The papers of ceramicist Harding Black measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1934 to 1979. The scattered papers include a transcript of an oral history, correspondence, financial notes and records, printed materials, and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of ceramicist Harding Black measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1934 to 1979. The scattered papers include a transcript of an oral history, correspondence, financial notes and records, printed materials, and photographs.
A transcript of an oral history was sponsored by the Bexar County Historical Commission of Harding Black by Mary Fenstermaker and dates from 1979. Correspondence is scattered and includes letters from friends and colleagues from 1950 to 1951. Printed materials consist of clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs. Photographs depict Harding Black, Black with others, an expedition to Reagan Canyon in 1934, and his studio and works of art.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection, the papers are arranged as one series.
Series 1: Harding Black papers, 1934-1979 (Box 1; 0.4 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Harding Black (1912-2004) was a studio ceramicist who worked in Texas.
Harding Black was born in 1912 in Aransas Pass, Texas. An excavation of Native American burial mounds sparked his interest in ceramics. He started a ceramics studio near the Witte Museum in San Antonio, Texas where he taught children's classes. In the 1930s, he was active with the Works Progress Administration. Later in life, Black exhibited his works. He did extensive research and experimentation with glaze. Harding Black died in 2004 of respiratory failure.
Related Materials:
Baylor University in Waco, Texas holds the Harding Black collection, Inclusive: 1910-2014, undated, Bulk: 1954-1998, undated. The papers consist of personal papers including notes on glazing and firing notebooks.
Provenance:
Harding Black donated his papers to the Archives of American Art in 1980.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Citation:
Harding Black Papers, 1934-1979. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
This series contains Harding Blacks scattered papers and includes biographical material, correspondence, financial notes, printed material, and photographs.
A certificate of participation is from Joske's of Texas and the Arts Council of San Antonio Incorporated. A transcript for an oral history with Harding Black is from the Bexar County Historical Commission's Oral History Program and was conducted by Mary Fenstermaker. Correspondence is from the years 1950 and 1951. Correspondents include George Beishlag, Ceramics Monthly, Consolidated Tiles INC., The Kiln Club, Louise R. Morris, Lisle Pursel, J. H. Saling, Henry Steinbomer, Syracuse Museum of Fine Arts, Texas Fine Arts Association, and Mrs. Kenneth F. Zitman. Printed materials include clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs concerning and featuring Black's ceramic works and his classes at the Witte Museum. Photographs are of Black, with friends and others, an expedition in 1934 to Reagan Canyon, children's pottery classes, his studio, and of works of art.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Collection Citation:
Harding Black Papers, 1934-1979. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Harding Black. Marion Greenwood, 1940 Apr. 8. Federal Art Project, Photographic Division collection, circa 1920-1965. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of ceramicist and educator Laura Andreson measure 1.9 linear feet and date from 1932 to 1991. The collection is comprised of correspondence, professional files, gallery records, writings and notes, artwork, and photographic materials that document her pioneering work in ceramics.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of ceramicist and educator Laura Andreson measure 1.9 linear feet and date from 1932 to 1991. The collection is comprised of correspondence, professional files, gallery records, writings and notes, artwork, and photographic materials that document her pioneering work in ceramics.
Correspondence is with clients, colleagues, artists Vivika and Otto Heino, Gail Natzler, Harding Black, Albert Henry King, Beatrice Wood, Imogen Cunningham, Sam Maloof, and others.
Professional files include curriculum vitae, employment records, a portfolio, publicity files, material from UCLA, and scrapbook. Gallery records document Andreson's personal business with galleries and museums. Andreson's writings consist of artist's statements, notes on ceramic history, nine glaze formula notebooks, and a sabbatical report.
Artwork includes sketches of pottery and case diagrams for an unidentified exhibition. Photographic materials consist of photographs and negatives of Andreson, family and colleagues, exhibitions, and works of art by Andreson's students.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as six series.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1935-1988 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 2: Professional Files, 1932-1989 (Box 1, OV 4; 0.7 linear feet)
Series 3: Gallery Records, 1940-1991 (Box 1-2; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, circa 1940-1986 (Box 2-3; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Artwork, circa 1960-1970s (Box 3; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 6: Photographic Materials, circa 1940-1986 (Box 3; 0.2 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Laura Andreson (1902-1999) was a ceramicist and educator in Los Angeles, California. She received a bachelor's degree in education at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1932 and a master's degree in painting from Columbia University in 1937. She began her career in ceramics studying under the influential ceramicist Glen Lukens. In 1933 she founded the ceramics department at UCLA where she taught from 1933 to 1970.
Andreson was a pioneer in ceramics, experimenting and developing glaze and clay techniques during a time when equipment was limited and only a few books were available on ceramics. Her work has been widely exhibited, primarily after her retirement from UCLA in 1970. Andreson died in Los Angeles, C.A. in 1999.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an interview of Laura Andreson conducted May 20, 1981 by Ruth Bowman, for the Archives of American Art.
Provenance:
The papers were donated by Laura Andreson and her companion Pauline Blank in 1991 and 1996.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
Educators -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
