An interview of Tyrus Wong conducted 1965 January 30, by Betty Hoag, for the Archives of American Art.
Wong discusses making a film for grade schools and UCLA, which was produced by Eliot O'Hara, where he demonstrated Oriental painting techniques and Joe Jones demonstrated American techniques; working as an illustrator for Republic Studio; designing pottery plates for Greenfield Pottery, Gabriel Pottery in Pasadena; illustrations for the Western Art Review magazine; covers for the Los Angeles Times Home Section 1954 & 1955; text and illustrations for Watercolor Portraits, 1949; designing ads for various magazines; and doing watercolors, lithographs, and murals for the WPA, including the Santa Monica Library. Wong recalls Surasawa, Dorothy Jeakins, Nick Berganti, Hideo Dati, Benjy Ocobo, Carl Winter, Stanton Macdonald-Wright, Jerre Murry, Steven LaVerne Dunwell, George Stanley, Gordon Newell, and Frank Buck.
Biographical / Historical:
Tyrus Wong (1910-2016) was a Chinese American painter, designer, illustrator, and printmaker based in California.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 48 min.
Only the second half of this interview was successfully recorded.
Provenance:
Conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
The papers of painter Masami Teraoka measure 6.3 linear feet and date from 1966 to 2017. The collection includes biographical material, correspondence, writings, personal business records, project and exhibition files, printed material, and photographic material. Much of the collection documents Teraoka's association with Catherine Clark Gallery.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of painter Masami Teraoka measure 6.3 linear feet and date from 1966 to 2017. The collection includes biographical material, correspondence, writings, personal business records, project and exhibition files, printed material, and photographic material. Much of the collection documents Teraoka's association with Catherine Clark Gallery.
Biographical material includes copies of Masami Teraoka's resume, an appointment book, and assorted documents.
Correspondence is primarily business related, with some personal correspondence scattered throughout. Much of this collection appears to have been compiled by Catharine Clark Gallery, where Teraoka has exhibited since 1998, on behalf of the artist. Of the professional correspondence regarding Teraoka's work and upcoming exhibitions present in this series, a significant portion does not appear to be directly to or from the artist.
The writings series is arranged as two subseries: general writings and Masami Teraoka book project. The first subseries includes artist statements, article and essay drafts, lists, and notes. Many of the notes present in this series appear to be from Catherine Clark Gallery gallery regarding Teraoka projects and exhibitions. The second subseries includes correspondence, contracts, drafts of essays, notes and lists, and images related to the production and publication of the book Ascending Chaos: The Art of Masami Teraoka 1966-2006, published by Chronicle Books.
Personal business records include consignment and loan agreements, reproduction requests, inventory and price lists, and sales records. Also included is a "Mega Binder" compiled by Catharine Clark Gallery, which consists primarily of consignment, loan, and sale information and related correspondence.
Project and exhibition files include such material as correspondence, notes, lists, financial information, printed material, and photographic material related to Masami Teraoka exhibitions and projects. Also included in this series are VHS videos related to a documentary and to exhibitions.
Printed material includes books; a course pack from the University of Southern California which includes an essay about Masami Teraoka; exhibition announcements, invitations, and catalogs; magazines, newspapers, and clippings; museum brochures; posters; and press releases. Some printed material is in Japanese.
Photographic material includes personal photographs and snapshots, photographs and photocopies of works of art, and photographs documenting shipping damage.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as seven series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1970, 1980-2005 (Box 1; 4 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1975-2017 (Box 1; 0.9 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, 1966-2012 (Box 2; 1 linear foot)
Series 4: Personal Business Records, 1976-2015 (Box 3; 0.7 linear feet)
Series 5: Project and Exhibition Files, 1976-2010 (Boxes 3-4; 0.9 linear feet)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1973-2017 (Boxes 4-7, OV 8-12; 2.5 linear feet)
Series 7: Photographic Material, circa 1976-2008 (Box 7, 5 folders)
Biographical / Historical:
Masami Teraoka (1936- ) is a Japanese American, Hawaii-based painter known for his paintings created in the style of traditional Japanese Ukiyo-e prints. Teraoka studied aesthetics from 1954 to 1959 at Kwansei Gakuin University in Kobe, Japan. In 1961 he moved to the United States where he attended Otis Art Institute (now Otis College of Art and Design) in Los Angeles from 1964 to 1968, earning both a Bachelors of Fine Art and a Masters of Fine Art. He has exhibited widely, including at the Oakland Museum, the Indiana Museum of Art, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the Yale University Art Gallery, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Queensland Art Gallery, and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. Masami Teraoka lives and works in Hawaii.
Provenance:
The Masami Teraoka papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by Masami Teraoka in 2018.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of audiovisual recordings and electronic records with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
Project files, exhibition files, teaching/workshop files, correspondence, and printed material relating to Sato's career as a video artist and printmaker and her involvement in professional video and artist organizations mainly in the Seattle, Washington area.
Project files contain letters, reports, notes and printed material concerning Sato's Comprehensive Employment Training Act award, a National Endowment for the Arts media grant, the Seattle Art Commission, Soho Television, the Center for Contemporary Art Talk, the Seattle Bumbershoot Arts Festival, the King County Arts Commission, the U.S. Film and Video Festival, the Focal Point Media Center, and others. Exhibition files contain printed material, notes and letters regarding Sato's exhibitions at various institutions, among them the Philadelphia Print Club, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Guggenheim Museum; a file of catalogs and announcements, 1974-1990; and a file of exhibition entries with acceptance/rejection cards.
Lecture/workshop files relate to Sato's position as a lecturer for the Seattle Printmakers Services Association and the Centrum Foundation. Correspondence, 1975-1980, 1990-1991 (20 items) is mainly regarding sales and exhibitions of work, and includes a group of letters from Margo Dolan, director of the Associated American Artists. The collection also includes a few writings by Sato, printed material, and Sato's annotated resume.
Biographical / Historical:
Norie Sato (1949- ) is a Japanese American video artist and printmaker in Seattle, Washington. Sato was born in Japan, and is the founder of the Center for Contemporary Art (COCA) in Seattle and member of the Seattle Arts Commission.
Provenance:
Donated 1991 by Norie Sato.
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.
Occupation:
Video artists -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Search this
Printmakers -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Search this
The papers of painter, printmaker, performance artist, and teacher Roger Shimomura measure 2.6 linear feet and date from 1965 to 1990. Found within the papers are biographical materials, correspondence, writings, notes, printed material, one scrapbook, and photographs.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of painter, printmaker, performance artist, and teacher Roger Shimomura measure 2.6 linear feet and date from 1965 to 1990. Found within the papers are biographical materials, correspondence, writings, notes, printed material, one scrapbook, and photographs.
Biographical materials include a photograph of Shimomura and a resume. The bulk of the papers consist of correspondence files about exhibitions, grants, performances, lectures, and the Japanese-American redress movement. Correspondence is with friends, colleagues, galleries, and with universities and colleges. Correspondents include Frank Chin, Akiko Day, Jonathan R. T. Hughes, and Wayne Miller. Writings and notes include Shimomura's artist's statement, scripts to four plays, and one folder of miscellaneous notes. The papers also include clippings, exhibition announcements, catalogs and miscellaneous printed material. A scrapbook contains clippings of articles that document Shimomura's career. Photographs are of artwork by other artists.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series:
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1989-1990 (Box 1; 1 folder)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1969-1990 (Boxes 1-3; 2.3 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1984, 1987-1989 (Box 3; 5 folders)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1975-1990 (Box 4; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Scrapbook, 1975-1989 (Box 4; 1 folder)
Series 6: Photographs, circa 1970s (Box 4; 1 folder)
Biographical Note:
Roger Shimomura (b. 1939) is a Japanese American painter, printmaker, performance artist, and teacher who has worked primarily in Kansas since 1969.
Roger Shimomura was born in 1939 in Seattle, Washington. He was a third generation Japanese-American and received his B.A. in Graphic Design from the University of Washington in 1961, and a M.F.A. in Painting from Syracuse University in 1969. Shimomura spent two childhood years in one of 10 concentration camps for Japanese-Americans during WWII, and later served as an officer in the United States Army from 1962 to 1965. He was active in the Japanese-American redress movement in the 1970s. Since the 1970s, Shimomura's work has combined American popular imagery with the Japanese ukiyo-e tradition.
He has had over 125 solo exhibitions of paintings and prints, as well as presented his experimental theater pieces at such venues as the Franklin Furnace, New York City, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, and The Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. Shimomura has been a visiting artist and lectured on his work at more than 200 universities, art schools, and museums across the country. Shimomura began teaching at the University of Kansas' Department of Art in 1969 and worked there until his retirement in 2004. At that time he started the Shimomura Faculty Research Support Fund, an endowment to foster faculty research in the Department of Art. Throughout his career, Shimomura has had numerous exhibitions and experimental theater pieces on a national level. In 1999, the Seattle Urban League designated a scholarship in his name that has been awarded annually to a Seattle resident pursuing a career in art. In 2002, the College Art Association presented him with the "Artist Award for Most Distinguished Body of Work," for his 4 year, 12-museum national tour of the painting exhibition, "An American Diary." Shimomura continues to live and work in Kansas.
Provenance:
Roger Shimomura donated his papers in 1990, as part of the Archives of American Art's Northwest Asian-American project in Seattle.
Restrictions:
Use of 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.
The Kenjilo Nanao papers measure 11.3 linear feet and date from circa 1885-1887 and circa 1949-2017, with the bulk of the papers dating from 1970 to 2000. Biographical material includes forms of international identification, travel documents, early academic writing on art, and interviews in the form of written typescripts and digital audio recordings. Correspondence is mostly personal between friends and family, in addition to a few folders of professional correspondence spanning Nanao's career. Correspondence drafts also appear as entries in bound journals. The Journals series includes bound journals of mixed content such as thoughts on art, to-do lists, and artwork in various media including watercolors and charcoal. Professional files include various professional portfolios that Nanao produced for the purpose of tenure review, a binder detailing relationships with various galleries, and various teaching materials and studio documents. Printed materials include exhibition catalogs, invitations, and clippings. Photographs are primarily of family and friends, with some images of artwork and exhibitions. Artwork includes sketchbooks, as well as some loose drawings and watercolors.
Scope and Contents:
The Kenjilo Nanao papers measure 11.3 linear feet and date from circa 1885-1887 and circa 1949-2017, with the bulk of the papers dating from 1970 to 2000. Biographical material includes forms of international identification, travel documents, early academic writing on art, and interviews in the form of written typescripts and digital audio recordings. Correspondence is mostly personal between friends and family, in addition to a few folders of professional correspondence spanning Nanao's career. Correspondence drafts also appear as entries in bound journals. The Journals series includes bound journals of mixed content such as thoughts on art, to-do lists, and artwork in various media including watercolors and charcoal. Professional files include various professional portfolios that Nanao produced for the purpose of tenure review, a binder detailing relationships with various galleries, and various teaching materials and studio documents. Printed materials include exhibition catalogs, invitations, and clippings. Photographs are primarily of family and friends, with some images of artwork and exhibitions. Artwork includes sketchbooks, as well as some loose drawings and watercolors.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in 7 series:
Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1960-circa 2017 (0.3 Linear Feet, .706 GB; Box 1, ER01)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1951-2013 (4.9 Linear Feet; Boxes 1-6)
Series 3: Journals, circa 1949-2013 (3.9 Linear Feet; Boxes 6-9, 12)
Series 4: Professional Files, circa 1967-2011 (1.0 Linear Feet; Box 10)
Series 5: Printed Material, circa 1885-1887, circa 1960-2010 (0.6 Linear Feet; Box 11)
Series 6: Photographic Material, circa 1960-2011 (0.1 Linear Feet; Box 11)
Series 7: Artwork, circa 1976-2010 (0.4 Linear Feet; Boxes 11-12)
Biographical / Historical:
Painter and printmaker Kenjilo Nanao (1929-2013), was born in Aomori, Japan, and graduated with a degree in economics in 1953 from Nihon University before immigrating to the United States to study art in the San Francisco Bay Area. He received a bachelor's degree from the California School of Fine Arts in 1963 as well as a masters of fine arts from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1971, where he studied under Nathan Oliveira and met his wife and fellow artist, Gail Chadell Nanao.
Kenjilo's primary artistic medium was lithography in which he became known for Surrealist minimal figurative compositions. Eventually he immersed himself in painting in an Abstract Expressionist style that became his main form of artistic production from the 1980s on. Nanao taught lithography and painting at California State University at Hayward from 1971-1990, and lectured at various other schools in the San Francisco Bay Area. His work is included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, in New York City, City of San Francisco, Pasadena Art Museum, Los Angeles County Museum, Cincinnati Museum of Art, Honolulu Academy of Art, Gruenwald (University of California, Los Angeles), the Achenbach Foundation, and others.
Kenjilo Nanao died in Berkeley, CA in 2013 and is survived by his wife and son Max.
Provenance:
The Kenjilo Nanao papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2016 and 2018 by Gail Nanao, Kenjilo Nanao's widow.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
An interview of Seong Moy conducted 1971 Jan. 18-28, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Moy speaks of his childhood in Canton, China; his immigration to Minnesota; the art scene in Minneapolis and Saint Paul in the 1930s; his education; the influence of his teachers, including Cameron Booth, Hans Hofmann, and Vaclav Vytlacil; the influence of Stanley William Hayter; being introduced to printmaking by the WPA art project in Minnesota; his service as a photographer in World War II; his teaching philosophy; and the art scene in Provincetown in the 1970s.
Biographical / Historical:
Seong Moy (1921-2013) was a Chinese American painter and printmaker based in New York City, New York and Provincetown, Massachusetts. Moy was born in Canton, China. He studied at the St. Paul School of Art, Hans Hofmann School of Art and the Art Students League. He was also the director of the Seong Moy School of Painting and Graphics, Provincetown, Massachusetts in the summer.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hrs., 19 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Correspondence, sketches, clippings, exhibition catalogs and announcements, a few photographs and miscellaneous papers. Correspondence is mostly with museum, gallery, and university officials about the sale and exhibition of his work, appreciation of gifts, competitions, teaching appointments, and reproductions. In addition, there is a brief article about his woodcut technique and a description of his New York studio.
Correspondents include L.A. Audrain, P.N. Bowle-Evans, M.F.P. Boys, Margaret Cogswell, Mike Cohn, Fleur Cowles, Charles E. Damiani, David Durst, Peter Floud, Gordon W. Gilkey, Theodore J.H. Gusten, Una E. Johnson, Jacob Kainen, Fiske Kimball, Yeffe Kimball, Dwight Kirsch, E. Kolb, Ruth Lawrence, Frank Lieberman, Margaret Lowengrund, Robert H. Luck, Helen Macy, Betty Maurstad, Porter McCray, Margaret McKellar, Hermon More, Evelyn G. Morel, Reginald Neal, Edward A. Norman, Muriel Oxenburg, Edwin C. Rae, John Ross, Carl O. Schniewind, Gertrude Shibley, Herbert W. Simpson, Eloise Spaeth, Caryl Steinberg, Frederick A. Sweet, Soichi Tominaga, Helen Treadwell, Arthur R. Upgren, Vaclav Vytlacil, Hudson Walker, Gordon B. Washburn, Robert C. Weaver, Tetsuo Yamada, Marion Zeckendorf, and Carl Zigrosser.
Biographical / Historical:
Seong Moy (1921-2013) was a Chinese American painter and printmaker based in New York City, New York and Provincetown, Massachusetts. Moy was born in Canton, China. He studied at the St. Paul School of Art, Hans Hofmann School of Art and the Art Students League. He was also the director of the Seong Moy School of Painting and Graphics, Provincetown, Massachusetts in the summer.
Provenance:
Donated 1982 by Seong Moy.
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:
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of artist Yasuo Kuniyoshi measure 14.3 linear feet and 2.84 gigabytes and date from 1906-2016, bulk 1920-1990. The collection documents his career as a painter, graphic artist, and photographer, as well as his involvement in political, social, and art organizations, especially during World War II. Included are biographical material; correspondence; writings and lectures by Kuniyoshi and others; organization records primarily on his participation in various associations and groups he was a member of; professional and gallery records regarding business dealings with American and Japanese galleries, museums, and dealers; exhibition files; printed material; four scrapbooks; artwork; photographs of Kuniyoshi and others in various locations and at events; and artwork records which mostly consist of photographs and provenance information. The collection also contains materials on Kuniyoshi's career and artwork obtained after his death by his widow Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of artist Yasuo Kuniyoshi measure 14.3 linear feet and 2.84 gigabytes and date from 1906-2013, bulk 1920-1990. The collection documents his career as a painter, graphic artist, and photographer, as well as his involvement in political, social, and art organizations, especially during World War II. Included are biographical material; correspondence; writings and lectures by Kuniyoshi and others; organization records primarily on his participation in various associations and groups he was a member of; professional and gallery records regarding business dealings with American and Japanese galleries, museums, and dealers; exhibition files; printed material; four scrapbooks; artwork; photographs of Kuniyoshi and others in various locations and at events; and artwork records which mostly consist of photographs and provenance information. The collection also contains materials on Kuniyoshi's career and artwork obtained after his death by his widow Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi.
Biographical material consists of a wide range of records such as an address book, resumes, biographical summaries, vital records, citizenship applications, identification documents, travel records, and documentation regarding Kuniyoshi's death. There is some limited biographical material on the artist's widow, Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi, plus interviews with her talking about Kuniyoshi.
Correspondence is divided into correspondence with Yasuo Kuniyoshi and the correspondence with his second wife, Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi. The Yasuo Kuniyoshi correspondence discusses various topics including exhibits and his status as a Japanese American during World War II. The bulk of the series consists of correspondence with Sara after Yasuo's death and usually relates to exhibitions of his work, and reproduction requests for the inclusion of his work in publications. Of note is her correspondence with Alexander Brook, Ritsuko Ozawa, Tom Wolf, and the Yasuo Kuniyoshi Museum in Japan.
Writings and lectures include Kuniyoshi's writings and speeches about other artists, art and the art profession, lithography, and World War II. Also found are statements on his own work and extensive notes for his autobiography. There are two sound recordings of lectures by Kuniyoshi at art schools as well as writings by others, including Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi, about Yasuo Kuniyoshi.
Organization records document Kuniyoshi's involvement in social, political, and art organizations, including the East West Association and the Artists Equity Association. These records include correspondence, speeches, printed material and notes.
Gallery and professional records include material on Kuniyoshi's career and the sales of his work at galleries. Found herein are correspondence, printed material and notes. There are files on projects and commissions, transcripts of the radio broadcast "Japan Against Japan," appraisals of artwork, authentications of artwork, art inventories of his work at various galleries as well as private collections, and records of his participation in the Woodstock Art Conference. Also noteworthy are the records of Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi's dealings with the Downtown Gallery and Zabriskie Galleries.
Exhibition files include a few files on exhibitions while Yasuo Kuniyoshi was alive, but most of the series consists of files created by Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi about exhibitions of Kuniyoshi's works after his death in 1953. Files may include exhibition checklists and planning documents, loan agreements, correspondence, photographs of the exhibition, and press materials.
Printed material consists of books, newspaper, and magazine clippings about Kuniyoshi and about World War II. There are numerous exhibition catalogs and announcements and some magazines, posters, brochures, and bulletins.
There are four scrapbooks of printed material related to Kuniyoshi and his artwork. The scrapbooks contain press clippings, exhibition announcements, checklists, and a few catalogs.
Artwork consists of etchings, numerous sketches and drawings in graphite and ink, sketches painted onto clear acetate which Kuniyoshi used for catalogs, two zinc lithographic plates and their corresponding prints, and a sketchbook. Drawings that Yasuo Kuniyoshi created for the Office of War Information during World War II are in this series. There is one folder of pencil sketches by unidentified artists.
Photographic material are mostly photographs of Kuniyoshi in his studio, at various events and parties, teaching at Mills College and with his wife Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi. Also found are photographs of artists, including Francis Criss, Julian Levi, Doris and Russell Lee, and others, taken by Yasuo Kuniyoshi. Especially noteworthy, are photographs of the Artists Equity Testimonial Dinner held in honor of Kuniyoshi's 1948 retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art. There are some slides and snapshots of Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi's travels abroad and a the house in Woodstock she shared with Yasuo, along with other locations.
Artwork photograph records were created by Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi to document works of art created by her husband. Files mostly include photographs of artwork with annotations regarding title, date, sale, and provenance. Some files also include correspondence, notes by Sara Kuniyoshi, exhibition history, and published reproductions. There are also miscellaneous photographs and slides of artwork which mostly consist of duplicates of artwork that can be found in the rest of the series.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 11 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1906-1998 (Box 1, ER01; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1931-2007 (Boxes 1-2; 1.2 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings and Lectures, 1939-2003 (Box 2; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Organization Records, 1939-2003 (Box 3; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 5: Gallery and Professional Records, circa 1924-2009 (Boxes 3-5, OV 19; 2.1 linear feet)
Series 6: Exhibition Files, 1948-2004 (Boxes 5-6, OVs 19-20; 1.1 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1921-2013 (Boxes 6-8, 14, OV 20 ; 2.1 linear feet)
Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1919-1978 (Boxes 8, 13, 15; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 9: Artwork, 1925-1991 (Boxes 8, 14, 16, OV 21-23; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 10: Photographic Material, circa 1920-2005 (Boxes 8-9, 16-17; 1.4 linear feet)
Series 11: Artwork Photograph Records, circa 1920s-2016 (Boxes 9-12, 17-18, OV 22; 3.8 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Yasuo Kuniyoshi (1889-1953) was a Japanese-American painter, printmaker and photographer based in New York, N.Y.
Kuniyoshi was born in Okayama, Japan. In 1906 he came to the United States and a year later began studying at the Los Angeles School of Art and Design. In 1910 he moved to New York and took courses at the National Academy of Design, the Independent School of Art, and the Art Students League, where he studied with Kenneth Hayes Miller. He was married to fellow artist Katherine Schmidt from 1919 to 1932. After traveling throughout Europe, they moved to the Woodstock, New York, in 1927 and took part in the Woodstock Art Colony. Kuniyoshi studied and later taught at the Art Students League summer school there.
By 1930 Kuniyoshi had established himself as an internationally known painter and graphic artist. In 1935, he received a Guggenheim fellowship and married Sara Mazo. In New York City he taught at the Art Students League, the New School for Social Research, and served as the first president of the Artists Equity Association from 1947 to 1950. Kuniyoshi was active in social organizations, especially Japanese American organizations, such as the Japanese American Committee for Democracy. Although Kuniyoshi was barred from becoming a citizen due to American immgration laws at the time, he viewed himself as American and took an active role in the war effort during World War II, even working with the U.S. Office of War Information department to design posters.
The Whitney Museum of American Art held a retrospective for Kuniyoshi in 1948, making him the first living artist to be honored in such a fashion at the museum. Yasuo Kuniyoshi died of cancer in 1953 and was survived by his second wife Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi who preserved the legacy of his work.
Related Materials:
Also found at the Archives of American Art are the Yasuo Kuniyoshi photographs of artwork, a 1948 letter from Kuniyoshi to E. P. Richardson, and checklists of Yasuo Kuniyoshi prints.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in installments, from 1969 to 1995, by Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi, Yasuo Kuniyoshi's widow. Additional papers were donated in 2014 and 2018 by Stephen Diamond, Sara Mazo Kuniyoshi's nephew.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Yasuo Kuniyoshi papers, 1906-2016, bulk 1920-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by Stephen Diamond, the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, and the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
An interview of Shiro Ikegawa conducted 2003 Jan. 8, by Jamisen Jenkins, for the Archives of American Art, in Keiro Nursing Home, Los Angeles, Calif.
Ikegawa discusses his decision to come to the United States. He describes his ethnicity and how it plays a part in his art and teaching, teaching at the University of California at Irvine and other instituions, his Sushi Show, printmaking as a primary medium, and his near fatal accident.
Biographical / Historical:
Shiro Ikegawa (1933-2009) was a Japanese American painter, graphic artist, performance artist, and art instructor based in Altadena, California.
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.
Letters and postcards; printed material, including exhibition catalogs and announcements, newspaper and magazine articles, and magazines; photographs and slides, both personal and of art work; teaching material; medical records; awards and recommendations; and original art work.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, graphic artist, performance artist, and art instructor based in Altadena, California, Shiro Ikegawa (1933-2009) was born in Tokyo, Japan, and studied at the Tokyo University of Arts. He received his MFA from the Otis Art Institute, Los Angeles, in 1961 and has taught at several Southern California institutions including California State University at Los Angeles (1967-1976) and Otis Art Institute (1979-1985). Represented in a vast number of solo and national and international competitive group exhibitions since 1961, he has also received many commissions, one to execute a thirty-two foot etching, Tale of Genji for the Los Angeles Times in 1973.
Provenance:
Donated 2002 by Shiro Ikegawa.
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.
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Extent:
14 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1965 February 14-20
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Fay Chong conducted 1965 February 14-20, by Dorothy Bestor, for the Archives of American Art.
Chong speaks of working for the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP); printmaking methods used; the effect of the FAP on the city of Seattle and on artists; and his post-FAP career.
Biographical / Historical:
Fay Chong (1912-1973) was a Chinese American painter and printmaker based in Seattle, Washington. Chong was born in Kwangtung, China in 1912. He came to Seattle in 1920.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav files. Duration is 35 min.
Provenance:
This interview conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Painters -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Search this
Printmakers -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Search this
