The exhibition records of the Contemporary Study Wing of the Finch College Museum of Art measure 20.9 linear feet and date from 1943 to 1975, with the bulk of records dating from the period its galleries were in operation, from 1964 to 1975. Over two-thirds of the collection consists of exhibition files, which contain a wide range of documentation including artist files, checklists, correspondence, writings, photographs, interviews, numerous films and videos, artist statements, printed materials, and other records. Also found within the collection are administrative records of the museum, artist files, and papers of the Contemporary Wing's director and curator, Elayne Varian, which were produced outside of her work at Finch College.
Scope and Contents:
The exhibition records of the Contemporary Study Wing of the Finch College Museum of Art measure 20.9 linear feet and date from 1943 to 1975, with the bulk of records dating from the period its galleries were in operation, from 1964 to 1975. Over two-thirds of the collection consists of exhibition files, which contain a wide range of documentation including artist files, checklists, correspondence, writings, photographs, interviews, numerous films and videos, artist statements, printed materials, and other records. Also found within the collection are administrative records of the museum, artist files, and papers of the Contemporary Wing's director and curator, Elayne Varian, which were produced outside of her work at Finch College.
Administrative records include records relating to the general operation of the Contemporary Wing concerning fundraising, professional associations, budget, contact information for artists, donors, and lenders to exhibitions. Also found are records of the permanent collection of artworks acquired by the museum between 1964 and 1975 from contemporary artists and collectors of contemporary art.
Artist files contain basic biographical information on over 150 contemporary artists, with scattered correspondence, photographs, technical information about artworks, artist statements, and other writings. Artist files also include an incomplete run of artist questionnaires gathered by the New York Arts Calendar Annual for 1964.
Elayne Varian's personal papers include curatorial records, a course schedule and syllabus related to her teaching activities, and various writings. Curatorial projects documented in Varian's papers include three programs produced outside of Finch College, including a juried show at the New York State Fair in 1967, a film series at Everson Museum of Syracuse University, and an exhibition at Guild Hall in East Hampton in 1973. Several of Varian's writing projects involved interviews, which are also found in this series in the form of sound recordings and transcripts. Interview-based writing projects include individual profiles on Brian O'Doherty and Babette Newberger, and interviews conducted for an article on the artist-dealer relationship published in Art in America (January 1970). Dealers interviewed for the latter project include Leo Castelli, Virginia Dwan, John Gibson, Richard Feigen, Arnold Glimcher, Fred Mueller, Martha Jackson, Sidney Janis, Betty Parsons, Seth Siegelaub, and Howard Wise. Artists interviewed include Roy Lichtenstein, Adolph Gottlieb, and Charles Ross.
Exhibition files, comprising the bulk of the collection, document exhibitions held in the Contemporary Wing during its existence from 1964 to 1975. Types of records found in the series include exhibition catalogs, correspondence, loan agreements, lists, contact information, insurance valuations of artworks, photographs, biographical information on artists, clippings, posters, press releases, and other publicity materials. In addition to the rich textual and photographic records found for exhibitions, numerous audiovisual recordings are also found, some of which were made in preparation for an exhibition, some document mounted exhibitions, and others are artworks themselves or components of artworks exhibited in the galleries. Interviews with artists, dealers, and others involved in exhibitions include Alan Sonfist, Mel Bochner, Hans Richter, Ruth Richards, James Brooks and Janet Katz, Margaret Benyon, Irwin Hollander (transcript only), David Anderson, Doris Chase, Will Insley, Michael Kirby, Les Levine, Ursula Meyer, Brian O'Doherty, Charles Ross, Tony Smith, Douglas Davis, Jane Davis, Russ Connor, Les Levine, Michael Mazur, Paul Gedeohn, and physicists Lloyd G. Cross, Allyn Z. Lite, and Gerald Thomas Bern Pethick. Video artworks, recordings of performances, or components of multimedia artworks are found by artists Vito Acconci, Kathy Dillon, Douglas Davis, Dan Graham, Les Levine, Bruce Nauman, Michael Netter, Eric Siegel, and Robert Whitman. A film of the Art in Process: The Visual Development of a Structure (1966) exhibition is found, and video recordings of artists Lynda Benglis, Michael Singer, and Sam Wiener form as part of the documentation for the Projected Art: Artists at Work (1971) exhibition.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 4 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Administrative Records, 1950-1975 (2 linear feet; Boxes 1-2, 22, OV 23)
Series 2: Artist Files, 1958-1975 (2.4 linear feet; Boxes 3-4, 22, OV 23, FC 27-28)
Series 3: Elayne Varian Personal Papers, 1965-1970 (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 5-6)
Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1943-1975 (14.9 linear feet; Boxes 6-22, OV 24-25, FC 26)
Biographical / Historical:
The Contemporary Study Wing of the Finch College Museum of Art, later called simply the "Contemporary Wing," was established in 1964 by the president of Finch College, Roland De Marco, as an extension the Finch College Museum of Art in New York City.
Its mission was to educate art history students at the Manhattan women's college who were interested in working with contemporary art. DeMarco, himself an art collector, hired Elayne Varian as director and curator of the contemporary wing. DeMarco met Varian in the New York office of the prominent international art dealership Duveen Brothers, where she had worked since the mid-1940s, most recently as an art dealer. Varian received her art education in Chicago, where she studied art history and education at the University of Chicago, and took classes in film at the Bauhaus and in fine art the Art Institute of Chicago. Sensitive to emerging art movements in galleries and studios around the city of New York, as the contemporary wing's curator, Varian quickly established a reputation for thoughtfully conceived, cutting-edge exhibitions which were consistently well-received by the press.
Under Varian, the Contemporary Wing carried out a dual mission of showing work of living artists and educating students and the public about the artwork and museum work in general. Varian used the galleries to provide practical training to students interested in a gallery or museum career throughout its existence. For several years, she also maintained an assistantship position for post-graduate museum professionals to gain experience in the field, many of whom went on to careers in museums across New York State.
The Contemporary Wing's best-known exhibitions formed a series of six shows called Art in Process, held between 1965 and 1972. Each of the Art in Process shows took a different medium, including painting, sculpture, collage, conceptual art, installation art, and serial art, and brought the process of art-making into the gallery with the artworks in various ways. For example, for Art in Process V (1972), the show about installation art, the galleries were open to the public for the entire process of its installation, allowing visitors to watch the works take shape. Another show entitled Documentation (1968) exhibited artworks with documentation such as artist's notes, sales records, and conservation records, bringing to light the value of record-keeping in the visual arts. Two exhibitions entitled Projected Art were also innovative, with the first (1966-1967) bringing experimental films from the cinema to the galleries, and the second (1971) showing artists' processes via footage and slides of artists working. Another show, Artists' Videotape Performances (1971), involved both screening of and creation of works in the gallery using a range of experiments with recent video technology. The museum also participated in an experimental broadcast of an artwork entitled Talk Out! by Douglas Davis, in which a telephone in the gallery allowed visitors to participate in its creation while it was broadcast live from Syracuse, NY. Other exhibitions that showcased experimentation in art included N-Dimensional Space (1970), on holography in art, Destruction Art(1968), on destructive actions being incorporated into contemporary art-making, and Schemata 7 (1967), a show about the use of environments in contemporary art, whose working title was "Walk-in Sculpture."
Other popular exhibitions at the Contemporary Wing included shows on Art Deco (1970) and Art Nouveau (1969). Several shows mined the private collections of prominent contemporary art collectors including Martha Jackson, Betty Parsons, George Rickey, Paul Magriel, Jacques Kaplan, Josephine and Philip Bruno, and Carlo F. Bilotti. A number of exhibitions featured contemporary art from overseas including Art from Belgium (1965), Art from Finland (1973), Seven Swedish Painters (1965), and Art in Jewelry (1966), which featured mainly international jewelry artists. Retrospective exhibitions of Hans Richter, Hugo Weber, and James Brooks were also held.
Hundreds of contemporary artists were shown at the Contemporary Wing in the eleven years of its existence, including many who came to be leading figures in contemporary art, and some who already were, including Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Mel Bochner, Eva Hesse, Lynda Benglis, Bruce Nauman, Robert Morris, Lawrence Weiner, Robert Smithson, Sol Le Witt, Dan Flavin, Philip Pearlstein, and Yayoi Kusama, to name just a few.
The Contemporary Wing and the entire Finch College Museum of Art shut its doors in 1975, when Finch College closed due to lack of funds. The permanent collection was sold at that time, and the proceeds were used to pay Finch College employee salaries. Elayne Varian went on to the position of curator of contemporary art at the John and Mabel Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida. She died in 1987.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with curator Elayne Varian conducted by Paul Cummings, May 2, 1975.
Provenance:
The Archives of American Art acquired these records from the Finch College Museum of Art after it closed permanently in June 1975.
Restrictions:
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.
Occupation:
Video artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Museum administrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Museum curators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Topic:
Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Exhibition records of the Contemporary Study Wing of the Finch College Museum of Art, 1943-1975. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, administered through the Council on Library and Information Resources' Hidden Collections grant program. Funding for the digitization of two motion picture films was provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee, and for the remaining sound and video recordings from the Smithsonian's Collection Care Pool Fund. Funding for the digitization of the collection, not including audiovisual materials, was provided by The Walton Family Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
An interview of Flora Mace and Joey Kirkpatrick conducted 2005 August 17-18, by Lloyd E. Herman, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at the artists' home and studio, in Seattle, Washington.
They discuss their first meeting at Pilchuck Glass School in Stanwood, Washington, in 1979; the structure of classes and teaching philosophies at Pilchuck in the late '70s and early '80s; the change in equipment and the growth of the Pilchuck campus through the years; their first projects together, which were wire drawings made by Flora and based on Joey's sketches; leaving Pilchuck after the summer session and moving together to Waterville, New Hampshire, where they worked in a studio at the Rhode Island School of Design with Dale Chihuly; building up a body of work and then having to decide whose work it was, at a time when collaborating and co-signing was not standard practice; going back to Pilchuck every summer for 14 years after first meeting there in 1979; beginning to teach as a collaborative team at Pilchuck in 1981, the first women to teach glass blowing at that school; building their house together on the grounds of Pilchuck, a design which was then emulated for dormitories at the school; convincing Dale Chihuly to lower the class size at Pilchuck to 10, down from 20, to allow teachers to work more closely with the students; early shows of their work at Habatat Galleries in Royal Oak, Michigan, Ivor Kurland Gallery in Los Angeles, California, and Foster-White Galleries in Seattle, Washington; the support of their sisters and families throughout the years, mostly in providing them a place to stay as they traveled cross country; their relationships with collectors; what each artist brings to the partnership, including vision, inspiration, and technique; the influence of water on their work, as both artists are drawn to the sea and the tides; the purpose of their work, and what they feel it can bring to the viewer; the challenge given to the artists by Joan Borenstein to make 30 glass goblets, all with different fruits and vegetables; having their work cast at the Walla Walla Foundry; and the ideas behind various bodies of work, including the "Bird Pages" and the large latticino fruit. A more in-depth discussion of each artist's childhood, education, and artistic experiences prior to their meeting at Pilchuck can be found in the individual artist's interviews. They recall Italo Scanga, Bill Morris, Ben Moore, Rich Royal, Howard Ben Tre, Toots Zynsky, Therman Statom, Harvey Littleton, Lino Tagliapetra, Chris Wilmarth, Judy Pfaff, Lynda Benglis, Alice Rooney, Bertil Vallien, Ann Wolff, Betsy Rosenfield, George and Dorothy Saxe, Doug and Dale Anderson, Jon and Mary Shirley, Sarah and Bill Dehoff, Francine and Benson Pilloff, George Stroemple, Ann Welch, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Joey Kirkpatrick (1952- ) and Flora Mace (1949- ) are glass artists from Seattle, Washington. Lloyd E. Herman (1936- ) is a curator and former director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Renwick Gallery of Art and is currently from Seattle, Washington. Mace and Kirkpatrick have been working collaboratively on glass since the late 1970s.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hrs., 17 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
The papers of technical artist, fabricator, and conservator Jack Brogan measure 4.25 linear feet and date from 1968 to 2016 with the bulk of the collection dating from 1971 to 2009. The collection documents Brogan's collaboration with many artists associated with Southern California Light and Space art to help realize their ideas. Papers include biographical material, project files, printed material, photographic material, and artwork. There is a 2.0 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2020 that includes files related to projects with Robert Irwin, Tony DeLap, Robert Therrien, Philip Aziz, Peter Alexander, Roy Lichtenstein, Lita Albuquerque and others. Some files relate to repairs to work by Lynda Benglis, Larry Bell, John McCracken, Hal Metzer. Several files relate to projects Brogan worked on for churches and synagogues, including First Baptiste Church, Pomona, California. Many contain multiple original drawings, sketches, and notes by artists. Material dates from 1973-2014.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of technical artist, fabricator, and conservator Jack Brogan measure 4.25 linear feet and date from 1968 to 2016 with the bulk of the collection dating from 1971 to 2009. The collection documents Brogan's collaboration with many artists associated with Southern California Light and Space art to help realize their ideas. Papers include biographical material, project files, printed material, photographic material, and artwork. There is a 2.0 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2020 that includes files related to projects with Robert Irwin, Tony DeLap, Robert Therrien, Philip Aziz, Peter Alexander, Roy Lichtenstein, Lita Albuquerque and others. Some files relate to repairs to work by Lynda Benglis, Larry Bell, John McCracken, Hal Metzer. Several files relate to projects Brogan worked on for churches and synagogues, including First Baptiste Church, Pomona, California. Many contain multiple original drawings, sketches, and notes by artists. Material dates from 1973-2014.
Biographical material includes resumes; correspondence; materials related to Jack Brogan's business, Design Concepts; interview drafts; and writings about Brogan.
Project files include research material related to companies and products, as well as files for fabrication and conservation projects in collaboration with artists, including Tony DeLap, James Turrell, Lynda Benglis, Robert Therrien, Robert Irwin, and others. These files typically include financial information, notes, and correspondence, and may also include photographic material, sketches, and printed material.
Printed material includes exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases, magazines, newspaper and magazine clippings, published interviews, newsletters, and a transcript of the dedication ceremonies for the bicentennial sculpture, Flight, in Fullerton, California.
Photographic material includes contact sheets, negatives, photographs, slides, snapshots, and transparencies, primarily depicting works of art and installation. Also included are images of works of art in Brogan's studio and personal snapshots.
Artwork includes sketches and designs for unidentified projects.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in six series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1973-2011 (Box 1; 7 folders)
Series 2: Project Files, circa 1969-2016 (Boxes 1-2, OV 4; 1.2 linear feet)
Series 3: Printed Material, 1970-2012 (Box 2, OV 5; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 4: Photographic Material, circa 1969-circa 1990s, undated (Boxes 2-3; 1.1 linear feet)
Series 5: Artwork, 1988, undated (Box 2, OV 4; 0.1 linear feet)
Series 6: Unprocessed Addition (Boxes 6-7, 2.0 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Jack Brogan (1930-) is a technical artist, fabricator, and conservator in Los Angeles, California. Born and raised in Tennessee, Brogan moved to Los Angeles in 1958, where he opened a cabinetmaking and furniture repair shop. After he met and began working with Robert Irwin, word spread of his expertise and other artists sought him out to work with on their own pieces. In 1965 Brogan founded his business, Design Concepts, to address the varying material and production needs of the artists, architects, and industrial designers he works with to fabricate prototypes and unique objects.
Brogan built prototypes for Lockheed, NASA, and has provided custom interior furnishings for numerous commercial and residential spaces. His ability to address projects that are technically challenging due to unconventional methods or limited production runs has also proved well-suited to the concerns and working methods of visual artists. Among his most noteworthy projects are those of Robert Irwin, including a series of prismatic acrylic columns from 1969-1970 and a major commission for the Central Garden of the Getty Center in Los Angeles.
Provenance:
The papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by Jack Brogan in 2017, 2018 and 2020.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Occupation:
Conservators -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
The records of the Susanne Hilberry Gallery measure 5.8 linear feet and 10.1 gigabytes, and date from 1964-2017, with the bulk of the material dating from 1976-2016. Gallery artists include Richard Artschwager, Lynda Benglis, Jun Kaneko, Ellen Phelan, Italo Scanga, Joel Shapiro, Alex Katz, Judy Pfaff, Warren MacKenzie, and Nancy Mitchnick, among many others. The collection consists largely of files grouped by artist containing correspondence, sales records, and exhibition records documenting the activities of the gallery including outside or traveling exhibitions and other initiatives. Also included are significant amounts of visual materials (photographs, slides, transparencies, and digital images) documenting gallery exhibitions and the oeuvres of the gallery artists, as well as digital video recordings in the form of video works, recordings of artist talks, and artwork documentation.
Scope and Contents:
The records of the Susanne Hilberry Gallery measure 5.8 linear feet and 10.1 gigabytes, and date from 1964-2017, with the bulk of the material dating from 1976-2016. Gallery artists include Richard Artschwager, Lynda Benglis, Jun Kaneko, Ellen Phelan, Italo Scanga, Joel Shapiro, Alex Katz, Judy Pfaff, Warren MacKenzie, and Nancy Mitchnick, among many others. The collection consists largely of files grouped by artist containing correspondence, sales records, and exhibition records documenting the activities of the gallery including outside or traveling exhibitions and other initiatives. Also included are significant amounts of visual materials (photographs, slides, transparencies, and digital images) documenting gallery exhibitions and the oeuvres of the gallery artists, as well as digital video recordings in the form of video works, recordings of artist talks, and artwork documentation.
The artist files document each gallery artist's exhibition history in the gallery and include correspondence with the artist or estate as well as files documenting significant outside exhibitions, projects and the placement of artworks. The group show files document the production of select group exhibitions organized throughout the span of the gallery's operation. Transparencies and slides document the respective artists' exhibitions at Susanne Hilberry Gallery, and also contain representations of individual works. The group show slides document select group exhibitions.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 4 series.
Series 1: Artist Files, circa 1964-2016 (4.5 Linear feet; Boxes 1-5, 10.1 Gigabytes; ER01-ER08)
Series 2: Group Show Files, 1976-2016 (0.3 Linear feet; Box 5)
Series 3: Tranparencies, circa 1980-1999 (0.2 Linear feet; Box 5)
Series 4: Slides, circa 1976-1999 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 6-7)
Biographical / Historical:
Susanne Hilberry Gallery was a contemporary art gallery opened by Susanne Hilberry in 1976 in the Detroit suburb of Birmingham. The gallery moved to Ferndale, Michigan in 2002, and closed in early 2017 following Hilberry's death in 2015.
Susanne Hilberry was a pioneering presence in the Detroit art scene. Before opening her gallery she earned a degree in art history from Wayne State University and a master's degree from Yale in architectural history, and later served as an assistant to the curator of the Detroit Institute of Arts, Sam Wagstaff. Wagstaff encouraged Susanne to open her gallery, which focused on bringing emerging art trends and established artists not being shown otherwise in the area, as well as championing the careers of local artists. Hilberry's dedication to developing the local art scene played out in her encouragement and support of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Detroit, where she served as a steering committee member after its opening in 2006.
Related Materials:
Related materials include Wayne State University's Cass Corridor Artists Oral History Project, Oral History with Susanne Feld Hilberry, April 1, 2010.
Provenance:
Donated 2017 by the Susanne Hilberry Estate via Daniel Feld, Trustee.
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. Use of archival audiovisual recordings and born-digital records with no duplicate 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.
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Michigan
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Citation:
Susanne Hilberry Gallery records, 1964-2017, bulk 1976-2016. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
An interview of Lynda Benglis conducted 2009 November 20, by Judith Tannenbaum, for the Archives of American Art, at Benglis' studio, in New York, New York.
Biographical / Historical:
Lynda Benglis (1941- ) is a sculptor in New York, New York. Benglis is known for working with wax and latex.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 memory cards. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hrs., 46 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Lynda Benglis, 2009 November 20. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Art Foundry and Art Foundry Editions records measure 25.7 linear feet and 0.891 GB and date from circa 1975 to circa 2007. Records include administrative files; correspondence with artists, collectors, dealers, galleries, and others; eight gallery appointment books and fourteen notebooks; exhibition files; extensive artists' files; financial and legal materials; sculpture production and inventory files; and photographic and digital materials.
Scope and Contents:
The Art Foundry and Art Foundry Editions records measure 25.7 linear feet and 0.891 GB and date from circa 1975 to circa 2007. Records include administrative files; correspondence with artists, collectors, dealers, galleries, and others; eight gallery appointment books and fourteen notebooks; exhibition files; extensive artists' files; financial and legal materials; sculpture production and inventory files; and photographic and digital materials.
Administrative records document the daily operations of the Art Foundry and AFE. Correspondence is with artists, galleries, art collectors and dealers, patrons, and others.
The appointment books and notebooks document daily operations within the Foundry administrative offices, including phone messages and daily appointments, and also include notes and conversations regarding various artists' ongoing sculptural plans and projects. Entries have been made by Dwight Hackett, artists, and other staff members.
The bulk of the collection is comprised of artists' files representing over 132 artists, which may include scattered correspondence and notes; scattered exhibition materials; financial materials; photographic materials; digital materials; and sketches and plans for various sculptural productions and projects. Artists include Terry Allen, Larry Bell, Lynda Benglis, Judy Chicago, Lesley Dill, Una Hanbury, Luis Jimenez, Allan Houser, Maya Lin, Andrew Lord, Robert Morris, Bruce Nauman, Gabriel Orozco, Tom Otterness, Michael Rees, Fritz Scholder, Peter Shelton, Kiki Smith, Valeska Soares, and Richard Tuttle, among many others. Seven CD-Rs contain material related to artists Terry Allen, Charles Arnoldi, Lesley Dill, and Michael Rees.
Financial and legal materials include invoices and financial statements, consignment agreements, and miscellaneous legal documents.
Sculpture production and inventory files document casting guidelines and costs incurred; casting logs and records; sculpture production records for various artists; and inventory cards and photographs and digital documentation for various projects and works.
The collection contains hundreds of snapshots and Polaroids that depict the collaborative atmosphere Hackett was able to create at Art Foundry. There are also slides, negatives and nine photograph albums.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 8 series. Researchers should note that Art Foundry and Art Foundry Editions records were merged prior to processing.
Missing Title
Series 1: Administrative Files, circa 1980-circa 2004 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1985-2000 (0.6 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 3: Gallery Appointment Books and Notebooks, 1985-2000 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 2-3)
Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1986-1997 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 5: Artists' Files, circa 1980-circa 2007 (16.8 linear feet; Boxes 3-19, OV 27-31, 0.891 GB; ER01-ER03)
Series 6: Financial and Legal Materials, 1991-circa 2001 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 19-20)
Series 7: Sculpture Production and Inventory Files, circa 1975-circa 2002 (2.4 linear feet; Boxes 20-23, OV 31)
Series 8: Photographic Materials, circa 1977-circa 2002 (3.0 linear feet; Boxes 23-26)
Biographical / Historical:
Art Foundry (est.1980-closed 2000) and Art Foundry Editions (est. 1992-closed 2000) were organizations founded and operated by Dwight Hackett in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
While working for another foundry in New Mexico, Dwight Hackett met Una Hanbury and began casting her work at his home, using a relatively new technique called cold casting. The process produced work that lighter than bronze and less expensive to produce. Una Hanbury helped Hackett travel to Washington, D. C. to study with Harvey Moore at his foundry. He formally established his studio, Art Foundry, in New Mexico, in 1980 with a loan from Hanbury and subsequent investment from the Apache sculptor Allan Houser. According to Hackett, Art Foundry's mission was to "collaborate with artists, not just work for them, and to challenge the limits of traditional casting technique."
In 1990, Hackett extended the operation by establishing Art Foundry Editions (AFE) through which he invited artists to come to Santa Fe for a residency and produce multiples of their work. AFE would acquire half of each artists' edition, and then market the works to galleries and collectors. One of AFE's first artists was Lynda Benglis, who purportedly came for a two-week residency and stayed for nine months.
Hackett sold Art Foundry and Art Foundry Editions in 2000.
(Much of the biographical note was taken from collecting specialist Jason Stieber's acquisition report published in the Archives of American Art Journal, Volume Number 54, 2016.)
Provenance:
The Art Foundry and Art Foundry Editions records were donated by Dwight Hackett in 2014.
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.
