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Joseph Cornell papers

Creator:
Cornell, Joseph  Search this
Names:
Benton, Elizabeth Cornell  Search this
Cornell, Robert  Search this
Extent:
24.9 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Date:
1804-1986
bulk 1939-1972
Summary:
The papers of Joseph Cornell (1903-1972) measure approximately 24.9 linear feet and date from 1804 to 1986 with the bulk of the material dating from 1939-1972. The collection documents the life, work, interests, and creative activities of the self-taught artist, who was best known for his shadow box constructions, assemblages, and collages. Papers include correspondence, diaries, source material, notes, writings, photographs, printed material, two- and three-dimensional ephemera, art works, and books, as well as a limited amount of legal and financial records, and some miscellaneous personal and family papers. The collection also includes the papers of his sister, Betty Cornell Benton, relating to the handling of Cornell's estate and the personal papers of his brother, Robert Cornell.
Scope and Content Note:
The Joseph Cornell papers measure approximately 24.9 linear feet and date from 1804 to 1986, with the bulk of the material dating from 1939-1972. The collection documents the life, work, interests, and creative activities of the self-taught artist, who was best known for his shadow box constructions, assemblages, and collages. Papers include correspondence, diaries, source material, notes, writings, photographs, printed material, two- and three-dimensional ephemera, art works, and books, as well as a limited amount of legal and financial records, and some miscellaneous personal and family papers (which comprise a series of biographical material). The collection also includes the papers of his sister, Betty Cornell Benton, relating to the handling of Cornell's estate and the personal papers of his brother, Robert Cornell.

Cornell's correspondence is typically with family, friends, artists, dealers, collectors, galleries, museums, admirers, individuals whom he admired, "helpers," and various charitable institutions. Correspondence generally concerns the creation, exhibition, sale, and reception of Cornell's art work; his "explorations" and other research and collecting activities; his preoccupations with certain individuals and motifs; his usual practices of giving gifts of art work to those he liked or admired and making donations to charities in aid of those less fortunate; and his relationships and shared interests with family, friends, and colleagues. Also found is correspondence between and amongst various other members of the Cornell family, including, most notably, Robert Cornell's letters to his sisters, Elizabeth (typically addressed as Nell) and Helen.

Dating from 1941 to 1972, Cornell's diaries span almost the entirety of his career as an artist, which began in earnest when he left his job at the Traphagen textile studio in 1940 to pursue art full-time and ended with his death in 1972. The diaries record his day-to-day experiences (usually comprising his thoughts, feelings, impressions, and ideas); and reflect on his various art projects (boxes, films, and collages) and creative activities ("explorations," and various other research, collecting, and publishing ventures). They also explore many of the themes and underlying concerns of his art work; and document his intense preoccupations with certain individuals, his wide-ranging interests, and the interconnectedness of his ideas and activities. Cornell's style of writing in the diaries tends to be stream-of-conscious with entries being composed of phrases, rather than complete sentences and with the progression of passages being more poetic and associative than either logical or narrative. He tended to compose by hand, occasionally typing up his notes into more formal entries, and also to use abbreviations for oft-repeated words and initials for individuals. At times, his handwriting can be difficult to read, and his references can be difficult to decipher. It was also common practice for him to review or revisit previous entries at various points in time, often making revisions or comments on them with dated annotations in the margins or on the reverse side of a page.

Cornell's source material is largely comprised of files of newspaper and magazine clippings, cutouts, notes, writings, book excerpts, photostats (or stats), prints, postcards, art reproductions, and other printed material. Some files are devoted to people (ballerinas, actresses, singers, artists, and writers) and topics (astronomy, romantic and modern ballet, birds, films, literature, music, plants, and science, among others). Other files relate to specific art works, "explorations," publishing projects, and exhibitions. Source material documents Cornell's preoccupation with certain individuals (past and present), events, subjects, and motifs; the development of some of his major "explorations" and their influence on his various artistic and commercial projects; and his work on certain box constructions and collages, publishing ventures, and exhibition catalogues. Source material also sheds light on Cornell's efforts to gain access to the past; his interest in the symbolism of images and objects; the linkages he found between seemingly unrelated things; and the connections between his many creative endeavors.

Ephemera and artifacts include various objects, mementos, and items of memorabilia, some of which were accumulated by Cornell (in much the same way that he collected his source material) and some of which are of uncertain origin. For Cornell, items such as these were not merely inanimate objects, but were instead evocative of past worlds and capable of bringing the past into the present (an idea which he often expressed in his diaries as the "metaphysique d'ephemera"). He seems to have used some of these items in a layout he designed for Good Housekeeping. Other items may have been used as source material for some of his box constructions.

The collection also houses photographs of Cornell, his family, art work, other artists, and friends, as well as photographs taken by various individuals and publicity photographs from the New York City Ballet. Also found are scattered works of art, including collage fragments and Rorschachs (or ink blot drawings) by Cornell, collages by Cornell's sister, Betty Cornell Benton, on which he collaborated, and a box by Christine Kaufman, which was a gift to Cornell. The books in the collection most likely comprise the remainder of Cornell's library, which was transferred to the Joseph Cornell Study Center, and include some that seem to have belonged to his sister, Betty. Printed material includes various publications and clippings collected by Cornell apart from that which he collected as source material. Writings about Cornell include an article by the poet, Mina Loy, and copies of various theses, presentations, and articles by graduate students in art history received by Benton (who assisted them in their research).

The Joseph Cornell Estate Papers consist of correspondence relating to Betty Cornell Benton's administration of the part of Cornell's estate for which she was responsible and legal documents relating to her various legal disputes with the executors of the estate, as well as a limited amount of printed material, some of which was originally accumulated by Cornell and subsequently shared with Benton, and miscellaneous papers belonging to Benton and their mother, Helen S. Cornell. Estate Papers provide insight on the exhibition and sale of Cornell art works after his death; the disposition of his belongings (including art work, papers, books, records, and source material); and Benton's efforts to foster and safeguard the memory and legacy of Cornell. The Robert Cornell Papers include correspondence, writings, art works, photographs, printed material, and scattered financial and personal records, documenting the full and creative life Robert led despite being confined to a wheelchair. Their inclusion in the collection suggests the family's effort to foster Robert's memory.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into eleven series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1918-1972, 1975 (Box 1; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1909-1982 (Boxes 1-5, OV 31; 4.3 linear feet)

Series 3: Diaries, 1941-1973 (Boxes 6-10; 5 linear feet)

Series 4: Source Material, 1804-1972 (Boxes 11-18, 25-28, OV 29; 8.5 linear feet)

Series 5: Ephemera and Artifacts, 1858-1946 (Boxes 18, 23; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 6: Photographs, circa 1905-1972 (Boxes 18, 28, OV 30; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 7: Art Works, circa 1966-1971 (Boxes 19, 23; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 8: Books and Printed Material, 1806-1968 (Boxes 19, 23; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 9: Writings about Cornell, 1950, circa 1975-1980 (Box 19; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 10: Joseph Cornell Estate Papers, circa 1911, 1944-1986 (Boxes 19-22; 3.5 linear feet)

Series 11: Robert Cornell Papers, 1924-1965 (Boxes 24, 28; 0.4 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Joseph Cornell, assemblagist, collagist, and filmmaker, was born on December 24, 1903 in Nyack, New York. He was the oldest son of Joseph I. Cornell, a textile salesman and designer, and Helen Storms Cornell, and had two younger sisters, Elizabeth (b. 1905), nicknamed Nell and later Betty, and Helen (b. 1906), and a younger brother, Robert (b. 1910), who suffered from cerebral palsy. Cornell shared close relationships with his siblings, and was especially attached to his brother whom he took care of as an adult. His fondest childhood memories included family Christmas celebrations, outings to Manhattan where he saw vaudeville shows and strolled around Times Square, and trips to Coney Island where he encountered penny arcade machines. These childhood memories, among others, inspired some of the themes later explored in his art work.

After his father's death in 1917, Cornell was sent to study at the Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. He remained there for four years, but left without receiving a diploma. During this time, the family moved from Nyack to Bayside, Queens, where they lived in a series of rented houses. Cornell rejoined his family in 1921, at which time he went to work as a salesman in the Manhattan office of a textile wholesaler, the William Whitman Company. He joined the Christian Science church in the mid-1920s, and in 1929, the family bought a house at 37-08 Utopia Parkway in Flushing, where he resided for the rest of his life, living there with his mother and brother after both his sisters married and moved away.

During the 1920s, Cornell developed his passion for walking the city streets and taking in their sights, sounds, and impressions; browsing in the secondhand bookshops along Fourth Avenue; and collecting material such as books, prints, postcards, and printed and three-dimensional ephemera. He cultivated his growing interest in culture and the arts by attending opera and ballet performances, seeing plays (the 1922 play Rain, which starred Jeanne Eagels, was among his favorites), visiting galleries and museums, reading, and going to the movies.

In 1931, Cornell began to frequent the Julien Levy Gallery, where he encountered Surrealist art for perhaps the first time. Around this time, he created his first works of art - a series of black-and-white collages composed from cutouts of nineteenth-century engravings - inspired by Max Ernst's collages, in particular his collage-novel, La Femme 100 tetes (1929). Cornell went on to create three-dimensional works of art such as pill boxes and a glass bell series (consisting of objects arranged under a bell jar). His work, including several collages and a glass bell, was first exhibited as part of the groundbreaking "Surrealisme" show at the Levy Gallery in January 1932. He also designed the cover of the show announcement. His first one-man show at the gallery, "The Objects of Joseph Cornell," followed in the fall of 1932. (It was seven years before his next solo show.) By this time, Cornell had been laid off from his job at Whitman's. He was out of work for several years before getting a job as a textile designer at the Traphagen Commercial Textile Studio in 1934. During the next several years, he continued to work on his art at night.

Around this time, Cornell began collecting movies and movie stills, and embarked upon various film-related projects. In 1933, he wrote a scenario for a silent movie, Monsieur Phot. A few years later, he made his first film, Rose Hobart (1936), comprised of re-edited footage from the B-movie, East of Borneo (1931), which starred the actress, Rose Hobart. And he began work on a trilogy of collage-films - The Children's Party, Cotillion, and The Midnight Party (circa 1937). He then took a break from making films until the mid-1950s, but continued to collect film-related material, which he began to incorporate into his other art work.

In 1936, Cornell constructed his first glass-fronted shadow box, Untitled (Soap Bubble Set), which was included that same year in the "Fantastic Art, Dada and Surrealism" exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, along with a cabinet box and several glass bells. In creating some of his other early boxes, he began the practice of using photo reproductions of images which he located in books and magazines, or in the Picture Collection at the New York Public Library, among other places. In his tribute boxes to actresses (1930s), he made use of publicity shots, and in the box, Dressing Room for Gilles (1939), he employed a photostat (or stat) of a reproduction of Jean-Antoine Watteau's painting, Gilles (1718).

Over the years, Cornell came into contact with various figures of the art, dance, and literary worlds. In the 1930s and 1940s, he met the artists, Max Ernst, Marcel Duchamp, and Salvador Dali, and befriended the artists, Lee Miller and Dorothea Tanning. His formative friendships during 1940s were with the artist, Pavel Tchelitchew, the writers, Charles Henri Ford (founder of the avant-garde periodical, View), Parker Tyler, and Donald Windham, and the balletomane, Lincoln Kirstein (founder of Dance Index). His other friends included the artists, Roberto Matta Echaurren and Robert Motherwell, the dancer and actress, Tilly Losch, and the poets, Mina Loy and Marianne Moore. In the 1950s, he associated with artists from the Abstract Expressionist movement, including Willem de Kooning, Jack Tworkov, and Mark Rothko. Beginning in the mid-1950s, he befriended many young artists, including Lee Bontecou and Carolee Schneeman, and young actresses, including Lois Smith, Gwen Van Dam, and Suzanne Miller, whom he sought to appear in his films. And in the early 1960s, he met the Pop artists, Robert Indiana, James Rosenquist, and Andy Warhol.

Beginning in 1940, Cornell developed a keen interest in dance, particularly ballet. Ballerinas from the Romantic era, such as Marie Taglioni and Fanny Cerrito, especially captured his imagination, inspiring such works as the box, Taglioni's Jewel Casket (1940), and the Portrait of Ondine "exploration," which comprised a portfolio of material relating to Cerrito and her famous role in the ballet, Ondine. Cornell was also fascinated with the modern counterparts of the Romantic ballerinas. In 1940, he befriended the Russian ballet dancer, Tamara Toumanova, and over the years produced many works in homage to her, including swan boxes (inspired by her role in Swan Lake), boxes made with scraps from her costumes, and scrapbooks of clippings, stats, and memorabilia. In 1949, he became enamored of the French dancer, Renee "Zizi" Jeanmarie, after seeing her perform in Carmen and meeting her backstage, and he created several dance-related boxes in her honor. In 1957, he met the ballerina, Allegra Kent. After meeting again in 1964, they became friends, and she served as the subject of several works based on images reproduced from a Parmigianino painting.

In December 1940, Cornell left his job at the Traphagen textile studio to pursue art full-time. He set up a workshop in the basement of the house on Utopia Parkway, which served as a combination studio and storage space. While he spent most days at home, he continued to make regular trips into Manhattan to wander around the city, visit with friends, and hunt for material. Around this time, he began to keep a diary, recording his day-to-day experiences (usually comprising his thoughts, feelings, impressions, ideas) on scraps of paper (including used envelopes, paper bags, napkins, and ticket stubs, among other fragments). He would then type up some of these notes into more formal diary entries, but most of them remained, in his word, "scribblings." Diary keeping eventually became one of his primary activities, along with box construction, collage, research, and collecting.

By this time, his art work was beginning to sell, yet he was not able to live from these sales alone. During the 1940s, he primarily supported himself by doing freelance work for magazines such as Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Good Housekeeping, supplying illustrations from his picture collection and designing covers and layouts. He also regularly contributed pieces to View and Dance Index. His notable contributions to View included "Enchanted Wanderer: Excerpt from a Journey Album for Hedy Lamarr" (December 1941), "Story Without a Name - for Max Ernst" (April 1942), and "The Crystal Cage [portrait of Berenice]" (January 1943). His projects for Dance Index included various collage-covers, essays, and thematic issues, such as the Summer 1944 issue, which comprised a 22-page tribute to the Romantic ballerinas, Taglioni, Carlotta Grisi, Cerrito, and Fanny Elssler. To supplement his income, Cornell also held brief positions at an electronics plant, the Allied Control Company, Inc. (in 1943), and at a nursery, the Garden Centre (in 1944).

In 1942, Cornell created one of his more memorable works, Medici Slot Machine, embarking upon a large series of Medici boxes in which he utilized reproductions of portraits by Italian Renaissance artists, such as Sofonisba Anguissola and Pinturicchio. His other boxes from this time period explored themes ranging from ballet, as in A Pantry Ballet (for Jacques Offenbach) (1942), to doomed love, as in Paolo and Francesca (1943-48), to nature, as in the Sand Boxes (1940s) and Sand Fountains (1950s). Cornell often created boxes in series, producing variations on a theme with variants that differed significantly or only slightly. Over the years, series included: Pink Palaces, Pharmacies, Habitats, Aviaries, Dovecotes, Hotels, Observatories, and Night Skies, among others.

In late 1945, Cornell joined the Hugo Gallery, which was run by Alexander Iolas, and a year later mounted the show, "Romantic Museum at the Hugo Gallery: Portraits of Women by Joseph Cornell" (December 1946). He designed the exhibition catalog for this show, which consisted of portraits - box constructions, objects, and "dossiers" - of the opera singers, Giuditta Pasta and Maria Malibran, the ballerinas, Taglioni and Cerrito, and the actresses, Eleanora Duse, Jeanne Eagels, Greta Garbo, and Jennifer Jones, and which also featured one of his most famous boxes, Untitled (Penny Arcade Portrait of Lauren Bacall) (1945-46).

In 1949, Cornell joined the Egan Gallery, which was run by Charles Egan. Around this time, he began creating his series of Aviary boxes, which explored the symbolism of birds and birdcages. He showed twenty-six of these box constructions in his first exhibition at the Egan Gallery, "Aviary by Joseph Cornell" (December 1949-January 1950). He created other series of whitewashed boxes, including the Dovecote series and a small group relating to the poet, Emily Dickinson. He then went on to explore the themes of astronomy and celestial navigation in the Observatory, Night Skies, and Hotel series. Works from these series were featured in his two remaining shows at the Egan Gallery, "Night Songs and Other Work" (December 1950-January 1951) and "Night Voyage" (February-March 1953). In the fall of 1953, sparked by seeing the painting, Figure Seated in a Cafe (1914), Cornell embarked upon a major series of bird constructions dedicated to the Cubist artist, Juan Gris. Notably, these were the only boxes he explicitly dedicated to another artist.

Over the next couple of years, Cornell's work was exhibited across the country. In 1955, he joined the Stable Gallery, which was run by Eleanor Ward. His first one-man show there, in the winter of 1955-56, was "Winter Night Skies," which featured various box constructions based on constellations. During the mid-1950s, he embarked upon a series of Sand Fountains (vertical standing boxes featuring a broken glass and sand that flowed through it when turned upside down), elaborating upon his earlier Sand Boxes (1940s). These boxes along with some of his other latest works, including the Bleriot boxes and the Space Object boxes (which comprised his final box series), were exhibited in his second and last show at the Stable Gallery, "Selected Works" (December 1957).

After leaving the Stable Gallery, Cornell had several dealers handle his work rather than allowing any one to assume too much control. Dealers included Richard Feigen (in Chicago and then in New York) and Irving Blum (in California), among others. Throughout his career, Cornell never liked selling his boxes. He was always reluctant to let his work go and became increasingly uneasy about the growing status of his work as a commodity. He preferred instead to make gifts of his art work to friends and individuals he admired (especially female ones).

In the mid-1950s, Cornell returned to making films. Rather than just splicing together found images as he had in his films of the 1930s, he began to collaborate with others to shoot original footage. He worked with the experimental filmmaker, Stan Brakhage, on two films, one about the Third Ave El which was about to be torn down ( Wonder Ring or Gnir Rednow) and the other about an old house in Cornell's neighborhood that was slated for demolition ( Centuries of June). Cornell then went on to make nine films with the filmmaker, Rudy Burckhardt, including Aviary, A Legend for Fountains, and Nymphlight, among others. In the late 1960s, he enlisted the help of Larry Jordan, who was also a filmmaker, in completing the trilogy of collage-films that he had begun in the 1930s.

Along with creating works of art and making films, Cornell was involved in a host of other creative endeavors throughout his career as an artist. These included: keeping a diary, which was for him another medium for exploring and expressing the themes, ideas, and concerns recurrent in his art work; carrying out "explorations," which typically involved conducting research, collecting material, and compiling files on persons or topics of interest to him; and other projects, such as publishing pamphlets (or brochures) dedicated to the nineteenth-century opera singers, Malibran and Giulia Grisi. Cornell's "explorations" clearly informed his artwork, but they were also works of art in and of themselves. He continually sought to share this work with an audience and twice had the opportunity to do so, when he exhibited versions of his Portrait of Ondine "exploration" at the Museum of Modern Art in 1945 and at the Wittenborn Bookstore in 1956.

Around the mid-1950s, Cornell returned to making collages as independent works of art. Unlike his earlier ones, which were composed from cutouts of black-and-white engravings, his latest collages were made with color images cut out of contemporary magazines and books. In these collages, he explored many of the same themes and preoccupations of his box constructions, including birds, as in Couleur de Peche (1967) and Untitled (Vierge Vivace) (1970), children's games, as in the Penny Arcade series (1960s), and actresses, as in The Sister Shades (1956). Towards the end of his career, collage became his principal medium.

By this time, Cornell was taking fewer trips into Manhattan. Instead, he spent more time at home or traveled only so far as downtown Flushing, where he frequented the public library, hunted for material in stores, such as Woolworth's, and passed time in the coffee-shops on Main Street. From this time on, he kept his diary with increasing regularity, taking down notations with more frequency and creating entries of greater length.

In 1961, fourteen of Cornell's boxes, including Medici Slot Machine, were exhibited as part of the "The Art of Assemblage" show at the Museum of Modern Art. As his biographer notes, Cornell came to view this show "as a turning point in his creative life," marking the "[fall] off in his work" that took place in the sixties (Solomon 271-2). He continued to work on boxes that he had begun long before, but, after this time, rarely if ever constructed new ones. Instead, he focused on making collages and became increasingly concerned with other projects, such as organizing his basement workshop, for which he hired various "helpers" or assistants (mostly young women) over the years. He also became more and more prone to obsessions (or preoccupations, as he called them) with various young women that he encountered both in fantasy (actresses on stage or in films) and in real life (working girls in the city, "teeners" on Main Street, or his female visitors and "helpers" at home). These preoccupations infused his diary writings, and inspired the keeping of "dossiers" on particular individuals and the creation of various collages dedicated to others, including most notably the Penny Arcade series dedicated to Joyce Hunter (or "Tina," as he referred to her in his writings).

After Robert's death in February 1965, Cornell created a series of collages in his memory, many of which incorporated his brother's drawings of animal characters. In January 1966, he exhibited some of these collages, alongside a selection of Robert's drawings, in a show at the Robert Schoelkopf Gallery, "Robert Cornell: Memorial Exhibition." In 1967, there were two retrospective exhibitions of Cornell's work, "An Exhibition of Works by Joseph Cornell" at the Pasadena Art Museum and "Joseph Cornell" at the Guggenheim Museum. By now, Cornell was receiving considerable public recognition for his work. He had received his first profile (by Howard Griffin) in the December 1957 issue of Art News and, ten years later, was treated to a 12-page spread (by David Bourdon) in the December 1967 issue of Life magazine. He was also the recipient of various prizes for his art work, including the M.V Kohnstamm Prize at the Art Institute of Chicago's "62nd American Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture" in 1957 and the winning prize in India's first Triennale of Contemporary World Art in 1968.

In the last years of his life (especially from the time of his mother's death in the fall of 1966), Cornell suffered from severe depression and loneliness, and withdrew even further from the outside world. However, he still maintained relationships with various young friends and artists, who frequently visited Utopia Parkway and/or served as one of his assistants. He became more and more interested in sharing his work with a younger audience and his last two exhibitions in 1972 were expressly for children, "A Joseph Cornell Exhibition for Children" at the Cooper Union School of Art and Architecture and "Joseph Cornell - Collages and Boxes" at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York.

Cornell continued to work until the end of his life, "refurbishing" earlier boxes and creating memorial collages. Following prostate surgery in June 1972, he spent several months recuperating with family in Westhampton before returning to Utopia Parkway in November. He died of heart failure at home on December 29, 1972.

The biographical note draws heavily from Deborah Solomon's biography, Utopia Parkway: The Life and Work of Joseph Cornell (New York: Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux, 1997), and Diane Waldman's book, Joseph Cornell: Master of Dreams (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 2002).
Related Material:
The Archives holds several collections of different provenance that relate to Joseph Cornell, including the small collections of Allison Delarue (comprised of two letters from Cornell, available on reel 2803), Muriel Streeter Schwartz (comprised of two letters from Cornell, available on reel 4283), Wayne Andrews (comprised of letters from Cornell and printed material), and Marion Netter (comprised of items received from Cornell). In addition, photographs of Cornell can be found amongst the Hans Namuth photographs and papers. Also found within the Archives is a transcribed interview of Cornell's sister, Elizabeth Cornell Benton, conducted on April 21, 1976 as part of the oral history program.
Separated Material:
The bulk of Cornell's source material resides in the Joseph Cornell Study Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum, along with his library and record collection. Cornell's sister, Betty Cornell Benton, donated a portion of this material directly to SAAM (then known as the National Museum of American Art), occasioning the creation of the Study Center circa 1978. The bulk of the source material and library that she donated to AAA, including approximately 66 linear feet of three-dimensional and non-textual source material and 50 linear feet of books, was transferred to the Study Center in 1994 and 1995.

Originals of loaned material returned to the donor after microfilming include: some unidentified and miscellaneous correspondence; significant correspondence between Joseph Cornell and Helen S. Cornell; significant correspondence between Helen S. Cornell, family members and others; and some of Joseph Cornell's family correspondence and general correspondence from the Robert Cornell papers. The loaned material is available on microfilm reels 1055-1058 but is not described further in the Series Descriptions/Container Listing of this finding aid.
Provenance:
The Joseph Cornell papers were donated and microfilmed in several installments from 1974 to 1989 by Joseph Cornell's sister, Betty Cornell Benton. Most, but not all, of the correspondence, which was loaned for microfilming in 1974, was subsequently donated in 1989. Additional material was donated in 2004 by the Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation.
Restrictions:
Use of the original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Celebrities  Search this
Assemblage (Art)  Search this
Found objects (Art)  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Assemblage artists -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Works of art  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Citation:
Joseph Cornell papers, 1804-1986, bulk 1939-1972. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.cornjose
See more items in:
Joseph Cornell papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9ff67e8a6-6a88-40f0-9df4-537c9826eed7
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-cornjose
Online Media:

Minutes of meeting of Group of 8, 1919 Dec. 31

Creator:
Gussow, Bernard, 1881-1957  Search this
Subject:
Bouché, Louis  Search this
Maurer, Alfred Henry  Search this
Stella, Joseph  Search this
Weber, Max  Search this
Zorach, William  Search this
Exposition d'artistes de l'école Américaine (1919 : Paris, France)  Search this
Citation:
Minutes of meeting of Group of 8, 1919 Dec. 31. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art, American -- Exhibitions  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Theme:
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)10580
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)214056
AAA_collcode_gussbern
Theme:
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_214056

Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005

Creator:
Gray, Cleve, 1918-2004  Search this
Subject:
Richter, Hans  Search this
Marin, John  Search this
Lipchitz, Jacques  Search this
Pollock, Jackson  Search this
Grace, Louise N.  Search this
Gray, Francine du Plessix  Search this
Duchamp, Marcel  Search this
Dillenberger, Jane  Search this
Gabo, Naum  Search this
Ernst, Jimmy  Search this
Davis, Jim  Search this
Calder, Alexander  Search this
Barzun, Jacques  Search this
Weber, Nicholas Fox  Search this
Smith, David  Search this
Villon, Jacques  Search this
Pratt Institute  Search this
Rhode Island School of Design  Search this
Neuberger Museum of Art  Search this
Jacques Seligmann & Co  Search this
Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this
Connecticut. Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film  Search this
Princeton University  Search this
Berry-Hill Galleries  Search this
Type:
Poems
Articles
Photographs
Reviews (documents)
Notes
Illustrations
Notebooks
Sketches
Drafts (documents)
Video recordings
Sound recordings
Interviews
Manuscripts
Paintings
Prints
Watercolors
Drawings
Lectures
Citation:
Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Protest movements -- United States  Search this
Designers  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Theme:
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)9567
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211768
AAA_collcode_grayclev
Theme:
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211768
Online Media:

100% Africa la colección de arte contemporáneo de Jean Pigozzi en el Guggenheim Bilbao [textos, Jean Pigozzi, André Magnin]

Author:
Pigozzi, Jean C  Search this
Magnin, André  Search this
Museo Guggenheim Bilbao  Search this
Subject:
Pigozzi, Jean Art collections  Search this
Physical description:
181 pages chiefly color illustrations 29 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Exhibition catalogs
Date:
2006
20th century
21st century
20e siècle
21e siècle
Topic:
Art, African  Search this
Art, Modern  Search this
Art africain  Search this
Art museums  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1145784

Africa modern creating the contemporary art of a continent edited by Ekow Eshun

Editor:
Eshun, Ekow  Search this
Physical description:
297 pages colour illustrations, portraits 24 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Expositions
Exhibition catalogs
Place:
Afrika
Date:
2017
20th century
20e siècle
Topic:
Art, Modern  Search this
Modernism (Art)  Search this
Art, African  Search this
Art  Search this
Modernisme (Art)  Search this
Art africain  Search this
Kunst  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1154330

Seeing differently the Phillips collects for a new century edited by Elsa Smithgall ; contributions by heather ahtone, Taylor Renee Aldridge, Dominique Baqué, Mary Jane Jacob, Dorothy M. Kosinski [and forty-three others]

Editor:
Smithgall, Elsa  Search this
Contributor:
Ahtone, Heather  Search this
Aldridge, Taylor Renee  Search this
Baqué, Dominique  Search this
Jacob, Mary Jane  Search this
Kosinski, Dorothy M  Search this
Owner:
Phillips Collection  Search this
Physical description:
359 pages illustrations (chiefly color), portraits (chiefly color) 29 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Expositions
Exhibition catalogs
Catalogues d'exposition
Place:
Washington (D.C.)
Date:
2021
20th century
21st century
19th century
20e siècle
21e siècle
19e siècle
Topic:
Art, Modern  Search this
Art  Search this
Art, American  Search this
Painting, American  Search this
Art américain  Search this
Peinture américaine  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1154348

Fast forward : contemporary collections for the Dallas Museum of Art / edited by María de Corral and John R. Lane ; with contributions by Frances Colpitt ... [et al.]

Author:
Dallas Museum of Art  Search this
Corral, María de  Search this
Lane, John R. 1944-  Search this
Colpitt, Frances  Search this
Subject:
Dallas Museum of Art  Search this
Physical description:
327 p. : chiefly ill. (some col.) ; 32 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Place:
Texas
Dallas
Date:
2007
C2007
20th century
21st century
Topic:
Art, Modern  Search this
Art  Search this
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_820773

Installation art and the museum presentation and conservation of changing artworks Vivian van Saaze

Author:
Saaze, Vivian van 1975-  Search this
Physical description:
1 online resource (225 pages) illustrations (chiefly color)
Type:
Electronic resources
Electronic books
Date:
2013
20th century
21st century
Topic:
Installations (Art)--Conservation and restoration  Search this
Art, Modern--Conservation and restoration  Search this
Museum exhibits  Search this
Art museums  Search this
History of art--art and design styles  Search this
The arts  Search this
ART--History--General  Search this
Art conservation  Search this
Call number:
N410 .S33 2013 (Internet)
N6494.I56 S23 2013 ONLINE (Internet)
Restrictions & Rights:
OAPEN (Open Access Publishing in European Networks). All rights reserved
1-user
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1147320

The Collection of Peggy and David Steine : [exhibition, The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, May 18 - June 15, 1969]

Author:
High Museum of Art  Search this
Subject:
Steine, David Art collections  Search this
Steine, Peggy Art collections  Search this
Physical description:
[34] p. : ill. (some col.) ; 24 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Place:
Tennessee
Nashville
Date:
1969
1969?]
20th century
Topic:
Art, Modern  Search this
Art--Private collections  Search this
Call number:
N5220.S82 H6
N5220.S82H6
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_145082

Paper as image / Arts Council of Great Britain

Author:
Arts Council of Great Britain  Search this
Physical description:
24 p. : ill. ; 20 x 22 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Date:
1983
C1983
20th century
Topic:
Paper work  Search this
Paper, Handmade  Search this
Art, Modern  Search this
Call number:
N6494.P34 P214
N6494.P34P214
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_178836

Moskva-Parizh, 1900-1930

Title:
Москва : Советский художник, 1981
Author:
Gosudarstvennyĭ muzeĭ izobrazitelʹnykh iskusstv imeni A.S. Pushkina  Search this
Centre Georges Pompidou  Search this
Physical description:
2 volumes illustrations (some color), portraits 31 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Expositions
Exhibition catalogs
Place:
France
Russie
Date:
1981
20th century
20e siècle
Topic:
Arts, Russian--French influences  Search this
Arts, Modern  Search this
Arts, French--Russian influences  Search this
Arts  Search this
Call number:
NX556.A1 M911
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_196717

Le Papier : un nouveau langage artistique = Papierobjekte : eine neue künstlerische Sprache : exposition ouverte du 10 juin au 4 septembre 1983 : exposition Musée Bellerive, Zurich, 6 décembre 1983-5 février 1984

Title:
Papierobjekte
Author:
Museum Bellerive Zürich  Search this
Musée des arts décoratifs de la ville de Lausanne  Search this
Physical description:
[51] p. : ill. ; 21 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Date:
1983
[1983]
20th century
Topic:
Paper work  Search this
Paper art  Search this
Art, Modern  Search this
Call number:
N6494.P34P37 1983X
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_322158

Le Papier : un nouveau langage artistique II : exposition ouverte du 12 juin au 8 septembre 1985, Musée des arts décoratifs de la ville de Lausanne

Author:
Musée des arts décoratifs de la ville de Lausanne  Search this
Physical description:
[43] p. : ill. ; 21 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Date:
1985
[1985]
20th century
Topic:
Paper work  Search this
Paper art  Search this
Art, Modern  Search this
Call number:
N6494.P34 P215 1985
N6494.P34P215 1985
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_322159

The new explosion : paper art, November 7, 1982 to January 13, 1983, Fine Arts Museum of Long Island, Hempstead, New York / Eleanor Flomenhaft

Author:
Flomenhaft, Eleanor  Search this
Fine Arts Museum of Long Island  Search this
Physical description:
24 p. : ill. ; 21 x 27 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Date:
1983
[1983]
20th century
Topic:
Paper work  Search this
Art, Modern  Search this
Call number:
N6494.P34F58 1983X
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_326813

Russian constructivism revisited : [exhibition at] Hatton Gallery, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, March, 1973

Author:
Hatton Gallery  Search this
Physical description:
20 p. : ill. ; 30 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Place:
Soviet Union
Date:
1974
1974?]
20th century
Topic:
Constructivism (Art)  Search this
Arts, Modern  Search this
Arts, Soviet  Search this
Call number:
NX556.A1 R87
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_643616

Mehr Licht : Künstlerhologramme und Lichtobjekte = More light / herausgegeben von Achim Lipp und Peter Zec

Title:
More light
Author:
Lipp, Achim  Search this
Zec, Peter  Search this
Hamburger Kunsthalle  Search this
Physical description:
252 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 23 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Date:
1985
C1985
20th century
Topic:
Lasers in art  Search this
Holography in art  Search this
Art, Modern  Search this
Call number:
N6494.L3 M44 1985
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_650655

Oral history interview with Allan Sekula

Interviewee:
Sekula, Allan  Search this
Interviewer:
Panzer, Mary  Search this
Names:
Artforum  Search this
California Institute of the Arts  Search this
Rhode Island School of Design  Search this
Students for a Democratic Society (U.S.)  Search this
The Ohio State University -- Faculty  Search this
University of California, San Diego  Search this
Altoon, John, 1925-  Search this
Antin, David  Search this
Antin, Eleanor  Search this
Ascott, Roy  Search this
Baldessari, John, 1931-  Search this
Barthes, Roland  Search this
Becker, Howard  Search this
Bercovitch, Sacvan  Search this
Beveridge, Karl  Search this
Bo Diddley, 1928-2008  Search this
Brach, Paul, 1924-  Search this
Braderman, Joan  Search this
Burch, Noël, 1932-  Search this
Burn, Ian, 1939-1993  Search this
Captain Beefheart  Search this
Charlesworth, Sarah, 1947-2013  Search this
Chayefsky, Paddy, 1923-1981  Search this
Conde, Carol  Search this
Connell, Brian  Search this
Evans, Walker, 1903-1975  Search this
Farber, Manny  Search this
Feldman, Ronald, 1938-  Search this
Folks, Homer, 1867-1963  Search this
Fox, Terry, 1943-  Search this
Fried, Howard, 1946-  Search this
Ginsberg, Allen, 1926-1997  Search this
Graham, Dan, 1942-  Search this
Graves, Michael, 1934-2015  Search this
Halleck, DeeDee  Search this
Hanhardt, John G.  Search this
Hassan, Ihab, 1925-2015  Search this
Hayes, Woody, 1913-1987  Search this
Heinecken, Robert, 1931-  Search this
Higgins, Dick, 1938-1998  Search this
Hine, Lewis Wickes, 1874-1940  Search this
Kienholz, Edward, 1927-  Search this
Kirschenbaum, Baruch David, 1931-  Search this
Knowles, Alison, 1933-  Search this
Kosuth, Joseph.  Search this
Kozloff, Max  Search this
Kramer, Hilton  Search this
Krauss, Rosalind E.  Search this
König, Kasper  Search this
Liebling, Jerome  Search this
Lifson, Ben  Search this
Little Richard, 1932-  Search this
Lonidier, Fred  Search this
Lord, Catherine, 1949-  Search this
Lunn, Harry, 1933-1998  Search this
Mac Low, Jackson  Search this
Mandel, Mike  Search this
Matta, 1912-2002  Search this
Mayer, Grace M.  Search this
Michelson, Annette  Search this
O'Doherty, Brian  Search this
Pommer, Richard  Search this
Ramsden, Mel  Search this
Raskin, Jef  Search this
Reagan, Ronald  Search this
Rosler, Martha  Search this
Ross, David A., 1949-  Search this
Ruby, Jay  Search this
Ruscha, Edward  Search this
Salle, David, 1952-  Search this
Salvesen, Britt  Search this
Schimmel, Paul  Search this
Segalove, Ilene, 1950-  Search this
Stein, Sally  Search this
Steinmetz, Philip  Search this
Sultan, Larry  Search this
Van Riper, Peter  Search this
Wakoski, Diane  Search this
Wall, Jeff, 1946-  Search this
Extent:
12 Items (Sound recording: 12 sound files (6 hr.,14 min.), digital, wav)
143 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
2011 August 20-2012 February 14
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Allan Sekula conducted 2011 August 20-2012 February 14, by Mary Panzer, for the Archives of American Art at Sekula's studio and home in Los Angeles, California and at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, New York.
Sekula speaks of his career and some of the mediums he works in; language and contemporary art; Roland Barthes; his relation to contemporary art; west coast conceptualism; genre switches; realism; documentary photography; Belgium and the industrial revolution; Meunier; minor figures; art history and marginalism; Roberto Matta; World War I; Homer Folks; Fish Story; historic cinema; economic factors of art shows and publication; galleries and the art world; growing up and his family; his father and moving; Ohio; his brothers and sisters; San Pedro; demographics of students at school; sports at school; Vietnam; protests; cross country and swimming; California; fishing; college; U.C. system; declaring a major; John Altoon; Ed Kienholz; exposure to art; visiting museums; Marcuse's classes; Baldessari's classes; course work and student life; student demonstrations; working in a library and exposure to books; father losing his job; science and working as a chemical technician; politics; his uncle committing suicide; moving away from his father; the draft; John Birch; Students for a Democratic Society; his mother; politics of his parents; Aerospace Folk Tales, autodidacts and scholarship; San Diego and Mexico; obtaining a camera and starting to use it; art school; CalArts; UCSD; Meditations on a Triptych; David Salle; Fred Lonidier; Phel Steinmetz; MFA and art training; poets; story of Allen Ginsberg and one of Sekula's sculptures; production and the audience; A Photograph is Worth a Thousand Questions, photography and the burden of tradition; pictorialism; moving to New York; Artforum; October; New York music scene; Captain Beefheart; Bo Diddley; Little Richard; Steichen and aerial photography; origins of October; New Criterion; Art Critic's Grant; teaching at Ohio State; television; technological historians; New York subway and getting a ticket for using French money; RISD lectures; Long Beach; photography; collages; Metro Pictures; New Topographics; School as a Factory; moral choice and the viewer; work method and the audience; Social Criticism and Art Practice; east and west coasts; Ed Ruscha; documentary; film, Los Angeles; cinema and social history; Ohio State Department of Photography and Cinema; Los Angeles Plays Itself; Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador; Ohio State campus, anti-Semitism; Ronald Reagan and protest; influences and colleagues; intellectual genealogy; Michael Graves and Ohio State architecture; Bad Ohio; tenure; University Exposed; AIDS issue of October; The Body and the Archive; making film; Korean War; collectors and images. Sekula also recalls Eleanor Antin, Jeff Wall, Terry Fox, Lewis Hine, Walker Evans, Paul Saltman, Marcuse, Baldessari, Sacvan Bercovitch, Stanley Miller, Jef Raskin, Paul Brach, David Antin, Howard Fried, Peter Van Riper, Alison Knowles, Dick Higgins, Manny Farber, Ihab Hassan, Diane Wakoski, Jackson Mac Low, Martha Rosler, Lenny Neufeld, Joshua Neufeld, David Wing, Brian Connell, Max Kozloff, Ian Burn, Mel Ramsden, Carole Conde, Karl Beveridge, Barry Rosens, Tom Crow, John Copeland, Harry Lunn, Hilton Kramer, Grace Mayer, Carol Duncan, Eva Cockroft, Richard Pommer, Rosalind Krauss, Sally Stein, Paddy Chayefsky, John Hanhardt, Mel Ramsden, Sarah Charlesworth, Jospeh Kosuth, Baruch Kirschenbaum, Robert Heinecken, Brian O'Doherty, Howard Becker, Jay Ruby, Jerry Liebling, Anna Wilkie, Ronald Feldman, John Gibson, David Ross, Britt Salvesen, Larry Sultan, Mike Mandel, Roy Ascott, Ilene Segalove, Paul Schimmel, DeeDee Halleck, Noel Burch, Joan Braderman, Woody Hayes, Thom Andersen, John Quigley, Ron Green, Kasper Koenig, Dan Graham, Jonathan Green, Christa Wolf, Catherine Lord, Ben Lifson, and Annette Michelson.
Biographical / Historical:
Allan Sekula (1951-2013) was a photographer, filmmaker, and writer, based at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California. Mary Panzer (1955- ) is a historian from New York, New York.
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.
Occupation:
Photographers -- California  Search this
Filmmakers -- California  Search this
Authors -- California  Search this
Topic:
Activism  Search this
Antisemitism  Search this
Architecture  Search this
Art -- Exhibitions -- Economic aspects  Search this
Art -- History  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Art -- Study and teaching  Search this
Conceptual art  Search this
Documentary photography  Search this
Korean War, 1950-1953  Search this
Music -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Photography  Search this
Realism  Search this
World War, 1914-1918  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.sekula11
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9d657e5da-cd1b-4366-9fe9-1852a4c5be81
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-sekula11
Online Media:

Marchal Landgren Papers

Creator:
Landgren, Marchal E.  Search this
Names:
American Abstract Artists  Search this
Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Artists Equity Association  Search this
Contemporary Arts (Gallery)  Search this
Joseph Mitchell Gallery  Search this
Municipal Art Committee (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Old Print Shop (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
University of Maryland at College Park  Search this
Washington, D.C.. Public Library  Search this
Abbott, Berenice, 1898-1991  Search this
Albers, Josef  Search this
Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this
Beaton, Cecil Walter Hardy, Sir, 1904-  Search this
Constant, George  Search this
Cox, George Collins, 1851-1902  Search this
De Laittre, Eleanor, 1911-1998  Search this
Fitch, Clyde, 1865-1909  Search this
Force, Juliana, 1876-1948  Search this
Fruhauf, Aline, 1909-1978  Search this
Gallatin, A. E. (Albert Eugene), 1881-1952  Search this
Geist, Sidney  Search this
Gershwin, George, 1898-1937  Search this
Glackens, Ira, 1907-1990  Search this
Greene, Balcomb, 1904-1990  Search this
Harari, Hananiah, 1912-2000  Search this
Higgins, Eugene, 1874-1958  Search this
Holtzman, Harry  Search this
Hunt, William Morris, 1824-1879  Search this
Janauschek, Francesca Romana Magdalena, 1830-1904  Search this
Kane, John, 1860-1934  Search this
Kipling, Rudyard, 1865-1936  Search this
Laufman, Sidney, 1891-  Search this
Logasa, Charles, 1883-1936  Search this
Mitchell, Donald Grant, 1822-1908  Search this
Newman, Robert Loftin, 1827-1912  Search this
Orr, Elliot, 1904-1997  Search this
Portinari, Cândido, 1903-1962  Search this
Ryder, Albert Pinkham, 1847-1917  Search this
Saint-Gaudens, Augustus, 1848-1907  Search this
Sprinchorn, Carl, 1887-1971  Search this
Extent:
15.3 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Christmas cards
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Sketches
Drawings
Date:
1881-circa 1982
bulk 1930-1975
Summary:
The papers of Washington, D.C. art historian, librarian, author, educator, and art consultant Marchal Landgren measure 15.3 linear feet and date from 1881 to circa 1982, with the bulk of the material dating from 1930 to 1975. Included are biographical materials, correspondence, writings and notes, professional and organization files, research projects' files, scattered personal business records, printed materials, two clippings scrapbooks, photographical materials, and scattered artwork.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Washington, D.C. art historian, librarian, author, educator, and art consultant Marchal Landgren measure 15.3 linear feet and date from 1881 to circa 1982, with the bulk of the material dating from 1930 to 1975. Included are biographical materials, correspondence, writings and notes, professional and organization files, research projects' files, scattered personal business records, printed materials, two clippings scrapbooks, photographical materials, and scattered artwork.

Biographical material includes address cards, an appointment book, curriculum vitaes, genealogical materials, and military records. Correspondence is with artists, clients, colleagues, museums, and universities, and is predominantly professional in nature. Correspondents include Albert E. Gallatin, George Gershwin, Ira Glackens, Sidney Laufman, Elliot Orr, Candido Portinari, and Carl Sprinchorn, among others.

Writings include miscellaneous published and unpublished writings and drafts by Marchal Landgren primarily those not associated with his major research projects. These include various articles written for magazines and journals, manuscript drafts, research notes, and notebooks. There is also a file of writings by others that includes the John Mitchell Gallery Notes.

Professional and organizational files document Landgren's positions and work for educational institutions and arts organizations, including the American Abstract Artists Group, Art Students League of New York, Association of Artists Equity of Washington D. C., Contemporary Arts, D. C. Public Library, Library Journal, New York City Municipal Art Committee, Old Print Shop, Inc., and the University of Maryland, among others. These files also contain correspondence, perhaps the most notable found in the file on the American Abstract Artists Group which includes letters from Josef Albers, Eleanor de Laittre, Sidney Geist, Balcomb Greene, Hananiah Harari, and Harry Holtzman.

Well over one-half of the collection consists of files for Landgren's ongoing research projects on numerous artists and photographers, Latin American art, as well as his bibliographic reference projects. The bulk of the files cover his research, writing, and curatorial work on Robert Loftin Newman. Files are also found for Berenice Abbott, Milton Avery, George Constant, George Collins Cox, Aline Fruhauf, Eugene Higgins, William Morris Hunt, John Kane, Charles Logasa, Elliot Orr, and Albert Pinkham Ryder, among many others.

Personal business records include personal and general expense documentation and scattered exhibition price lists. Printed materials include clippings, exhibition catalogs, and miscellaneous published articles and essays. There are two scrapbooks of clippings.

There are photographs, slides, and negatives of images of Landgren, other artists and notable figures in the art world, and of artwork. Of note is a portrait photograph of Juliana Force by Cecil Beaton, one photograph by Berenice Abbott, "Barclay Street Ferry", and 14 taken by George C. Cox of Rudyard Kipling, Clyde Fitch, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Madame Fanny Janauschek, Donald G. Mitchell, and others.

The papers also include scattered artwork, including holiday cards illustrated by artists, and sketches and drawings by other artists.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 10 series.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, circa 1890-circa 1981 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1930-circa 1982 (0.6 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 3: Writings and Notes, circa 1932-circa 1982 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)

Series 4: Professional and Organizational Files, circa 1910-circa 1977 (3.4 linear feet; Boxes 3-6)

Series 5: Research Projects' Files, 1881-circa 1982 (6.9 linear feet; Boxes 6-13, 15)

Series 6: Personal Business Records, circa 1934-circa 1982 (0.4 linear feet; Box 13)

Series 7: Printed Material, circa 1927-circa 1981 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 13-14)

Series 8: Scrapbooks, circa 1931-circa 1979 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 14-15)

Series 9: Photographic Materials, circa 1930s-circa 1978 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 14-15)

Series 10: Artwork, circa 1930s-circa 1940s (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 14-15)
Biographical / Historical:
Marchal E. Landgren (1907-1983) was an art historian, librarian, educator, author, and art consultant, active in New York and Washington, D. C.

As associate director and board member of Contemporary Arts, Inc. in New York, Landgren established a program for providing artists with their first solo exhibition in New York, including those of John Kane and Mark Tobey. In 1932, he directed the exhibition schedule at the New School for Social Research; and in 1935, Landgren served as the director of art activities for the New York City Municipal Art Committee where he facilitated many exhibitions over the course of five years, including Recent Paintings by Boris Aronson at Babcock Galleries in 1938.

Working as a freelance art consultant, researcher, and author, Landgren organized numerous exhibitions between 1932 and 1950 of the work of Milton Avery, George C. Cox, Elliot Orr, Robert Loftin Newman, and Albert Pinkham Ryder. He also edited several arts publications, including the Old Print Shop Portfolio, John Mitchell Gallery Notes, and arts manuscripts for Oxford University Press.

In 1939, Landgren was selected by the New York World's Fair Commision to prepare historical notes on Latin American art for the exhibition catalogs of the Latin American art exhibition. After the Fair, he continued his research on this topic and wrote several articles, as well as lecturing on Latin American painting at the Art Students League of New York, the Newark Art Club, and the National Education Association at the Boston Museum.

After serving in the U. S. Army Air Force during World War II, Landgren moved to Washington, D. C. in 1950 and began work as the arts division readers' advisor for the D. C. Public Library. For seventeen years, he built up the library's general collection of art books and created extensive files of art exhibition catalogs.

In 1967, he took a position as a bibliographic consultant for the fine arts department at the University of Maryland. He became director of the University's art gallery and of the art department museum training program. During his tenure at the University of Maryland, Landgren conducted graduate seminars in art history, edited and published exhibition catalogs, and organized exhibitions, including The Late Landscapes of William Morris Hunt in 1976.

Landgren was a visiting scholar at the Smithsonian Institution's National Collection of Fine Arts and curated an exhibition of paintings by Robert Loftin Newman held there from 1973 to 1974 and at the Tennessee Fine Arts Center in 1974.

Marchal Landgren authored two books: Years of Art: The Story of the Art Students League of New York (Robert M. McBride and Company, 1940), and Robert Loftin Newman (Smithsonian Institution Press, 1974). He was a regular reviewer of art books for the Library Journal from 1958 to 1972, and contributed reviews to Trend, Magazine of Art, and other journals. He was awarded a research grant by the American Council of Learned Societies in 1963 for his study of George C. Cox and did a great deal of research in American art and American art institutions for an unfinished manuscript. He also worked on a bibliography of art literature which he never completed.
Provenance:
The Marchal Landgren papers were donated by Landgren in 1974, and by the Landgren estate via David Huddle in 1983.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Librarians -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Educators -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Authors -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Art historians -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Art consultants -- Washington (D.C.)  Search this
Topic:
Art, American  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Genre/Form:
Christmas cards
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Sketches
Drawings
Citation:
Marchal Landgren papers, 1881-circa 1982, bulk 1930-1975. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.landmarc
See more items in:
Marchal Landgren Papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw946a644a0-83cc-46a7-8c56-e9c63db0e1b4
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-landmarc

Katherine Dunn Pagon papers relating to the Barnes Foundation

Creator:
Pagon, Katherine W. Dunn, 1892-1988  Search this
Names:
Barnes Foundation  Search this
Philadelphia Museum of Art  Search this
Barnes, Albert C. (Albert Coombs), 1872-1951  Search this
Kimball, Fiske, 1888-1955  Search this
Extent:
0.4 Linear feet ((75 items))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
[ca. 1938-1961]
Scope and Contents:
Letters, notes, writings and printed material collected by Pagon regarding the Barnes Foundation, Albert C. Barnes, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Included are letters, 1948-1952, from Pagon to the editors of Philadelphia area newspapers regarding the Barnes Foundation, and several letters received, 1948-1953, including one from Barnes, 1950; Pagon's notes from a Barnes Foundation class taught by Angelo Pinto, 1946, and other notes; a file containing copies of correspondence between Barnes, Henry Clifford and Fiske Kimball regarding a 1948 Matisse exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art; writings by Barnes, including pamphlets on art education and writings on Fiske Kimball, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the arts in Philadelphia, 1938-1948.
Printed material includes a pamphlet, 1938, by Harry Fuiman, "The Progressive Decay of the Pennsylvania Museum of Art," an article on Matisse, and pamphlets and clippings on Barnes and the Foundation, primarily focused on the lawsuit after Barnes' death to force the Foundation to open its gallery to the public, 1943-1961.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, Philadelphia, Pa., and Baltimore, Md. Studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts between 1910 and 1918, and later at the Barnes Foundation. Albert C. Barnes was a collector of modern art who acquired over 800 paintings, particularly French Impressionists and other modern painters such as Cezanne, Renoir, Matisse and Picasso. The collection is housed in the Barnes Foundation in Merion, Pa. Barnes directed in his will that the collection never be allowed to tour or be reproduced.
Provenance:
Donated by Pagon's granddaughter, Katherine Pagon Tawney and her husband, Lee Tawney, 1992.
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.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- Pennsylvania  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.pagokath
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f2b60957-e97e-487d-89c8-13305cc55287
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-pagokath

Biesel family papers

Creator:
Biesel family  Search this
Names:
Artists Equity Association  Search this
Federal Art Project (Ill.)  Search this
United States. Works Progress Administration  Search this
University of Chicago. Renaissance Society  Search this
Beisel, Frances Strain, 1898-1962  Search this
Biesel, Charles, 1865-1945  Search this
Biesel, Fred, 1893-1954  Search this
Richards, William Trost, 1833-1905  Search this
Extent:
2.9 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Drawings
Sketchbooks
Date:
circa 1859-1983
bulk 1919-1983
Summary:
The Biesel Family papers measure 2.9 linear feet and date from circa 1859-1983, with bulk dates from 1919-1983. The papers document the careers of a Chicago family of artists, which included Charles Biesel, his son Fred Biesel and Fred Biesel's wife Frances Strain Biesel. Materials include biographical summaries, Fred and Frances Biesel's personal and professional correspondence, writings, and professional records documenting Fred Biesel's involvement with the Federal Arts Project and Frances Biesel's tenure as the director of the Renissance Society at the University of Chicago. Also found are scrapbooks with news clippings, printed materials, photographs of the Biesel family and their artwork, and artwork in the form of handmade Christmas cards, sketchbooks and loose figure sketches and small paintings.
Scope and Contents:
The Biesel Family papers measure 2.9 linear feet and date from circa 1859-1983, with bulk dates from 1919-1983. The papers document the careers of a Chicago family of artists, which included Charles Biesel, his son Fred Biesel and Fred Biesel's wife Frances Strain Biesel. Included in the papers are biographical material; correspondence; writings; professional files; personal business records; printed material; scrapbooks; photographic material and artwork. Correspondence contains letters to Frances and Fred Biesel regarding exhibiting artwork, project consultation, club membership and speaking engagements. Writings contains a notebook with addresses and price list notes; lecture notes and essay drafts by Fred Biesel on printmaking and art movements such as modernism and cubism, as well as essay typescripts and lectures by others. Also found is a short story about a meeting with Charles Biesel. Professional Files contain correspondence, funding proposals, business records and other materials related to the Biesel's management and participation in various organizations and project such as The Renaissance Society and Artist Union Chicago in Frances Biesel's case and Fred Biesel's involvement with the WPA's Federal Art Project's Illinois chapter, as well as his time as an art professor. The personal business records series contains Charles Biesel's deed lists, and printed material includes several exhibition catalogs related to the Biesel family and other artists, along with clippings and materials related to the Federal Arts Program. The papers also include two scrapbooks of clippings, photographs of the Biesel family, their friends and art associations, artwork, and exhibitions. Artwork is in the form of sketches, etchings, handmade christmas cards and small paintings.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as nine series

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1949-1961 (2 Folders: Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1927-1963 (0.1 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 3: Writings, circa 1921-1960 (0.1 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 4: Professional Files, circa 1939-1962 (0.5 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 5: Personal Business, circa 1928-1961 (2 Folders: Box 1)

Series 6: Printed Material, circa 1897-1983 (1.5 Linear feet: Box 1-3)

Series 7: Scrapbooks, 1915-1931 (0.1 Linear feet: Box 3, OV 1)

Series 8: Photographic Material, circa 1919-1960 (0.3 Linear feet: Box 3)

Series 9: Artwork, circa 1876-1945 (0.4 Linear feet: Box 4)
Biographical / Historical:
The Biesel Family papers measure 2.9 linear feet and date from circa 1859-1983, with bulk dates from 1919-1983. The Biesel Family were a family of artists comprised of Charles Biesel, his son Fred Biesel, and Fred's wife Frances Strain Biesel.

Charles Biesel (1865-1945) was a marine painter who spent time apprenticing and working with the American Lithography Company in New York and Philadelphia before relocating to Newport, Rhode Island where he co-founded the Newport Art Association in 1912. In 1918, Charles Biesel moved to Chicago where he lived at the 57th street artist colony and was a member of the Arts Club of Chicago and the Chicago Society of Artists. He also helped found the Chicago No-Jury Society of Artists where he served as the organization's first secretary. Biesel exhibited work in several solo exhibitions across the United States; as well as with a group of other Chicago painters who exhibited work annually at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Fred Biesel (1893-1954) was a painter and art administrator born in Philadelphia in 1893 and raised in Newport, Rhode Island where he went on to study at the Rhode Island School of Design from 1913 to 1915. After serving in the U.S. Naval Reserve from 1916 to 1919, Biesel followed his father to Chicago and continued studying at the Art Institute of Chicago where he met his wife Francis Strain and painter John Sloan who wound up influencing them significantly and becoming a lifelong friend. Biesel exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Chicago Society of Artists, and the Society of Independent Artists. He also participated in museum exhibitions in Rhode Island, New York, New Mexico, and New Jersey. From 1935–1943, Biesel worked under the Federal Art Project, and served as director of Illinois Art and Craft Project from 1941–1943, as well as on the faculty of the Layton Art School in Milwaukee 1946–1953.

Frances Strain Biesel (1898-1962) was a painter and director of the Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago. A native of Chicago, Frances Strain Biesel was an important figure in the art scene of 1920s-1930s Chicago where she was involved in almost every independent exhibition and exhibition group that emerged during that time. Two of these groups included the Chicago No-Jury Society of Artists and the Ten Artists of Chicago, a collective characterized by their commitment to modernist ideals. Her work has been shown across the country, including the Chicago Society of Artists, the Whitney Museum and the Newark Museum.
Provenance:
Microfilmed material was donated in 1985 by Garnett Biesel, son of Fred and Frances Biesel. He later donated unmicrofilmed material in 1990, after it had been used in preparation for the book The Federal Art Project in Illinois, 1935-1943 (1990), by George Mavigliano and Richard Lawson.
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.
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:
Marine painters -- Illinos -- Chicago  Search this
Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Modernism (Art)  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Genre/Form:
Drawings
Sketchbooks
Citation:
Biesel Family Papers, circa 1859-1983. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.biesfami
See more items in:
Biesel family papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw934594a62-5981-42c6-af0b-69aab802d235
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-biesfami

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