Bosfield, Joy McLean (McLean Bosfield) Search this
Names:
Bosfield, Joy McLean (McLean Bosfield) Search this
Extent:
3.41 Linear feet (4 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Clippings
Contracts
Correspondence
Certificates
Financial records
Phonograph records
Radio scripts
Programs (documents)
Scrapbooks
School records
Photographic prints
Place:
Chapala (Jalisco, Mexico)
London (England)
Washington (D.C.)
Date:
1923-1995
bulk 1945-1985
Summary:
The Joy McLean Bosfield papers, which dates from 1923 to 1995 and measures 3.41 linear feet, documents the professional life of Joy McLean Bosfield. The papers are comprised of personal and professional correspondence, concert programs, contracts, newspaper clippings, photographs, radio scripts, and record albums.
Scope and Contents note:
The collection which dates from 1923 to 1995, bulk dates 1945-1985, documents the professional career of Joy McLean Bosfield. The papers document Ms. McLean's professional career as a singer and vocal teacher through photographs and recital programs. In particular, there are two scrapbooks which focus on Ms. McLean's employment with a traveling theater production of Porgy and Bess. There are also radio scripts from Ms. McLean's stint with the British Broadcasting Corporation and phonograph records that captured her vocal talent.
Arrangement note:
The papers are arranged into five series. Folders are arranged alphabetically within series, while documents are organized chronologically. Undated material appears in the front of folders. Oversized material appears in the Career Series.
Series 1: Biographical Files
Series 2: Career
Series 3: Correspondence
Series 4: Music Collection
Series 5: Photographs
Biographical/Historical note:
Joy McLean Bosfield was born on January 27, 1924 to John and Florence Mearimore. Her mother, an immigrant from Demerara, Guiana, married McLean's father, a prominent New York businessman, in March of 1923 in New Jersey. She lived with her family in Paramus, New Jersey until 1940, when she graduated from Ridgewood High School. During that same year McLean was accepted to the prestigious Hunter College, in New York. Her mother moved with her to New York City where they lived with Mrs. Mearimore's older brother. During her time in New York, McLean developed important relationships that helped shape her professionalism and creativeness.
On February 26, 1945, McLean performed in her first recital at St. Martin's Little Theatre. It was the beginning of a long and distinguished career as a soprano opera singer. Three years after graduating and making her debut, she went on to perform at Carnegie Hall. In June of 1948, McLean married Charles McLean and moved to England. Mr. McLean, originally from British Guiana, wished to study law at London University, while Ms. McLean continued to develop her career by working for the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) as a solo soprano for several of their programs.
In 1952 Ms. McLean toured with an American company of Porgy and Bess. Through the production she travelled all over the world including eastern and western Europe and the Middle East. When she returned to the United States, McLean joined several musicals and continued to give recitals and public appearances. At some point, McLean married Samuel Bosfield and began being known as McLean Bosfield. She claimed the name change reflected her many years as a public figure and the importance of the associated reputation it generated.
Later in life, McLean moved to Washington D.C. with her husband where she continued to work on her career by giving recitals and performing as a piano accompanist. She also began working for the Frederick Wilkerson Studio of Voice as a vocal coach. After the death of Wilkerson, McLean took over the studio in the 1980s. She called it the McLean Bosfield Vocal Studio. Besides vocal training she also produced public recitals for her students. The final student concert of the studio was held on March 17, 1985. It was not only the final concert for the studio (Ms. McLean retired and closed the studio in 1985) but it would also be Ms. McLean's final public performance. With the death of her husband, Samuel Bosfield, and her mother in 1983 and 1984 McLean found no reason to stay in D.C.
She moved to Chapala, Mexico in 1985 after reconnecting with an old family friend she knew when she lived in New York City while attending college. Upon moving to Mexico, McLean married her long time friend, Bill Jackson who was several years her senior and had moved to Chapala years earlier with his deceased first wife. Jackson and McLean spent several fruitful years together, participating in community theater productions and other community functions until his death in 1991 at the age of 91. On April 4, 1999, Joy McLean Bosfield died.
Provenance:
The Joy McLean papers were donated to the Anacostia Community Museum in September 1985.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for unrestricted research. Use requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Joy McLean papers are the physical property of the Anacostia Community Museum. Literary and copyright belong to the author/creator or their legal heirs and assigns. Rights to work produced during the normal course of Museum business resides with the Anacostia Community Museum. For further information, and to obtain permission to publish or reproduce, contact the Museum Archives.
Bosfield, Joy McLean (McLean Bosfield) Search this
Container:
Box 4
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1945-1985
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for unrestricted research. Use requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Joy McLean papers are the physical property of the Anacostia Community Museum. Literary and copyright belong to the author/creator or their legal heirs and assigns. Rights to work produced during the normal course of Museum business resides with the Anacostia Community Museum. For further information, and to obtain permission to publish or reproduce, contact the Museum Archives.
Collection Citation:
The Joy McLean Bosfield papers, Anacostia Community Museum, Smithsonian Institution, gift of Joy McLean Bosfield.
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Grace F. Thorpe Collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Restrictions:
Access by appointment only. Where a listening copy or viewing copy has been created, this is indicated in the respective inventory; additional materials may be accessible with sufficient advance notice and, in some cases, payment of a processing fee. Older papers are housed at a remote location and may require a minimum of three weeks' advance notice and payment of a retrieval fee. Certain formats such as multi-track audio recordings and EIAJ-1 videoreels (1/2 inch) may not be accessible. Contact the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections at 202-633-7322 or rinzlerarchives@si.edu for additional information.
Collection Rights:
Copyright and other restrictions may apply. Generally, materials created during a Festival are covered by a release signed by each participant permitting their use for personal and educational purposes; materials created as part of the fieldwork leading to a Festival may be more restricted. We permit and encourage such personal and educational use of those materials provided digitally here, without special permissions. Use of any materials for publication, commercial use, or distribution requires a license from the Archives. Licensing fees may apply in addition to any processing fees.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 1980 Festival of American Folklife, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
The videorecording "Togu na and Check: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali", which documents two forms of art of the Dogon and Bamana peoples in Mali, West Africa, in 1989.
Scope and Contents:
The videorecording "Togu na and Check: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali", which documents two forms of art of the Dogon and Bamana peoples in Mali, West Africa, in 1989. Accompanying text describes that the film "explores two forms of art in present-day Mali, West Africa. For the Dogon peoples, the meeting house, or toguna, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather to discuss matters involving the entire community. Its massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principal actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated puppets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today."
Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
Videorecording of two forms of art of Dogon and Bamana peoples in Mali, West Africa, in 1989. Text accompanying video for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explore two forms of art in present-day Mali, West Africa. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or toguna, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather to discuss matters involving the entire community. Its massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principal actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated puppets. Some of these puppets are small enough o be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require tow or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Banana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themees. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today."
General:
Video indexed by video number.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
Short version of a videorecording of West African textile making produced by Staniski Media Resources for the National Museum of African Art in 1989. Text accompanying videos for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explores two dynamic forms of art in present-day Mali, WestAfrica. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or togu na, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather there to discuss matters involving the entire community. It massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principle actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated pupets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
Short version videorecording of West African textile making produced by Staniski Media Resources for the National Museum of African Art in 1989. Text accompanying videos for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explores two dynamic forms of art in present-day Mali, WestAfrica. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or togu na, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather there to discuss matters involving the entire community. It massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principle actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated pupets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
Short versin of a videorecording of West African textile making produced by Staniski Media Resources for the National Museum of African Art in 1989. Text accompanying videos for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explores two dynamic forms of art in present-day Mali, WestAfrica. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or togu na, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather there to discuss matters involving the entire community. It massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principle actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated pupets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
Videorecording of West African textile making produced by Staniski Media Resources for the National Museum of African Art in 1989. Text accompanying videos for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explores two dynamic forms of art in present-day Mali, WestAfrica. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or togu na, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather there to discuss matters involving the entire community. It massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principle actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated pupets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
Videorecording of West African textile making produced by Staniski Media Resources for the National Museum of African Art in 1989. Text accompanying videos for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explores two dynamic forms of art in present-day Mali, WestAfrica. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or togu na, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather there to discuss matters involving the entire community. It massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principle actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated pupets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
Videorecording of West African textile making produced by Staniski Media Resources for the National Museum of African Art in 1989. Text accompanying videos for sale reads, "Togu na and Cheko: Change and Continuity in the Art of Mali explores two dynamic forms of art in present-day Mali, WestAfrica. For the Dogon peoples, the meetinghouse, or togu na, is the centerpiece of each village. Men gather there to discuss matters involving the entire community. It massive millet-stalk roof is supported by columns masterfully sculpted with figures in high relief. The Bamana peoples have developed a unique form of communal theater, called cheko. The principle actors in cheko performances are colorful, animated pupets. Some of these puppets are small enough to be manipulated by hand. Others tower above the rooftops of the village and require two or more people to move them. These fascinating Dogon and Bamana works of art depict both traditional and contemporary themes. They vividly show how art continues to evolve in Africa today.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Rights:
All Rights Reserved: Smithsonian Insitution, 1989.
The papers of Boston and New Hampshire painter Joseph Lindon Smith date from 1647-1965, with the bulk of papers dating from 1873-1965, and measure 8.8 linear feet. Found within the papers are biographical materials; letters from family members, artists, museums, and art patrons; seven diaries by Smith and two by his wife Corinna, personal business records, notes and writings, files concerning charitable theatrical productions, one sketchbook and other art work, a scrapbook, printed material, photographs, and sound recordings of radio interviews and a radio program on Smith.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of Boston and New Hampshire painter Joseph Lindon Smith date from 1647-1965, with the bulk of papers dating from 1873-1965, and measure 8.8 linear feet. Found within the papers are biographical materials; letters from family members, artists, museums, and art patrons; seven diaries by Smith and two by his wife Corinna, personal business records, notes and writings, files concerning charitable theatrical productions, one sketchbook and other art work, a scrapbook, printed material, photographs, and sound recordings of radio interviews and a radio program on Smith.
Scattered biographical material consists of family history documents for the Smith and Putnam families, a Jenkes family tree, and passports for Joseph Lindon Smith and his family.
Seven diaries written by Joseph Lindon Smith document his ravels in Egypt, Persia, Europe, and New Mexico. Two diaries were written by Corinna Smith during her travels to Beiram and Egypt.
Personal business records business records include contracts, price lists, lists of securities, and miscellaneous receipts of the Smith and Putnam families, Joseph Lindon Smith, Corinna Smith, and their daughter Lois Smith.
Notes include engagement calendars, notebooks, lists of art work, lecture notes, minutes of meetings, notes on family history and on travel, and an autograph by Kit Carson. Writings include miscellaneous typescripts by the Smiths and others concerning travel, work in Egypt and elsewhere, and anecdotes about various friends and acquaintances. There are also three drafts of "Egypt - My Winter Home."
Theatrical production files concern plays, pageants, and masques written and/or produced by the Smiths. Many of the performances were benefits, dedication or anniversary celebrations, such as a pageant given at Fenway Court in honor of Isabella Stewart Gardner, a pageant at the dedication of a memorial to Abbott Handerson Thayer, and the centenary celebration of the founding of Amherst, Massachusetts.
Art work includes a sketchbook with extensive notes, a painting, drawings by Joseph Lindon Smith, and prints by other artists.
A scrapbook contains clippings and an exhibition catalog from the St. Botolph Club. Additional printed material includes clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases, programs, booklets, brochures, and books by others.
Audio recordings consist of four sound disc recordings of interviews for WKNE Radio, Keene, New Hampshire, with Corinna Smith and Barry Faulkner talking about Smith, and a program about Smith and his book Tombs, Temples, and Ancient Art.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 11 series:
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1711-1948 (Box 1, 10; 5 folders)
Series 2: Letters, 1768-1965 (Box 1-4, OV 11; 3.5 linear feet)
Series 3: Diaries, 1904-1949 (Box 4; 11 folders)
Series 4: Personal Business Records, 1647-1959 (Box 4, 10; 11 folders)
Series 5: Notes and Writings, 1783-1963 (Box 4-6; 2.0 linear feet)
Series 6: Theatrical Production Files, 1897-1950 (Box 6-7, 10; 1.2 linear feet)
Series 7: Art Works, 1932-1943 (Box 8, 10; 8 folders)
Series 8: Scrapbook, 1888-1901 (Box 8; 1 folder)
Series 9: Printed Material, 1723-1963 (Box 8, OV 11; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 10: Photographs, 1884-1956 (Box 8-10; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 11: Audio Recordings, 1956 (Box 9-10; 2 folders)
All material is arranged chronologically except for the writings by others and travel photographs that are arranged alphabetically.
Biographical Note:
Joseph Lindon Smith (1863-1950) of Boston, Massachusetts and Dublin, New Hampshire, was a painter primarily known for his ability to meticulously depict the murals and tomb sculpture of Egypt and other ancient cultures.
Joseph Lindon Smith was born on October 11, 1863 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, the son of wholesale lumberman Henry Francis Smith and Emma Greenleaf Smith, a cousin of John Greenleaf Whittier.
Upon his return to Boston, Smith established a studio as a portrait and landscape painter, attracting the attention of Denman Ross, a professor of History of Fine Arts at Harvard University. In the early 1890s Smith and Ross began to travel extensively and Smith became interested in ancient civilizations of Mexico, China, and Southeast Asia. In 1892, during a trip to Italy, Smith befriended Isabella Stewart Gardner, for whom he copied famous paintings, and occasionally acted as agent in purchasing art work.
Making his first trip to Egypt in 1898, Smith became enthralled with the art work of the ancient civilization and devoted himself to painting copies of the tomb sculptures and murals for educational uses in museums and other public institutions. In 1899, he married Corinna Haven Putnam and the couple spent much of their married life traveling between the United States and the Middle East, especially Egypt. From 1910 to 1939, Smith was a member of the Joint Expedition of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and Harvard University directed by Dr. George A. Reisner.
For fifty years, Smith was also sought out as a writer and producer of plays and theatrical pageants, fetes, and masques primarily staged for various charitable fund-raising events.
Joseph Lindon Smith died on October 18, 1950 in Dublin, New Hampshire.
Related Material:
The papers of Smith's wife, Corinna Putnam Smith, are available at The Schlesinger Library of Radcliffe College, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Provenance:
The Joseph Lindon Smith papers were donated by Jessie T. Hale, Smith's granddaughter, in 1977 and 1978.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Joseph Lindon Smith papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary rights as possessed by the donor have been dedicated to public use for research, study, and scholarship. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
