The Naomi Savage papers on Man Ray measure 1.6 linear feet and date from 1913-2005. The collection provides an overview of Man Ray's career as a photographer and painter through correspondence, exhibition files, writings, notes, artwork, printed material, and photographs.
Scope and Content Note:
The Naomi Savage papers on Man Ray measure 1.6 linear feet and date from 1913-2005. The collection provides an overview of Man Ray's career as a photographer and painter through correspondence, exhibition files, writings, notes, artwork, printed material, and photographs.
Correspondence primarily consists of incoming letters from art historians, students, publishers, museums, and galleries interested in obtaining biographical information, scheduling exhibitions, or seeking permission to reproduce artwork. Correspondents include Theodora Greenbaum, Sam Hunter, and Roberta Kimmel. Also found is a letter to Man Ray from Isamu Noguchi.
Exhibition files document some of Man Ray's solo and group exhibitions held at museums and galleries in the United States and abroad, including Galerie Anderson Mayer, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Prakapas Gallery, Helen Serger, La Boetie, Inc., Ronny Van De Velde Gallery, Serpentine Gallery, Vered Gallery, and Zabriskie Gallery.
Writings and notes include typescripts of unpublished pieces on Man Ray and Surrealist photography and on Juliet Man Ray, miscellaneous writings, and Naomi Savage's list of Man Ray published work. Artwork consists of an artist's proof of a print by Paul Levitt.
Printed material houses news and periodical clippings on Man Ray and Juliet Man Ray, newsletters, reproductions of artwork, and miscellaneous printed material. Clippings provide documentation on Man Ray's early commercial photography for advertisements and fashion magazines as well as his experimental photographic work.
Photographs include portrait photographs of Man Ray and Juliet Man Ray. There are photographs of Man Ray and Juliet with family, friends, and colleagues, including photographs of Marcel Duchamp and Teeny Duchamp.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Naomi Savage Correspondence, 1939-1995 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)
Series 2: Man Ray Exhibition Files, 1941-1997 (Box 1, OV 4; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1974-1998 (Box 1, OV 4; 0.1 linear feet)
Series 4: Artwork, circa 1963 (Box 1; 1 folder)
Series 5: Printed Material, circa 1913-1998 (Boxes 1, 3; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 6: Photographs, 1913-1991 (Boxes 1-3; 0.4 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Photographer Naomi Siegler Savage (1927-2007) lived and worked in Princeton, New Jersey. While a teenager, Savage attended a photography class taught by Berenice Abbott and pursued this interest at Bennington College in Vermont. In California, Savage apprenticed with her uncle Man Ray, who was a close friend as well as mentor to his niece.
Influenced by Man Ray's experimental techniques with film, Naomi Savage pioneered the use of the photographic metal plate which produced a three dimensional form with a metallic surface. One of her best-known photographic engravings is a magnesium mural for the Johnson Library and Museum in Austin, Texas, depicting the national elective offices held by President Johnson and the various Presidents under which he served. In later years, Savage continued to experiment with the photographic process by using digital cameras, color photocopiers, and computer imaging.
In 1952, Savage had her first exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In addition to the Museum of Modern Art, Savage's work is also in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Fogg Museum at Harvard University, the International Center of Photography in New York, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts.
Naomi Savage was married to the painter, sculptor, and architect, David Savage. Naomi Savage died in Princeton, New Jersey in 2007.
Man Ray (1890-1976) lived and worked in New York and Paris, France and was best known for his painting and photography.
Man Ray was born Emmanuel Radnitsky in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1890. His family later moved to Brooklyn, New York. During this period, the family changed their name to Ray and Emmanuel shortened his first name to Man, gradually using Man Ray as his combined single name. Man Ray attended Boys High School from 1904-1908 where he developed an interest in painting. After high school, he worked as a commercial artist and technical illustrator in New York City while attending classes at the Art Students League, Ferrer School, and National Academy of Design.
Influenced by European artists, whose Modernist works were being shown at the 1913 Armory Show and Alfred Stieglitz's "292" Gallery, and other such venues, Man Ray began to incorporate elements of Cubism in his paintings and drawings. In 1915, Man Ray met Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) and they formed a lifelong friendship and professional partnership. That same year, the Dada group, founded by a Tristan Tzara and other artists in Zurich, Switzerland also took root in New York; Man Ray, Marcel Duchamp and Francis Picabia were credited for starting the New York Dada movement.
By 1921, Man Ray moved to Paris and became part of the circle that formed the Dada group. He photographed many of the Dada poets and writers, including Louis Aragon, André Breton, and Paul Eluard. Man Ray's work for André Breton established his reputation as a portrait photographer of artists, writers, and other prominent individuals, including George Antheil, Salvador Dalí, James Joyce, Sinclair Lewis, Gertrude Stein, and Virginia Woolf. In that same period, Man Ray pioneered the photographic process of rayographs (named after him) and he also participated in the first Surrealist exhibition at the Galerie Pierre.
Man Ray moved to Los Angeles, California in 1940. There he met New York City-born Juliet Browner (1910-1991), a trained dancer and professional artists' model. They married in 1946 in a double wedding ceremony with their friends Max Ernst and Dorothea Tanning. In 1951, Man Ray and Juliet Man Ray returned to live in the Montparnasse section of Paris.
In addition to an autobiography, Self-Portrait, published in 1963, Man Ray wrote a number of monographs and articles on photography that included Electricité, a portfolio of ten gravure prints of rayographs commissioned by the Paris electric company, Compagnie Parisenne de Distribution d'Electricité, 1931.
Man Ray received an honorary Master of Fine Arts degree from Freemont University, Los Angeles, 1948 and the gold medal for photography at the Venice Photo Biennale, 1962. In 1967, Man Ray received an award from the Philadelphia Arts Festival honoring its native son for his accomplishments.
Man Ray died in Paris in 1976. Juliet Man Ray survived her husband and continued to live in Paris until her death in 1991.
Provenance:
The Naomi Savage papers were donated in 2007 by Lourie Savage Bates, Naomi Savage's daughter. Naomi Savage was Man Ray's niece.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Research materials collected for Hunter's monograph LARRY RIVERS (Harry Abrams, Inc., 1969).
Reel 630: Correspondence, 1965-1969, a 59 page biography of Rivers, disposition lists of Rivers' works, a chronolgy and bibliography, a typescript of a tape-recorded interview with Rivers, 1969, writings and a lecture by Rivers, a typescript of LARRY RIVERS, and clippings.
Reel 630: Approximately 50 photographs, 1949-1968, of which 2 are personal photographs and the remainder are of works of art, Rivers painting, and gallery installations of Rivers' work.
Reel 673: 470 photographs of the works of Larry Rivers.
Biographical / Historical:
Art historian and educator; Princeton, New Jersey. Hunter has taught at Princeton since 1969. He has worked in many capacities for Harry N. Abrams, Inc., including editor-in-chief, 1971-72. He has curated and consulted for museum exhibitions at several institutions including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Minneapolis Art Institute and the Princeton Art Museum. Larry Rivers is a contemporary painter known for his life-size portraits.
Provenance:
The donor, Sam Hunter, gave this material after it was used by the Chicago Art Institute for a retrospective exhibit on Larry Rivers.
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.
The papers of painter and educator Hughie Lee-Smith measure 33.7 linear feet and 0.381 GB and date from circa 1890 to 2007, with the bulk of the material dating from 1931 to 1999. The collection documents Lee-Smith's career through biographical material, personal and professional correspondence, writings by Lee-Smith and others, personal business records, exhibition files, organization records, printed material, scrapbooks, photographs, a small amount of artwork, numerous interviews, and recordings for a documentary film on Lee-Smith. Also found are the papers of artist Rex Goreleigh, a friend of Lee-Smith.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of painter and educator Hughie Lee-Smith measure 33.7 linear feet and 0.381 GB and date from circa 1890 to 2007, with the bulk of the material dating from 1931 to 1999. The collection documents Lee-Smith's career through biographical material, personal and professional correspondence, writings by Lee-Smith and others, personal business records, exhibition files, organization records, printed material, scrapbooks, photographs, a small amount of artwork, numerous interviews, and recordings for a documentary film on Lee-Smith. Also found are the papers of artist Rex Goreleigh, a friend of Lee-Smith.
Biographical material includes records of Hughie Lee-Smith's schooling, military service, and awards, as well as resumes, bibliographies, and biographical summaries. Also found are family records, including the papers of his mother, Alice Carroll.
Lee-Smith's correspondence is with family, students, arts and cultural organizations, as well as schools, galleries, and museums, primarily regarding his participation in events and exhibitions. He also corresponded with fellow artists, such as Clarence Holbrook Carter, Reginald Gammon, Joseph Hirsch, Carol Wald, and Hale Woodruff, among many others. He maintained extensive correspondence with artist Sophie Wessel.
Lee-Smith's writings include artist statements and personal writings on his history and early influences, as well as many draft lectures and speeches, school writings, notes, and untitled writing fragments. Writings by others primarily include student essays and articles on the topic of Lee-Smith's work. Personal business records include scattered financial documents, including artwork sales records, and contracts and agreements with various art galleries and other organizations. Also found are files regarding his art commissions, gifts, professional activities, and records of his employment at the Art Students League. Exhibition files document select exhibitions in which Hughie Lee-Smith participated, primarily during the 1980s and 1990s. Organization records were maintained by Lee-Smith to document his participation in various groups, such as the National Academy of Design, Ira Aldridge Society, and Audubon Artists.
Printed material consists primarily of exhibition announcements and invitations for exhibitions of Lee-Smith's work, as well as news clippings, magazines, press releases, and publications from various art organizations and schools. One scrapbook contains exhibition announcements additional loose scrapbook pages document his early career. Photographs include many portraits of Hughie Lee-Smith, Lee-Smith in his studio, at events, and with friends and family. Additionally there are many photographs, slides, and transparencies of Lee-Smith's artwork. Also found are five photograph albums. A small amount of original artwork includes drawings by Lee-Smith and two sketchbooks belonging to his wife Patricia.
The collection includes numerous interviews of Hughie Lee-Smith, recorded on 37 sound cassettes, one sound tape reel, and four video cassettes. One audio interview is in digital format. Also found are planning documents, research material, and video footage for a documentary about the life and work of Hughie Lee-Smith, produced by New Deal Films, Inc, but never completed. Footage includes interviews with artists and art historians regarding Lee-Smith, gallery events, and images of his paintings.
The papers of artist Rex Goreleigh primarily documents his later life and includes a letters, biographical documents, printed material, estate records, and photographs and slides depicting Goreleigh, his studio, and artwork. Hughie Lee-Smith was close friends with Goreleigh and served as executor of his estate.
Also of note is a scrapbook put together for Goreleigh's 70th birthday in 1972. Of note is one scrapbook which contains photographs, notes, and artwork by fellow artists and students, including drawings by Romare Bearden and Hughie Lee-Smith.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 13 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1890-2001 (1.7 linear feet; Box 1-2, 35, RD 38)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1931-2006 (6.1 linear feet; Box 2-8, 0.006 GB; ER01)
Series 3: Writings, circa 1934-1998 (0.8 linear feet; Box 8-9)
Series 4: Personal Business Records, 1934-2001 (1.6 linear feet; Box 9-11, 35)
Series 5: Exhibition Files, circa 1973-2001 (1.2 linear feet; Box 11-12)
Series 6: Organization Records, 1941-2005 (2.1 linear feet; Box 12-14)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1919, 1930-2007 (8.5 linear feet; Box 14-22, 34)
Series 8: Scrapbooks, circa 1938-1990s (0.2 linear feet; Box 22, 35)
Series 9: Photographs, circa 1890-2003 (4.4 linear feet; Box 22-26, 35, OV 37)
Series 10: Artwork, circa 1940s-1980s (0.2 linear feet; Box 26)
Series 11: Interviews, 1973-1998 (2.1 linear feet; Box 26-28, 0.375 GB; ER02)
Series 12: Documentary Film Materials, 1985-2004 (3.5 linear feet; Box 28-32)
Series 13: Rex Goreleigh Papers, 1935-1994 (0.9 linear feet; 32-33, 36)
Biographical / Historical:
Hughie Lee-Smith (1915-1999) was a painter and educator in Ohio, Michigan, and New York. Born in Eustis, Florida, he lived for a period of time with family in Atlanta before joining his mother in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1925. In 1934 he received a scholarship to attend the Art School of the Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts, and in 1935 returned to Cleveland to attend the Cleveland School of Art. While in school he began exhibiting his paintings and teaching part-time at Karamu House. From 1938 to 1940 Lee-Smith completed lithography commissions for the Ohio WPA. In 1941 he moved to Detroit, married his first wife Mabel Louise Everett, and worked at a Ford automobile factory. He was then drafted into the U.S. Navy as a mural artist. After the war he briefly returned to factory work before enrolling at Wayne State University, earning a degree in Art Education in 1953. From 1953 to 1965 he taught summer art classes at the Grosse-Point War Memorial in Detroit.
In 1957 Lee-Smith moved to the East Village in New York City, signed with the Janet Nassler Gallery (Petite Gallery), exhibited his work extensively, and joined several art organizations. He also taught art at schools in Princeton, New Jersey. In 1967 he became the second African-American member of the National Academy of Design. He was visiting instructor and artist-in-residence at several art programs, including Howard University, and taught at the Art Students League from 1972 to 1988. In 1978 he married his third wife, Patricia. The New Jersey State Museum organized an extensive retrospective of Lee-Smith's work in 1988 which travelled nationally. Despite ill-health in the mid-1990s, he continued to create new paintings and exhibit his work. In 1997 he moved with his wife to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he lived until his death in 1999.
Related Materials:
Also found at the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Hughie Lee-Smith conducted by Carroll Greene in 1968.
Provenance:
A small amount of material was donated 1969-1981 by Hughie Lee-Smith. Additional papers were donated in 2011 by Patricia Lee-Smith, widow of Hughie Lee-Smith.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice. Fragile original address books are closed to researchers and have been digitized for access. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
Authorization to publish requires written permission from Robert Panzer, VAGA. The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Letters from Erwin Panofsky to art historians Wolfgang Stechow (1930-1931) and Lili Fröhlich-Bum (1931); and to art librarian at the Brooklyn Museum, William B. Walker (1960). The letters to Stechow were written as Stechow was preparing a review of Panofsky's book, Hercules am Scheidewege und andere anitike Bildstoffe inder neueren Kunst, and provide additional information not found in the book itself.
Biographical / Historical:
Art historian; Princeton, New Jersey.
Provenance:
Donated 1994 by Irving Lavin who found the letters in William Stechow's copy of Hercules am Scheidewege which he received from Stechow's widow.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New Jersey -- Princeton Search this
The papers of Erwin Panofsky measure 19.8 linear feet and are dated 1904-1990 (bulk dates 1920-1968). They consist of correspondence, writings, biographical material, and printed material documenting Panofsky's career as an art historian, teacher, and writer. The Panofsky papers are comprised mainly of correspondence with colleagues, scholars, students, art dealers, galleries and museums, libraries, colleges and universities, organizations, and periodicals.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of Erwin Panofsky measure 19.8 linear feet and are dated 1904-1990 (bulk dates 1920-1968). They consist of correspondence, writings, biographical material, and printed material documenting Panofsky's career as an art historian, teacher, and writer.
The Panofsky papers are comprised mainly of correspondence with colleagues, scholars, students, art dealers, galleries and museums, libraries, colleges and universities, organizations, and periodicals. Among the correspondents are colleagues, scholars, students, art dealers, galleries and museums, libraries, colleges and universities, organizations, and periodicals. Correspondents include: Udo von Alvensleben, Walter William Spencer Cook, Paul Coremans, Walter Friedländer, William S. Heckscher, Ludwig H. Heydenreich, Horst Janson, Adolf Katzenellenbogen, Richard Krauatheimer, Edward E. Lowinsky, Millard Meiss, Gert van Osten, Richard Salomon, Craig Smyth, Wolfgang Stechow, Booth and Betty Tarkington, Egon Verheyen, and Wilhelm Vöge.
Writings by Panofsky include drafts, notes, and manuscripts of articles, book reviews, books, and lectures. Biographical material consists of awards and certificates, diplomas (including many honorary degrees), and membership certificates. Among the printed material are articles and clippings about or mentioning Panofsky, programs for graduation ceremonies at which Panofsky was awarded honorary degrees, reviews of Panofsky's books, obituaries, and memorial programs and tributes.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 4 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1921-1978, undated (Boxes 1-16; 16 linear ft.; Reels 2108- 2128)
Series 2: Writings, 1915-1968, undated (Boxes 17-19; 2.3 linear ft.)
Series 3: Biographical Information, 1905-1967 (Boxes 19-21; 0.5 linear ft.)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1904-1990, undated (Box 19; 0.5 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Erwin Panofsky (1892-1968), a native of Hannover, Germany, grew up in Berlin where he received a classical education at the Joachimsthalsches Gymnasium. He then studied at the universities of Berlin, Munich and Freiburg/Breslau. After earning a Ph. D. in 1914 from the University of Freiburg, Panofsky spent three years on post-doctoral study in Berlin, and during this period, married fellow student and art historian Dorothea (Dora) Mosse.
Although primarily a scholar of Gothic and Renaissance art, Panofsky had wide interests. Erwin Panofsky was a highly respected and influential scholar who was a much loved, generous, and encouraging teacher of several generations of productive scholars. Many students became his life long friends, and quite a few of them considered Panofsky the greatest teacher they had ever encountered.
He taught at the University of Hamburg from 1920 to1933, and during this period began to develop iconographic approaches to interpreting art through analysis of its subject matter's symbols, themes, and history. His work in this area eventually had international influence in the development of art history as a discipline.
Beginning in 1931, Panofsky taught at New York University, spending alternate semesters at the University of Hamburg until the Nazis dismissed all Jewish officials. He and his family fled Germany and came to the United States in 1933. During the academic year 1934/35, Panofsky held concurrent appointments at both New York University and Princeton University. He joined the faculty of the newly formed Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey, in 1935, where he remained until his retirement in 1962. In addition, he continued to teach graduate seminars at New York University and Princeton Universtiy.
He was a prolific writer, and his many books and articles represent some of the 20th century's most important writings in the field of art history, particularly in the realm of iconography. Among his books are: "Idea": Ein Beitrag zur Begriffsgeschichte der älteren Kunstheorie (1924) [translated later as Idea, The History of a Concept], Studies in Iconology (1939), Codex Huygens and Leonardo da Vinci's Art Theory (1940), The Life and Art of Albrecht Dürer (1943), Abbot Suger on the Abbey Church of St. Denis and Its Art Treasures (1946), Gothic Architecture and Scholasticism (1951), Early Netherlandish Painting: Its Origins and Character (1953), Meaning and the Visual Arts (1950), Renaissance and Renascences in Western Art (1960), The Iconography of Correggio's Camera di San Paolo (1961), and Problems in Titian, Mostly Iconographic (1964).
Panofsky wrote on subjects other than art history. He was an authority on Mozart, and also wrote about the history of cinema. His 1934 article "On Movies" (originally published in Princeton University's Bulletin of the Department of Art and Archaeology), remains a highly regarded work on the subject.
The recipient of numerous honorary degrees, Panofsky most prized the first from the University of Utrecht, 1936, as it brought great satisfaction at a time when he was still coping with the trauma of expatriation. He was a member of the American Philosophical Society, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the British Academy, and several other foreign academies. In 1962, Panofsky received the Haskins Medal awarded by The Medieval Academy of America for a distinguished book in medieval history.
His wife Dora Mosse Panofsky died in 1965; in 1966, he married Gerda Soergel, also an art historian. Erwin Panofsky died in Princeton, New Jersey, March 14, 1968.
Related Material:
Among the Archives' holdings is a collection of letters from Erwin Panofsky to art historians Wolfgang Stechow (1930-1931) and Lili Fröhlich-Bum (1931), and to Brooklyn Museum art librarian William B. Walker (1960) which is available on 35-mm microfilm reel 5136, frames 812-824. The letters to Stechow were written as he was preparing a review of Panofsky's book, Hercules am Scheidewege und andere antike Bildstoffe inder neueren Kunst, and provide additional information not found in the book itself. The letter to Mr. Walke is in Englishe, and the remainder are in German. The originals are still in the possession of Irving Lavin, who found them in Stechow's copy of Hercules am Scsheidewege given him by Mrs. Stechow.
Provenance:
The Erwin Panofsky papers were donated by his widow, Dr. Gerda Soergel Panofsky, in 1979 and 1990.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Patrons must use microfilm copy. Use of the unmicrofilmed portion requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. research facility.
Rights:
The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New Jersey -- Princeton Search this
The papers of art historian, writer, and educator Millard Meiss measure 11.4 linear feet and date from circa 1918 to circa 1977, with the bulk of the material dating from 1950 to 1975. The papers are comprised of biographical material, correspondence, writing projects and lectures, and professional files that document his post World War II work as chairman of the American Committee for the Restoration of Italian Monuments, among other work.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of art historian, writer, and educator Millard Meiss measure 11.4 linear feet and date from circa 1918 to circa 1977, with the bulk of the material dating from 1950 to 1975. The papers are comprised of biographical material, correspondence, writing projects and lectures, and professional files that document his post World War II work as chairman of the American Committee for the Restoration of Italian Monuments, among other work.
Biographical material includes various awards and honorary degrees received; a bibliography of published and unpublished books, articles, essays, and editing projects by Meiss; memorial materials and obituaries for Meiss as well as for Dora and Erwin Panofsky (to whom he was close); and resumes and education materials among other files.
Correspondence is predominantly professional in nature and is with colleagues, peers, museums, and institutions. Some correspondents include Ernst Gombrich, Irving Lavin, Carl Nordenfalk, and Erwin Panofsky, among many others.
Writing project and lecture files document Meiss's work on numerous published and unpublished articles and book projects, and lectures. Books include The Boucicaut Hours, De Artibud Opscula XL: Essays on Erwin Panofsky, French Painting in the Time of Jean de Berry, and Painting in Florence and Siena, among many other works. Files contain manuscripts, notes, book proposals, reviews, correspondence, and clippings.
Professional files document the many committees, institutions, and organizations in which Meiss was involved, including the American Committee for the Restoration of Italian Monuments, Committee to Rescue Italian Art, and International Committee of the History of Art. Also included are general files on The Art Bulletin, College Art Association, Institute for Advanced Study, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Princeton University, among others.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 4 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1918-circa 1977 (0.3 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1936-circa 1977 (4.3 linear feet; Boxes 1-5)
Series 3: Writings Projects and Lectures, circa 1934-circa 1975 (2.4 linear feet; Boxes 5-8)
Series 4: Professional Files, circa 1933-circa 1975 (4.4 linear feet; Boxes 8-12)
Biographical / Historical:
Millard Meiss (1904-1975) was an art historian and educator whose expertise was medieval and Renaissance art. He taught at Columbia University and Princeton, and was a curator at the Fogg Museum for four years. Following World War II, Meiss served as chairman of the American Committee for the Restoration of Italian Monuments until 1951.
Millard Meiss received a B. A. from Princeton University in 1926, and a Ph. D. from New York University in 1933. He was a professor of fine arts and archaeology at Columbia University from 1934-1953. In 1954, Meiss accepted the position of professor of fine arts and curator of paintings at the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University. In 1958, he returned to Princeton, New Jersey to become professor of art history at the Institute for Advanced Study, where he remained for the rest of his career.
While at Columbia University, Meiss acted as editor-in-chief of The Art Bulletin, and also stayed on the editorial board for the next thirty-three years until his death in 1975. Throughout his career, Meiss edited several leading art journals, and wrote numerous articles and books on medieval and Renaissance painting, including Painting in Florence and Siena after the Black Death (1951), and his multi-volume French Painting in the Time of Jean de Berry (1967-1974), as well as many others.
In addition to serving as chairman of the American Committee for the Restoration of Italian Monuments after World War II, Meiss organized the Committee to Rescue Italian Art in 1966 after the flood of the Arno River in Italy. He worked to help organize the first meeting in the United States of the International Congress of the History of Art and served as president and vice-president. He was actively involved in the College Art Association of America.
Meiss was a member of many arts and scholarly organizations in Europe and the United States including the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno, Accademia Senese degli Intronati, Accademia Clementina, Accademia Toscana Colombaria, Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, American Philosophical Society, British Academy, and the Société des Antiquaires de France. In addition, he was a Fellow of the Mediaeval Academy of America and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, as well as an honorary trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Meiss was also the recipient of many awards, including the Wanamaker English Prize, 1925; Haskins Medal from the Mediaeval Academy of America, 1953; Lewis Prize from the American Philosophical Society, 1967; Morey Award from the College Art Association of America, 1969, and posthumously in 1976; and the Art Dealers Association of America Award, 1974.
Provenance:
The Millard Meiss papers were donated to the archives in 1976 and 1986 by Meiss's widow Margaret L. Meiss.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New Jersey -- Princeton Search this
The Berlin painter and his world Athenian vase-painting in the early fifth century B.C. edited by J. Michael Padgett ; with contributions by J. Robert Guy, J. Michael Padgett, Nathan T. Arrington, Jasper Gaunt, Jenifer Neils, John H. Oakley, David Saunders, H.A. Shapiro, Dyfri Williams, Elke Böhr, Pieter Broucke, Susanne Ebbinghaus, An Jiang, Kiki Karoglou, Jessica L. Lamont, Laura M. Lesswing, A...
