Search Results

Interviewee:

Halpert, Edith Gregor, 1900-1970  Search this

Interviewer:

Phillips, Harlan B. (Harlan Buddington), 1920-  Search this

Names:

C.W. Kraushaar Art Galleries  Search this

Daniel Gallery  Search this

Downtown Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Ferargil Galleries  Search this

Grand Central Art Galleries  Search this

M. Knoedler & Co.  Search this

Montross Gallery  Search this

New Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Bacon, Peggy, 1895-1987  Search this

Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981  Search this

Barrie, Erwin S., 1886-1983  Search this

Benton, Thomas Hart, 1889-1975  Search this

Brackman, Robert, 1898-  Search this

Bridgman, George Brant, 1864-1943  Search this

Brixey, Richard de Wolfe  Search this

Cahill, Holger, 1887-1960  Search this

Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this

Cary, Elisabeth Luther, 1867-1936  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Coleman, Glenn O., 1887-1932  Search this

Crowninshield, Frank, 1872-1947  Search this

Daniel, Charles, 1878-1971  Search this

Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this

Demuth, Charles, 1883-1935  Search this

Deskey, Donald, 1894-  Search this

Dove, Arthur Garfield, 1880-1946  Search this

Dudensing, F. Valentine, 1892-1967  Search this

Fergusson, John Duncan, 1874-1961  Search this

Field, Hamilton Easter  Search this

Force, Juliana, 1876-1948  Search this

Ford, Ford Madox, 1873-1939  Search this

Frost, Robert, 1874-1963  Search this

Fuller, R. Buckminster (Richard Buckminster), 1895-1983  Search this

Goodyear, A. Conger (Anson Conger), 1877-1964  Search this

Greenberg, Clement, 1909-1994  Search this

Halpert, Samuel, 1884-1930  Search this

Hartley, Marsden, 1877-1943  Search this

Hirsch, Stefan, 1899-1964  Search this

Hopkinson, Charles, 1869-1962  Search this

Hopper, Edward, 1882-1967  Search this

Johns, Jasper, 1930-  Search this

Kline, Franz, 1910-1962  Search this

Knox, Seymour H., 1898-1990  Search this

Kroll, Leon, 1884-1974  Search this

Kuhn, Walt, 1877-1949  Search this

Kuniyoshi, Yasuo, 1889-1953  Search this

Laurent, Robert, 1890-1970  Search this

Lawrence, Jacob, 1917-2000  Search this

Levine, Jack, 1915-2010  Search this

Levy, Julien  Search this

Locke, Charles, 1899-  Search this

Luks, George Benjamin, 1867-1933  Search this

Léger, Fernand, 1881-1955  Search this

Marin, John, Jr., 1915?-1988  Search this

McBride, Henry, 1867-1962  Search this

Mellon, Paul  Search this

Mercer, Henry Chapman  Search this

Montross, N. E. (Newman E), 1849-1932  Search this

Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988  Search this

O'Keeffe, Georgia, 1887-1986  Search this

Pascin, Jules, 1885-1930  Search this

Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973  Search this

Pollock, Jackson, 1912-1956  Search this

Pound, Ezra, 1885-1972  Search this

Rivera, Diego, 1886-1957  Search this

Robinson, Edward G., 1893-1973  Search this

Rockefeller, Abby Aldrich  Search this

Saarinen, Aline B. (Aline Bernstein), 1914-1972  Search this

Saklatwalla, Beram K.  Search this

Sandburg, Carl, 1878-1967  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Sheeler, Charles, 1883-1965  Search this

Siporin, Mitchell, 1910-1976  Search this

Soutine, Chaim, 1893-1943  Search this

Steichen, Edward, 1879-1973  Search this

Stein, Gertrude, 1874-1946  Search this

Stella, Frank  Search this

Stern, Louis E., 1886-1962  Search this

Stieglitz, Alfred, 1864-1946  Search this

Tannahill, Robert Hudson  Search this

Vollard, Ambroise, 1867-1939  Search this

Weber, Max, 1881-1961  Search this

Whitney, Gertrude Vanderbilt, 1875-1942  Search this

Williams, William Carlos, 1883-1963  Search this

Wittenberg, Philip, 1895-1987  Search this

Zerbe, Karl, 1903-1972  Search this

Zorach, Marguerite, 1887-1968  Search this

Zorach, William, 1887-1966  Search this

Extent:

436 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Date:

1962-1963

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Edith Halpert conducted 1962-1963, by Harlan Phillips, for the Archives of American Art.

Halpert speaks of her childhood in Russia and growing up in New York City; working at Bloomindale's, Macy's, Stern Brothers, and Cohen Goldman; her marriage to artist Sam Halpert, his health, and living in Paris in 1925; becoming an art student at the Academy of Design and feeling that Leon Kroll was an excellent art teacher until he began to correct her drawings; when George Bridgman thought she was ruining his class; the Lincoln Square Arcade, when she and Ernest Fiener and Robert Brackman would rent Conan's studio evenings and bring in instructors; how Newman Montross influenced her more than anybody about showing her art that she loved; burning all of her work because Kroll said she had no talent; receiving a painting from John Marin; her friendship and working relationship with Abby Rockefeller and other family members.

She recalls opening the Downtown Gallery, in Greenwich Village, in 1926; a brief history of modern art; many artists helping decorate the new Daylight Gallery in 1930 and the first show being called "Practical Manifestations of Art"; meeting Robert and Sonia Delaunay in France; when she refused to allow Ezra Pound to speak at one of the gallery lectures because of his anti-Semite remarks and William Carlos Williams and Ford Madox Ford argued with her over it; experiencing jealousy and professional attacks from other dealers; the successful "Pop" Hart show and book in 1929; the "Thirty-three Moderns" show in 1930 at the Grand Central Galleries; the Jules Pascin show in 1930; in America, most of the art buyers supporters of culture were women, until the WPA and World War II, when it became fashionable for men to be involved; Ambroise Vollard's advice on selling art; handling the frustrations of working in the art field; friendships with Stuart Davis,Charles Sheeler, and Ben Shahn; how artists work through dry periods in their creativity and the "Recurrent Image" show; a discussion on modern art galleries of New York City, such as Daniel, Knoedler, Ferargil, the New Gallery, 291, the Grand Central, Kraushaar, and Montross; her travels through Pennsylvania and Maine for good examples of folk art for the gallery; the "The Artist Looks at Music" show; the non-competitive spirit of the early modern American artists; of being saved financially in 1940 by selling a William Harnett painting to the Boston Museum and then renting new space for the gallery.

Also, Mitchell Siporin bringing Halpert and Edmund Gurry to Mitchell Field during World War II for a camouflage show and consequently Downtown Gallery artists and others were enlisted in the camouflage corps for the U.S. Air Force; Charles Sheeler and his wife find Halpert a house in Newtown, Conn.; her decision in 1933 to push folk art for acquisition by the William Rockhill Nelson Gallery in Kansas City, Missouri; her great concern about what to do with her folk art literature collection; dismay and that no one writes about the history of folk art and those responsible for its creation and popularity; Louis Stern hiring her to organize a municipal exhibit in Atlantic City, N.J., with Donald Deskey designing the furniture and Holger Cahill managing the publicity; Joe Lillie helping her meet Fiorello La Guardia and Joe McGoldrick in 1934 about a municipal show in New York City, but it is moved to Radio City Music Hall through Nelson Rockefeller; the "Salons of America" show; wanting articles written about art for love rather than art for investment; working with Aline Saarinen on her book, "Proud Possessors;" letters from Stuart Davis, William Zorach and others that hurt her feelings; enjoying giving educational lectures and considering retirement because of ill health; the desire to write a book on the history of trade signs in folk art; feeling that the young artists are being ruined by too much support without working for it; planning to write a book entitled, "Unsung Heroes," about artists brave enough to experiment; organizing a show in Russia at her own expense; later representing the U.S. in art at the "American National Exposition"; the agitators and success of the exposition; Alfred Stieglitz and Georgia O'Keeffe.

Halpert also recalls Juliana Force, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Buckminster Fuller, George Luks, Edsel Ford, Max Weber, Danny Diefenbacker, Hamilton Easter Field, Frank Stella, Glenn Coleman, Margaret Zorach, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Henry Mercer, Romany Marie, Edward G. Robinson, Paul Mellon, Charles Pollet, Alex Brook, Lunca Curass, Dorothy Lambert, Duncan Candler, Frank Rhen, Louis Rittman, Bea Goldsmith, Arthur Craven, Robert Frost, Philip Wittenberg, Caesar de Hoke, Richard deWolfe Brixey, Seymour Knox, Walt Kuhn, Elisabeth Luther Cary, Charles Locke, Duncan Fergusson, Mrs. Solomon Guggenheim, Bob Tannahill, David Thompson, Marsden Hartley, Erwin Barrie, Robert Laurent, Conger Goodyear, Henry McBride, Edward Hopper, Charles Daniel, William Merritt Chase, Charles Hopkinson, Thomas Hart Benton, Frank Crowninshield, Alfred Barr, Lord Duveen, Jacob Lawrence, John Marin Jr., Karl Zerbe, Franz Kline, Arthur Dove, Julian Levy, Jack Levine, Valentine Dudensing, Peggy Bacon, Stefan Hirsch, Gertrude Stein, Isamu Noguchi, Jasper Johns, Chaim Soutine, B. K. Saklatwalla; Fernand Leger, Pablo Picasso, Ben Shahn, Charles Demuth, Alexander Calder, Jackson Pollock, Edward Steichen, Carl Sandburg, Clement Greenberg, and others.

Biographical / Historical:

Edith Halpert (1900-1970) was an art dealer from New York, N.Y.

General:

Originally recorded on 7 tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 27 digital wav files. Duration is 32 hrs., 27 min.

Provenance:

This interview is part of the Archives of American Art 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. The transcript was microfilmed in 1996.

Occupation:

Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Topic:

Art -- Economic aspects  Search this

Camouflage  Search this

Folk art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Women art dealers  Search this

Sponsor:

Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.

Identifier:

AAA.halper62

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw94b057b9a-c3f9-4586-8d44-ee2d58857127

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-halper62

Creator:

Freer, Charles Lang, 1856-1919  Search this

Names:

Freer Gallery of Art  Search this

M. Knoedler & Co.  Search this

Smithsonian Institution  Search this

Yamanaka & Company  Search this

Bacher, Otto H. (Otto Henry), 1856-1909  Search this

Berenson, Bernard, 1865-1959  Search this

Bing, Siegfried, 1838-1905  Search this

Binyon, Laurence, 1869-1943  Search this

Bixby, William K. (William Keeney), 1857-1931  Search this

Bosch-Reitz, Sigisbert Chrétien, 1860-  Search this

Caffin, Charles Henry, 1854-1918  Search this

Campbell, Colin, Lady, 1857-1911  Search this

Campbell, Colin, Lord, 1853-1895  Search this

Canfield, Richard A. (Richard Albert), 1855-1914  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Church, Frederick S. (Frederick Stuart), 1842-1924  Search this

Churchill, Alfred Vance, 1864-1949  Search this

Coburn, Alvin Langdon, 1882-1966  Search this

Dewing, Thomas Wilmer, 1851-1938  Search this

Dow, Arthur W. (Arthur Wesley), 1857-1922  Search this

Fenollosa, Ernest Francisco, 1853-1908  Search this

Gallatin, A. E. (Albert Eugene), 1881-1952  Search this

Gellatly, John, 1853-1931  Search this

Gookin, Frederick William  Search this

Hartmann, Sadakichi, 1867-1944  Search this

Hecker, Frank J. (Frank Joseph), 1846-1927  Search this

Kelekian, Dikran, 1868-1951  Search this

Laufer, Berthold, 1874-1934  Search this

Matsuki, Bunkio, 1867-1940  Search this

McCormick, Frederick, 1870-  Search this

Melchers, Gari, 1860-1932  Search this

Meyer, Agnes Elizabeth Ernst, 1887-1970  Search this

Meyer, Eugene, 1875-1959  Search this

Moore, Charles, 1855-1942  Search this

Nomura, Yozo  Search this

Philip, Rosalind Birnie, 1873-1958  Search this

Platt, Charles A. (Charles Adams), 1861-1933  Search this

Reid, Alexander  Search this

Rhoades, Katharine N., 1885-1965  Search this

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919  Search this

Saint-Gaudens, Augustus, 1848-1907  Search this

Steichen, Edward, 1879-1973  Search this

Stieglitz, Alfred, 1864-1946  Search this

Thayer, Abbott Handerson, 1849-1921  Search this

Tryon, Dwight William, 1849-1925  Search this

Walcott, Charles D. (Charles Doolittle), 1850-1927  Search this

Warring, Joseph Stephens, 1863?-1944  Search this

Way, Thomas R. (Thomas Robert), 1861-1913  Search this

Whistler, Beatrix Philip Godwin, d. 1896  Search this

Whistler, James McNeill, 1834-1903  Search this

Wong, K. T.  Search this

Yue, Seaouke  Search this

Extent:

34 Microfilm reels

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Microfilm reels

Date:

1876-1931

Scope and Contents:

Papers concerning Freer's art collecting activities, including correspondence, diaries, art inventories, scrapbooks of clippings on James McNeil Whistler and other press clippings, and photographs. In addition to Freer's own correspondence, the papers include correspondence collected by Freer of James McNeill Whistler and of Whistler collector Richard A. Canfield, correspondence of Freer's assistant Katharine Nash Rhoades, and correspondence regarding Freer's bequest to the Smithsonian Institution.

Correspondence, ca. 1860-1921, includes Freer's correspondence, 1876-1920, with artists, dealers, collectors, museums, and public figures; 30 v. of letterpress books containing copies of letters sent, 1892-1910; correspondence collected by Freer of James McNeill Whistler, and his wife Beatrix, 186?-1909, with Lady Colin Campbell, Thomas R. Way, Alexander Reid, Whistler' mother, Mrs. George W. Whistler, and others; correspondence of Whistler collector Richard A. Canfield, 1904-1913, regarding works in Canfield's collection; and correspondence of Freer's assistant, Katharine Nash Rhoades, 1920-1921, soliciting Freer letters and regarding the settlement of his estate.

Also included are twenty-nine pocket diaries, 1889-1890, 1892-1898, 1900-1919, recording daily activities, people and places visited, observations, and comments; a diary kept by Freer's caretaker, Joseph Stephens Warring, recording daily activities at Freer's Detroit home, 1907-1910;

Inventories, n.d. and 1901-1921, of American, European, and Asian art in Freer's collection, often including provenance information; vouchers, 1884-1919, documenting his purchases; five volumes of scrapbooks of clippings on James McNeill Whistler, 1888-1931, labeled "Various," "Peacock Room," "Death, etc.," "Paris, etc.," and "Boston...London" ; three volumes of newsclippings, 1900-1930, concerning Freer and the opening of the Freer Gallery of Art;

correspondence regarding Freer's gift and bequest to the Smithsonian Institution, 1902-1916; and photographs, ca. 1880-1930, of Freer, including portraits by Alvin Langdon Coburn and Edward Steichen, Freer with others, Freer in Cairo, China and Japan, Freer's death mask, and his memorial service, Kyoto, 1930; photographs of artists and others, including Thomas Dewing, Ernest Fenellosa, Katharine Rhoades taken by Alfred Stieglitz, Rosalind B. Philip, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Abbott H. Thayer, Dwight Tryon, and Whistler; and photographs relating to Whistler, including art works depicting him, grave and memorial monuments, works of art, the Peacock Room, and Whistler's memorial exhibition at the Copley Society.

Among Freer's correspondents are: Otto Bacher, Bernard Berenson, Siegfried Bing, Laurence Binyon, W.K. Bixby, Sigisbert Chretien Bosch-Reitz, Charles H. Caffin, Colin Campbell, Richard Canfield, William Merritt Chase, Frederick Stuart Church, Alfred Vance Churchill, Thomas Wilmer Dewing, Arthur Wesley Dow, Ernest Fenollosa, Albert Gallatin, John Gellatly, Frederick W. Gookin, Sadakichi Hartmann, Frank J. Hecker, Dikran Kelekian, M. Knoedler & Co., Berthold Laufer, Lien Hui Ching Collection, W.A. Livingstone, Frederick McCormick, Bunkio Matsuki, Gari Melchers, Agnes Meyer, Eugene Meyer, Charles Moore, Yozo Nomura, Rosalind Birnie Philip, Charles A. Platt, Theodore Roosevelt, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the Smithsonian Institution, Joseph Stephens Warring, Thomas Way, Abbott Handerson Thayer, Dwight W. Tryon, Charles Walcott of the Smithsonian Institution, Beatrix Whistler, James McNeill Whistler, K.T. Wong, Yamanaka & Co., and Seaouke Yue.

Arrangement:

All correspondence except letterpress books: arranged alphabetically by correspondent; letterpress books are chonological.

Biographical / Historical:

Art collector; Detroit, Michigan. Collected Asian, American, and European art, including a large collection of works by James McNeill Whistler. Founded the Freer Gallery of Art, which is now part of the Smithsonian Institution.

Provenance:

Selected for microfilming from the Charles Lang Freer papers at the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. Microfilmed 1992 by the Archives of American Art with funding provided by the Smithsonian Institution's Office of Fellowships and Grants Research Resources Program. Portions of the correspondence and the letterpress books were previously filmed by the Freer in the 1970 (AAA reels 77, 453-456, and 1217-1232); those reels have been replaced by this microfilming project. See Finding Aid for information on papers not selected for microfilming.

Restrictions:

The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.

Topic:

Art, Asian -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Art, American -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Identifier:

AAA.freechar

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw975f501e2-91f7-48f7-82dc-03482afd00c1

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-freechar

Creator:

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Subject:

De Voll, F. Usher  Search this

Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Shinnecock Summer School of Art  Search this

Art Club of Philadelphia  Search this

Type:

Scrapbooks

Photographs

Citation:

William Merritt Chase papers, circa 1890-1964. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Art -- Study and teaching  Search this

Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Art, American  Search this

Theme:

Lives of artists  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)7388

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209545

AAA_collcode_chaswill

Theme:

Lives of artists

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209545

Creator:

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Subject:

Stewart, John A.  Search this

Citation:

William Merritt Chase letter to John A. Stewart, 1911 November 21. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Theme:

Lives of artists  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)10204

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)213279

AAA_collcode_chaswmls

Theme:

Lives of artists

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_213279

Creator:

Pisano, Ronald G.  Search this

Names:

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Daugherty, James Henry, 1889-1974  Search this

Paxson, Ethel, 1885-1982  Search this

Extent:

14.6 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Interviews

Date:

circa 1972-2008

Scope and Contents:

Papers mainly relate to Pisano's research on William Merrit Chase including lectures, articles, notes, photographs, slides, book manuscripts, photocopies, and Pisano's research on Chase in Holland and interviews with Chase's students including Ethel Paxson, Caroline van Hook Bean, and James Daugherty on cassette. Also included are subject files, correspondence and writings relating to Pisano's research on late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century American art.

Subject files include the American Fakirs Society; Art Students League and Cape Cod; Reynolds Beal; Bechtel collection; Daniel Putnam Brinley; James Britton; Eliot Clark; Kenyon Cox; Leon Dabo; Stuart Davis; William de Leftwich Dodge; Gaines Ruger Donoho; Louis Eilshemius; Fillin collection; Ellen Thayer Fisher; Eva Gatling; William Clackens; Charles Hawthorne; Joel Heller collection; Whitney Hubbard; "Idle Hours: Americans at Leisure, 1865-1914"; Frederick Kost; Robert Henry Logan; Long Island landscape painting; Bena Frank Mayer; Charles Henry Miller; National Association of Women Artists; Parrish Art Museum; Pastel Society of America; Ethel Paxson; George Picken; Edith and Henry Prellwitz and the Peconic Art Colony; Chauncey Ryder; Alice Schille; the Shinnecock Summer School of Art; sports in art; Haig Tashian collection; the Tile Club; Eugene Paul Ullman; Irving R. Wiles; "Waterworks: The Long Island Legacy"; Frank Wadsworth; Stokely Webster; Jane Wilson; Woodstock; and Chen Yi Ming.

Wiritngs include Pisano's book proposal for Don't Argue, Paint, 1989. Correspondence is with museums and art collectors. Also included are condolence letters to D. Frederick Baker, Pisano's partner, regarding Pisano's death.

Biographical / Historical:

Ronald Pisano (1948-2000) was an art historian, curator, museum director and art consultant in New York, N.Y. Pisano specialized in late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century American art. He was an expert on William Merritt Chase.

Related Materials:

Ronald G. Pisano project records for the William Merritt Chase catalogue raisonné, 1896-2011, (Bulk, 1975-2007) is located at The New School Library and Archives.

Provenance:

Donated 2002-2010 by D. Frederick Baker, Ronald Pisano's partner, Baker-Pisano collection.

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:

Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Genre/Form:

Interviews

Identifier:

AAA.pisarona

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9343bd4ac-444f-43e6-88ac-d6a4c6e4829e

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-pisarona

Creator:

Shaw, Edwin Coupland, 1863-1941  Search this

Names:

Akron Art Institute  Search this

Carrig-Rohane Shop (Boston, Mass.)  Search this

E. & A. Milch, Inc.  Search this

Ferargil Galleries  Search this

Gorham Company. Dept. of Sculpture (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Grand Central Art Galleries  Search this

Hatfield & Clark (Firm: Chicago, Ill.)  Search this

Howard Young Galleries (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

J.W. Young (Gallery)  Search this

M. Knoedler & Co.  Search this

Macbeth Gallery  Search this

Montross Gallery  Search this

R.C. & N.M. Vose (Firm)  Search this

Robert C. Vose Galleries  Search this

Thomas Whipple Dunbar Art Galleries (Milwaukee, Wis.)  Search this

Thurber Art Galleries (Chicago, Ill.)  Search this

Barrie, Erwin S., 1886-1983  Search this

Batts, J. E.  Search this

Beckwith, J. Carroll (James Carroll), 1852-1917  Search this

Benson, Frank Weston, 1862-1951  Search this

Blakelock, Ralph Albert, 1847-1919  Search this

Carlsen, Emil, 1853-1932  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Cole, Timothy, 1852-1931  Search this

Daingerfield, Elliott, 1859-1932  Search this

Dallin, Cyrus E. (Cyrus Edwin), 1861-1944  Search this

Davis, Charles H. (Charles Harold), 1856-1933  Search this

Davis, Warren, 1865-1928  Search this

Derujinsky, Gleb W., 1888-1975  Search this

Dewey, Charles M., 1849-1937  Search this

Dewing, Thomas Wilmer, 1851-1938  Search this

Dougherty, Paul, 1877-1947  Search this

Dunbar, Thomas Whipple  Search this

Duveneck, Frank, 1848-1919  Search this

Eaton, Charles Warren, 1857-1937  Search this

Frieseke, Frederick C. (Frederick Carl), 1874-1939  Search this

Fuller, George, 1822-1884  Search this

Genth, Lillian Mathilde, 1876-1953  Search this

Gerrity, Thomas F., 1873-1935  Search this

Hassam, Childe, 1859-1935  Search this

Hatfield, D. H.  Search this

Hawthorne, Charles Webster, 1872-1930  Search this

Hunt, William Morris, 1824-1879  Search this

Inness, George, 1825-1894  Search this

Johansen, John C. (John Christen), 1876-1964  Search this

Konti, Isidore, 1862-1938  Search this

La Farge, John, 1835-1910  Search this

Lathrop, William Langson, 1859-1938  Search this

MacMonnies, Frederick William, 1863-1937  Search this

MacNeil, Hermon Atkins, 1866-1947  Search this

Metcalf, Willard Leroy, 1858-1925  Search this

Milch, Albert, 1881-1951  Search this

Minns, Hervey W.  Search this

Montross, N. E. (Newman E), 1849-1932  Search this

Murphy, Hermann Dudley, 1867-1945  Search this

Murphy, John Francis, 1853-1921  Search this

Price, F. Newlin (Frederic Newlin)  Search this

Proctor, Alexander Phimister, 1862-1950  Search this

Purdy, W. Frank, 1865-1943  Search this

Ranger, Henry Ward, 1858-1916  Search this

Ritschel, William, 1864-1949  Search this

Russell, T. H. (Thomas H)  Search this

Russman, Felix, 1888-1962  Search this

Ryder, Albert Pinkham, 1847-1917  Search this

Sellstedt, Lars Gustaf, 1819-1911  Search this

Sherman, Frederic Fairchild, 1874-1940  Search this

Shonnard, Eugenie Frederica, 1886-1978  Search this

Torrey, Elliot, 1867-1949  Search this

Tryon, Dwight William, 1849-1925  Search this

Turner, Helen Maria, 1858-1958  Search this

Twachtman, John Henry, 1853-1902  Search this

Vedder, Elihu, 1836-1923  Search this

Vonnoh, Bessie Potter, 1872-1955  Search this

Vonnoh, Robert William, 1858-1933  Search this

Walker, Horatio, 1858-1938  Search this

Weir, Julian Alden, 1852-1919  Search this

Williams, Frederick Ballard, 1871-1956  Search this

Wolf, Henry, 1852-1916  Search this

Young, J. W.  Search this

Extent:

3 Microfilm reels

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Microfilm reels

Date:

1864-1937

Scope and Contents:

Correspondence with dealers, artists, museums, publishers, photography studios, and others regarding art purchases, loans, and Shaw's collection; and 16 v. of scrapbooks containing photographs, letters, and biographical information on artists. Much of the correspondence with artists relates to Shaw's requests for the information which was then used in the scrapbooks. Also included is one volume compiled in 1947 outlining the contents of the scrapbooks.

REELS 1124-1125: 16 vol. of scrapbooks, 1864-1930, relating to artists represented in Shaw's collection, containing letters, many from artists, photographs of artists and their work, biographical data, clippings and articles, and comments on their work; and 1 v., "Notes: Edwin C. Shaw Collection of Paintings," compiled in 1947, and annotated "Used at Women's Art League Meeting at Miss Shaw's in 1947 by Mrs. [Jane S.] Barnhardt, who compiled it, and then given to the Art Institute Library," containing an outline of the contents of the 16 v. of scrapbooks.

Artists represented in the scrapbooks include J. Carroll Beckwith, Frank W. Benson, Ralph Blakelock, Emil Carlsen, William Merritt Chase, Timothy Cole, Elliott Daingerfield, Cyrus B. Dallin, Charles Davis, Warren Davis, Gleb Derujinsky, Charles M. Dewey, Thomas W. Dewing, Paul Dougherty, Frank Duveneck, Charles Eaton, Frederick Frieseke, George Fuller, Lillian Genth, Childe Hassam, Charles Hawthorne, William Morris Hunt, George Inness, John Johansen, Isidore Konti, John La Farge, William Lathrop, Frederick MacMonnies, Hermon A. MacNeil, Willard Metcalf, Herman Dudley Murphy, J. Francis Murphy, A. Phimister Proctor, Henry Ward Ranger, William Ritschel, Felix Russmann, Albert P. Ryder, Eugenie F. Shonnard, Lars Gustaf Sellstedt, Elliot Torrey, Dwight Tryon, Helen M. Turner, John Twachtman, Elihu Vedder, Bessie P. Vonnoh, Robert Vonnoh, Horatio Walker, J. Alden Weir, Frederick Ballard Williams, Henry Wolf and "The Ten."

REEL 4597: Correspondence, ca. 1916-1941, concerning art acquisitions with dealers Erwin S. Barrie of Grand Central Art Galleries; Thomas Whipple Dunbar; Frederic Newlin Price and T.H. Russell of Ferargil Galleries; W. Frank Purdy of the Gorham Co. Dept. of Sculpture and later the School of American Sculpture; D.H. Hatfield of Hatfield & Clark; Thomas Gerrity of M. Knoedler & Co.; Robert Macbeth, Robert McIntyre and Henry Miller of the Macbeth Gallery; Albert Milch of E.& A. Milch, Inc.; Newman Montross of Montross Gallery; J.E. Batts of the Thurber Art Galleries; Robert C. Vose of R.C. & N.M. Vose and Vose Galleries, and their frame shop, Carrig-Rohane; Howard Young of Howard Young Galleries; and J.W. Young; correspondence with artists and/or their families requesting the artist's portrait, biographical information and background, including letters from Elliot Daingerfield, Charles Dewey, Thomas Wilmer Dewing, John C. Johansen, Willard Leroy Metcalf, Hervey W. Minns, Hermann Dudley Murphy, A.P. Proctor, Eugenie Shonnard, Elliot Torrey, Dwight W. Tryon, Helen M. Turner, and Horatio Walker, and the families of J. Carroll Beckwith, George Inness, Lars Gustaf Sellstedt, John Henry Twachtman and J. Alden Weir; correspondence with the Dayton Art Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art regarding works lent for exhibition; with publisher Frederic Fairchild Sherman; with photography studios; and other miscellaneous correspondence.

Biographical / Historical:

Art collector; Akron, Ohio. Shaw, a BF Goodrich executive and avid collector of post-Civil War American art, was one of the founders of the Akron Art Institute, now the Akron Art Museum.

Provenance:

Lent for microfilming 1976 and 1992 by the Akron Art Museum. Shaw bequethed his art collection and papers to the Museum, then named the Akron Art Institute.

Restrictions:

The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.

Occupation:

Philanthropists -- Ohio -- Akron  Search this

Topic:

Art, American -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Identifier:

AAA.shawedwi

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9d3e07d59-27ae-4884-8e7e-da91331b95e9

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-shawedwi

Creator:

Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971  Search this

Names:

American Artists' Congress  Search this

Artists League of America  Search this

Artists' Union (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Citizens' Committee for Government Arts Projects  Search this

Farmers Union of the New York Milk Shed  Search this

Federal Art Project  Search this

Federal Writers' Project  Search this

International Workers Order  Search this

Macbeth Gallery  Search this

National Farmers' Union (U.S.)  Search this

National Maritime Union of America  Search this

United American Artists  Search this

United Office and Professional Workers of America  Search this

United Scenic Artists  Search this

Boyesen, Bayard  Search this

Chamberlain, J. E.  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Cleland, T. M. (Thomas Maitland), 1880-1964  Search this

Daniel, Charles, 1878-1971  Search this

Davies, Arthur B. (Arthur Bowen), 1862-1928  Search this

DuBois, W.E.B. (William Edward Burghardt), 1868-1963  Search this

Fitzgerald, James, 1899-1971  Search this

Freuchen, Peter, 1886-1957  Search this

Gellert, Hugo, 1892-1985  Search this

Gottlieb, Harry, 1895-  Search this

Hartley, Marsden, 1877-1943  Search this

Hays, Lee, 1914-1981  Search this

Henri, Robert, 1865-1929  Search this

Jones, Dan Burne  Search this

Keller, Charles, 1914-2006  Search this

Miller, Kenneth Hayes, 1876-1952  Search this

Nearing, Helen  Search this

Nearing, Scott, 1883-1983  Search this

Pach, Walter, 1883-1958  Search this

Phillips, Duncan, 1886-1966  Search this

Rasmussen, Knud, 1879-1933  Search this

Reeves, Ruth, 1892-1966  Search this

Robeson, Paul, 1898-1976  Search this

Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945  Search this

Ruggles, Carl, 1876-1971  Search this

Seeger, Pete, 1919-2014  Search this

Stefansson, Vilhjalmur, 1879-1962  Search this

Untermeyer, Louis, 1885-1977  Search this

Wildenstein, Felix, 1883-1952  Search this

Zigrosser, Carl, 1891-  Search this

Extent:

88 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Poems

Sketches

Business records

Photographs

Drawings

Date:

circa 1840-1993

bulk 1935-1961

Summary:

The Rockwell Kent papers measure 88.0 linear feet and date from circa 1840 to 1993 with the bulk of the collection dating from 1935 to 1961. The collection provides comprehensive coverage of Kent's career as a painter, illustrator, designer, writer, lecturer, traveler, political activist, and dairy farmer.

Scope and Content Note:

The Rockwell Kent papers measure 88 linear feet and date from circa 1840 to 1993 with the bulk of the collection dating from 1935 to 1961. The collection provides comprehensive coverage of Kent's career as a painter, illustrator, designer, writer, lecturer, traveler, political activist, and dairy farmer.

Circumstances surrounding the acquisition of the papers are highlighted in an article by Garnett McCoy ("The Rockwell Kent Papers," in the Archives of American Art Journal, 12, no. 1 [January 1972]: 1-9), recommended reading for researchers interested in the collection. The collection is remarkably complete, for in the mid 1920s Kent began keeping carbon copies of all outgoing letters, eventually employing a secretary (who became his third wife and continued her office duties for the remainder of Kent's life).

Series 1: Alphabetical Files contain Kent's personal and professional correspondence, along with business records of the dairy farm and associated enterprises; also included are printed matter on a wide variety of topics and promotional literature relating to organizations and causes of interest to him. Voluminous correspondence with his three wives, five children, and other relatives, as well as with literally hundreds of friends, both lifelong and of brief duration, illuminates Kent's private life and contributes to understanding of his complex character. Among the many correspondents of note are: his art teachers William Merritt Chase, Robert Henri, and Kenneth Hayes Miller; fellow artists Tom Cleland, Arthur B. Davies, James Fitzgerald, Hugo Gellert, Harry Gottleib, Marsden Hartley, Charles Keller, and Ruth Reeves; collectors Duncan Phillips and Dan Burne Jones; critics J. E. Chamberlain and Walter Pach; and dealers Charles Daniel, Felix Wildenstein, and Macbeth Galleries. Kent corresponded with such diverse people as Arctic explorers Peter Freuchen, Knud Rasmussen, and Vilhjalmar Steffanson; composer Carl Ruggles and songwriters Lee Hays and Pete Seeger; civil rights pioneers Paul Robeson and Dr. W. E. B. Du Bois; writers Bayard Boyesen, Scott and Helen Nearing, and Louis Untermeyer; and art historian and print curator Carl Zigrosser.

Kent's interest and involvement in the labor movement are reflected in correspondence with officials and members of a wide variety and large number of unions and related organizations, among them: the Farmers' Educational and Cooperative Union of America, Farmers' Union of the New York Milk Shed, International Workers Order, National Maritime Union, and United Office and Professional Workers of America. Of special interest is his participation, often in leadership roles, in various attempts to organize artists. Files on the American Artists' Congress, Artists League of America, The Artists Union, United American Artists, and United Scenic Artists contain particularly valuable material on the movement.

A supporter of New Deal efforts to aid artists, Kent was actively interested in the various programs and often was critical of their limitations; he advocated continuing federal aid to artists after the Depression abated. The Kent papers include correspondence with the Federal Arts Project, Federal Fine Arts Project, Federal Writers Project, and the War Department, as well as correspondence with the Citizens' Committee for Government Art Projects and President Franklin D. Roosevelt on the subject.

Kent's professional correspondence documents exhibitions, sales, consignments, and reproduction of prints and paintings. He kept meticulous records of his advertising commissions and illustration work. Detailed correspondence with publishers and printers indicates Kent's involvement in the technical aspects of production and provides a good overview of the publishing industry during the mid-twentieth century.

Business records of Asgaard Farm include records of the dairy and transfer of ownership to its employees, tax and employee information, and documents concerning several related business ventures such as distributor ships for grain, feed, and farm implements.

Series 2: Writings consists of notes, drafts, and completed manuscripts by Rockwell Kent, mainly articles, statements, speeches, poems, introductions, and reviews. The Kent Collection given to Friendship House, Moscow, in 1960, was augmented later by a set of his publications and the illustrated manuscripts of many of his monographs. Also included are a small number of manuscripts by other authors.

Series 3: Artwork consists mainly of drawings and sketches by Kent; also included are works on paper by other artists, many of whom are unidentified, and by children.

Series 4: Printed Matter consists of clippings, exhibition catalogs and announcements, brochures, broadsides, programs, and newsletters. These include items by and about Kent and his family, as well as articles written and/or illustrated by him, and reviews of his books. There is also material on a variety of subjects and causes of interest to him. Additional printed matter is included among the alphabetical files, mainly as attachments to correspondence.

Series 5: Miscellaneous includes biographical material, legal documents, and memorabilia. Artifacts received with papers include textile samples, a silk scarf, dinnerware, ice bucket, and rubber stamp, all featuring designs by Rockwell Kent. Also with this series are a variety of documents including a phrenological analysis of an ancestor, lists of supplies for expeditions, a hand-drawn map of an unidentified place, and technical notes regarding art materials and techniques.

Series 6: Photographs includes photographs of Kent, his family and friends, travel, and art number that over one thousand. Also included here are several albums of family and travel photographs.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged into six series. Series 1 is arranged alphabetically. The arrangement of the remaining series is explained in each series description. Note that sealed materials that became available in 2000 were microfilmed separately on reels 5740-5741, but have integrated into this finding aid.

Missing Title

Series 1: Alphabetical Files, circa 1900-1971, undated (Reels 5153-5249, 5256, 5740-5741)

Series 2: Writings, 1906-1978, undated (Reels 5249-5252, 5741)

Series 3: Art Work, 1910-1972, undated (Reels 5252, 5741)

Series 4: Printed Matter, 1905-1993, undated (Reels 5252-5254)

Series 5: Miscellaneous, 1859-1969, undated (Reels 5254, 5741)

Series 6: Photographs, circa 1840-1970, undated (Reels 5254-5255, 5741)

Biographical Note:

Rockwell Kent (1882-1971), an energetic and multitalented man, pursued many interests and careers during his very long and active life. At various times he was an architect, draftsman, carpenter, unskilled laborer, painter, illustrator, printmaker, commercial artist, designer, traveler/explorer, writer, professional lecturer, dairy farmer, and political activist.

While studying architecture at Columbia University, Kent enrolled in William Merritt Chase's summer school at Shinnecock Hills, Long Island. He then redirected his career ambitions toward painting and continued to study with Chase in New York. Kent spent a summer working and living with Abbott H. Thayer in Dublin, New Hampshire, and attended the New York School of Art, where Robert Henri and Kenneth Hayes Miller were his teachers.

Critically and financially, Kent was a successful artist. He was very well known for his illustration work--particularly limited editions of the classics, bookplates, and Christmas cards. He was a prolific printmaker, and his prints and paintings were acquired by many major museums and private collectors. During the post-World War II era, Kent's political sympathies resulted in the loss of commissions, and his adherence to artistic conservatism and outspoken opposition to modern art led to disfavor within art circles. After many years of declining reputation in this country and unsuccessful attempts to find a home for the Kent Collection, Kent gave his unsold paintings--the majority of his oeuvre--to the Soviet Union, where he continued to be immensely popular.

An avid traveler, Kent was especially fascinated by remote, Arctic lands and often stayed for extended periods of time to paint, write, and become acquainted with the local inhabitants. Between 1918 and 1935, he wrote and illustrated several popular books about his experiences in Alaska, Tierra del Fuego, and Greenland. In the 1930s and 1940s, Kent was much in demand as a lecturer, making several nationwide tours under the management of a professional lecture bureau; he spoke mainly about his travels, but among his standard lectures were some on "art for the people."

In 1927, Kent purchased Asgaard Farm at AuSable Forks, New York, in the Adirondacks, where he lived for the remainder of his life, operating a modern dairy farm on a modest scale for many years.

As a young man, Kent met Rufus Weeks, became committed to social justice, and joined the Socialist Party. Throughout his life, he supported left-wing causes and was a member or officer of many organizations promoting world peace and harmonious relations with the Soviet Union, civil rights, civil liberties, antifascism, and organized labor. Kent was frequently featured as a celebrity sponsor or speaker at fund-raising events for these causes. In 1948, he ran unsuccessfully as the American Labor Party's candidate for Congress. Kent's unpopular political views eventually led to the dissolution of his dairy business, resulted in a summons to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee, and prompted the U.S. State Department to deny him a passport, an action that subsequently was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Kent wrote two autobiographies, This Is My Own (1940) and It's Me, O Lord (1955). In 1969, he was the subject of an oral history interview conducted by Paul Cummings for the Archives of American Art.

Provenance:

In 1969, Rockwell Kent donated his papers to the Archives of American Art; textile samples were received in 1979, and his widow gave additional papers in 1971 and 1996. Letters to Rockwell Kent from wives Frances and Sally, sealed during Sally Kent Gorton's lifetime, became available for research after her death in 2000, and further material was donated to the Archives of American Art in 2001 by the Estate of Sally Kent [Shirley Johnstone] Gorton.

Restrictions:

The microfilm of this collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Use of material not microfilmed or digitized 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.

Occupation:

Painters -- New York (State)  Search this

Topic:

Designers -- New York (State)  Search this

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

Politics and culture  Search this

Authors -- New York  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States -- Political aspects  Search this

Dairy farms  Search this

Federal aid to the arts  Search this

Illustrators -- New York (State)  Search this

Illustration of books  Search this

Works of art  Search this

Art and war  Search this

Commercial art  Search this

World War, 1939-1945 -- Art and the war  Search this

Function:

Labor unions

Genre/Form:

Poems

Sketches

Business records

Photographs

Drawings

Citation:

Rockwell Kent papers, circa 1840-1993, bulk 1935-1961. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

AAA.kentrock

See more items in:

Rockwell Kent papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw97edd9940-eb61-4562-9583-def2da778b6a

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-kentrock

Interviewee:

Kent, Rockwell, 1882-1971  Search this

Interviewer:

Cummings, Paul  Search this

Names:

American Artists Group  Search this

Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Armitage, Merle, 1893-1975  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Henri, Robert, 1865-1929  Search this

Miller, Kenneth Hayes, 1876-1952  Search this

Zigrosser, Carl, 1891-  Search this

Extent:

1 Sound tape reel (Sound recording: (3 hours 30 min.), 7 in.)

40 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Sound tape reels

Pages

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

1969 Feb. 26-27

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Rockwell Kent conducted 1969 Feb. 26-27, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. Kent speaks of his family background; his early interest and talent in art; studying painting with Robert Henri and William Merritt Chase; his early studies and work in architecture; Kenneth Hayes Miller as a teacher; experiences which influenced him and inspired him; his travels and explorations; his work in book design and illustration; mural commissions; the American Artists Group; his political life and public affairs. He recalls Merle Armitage and Carl Zigrosser.

Biographical / Historical:

In addition to being a successful painter, printmaker, illustrator, designer, and commercial artist, Kent pursued careers as a writer, professional lecturer, and dairy farmer. He travelled extensively, and was a political activist who supported the causes of organized labor, civil liberties, civil rights, anti-Fascism, and peace and friendship with the Soviet Union.

Provenance:

These interviews are 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 others.

Restrictions:

Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.

Topic:

Book design  Search this

Illustration of books  Search this

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

Printmakers -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

Illustrators -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

Landscape painters -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

Muralists -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

Painters -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Identifier:

AAA.kent69

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw945e08dc3-ea19-4a00-9417-53bea9ad55f1

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-kent69

Creator:

American Academy of Arts and Letters  Search this

Names:

Arms, John Taylor, 1887-1953  Search this

Bellows, George, 1882-1925  Search this

Blashfield, Edwin Howland, 1848-1936  Search this

Brush, George de Forest, 1855-1941  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Cortissoz, Royal, 1869-1948  Search this

Hambidge, Jay, 1867-1924  Search this

Hassam, Childe, 1859-1935  Search this

Johnson, Robert Underwood, 1853-1937  Search this

Millet, Francis Davis, 1846-1912  Search this

Pennell, Joseph, 1857-1926  Search this

Vedder, Elihu, 1836-1923  Search this

Ward, John Quincy Adams, 1830-1910  Search this

Weir, Julian Alden, 1852-1919  Search this

Wood, Charles Erskine Scott, 1852-1944  Search this

Zigrosser, Carl, 1891-  Search this

Extent:

5 Microfilm reels (800 items on 5 microfilm reels)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Microfilm reels

Date:

1864-1942

Scope and Contents:

The microfilmed American Academy of Arts and Letters records consist of artists' papers containing correspondence, notes, biographical material, exhibition catalogs, and other published material. Included is a volume of notes, drawings, and calculations made by George Bellows for a study of Jay Hambidge's theory of Dynamic Symmetry, as well as correspondence and biographical and critical material on George de Forest Brush, Childe Hassam, Francis D. Millet, Joseph Pennell, Elihu Vedder, and J. Q. A. Ward. The Hassam papers include letters from John Taylor arms, E. H. Blashfield, William Merritt Chase, Royal Cortissoz, J. Alden Weir, and Charles Erskine Scott Wood. All groups contain official Academy correspondence from its secretary Robert Underwood Johnson.

Biographical / Historical:

The American Academy of Arts and Letters is an honor society in New York comprised of artists, writers, architects, and composers. The Academy was created in 1904 by members of the National Institute of Arts and modeled on the Académie française. The Academy of Arts and Letters and the National Institute of Arts and letters merged on December 30, 1976.

Provenance:

Lent to the Archives of American Art for microfilming in 1965. This is a collection of miscellaneous papers representing a gathering over the years of unsolicited documentary resources on American art given or addressed to the Academy.

Restrictions:

The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.

Function:

Arts organizations -- New York (State)

Learned institutions and societies -- United States

Identifier:

AAA.ameracaa2

See more items in:

American Academy of Arts and Letters records

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9beef6315-ecbd-4f43-8e04-7862fed8fba4

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-ameracaa2

Creator:

Sterner, Albert, 1863-1946  Search this

Sterner, Marie, 1880-1953  Search this

Names:

Barbirolli, John, Sir, 1899-1970  Search this

Barnard, George Grey, 1863-1938  Search this

Beaux, Cecilia, 1855-1942  Search this

Bellows, George, 1882-1925  Search this

Bigelow, Poultney, b. 1855  Search this

Bourdelle, Emile Antoine, 1861-1929  Search this

Calvé, Emma, 1858-1942  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Churchill, Winston, Sir, 1874-1965  Search this

Collier, Constance, 1878-1955  Search this

Dewey, John, 1859-1952  Search this

Du Maurier, Gerald, Sir, 1873-1934  Search this

Dunn, James Nicol  Search this

Duveen, Joseph Duveen, Baron, 1869-1939  Search this

Ferguson, Elsie  Search this

Genthe, Arnold, 1869-1942  Search this

Gibson, Charles Dana, 1867-1944  Search this

Hampden, Walter, 1879-1955  Search this

Harding, Warren G. (Warren Gamaliel), 1865-1923  Search this

Hawthorne, Charles Webster, 1872-1930  Search this

Henri, Robert, 1865-1929  Search this

Herford, Oliver, 1863-1935  Search this

Howard, Leslie, 1893-1943  Search this

Irving, Henry, Sir, 1838-1905  Search this

Le Gallienne, Eva, 1899-  Search this

Marlowe, Julia, 1865-1950  Search this

Merivale, Philip, 1886-1946  Search this

Mozkowski, Maurice  Search this

Nazimova, 1879-1945  Search this

Pennell, Joseph, 1857-1926  Search this

Pompelli, Raphael  Search this

Pyle, Howard, 1853-1911  Search this

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919  Search this

Sargent, John Singer, 1856-1925  Search this

Shaw, Bernard, 1856-1950  Search this

Tree, Herbert Beerbohm, Sir, 1853-1917  Search this

Ward, Humphry, Mrs., 1851-1920  Search this

Weir, Julian Alden, 1852-1919  Search this

Wharton, Edith, 1862-1937  Search this

Wilson, Francis Vaux, 1874-1938  Search this

Zangwill, Israel, 1864-1926  Search this

Extent:

87 Items ((on partial microfilm reel))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1899-1945

Scope and Contents:

Letters to the Sterners, primarily regarding art and cultural matters.

Letters are from: John Barbirolli, George G. Barnard, Cecelia Beaux, George Bellows, Emile Bourdelle, Poultney Bigelow, Emma Calve, William M. Chase, Winston Churchill, Constance Collier, John Dewey, Gerald du Maurier, John Drew, James N. Dunn, Joseph Duveen, Elsie Ferguson, Arnold Genthe, Charles D. Gibson, Warren G. Harding, Charles W. Hawthorne, Robert Henri, Walter Hampden, Oliver Herford, Leslie Howard, Sir Henry Irving, Eva Le Gallienne, Julie Marlow, Philip Merivale, Maurice Mozkowski, Alla Nazimova, Joseph Pennell, Raphael Pompelli, Howard Pyle, Theodore Roosevelt, John S. Sargent, G. Bernard Shaw, Sir Herbert B. Tree, Mary A. Ward, J. Alden Weir, Edith Wharton, Francis Wilson, and Israel Zangwill.

Biographical / Historical:

Illustrator and painter; New York City. Sterner's wife, Marie, was an art dealer.

Provenance:

Microfilmed 1956 by the Archives of American Art with other art-related papers in the Manuscript Division of the New York Public Library. Included in the microfilming project were selected papers of the Art Division and the Prints Division.

Restrictions:

The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.

Occupation:

Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Illustrators -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Identifier:

AAA.steralbm

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9ac638fd2-f3ba-45c7-965b-087ac4350c8a

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-steralbm

Creator:

Seiberling, Frank A., 1908-1990  Search this

Names:

Bellows, George, 1882-1925  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Henri, Robert, 1865-1929  Search this

Kroll, Leon, 1884-1974  Search this

Kuhn, Walt, 1877-1949  Search this

Pène Du Bois, Guy, 1884-1958  Search this

Seiberling, Frank, 1908-  Search this

Taylor, John Russell  Search this

Extent:

1 Linear foot

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1934-1962

bulk 1934-1948

Scope and Contents:

Research material compiled in preparation for Seiberling's dissertation on Bellows, "George Bellows, 1882-1925: His Life and Development as an Artist" (University of Chicago, 1948).

Included are Seiberling's correspondence, 1934-1962, with Guy Pène du Bois, Walt Kuhn, Leon Kroll and Mrs. George Bellows; typescript copies of letters by George Bellows, a few compiled by Leon Kroll; writings, including Seiberling's dissertation and writings on Bellows by John Russell Taylor; research notes; clippings and exhibition catalogs; copyprints of photographs of Bellows, Bellows at a class taught by Robert Henri at the "Chase School," of Bellows at Henri's studio, and of works of art by Bellows, Henri, Everett Shinn and Diego Rivera.

Biographical / Historical:

Frank A. Seiberling (1908-1990) was an art historian. Bellows was a painter and a member of the Ashcan School. Member of the Eight.

Provenance:

Donated 1991 by Nancy Seiberling, widow of Frank Seiberling.

Restrictions:

Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.

Topic:

Art, American  Search this

Identifier:

AAA.seibfran

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9776b0a93-f028-4139-aa12-9e6641394f93

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-seibfran

Interviewee:

Walkowitz, Abraham, 1880-1965  Search this

Interviewer:

Cowdrey, Mary Bartlett, 1910-1974  Search this

Lerner, Abram  Search this

Names:

"291" (Gallery)  Search this

Armory Show (1913: New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Society of Independent Artists (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Bliss, Lizzie P. (Lizzie Plummer), 1864-1931  Search this

Boswell, Peyton, 1904-  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Cox, Kenyon, 1856-1919  Search this

Cézanne, Paul, 1839-1906  Search this

Davies, Arthur B. (Arthur Bowen), 1862-1928  Search this

Duncan, Isadora, 1877-1927  Search this

Epstein, Jacob, Sir, 1880-1959  Search this

Hassam, Childe, 1859-1935  Search this

Kuhn, Walt, 1877-1949  Search this

Monet, Claude, 1840-1926  Search this

O'Keeffe, Georgia, 1887-1986  Search this

Pach, Walter, 1883-1958  Search this

Weber, Max, 1881-1961  Search this

Extent:

66 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Interviews

Sound recordings

Date:

1958 December 8-22

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Abraham Walkowitz conducted by Abram Lerner and Mary Bartlett Cowdrey for the Archives of American Art.

Walkowitz discusses his childhood and schooling; travelling abroad; influence of Claude Monet exhibit; his book, "Artists of Walkowitz: 100 Portraits"; Paul Cezanne's death; meeting artists in Europe; his 1908 exhibition of modern art at the Julius Haas Gallery, New York; getting Max Weber a show at the Haas Gallery; Steiglitz and his "291" Gallery; the Armory Show, especially the roles of Arthur B. Davies, Walt Kuhn, and Walter Pach; reactions to Nude Descending a Staircase; the Society of Independent Artists; thoughts on criticism of his work; his relationship with the critic Peyton Boswell; the importance in his work of dancer Isadora Duncan; opinions on American art, modern art, art schools, students and patrons; good art versus bad art; and the role of critics. Among others he recalls are Lizzie Bliss, William Merritt Chase, Kenyon Cox, The Eight, Jacob Epstein, Childe Hassam, and Georgia O'Keeffe.

Biographical / Historical:

Abraham Walkowitz (1880-1965) was a painter in New York, New York.

General:

Sound has been lost on tape reels; reels discarded.

Provenance:

This interview is 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:

Art critics  Search this

Topic:

Art, American  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this

Eight (Group of American artists)  Search this

Painters -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this

Genre/Form:

Interviews

Sound recordings

Identifier:

AAA.walkow58

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw986f86904-6674-4d01-85b2-1e29fcc0b3a4

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-walkow58

Creator:

Blackstone, Harriet, 1864-1939  Search this

Names:

Anderson, Stell  Search this

Chase, Joseph Cummings, 1878-1965  Search this

Chase, William Merritt, 1849-1916  Search this

Dewing, M. O. (Maria Oakey), 1855-1927  Search this

Dewing, Thomas Wilmer, 1851-1938  Search this

Hobart, Alice Tisdale, 1882-1967  Search this

Holbrook, Florence  Search this

Landis, Mary  Search this

Laurens, Jean-Paul, 1838-1921  Search this

McCullough, Esther Morgan  Search this

Sargent, John Singer, 1856-1925  Search this

Washington, Booker T., 1856-1915  Search this

Wunder, Richard P.  Search this

Extent:

5.4 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Sketchbooks

Scrapbooks

Date:

1870-1984

Scope and Contents:

The papers of painter Harriet Blackstone date from 1870-1984 and measure 5.4 linear feet. The collection provides documentation of Harriet Blackstone's career through scattered biographical material; personal and professional correspondence, including letters from Maria Oakey Dewing, Thomas Wilmer Dewing, Alice Tisdale Hobart, Joseph Cummings Chase, Stell Anderson, Mary Landis, Esther Morgan McCullough, and Booker T. Washington; writings by Blackstone, Esther Morgan McCullough, Richard P. Wunder, and Florence Holbrook; personal business records; clippings, exhbition material, and other printed material; one scrapbook; photographs of Blackstone, family, friends, and notable artists William Merrit Chase, Jean Paul Laurens, and John Singer Sargent; artwork; and four sketchbooks. Also found are a few artifacts found on Blackstone's easel.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as 9 series.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1930-1973 (Box 1, 6; 7 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1883-1984 (Box 1; 0.4 Linear Feet)

Series 3: Writings, 1861-1979 (Boxes 1-2; 1.0 Linear Feet)

Series 4: Personal Business Records, circa 1906-late 1930s (Box 2; 0.2 Linear Feet)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1901-1984 (Boxes 2-3, 6; 0.8 Linear Feet)

Series 6: Scrapbook, circa early 1900s (Boxes 3, 6; 0.2 Linear Feet)

Series 7: Photographs, 1870-early 1900s (Boxes 3-4, 6, BV 7, 8-9; 1.7 Linear Feet)

Series 8: Artwork, 1870-1929 (Boxes 4-5; 0.2 Linear Feet)

Series 9: Artifacts, circa early 1900s-1939 (Box 5, Artifact; 0.4 Linear Feet)

Biographical / Historical:

Harriet Blackstone (1864-1939) was a painter in New York, New York. Blackstone was born on November 13th, 1864 in New Hartford, New York. In 1883, she moved to Illinois where she became a high school elocution teacher. She did not start her studies to be an artist until 1903 when she enrolled at the Pratt Institute of Art in Brooklyn, New York. While there her art teacher was William Merritt Chase. Later, Blackstone went to the Academie Julian in Paris, France to gain more experience with Jean Paul Laurens as her instructor. Blackstone started to gain attention as a renowned artist in 1907 when her painting, Soldat de Crimée, was exhibited in The Salon, Paris. She moved back to Glencoe, Illinois and focused more on her artwork by painting commissions and joining different art organizations, such as the Chicago Society of Artists and the Arts Club. Blackstone travelled to different locations, including Taos, New Mexico and Bruges, Belgium, to help inspire her creativity. In 1920, Blackstone moved back to New York City where she would spend the remainder of her life; she never married or had children. She died on March 16, 1939 and was survived by her brother and friends. During her art career, Blackstone often painted portraits of well-known people and over time she developed her own style of work. Her artwork was displayed in several prominent cities in the United States: Washington, D.C., Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and New York City. Some of Blackstone's artwork became part of permanent collections, such as Soldat de Crimée, which was acquired by the National Gallery of Art in 1921, now known as the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Related Materials:

Also at the Archives of American Art is the Richard Wunder research material on Harriet Blackstone.

Provenance:

Microfilmed material transferred in 1978 from the National Collection of Fine Arts, who had acquired it in 1967 along with Harriet Blackstone's paintings from Stell Anderson, Blackstone's friend and a collector of her work. Anderson had received the papers from Blackstone's brother, Edward, in 1939. Upon Anderson's death, additional material was turned over to her niece Pat Rauchenstein, who donated them in 1989. Prior to the donation, the papers were in possession of Esther McCullough, who annotated some items and added research material in preparation for her unpublished manuscript "Harriet Blackstone, 1864-1939."

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:

Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs

Sketchbooks

Scrapbooks

Citation:

Harriet Blackstone papers, 1870-1984. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.

Identifier:

AAA.blacharr

See more items in:

Harriet Blackstone papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9a1365f7a-75aa-42a7-bbf9-4864c3ff116d

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-blacharr

Collection Creator:

Richardson, Edgar Preston, 1902-1985  Search this

Richardson, Constance, 1905-  Search this

Container:

Box 18, Folder 62

Type:

Archival materials

Date:

1974

Collection Restrictions:

Use of original material requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact References Services for more information.

Collection 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.

Collection Citation:

Edgar P. Richardson papers, 1814-1996, bulk 1921-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Smithsonian Institution Collections Care and Preservation Fund.

See more items in:

E.P. (Edgar Preston) and Constance Richardson papers

E.P. (Edgar Preston) and Constance Richardson papers / Series 6: Artist-Subject files

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9e14fcbf3-f9c9-4fef-a8bb-a3ba6705ea0d

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aaa-richedga-ref715

Author:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Pisano, Ronald G  Search this

Parrish Art Museum  Search this

Subject:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916 Art collections  Search this

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916 Friends and associates  Search this

Physical description:

70 p. : ill. ; 25 cm

Type:

Exhibitions

Date:

1979

C1979

19th century

Topic:

Art, American  Search this

Art, European  Search this

Call number:

N40.1.C48 P2w

N40.1.C48P2w

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_121231

Artist:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Photographer:

Rosenblum, Walter 1919-2006  Search this

Type:

Photograph

Date:

1897

Topic:

Davis Gallery  Search this

Figure group--Child  Search this

Landscape  Search this

Architecture exterior--Domestic--House  Search this

Image number:

ROS R0006279

See more items in:

Photograph Study Collection

Data Source:

Photograph Study Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_jul_135678

Artist:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Photographer:

Rosenblum, Walter 1919-2006  Search this

Type:

Photograph

Topic:

Davis Gallery  Search this

Figure female--Full length  Search this

Dress--Accessory--Fan  Search this

Image number:

ROS R0006292

See more items in:

Photograph Study Collection

Data Source:

Photograph Study Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_jul_135691

Artist:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Photographer:

Rosenblum, Walter 1919-2006  Search this

Type:

Photograph

Date:

1898-1900

Topic:

Davis Gallery  Search this

Landscape--New York--Shinnecock Hills  Search this

Image number:

ROS R0006303

See more items in:

Photograph Study Collection

Data Source:

Photograph Study Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_jul_135701

Artist:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Photographer:

Rosenblum, Walter 1919-2006  Search this

Type:

Photograph

Topic:

Davis Gallery  Search this

Figure female--Nude  Search this

Image number:

ROS R0006537

See more items in:

Photograph Study Collection

Data Source:

Photograph Study Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_jul_135915

Artist:

Chase, William Merritt 1849-1916  Search this

Photographic firm:

Detroit Publishing Co.  Search this

Subject:

Unidentified  Search this

Physical description:

1 photomechanical print : black and white

Type:

Photomechanical prints

Date:

Copyrighted 1902

Topic:

Portrait female--Alice  Search this

Figure female--Child  Search this

Image number:

LOC LC000466

See more items in:

Photograph Study Collection

Library of Congress Copyright Deposit Collection

Data Source:

Photograph Study Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_jul_137668