exhibition Catalogs. Additional files in this subseries include installation views of an exhibition of work by Antoni Gaudi and copies of photographs used in three other exhibitions.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Found here are photographs which were primarily compiled by McCoy as research photographs during her work as a writer. Many of these photographs were taken to accompany her series of travel articles written for the Los Angeles Times. Files are arranged by subject, and often document craft and architecture in various countries such as Italy, Mexico, Brazil, and Israel. Also found are files of photographs documenting California architectural history. Researchers should note that related photographs may be found among McCoy's architectural writings in Series 4.
Arrangement note:
Files are arranged alphabetically by subject.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
(photographs by Julius Shulman and Marvin Rand not scanned)
Container:
Box 19, Folder 8
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
circa 1942-1985
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
McCoy published numerous articles, essays, books, and exhibition catalogs about modern architecture. She also lectured extensively on this subject. This subseries contains records of her research for, and publication of, these writings and lectures. Found here is correspondence relating to her research; drafts; financial records; printed material including publicity for, and reviews of, her work; research material; and related photographs.
Arrangement note:
The series is arranged as 5 subseries:
4.1: Books, 1908-1988
4.2: Exhibition Catalogs, circa 1942-1990
4.3: Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers, 1948-1989
4.4: Lectures, 1960-1988
4.5: Other Writings and Research Notes, 1937-1989, undated
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Esther McCoy wrote and published six books on architecture, and contributed writings for several other book projects during her career. This subseries contains records of these writing projects. Files for books written by McCoy may consist of correspondence, draft versions, notes, research material, financial records, photographs, and publicity and reviews. Correspondence may include original correspondence between McCoy and the architects who were the subject of her work; correspondence with publishers and others relating to her work; and copies of correspondence that McCoy used for research. For example, files for her book Vienna To Los Angeles: Two Journeys include copies of correspondence between Richard Neutra and R.M. Schindler and between Frank Lloyd Wright and Aline Barnsdall. Research material and notes document the formation of her ideas and may include notes made during tours of buildings and exhibitions, interview notes, printed material, and excerpts from sources relating to her research, including previous writings about the subjects by McCoy and others.
This series also contains records of McCoy's work on other book projects, such as writing essays for Contemporary Architects, and writing the introduction for Francisco Artigas. The Artigas material also includes interview transcripts. McCoy's records for Vienna To Los Angeles: Two Journeys includes material for a related article "Letters Between R. M. Schindler and Richard Neutra" and an essay written by Pauline Schindler about Taliesin.
Arrangement note:
Titles of works are arranged alphabetically and individual files are also arranged alphabetically. McCoy's books Five California Architects and The Second Generation featured sections on specific architects, and her correspondence, drafts, and research material are all alphabetically arranged by architect.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of audiovisual recordings without access copies 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:
Esther McCoy papers, circa 1876-1990, bulk 1938-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
