The papers of painter De Hirsh Margules measure 5.5 linear feet and date from 1888-2001, with the bulk dating from 1923-1965. The papers contain biographical material, and business and personal correspondence, including letters from Alfred Stiegliz, John Marin, Henry Miller, Max Schnitzler, Charles J. Connick, Louis M. Eilshemius, Alex King, and Myron Lechay. Also found are writings, printed material, scrapbooks, photographs, works of art and audio recordings documenting Margules' personal life and professional career.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of painter De Hirsh Margules measure 5.5 linear feet and date from 1888-2001, with the bulk dating from 1923-1965. The papers contain biographical material, and business and personal correspondence, including letters from Alfred Stiegliz, John Marin, Henry Miller, Max Schnitzler, Charles J. Connick, Louis M. Eilshemius, Alex King, and Myron Lechay. Also found are writings, printed material, scrapbooks, photographs, works of art and audio recordings documenting Margules' personal life and professional career.
Biographical material consists of Margules' curriculum vitae, address books, war ration books, press credentials, passports, naturalization documents, membership and social security cards, and memorial material on De Hirsh and Blanche Margules.
Correspondence of De Hirsh Margules covers both personal and business matters. Family correspondents include his wife Blanche London, her parents, De Hirsh's mother Rosa and his sister Sam. There is correspondence with Jean and Harrison Horblit, friends and business associates of the Margules, as well as correspondence with his girlfriend, Marieli Kailin Mandel. Other correspondents include Alfred Stieglitz, John Marin, Henry Miller, Max Schnitzler, Charles J. Connick, Louis M. Eilshemius, Alex King, Myron Lechay, and two letters from New York Governor Herbert H. Lehman. There are single letters from Sasha Kolin; New York City Mayor John V. Lindsay; Lawrence F. O'Brien, special assistant to President John F. Kennedy; Buckminster Fuller. This last letter was not addressed exclusively to Margules. Other personal correspondence includes letters, postcards and greeting cards from family members and friends. Other business correspondents include galleries and museums such as Babcock Galleries, Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Niveau Gallery, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Brooklyn Museum, Buffalo Fine Arts Academy, Ferargil Gallery, Feigl Gallery, Guggenheim Museum, Worcester Art Museum and Walker Art Center.
Writings consist mostly of poems by De Hirsh Margules, sometimes appearing in multiple draft forms, as well as a longer work titled "Mulberry Bend." Also included within the series are notebooks filled with poems and works of prose, the latter expounding upon his theories and ideas. Writings by other authors range from poetry to works of prose, criticism and biography, including A. Lincoln Gillespie, Jr., Kenneth Lawrence Beaudoin, David Weber, Aaron Frankel, James Grady, Dick Higgins, and Esther Gilman, among others. There are three illustrated writings by Alfred Jensen. Audio recordings contain a sound tape reel of De Hirsh Margules reciting his poems Rainbow and Mulberry Bend.
Printed material includes newspaper and magazine clippings, press releases, exhibition announcements, catalogues and books. Scrapbooks include printed material, newspaper and magazine clippings, and exhibition announcements on the career of De Hirsh Margules. Also included are two scrapbooks by Blanche London Margules, representing newspaper clippings of her writing, among others.
Works of Art include an oil painting on wood and sketchbooks by Margules. Also included are six collages in a series by Kenneth Lawrence Beaudoin titled "Eye Poems"; and text-based drawings/writings by A. Lincoln Gillespie, Jr.
Photographs, transparencies and slides include works of art by De Hirsh and Blanche London Margules. Also included are personal photographs of the Margules', their friends, family and students, and two folders of photographs of Marieli Kailin Mandel.
Arrangement:
The De Hirsh Margules papers are organized into 8 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1888-1978, undated (Box 1, 6; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1923-2000, undated (Box 1-3; 2.8 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, 1936-1965, undated (Box 4; 1.0 linear feet)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1933-2001, undated (Box 5; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Scrapbooks, 1922-1957, undated (Box 5, 7; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 6: Photographs, 1926-1992, undated (Box 5, 7; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 7: Works of Art, 1948, undated (Box 6, 7; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 8: Audio Recordings, undated (Box 6; 1 folder)
Biographical Note:
De Hirsh Margules (1899-1965) was a painter in New York, NY. Margules was born in Jasse, Romania and arrived in New York City at only ten months of age. His parents were in the Yiddish Theater; his father, Edouard was a playwright/director, and his mother, Rosa, was an actress. Margules received much of his art education outside of the conventional art institutional framework. Early on, he studied with Edwin Randby in Pennsylvania from 1917-1918, but it was really his neighbor, the painter Benno Greenstein, who encouraged Margules to pursue a career in the arts. From 1919-1921 he studied period architecture, design and decoration at the New York Evening School of Art and Design.
By 1922, Margules began working nights as a police reporter for the City News Association of New York, a job he would hold until 1942. However, he continued to study and paint during the day, this time working with Myron Lechay.
In 1927 Margules took a leave of absence from the City News Association to travel to Paris. He studied at the Musée du Louvre, and painted landscapes in Montmartre, Paris; Fontenay-près-Vézelay, Burgundy; and Tunis, Africa. In 1929 Margules returned to New York and met artist/dealer Alfred Stieglitz, who quickly became his most trusted friend and advisor. It was through Stieglitz that Margules was introduced to John Marin, Georgia O'Keeffe, Paul Rosenfeld, Stuart Davis and Jan Matulka. While Margules would benefit from his relations with all of these artists, it was John Marin who would become his most important mentor. He felt that Marin was the only one who could help him with the formal problems he was having with painting.
Margules lived most of his life in Greenwich Village and was a well-known member of the colorful and vivacious arts community. He was commonly recognized by his affable demeanor, but mostly it was his attire, particularly the dark blue beret that he was rarely seen without. To his friends he was known simply as "the Baron."
De Hirsh Margules has been called an abstract realist. He used saturated colors and bold textures in the construction of his abstract landscapes, but more specifically it was his interest in the concept of "time painting" or "time perspective" that propelled his work. It was through the physical rendering and representation of his subject matter that he explored the psychological concepts of time. From 1936-1937 Margules established "Another Place," an exhibition space set up in his New York City apartment at 43 West 8th Street. Over a two year period there were fourteen solo-exhibitions by Margules and other artists.
He taught painting in 1951 at Ball State College in Muncie, Indiana, and at the New York Equity Workshop in 1952. In 1951 Elaine de Kooning wrote a piece about his working methods in the December edition of Art News.
De Hirsh Margules died from a heart attack in 1965. He was 65 years old.
Provenance:
The papers were donated to the Archives in 2005 by Elita Agee.
Restrictions:
The De Hirsh Margules papers are open for research. Use 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.
Topic:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
9.3 Linear feet ((partially microfilmed on 4 reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1901-1949
Scope and Contents:
Biographical materials, correspondence, notebooks, diaries, writings, sketches and drawings, photographs, and printed material.
REEL 983: Four notebooks, 1910-1935, containing descriptions of stained glass windows in Europe; biographical information; a typescript of an article on Connick, "The Education of an Artist in Brother Sun's Workshop"; and three photographs, one of Connick's Boston studio, one of his home in Newtonville, Mass, and one of a Christmas card design, 1930.
REEL 2802: Biographical sketch; photographs, including five of Connick at work, four of others at work at his studio, and one of a bust of Connick sculpted by Frederick Allen in front of one of his windows; and a reprint of Connick's article "Stained Glass Windows: The Craft."
REELS 3947-3948: Correspondence, undated and 1918-1946; a transcript of an interview with Connick by V. S. Bright, May 10, 1945; writings by Connick on foreign stained glass, undated; 2 sets of lecture notes; an "In Memorium Booklet" for Connick; writings by others, three sketchbooks and loose sketches by Connick; clippings, 1916- 1949; programs and brochures relating to Connick, 1923-1940; printed material, 1901-1945; photographs of Connick, undated and 1902; and photographs of works of art.
UNMICROFILMED: Biographical material containing notes about the Connick family written by the Coombs relatives; address books; a daily diary with notes by Connick, passports and visas; correspondence, 1908-1945, primarily between Charles and his wife Mabel while Connick traveled throughout the United States working on stained glass projects in churches, and in which he discusses his book "Adventures in Light and Color," correspondence with his publisher about his book; letters of condolence, 1945-1946, to Mabel; 11 sketchbooks with sketches done in watercolor, colored pencil, and pencil (the sketchbooks are called "Telephone sketchbooks," done while on the telephone); Christmas cards designed by Connick; photographs of Connick, Connick with Mabel, and family, and friends, travel photos from trips to Europe; and printed material.
Correspondents include: Robert Peters Aldrich, Frank Buxton, Paul Child, Ralph Adams Cram, Peter Dyer, Malvina Hoffman, Paul Kimball, Bill and Vaugh Redfern Mason (Connick's nephews), Joseph Reynolds, Jr., Elizabeth Madox Roberts, Winfield Scott, Harlow Shapley, Orin Skinner, Gilbert Symons, John Weber, and Stark Young.
Biographical / Historical:
Stained glass artist; Boston, Mass. Opened Charles J. Connick Studios, Boston, Mass. in 1913. Revived techniques and designs of English and French designers of the Middle Ages. He worked primarily in ecclesiastical designs. He married Mabel Robinson Coombs in 1920. After his death in 1945, the firm was headed by Orin Skinner, and renamed Charles J. Connick Associates.
Related Materials:
Charles J. Connick Studios (later Associates) records located at: Boston Public Library.
Provenance:
Material on reel 983 was lent for microfilming August 1975 by Evelyn Coombs Pennegar, sister of Mabel Coombs Connick, wife of Charles Connick. In February 1977 she donated additional papers which were filmed on reels 3947-3948. The 12 items on reel 2802 were donated by Connick's successor at Charles J. Connick Associates, Orin E. Skinner. The unmicrofilmed material was donated by Richard B. Coombs, nephew of Mabel, August - December 1985.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Stained glass artists -- Massachusetts -- Boston Search this
The records of nationally renowned Boston, Massachussetts, stained glass design company, Wilbur H. Burnham Studios, measure 40.3 linear feet and date from circa 1901-1991. The majority of the collection consists of project files for the studio's stained glass window contracts throughout the United States from the 1920s-1980s. In addition to project files, records include biographical material for the owners, correspondence relating to personal and studio business, general business and financial records, writings such as published articles by Wilbur H. Burnham, scrapbooks and other printed material documenting the history of the company, artwork including extensive watercolor design studies for stained glass, and photographic material. There is a 3.4 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2021 that includes sketches, awards, printed material, passports, biographical material, Christmas cards, photographs and negatives of Burnham and works of art, slides and postcards of stained glass windows, posthumous material, a bound ledger, legal papers, invoices and receipts, project files and glass plate negatives. Materials date from circa 1901-1991.
Scope and Content Note:
The records of nationally renowned Boston, Massachussetts, stained glass design company, Wilbur H. Burnham Studios, measure 40.3 linear feet and date from circa 1901-1991. The majority of the collection consists of project files for the studio's stained glass window contracts throughout the United States from the 1920s-1980s. In addition to project files, records include biographical material for the owners, correspondence relating to personal and studio business, general business and financial records, writings such as published articles by Wilbur H. Burnham, scrapbooks and other printed material documenting the history of the company, artwork including extensive watercolor design studies for stained glass, and photographic material. There is a 3.4 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2021 that includes sketches, awards, printed material, passports, biographical material, Christmas cards, photographs and negatives of Burnham and works of art, slides and postcards of stained glass windows, posthumous material, a bound ledger, legal papers, invoices and receipts, project files and glass plate negatives. Materials date from circa 1901-1991.
Biographical material includes resume details and autobiographical notes for Burnham and Burnham, Jr., in addition to membership and fellow certificates.
Correspondence documents general studio business and includes correspondence with current and prospective clients, correspondence related to exhibitions, Burnham, Jr.'s activities on the Executive Committee of the America Arts Exposition, Inc., and the 1940 annual meeting of the Stained Glass Association of America and related business. Also found is some personal correpondence with friends and colleagues. Of note are 4 letters from stained glass artist Charles J. Connick giving his opinions on other stained glass artists, including Burnham, and a letter written by sculptor and designer, Joseph D. Portanova.
General business files include personnel records, records relating to a studio apprenticeship in stained glass design, a 1932 inventory of the studios, and leases and other legal documentation.
Writings include published articles by Burnham, in addition to draft typescripts for a book on stained glass which was never published, and research notes used as background material for stained glass studies. These notes include a number of pencil sketches.
19 diaries and journals consist of travel diaries and date books containing notes on daily appointments, financial notes, and addresses.
Project files form the bulk of the collection and document projects in circa 250 locations throughout the United States and Bellau, France, from the 1920s-1980s through correspondence with clients, architects and builders, contracts, purchase orders, building plans, sketches, scattered photographs and some printed material. Of particular note are extensive files on stained glass for New York's Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, Saint Mary's Cathedral in Peoria, Illinois, Saint Martin's Church in Providence, Rhode Island, and the National Cathedral in Washington D. C. The series also includes a group of contract files for the company Reynolds, Francis & Rohnstock (later Joseph G. Reynolds), a contemporary of Wilbur H. Burnham Studios.
Financial records include payment and receipt journals, expense reports, bills, account books and general ledgers which provide finanical documentation from the 1930s to the 1980s.
Printed material includes news clippings about Burnham studios and stained glass in general, in addition to source material used in subject research.
Additional newsclippings about Burnham Studios can be found in three scrapbooks which also house announcements and invitations, and scattered photographs. One scrapbook contains photographs of windows designed by the studios for the Church of Saint Vincent De Paul in Los Angeles, California.
Artwork and sketchbooks include some artwork by Burnham, Jr., such as pencil and ink sketches, life drawings, and some watercolors. The bulk of the series consists of watercolor design studies on board for many of the studio's projects documented in the project files. Also found are some stained glass design sketches and cartoons, primarily in pencil and charcoal with scattered watercolors, as well as seven folders of material used in creating stained glass patterns and templates.
Photographic material includes photos of Burnham and Burnham, Jr., and of studio work in progress, as well as photographs of artwork, primarily of stained glass created for a significant number of the studio's contracts.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 12 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Materials, circa 1930s-circa 1970s (Boxes 1, 27; 4 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1920s-1991 (Box 1; 0.9 linear feet)
Series 3: General Business Files, 1930s-1970 (Box 2; 0.38 linear feet)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1920s-1950s (Box 2; 6 folders)
Series 5: Diaries and Journals, circa 1920s-circa 1960s (Box 2; 4 folders)
Series 6: Project Files, 1916-1980s (Boxes 2-12, 42; 10.6 linear feet)
Series 7: Financial Records, 1928-1982 (Boxes 13-14; 1.14 linear feet)
Series 8: Printed Material, circa 1920s-1980s (Boxes 14-15, 27-28; 1.89 linear feet)
Series 9: Scrapbooks, circa 1920s-circa 1970s (Boxes 15-16, 28, OVs 48-49, BV 84; 1.05 linear feet)
Series 10: Artwork and Sketchbooks, circa 1920s-circa 1980s (Boxes 16-23, 29-39, OVs 50-73, 85, RD 83; 13.15 linear feet)
Series 11: Photographic Materials, circa 1904-circa 1980s (Boxes 23-26, 29, 40-41, 43-47, OVs 74-82; 5.8 linear feet)
Series 12: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1901-1991 (Boxes 86-88, 91-93 OVs 89-90, 94; 3.4 linear feet)
Historical Note:
Boston, Massachussets stained glass design firm, Wilbur H. Burnham Studios, was founded by master stained glass craftsman Wilbur H. Burnham, in 1922. Together with Charles J. Connick and Joseph G. Reynolds, Burnham studios became recognized as one of the most prominent stained glass design companies in the United States. Burnham took early commissions from influential American architect Ralph Adams Cram, and believed strongly in the medieval stained glass tradition. In the late 1930s his son, Wilbur H. Burnham, Jr., who had received an informal education on tours of Europe with his family, and a BFA from Yale University, joined the firm.
Some of the studio's most notable commissions included seventeen windows for the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D. C., all the windows and murals for Saint Mary's Cathedral, Peoria, Illinois, ten windows for the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York City, and five for the Riverside Church, also in New York City.
Both Burnham and Burnham, Jr., served as presidents of the Stained Glass Association of American from 1938-1941 and 1956-1957 respectively. Burnham, Jr., took over the studio in 1968 when his father retired, and sold the studios in 1982.
Provenance:
The Wilbur H. Burnham Studios records were donated in 8 accessions by Wilbur H. Burnham, Jr., from 1977-1981 and by Wilbur C. Burnham, grandson of the founder, in 1990-1991 and 2021. Scott McDaniel, co-owner of the firm, contributed to the 1990 donation.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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:
Stained glass artists -- Massachusetts Search this
Letter from Charles J. Connick to Ray W. Pettingill [Pettengill] with a photograph of "The Window" by Connick designed for the Dobbs Ferry School, 1921 August 25.
Biographical / Historical:
Author, editor; Cambridge, Mass.; b. 1885.
Provenance:
Donated 1999 by George E. Pettengill, relative of Ray W. Pettengill.
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.
Sturgis, R. Clipston (Richard Clipston), 1860-1951 Search this
Extent:
10 Items
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Drawings
Interviews
Date:
1900-1980
Scope and Contents:
Biographical material, correspondence, subject files, drawings, photographs, and printed material concern Maginnis' architectural projects.
Reel 3134: Reel 3134: A 2-page biographical sketch contains comments about American architecture; two letters concern a speech Maginnis gave at the Eire Society of Boston (1941, 1980); photographs of Maginnis at the construction site of the Lenox Street Housing Project, Boston, and with Joseph Leland; and four clippings date from 1941 to 1978. Also included on reel 4314 is a photograph of R. Clipston Sturgis is autographed "To Robert Walsh from his friend R. Clipston Sturgis". A clipping concerns Boston College's architecture (1963).
Biographical / Historical:
Charles Donagh Maginnis (1867-1955) was an architect, Boston, Mass. Maginnis was born in Londonderry, Ireland, and was educated at Cusack's Academy in Dublin. In 1885, he settled in Toronto, Canada, moving to Boston, Massachusetts three years later. In 1890, Maginnis began working for Edmund M. Wheelwright, becoming head draftsman in 1891. In 1898, Maginnis joined Timothy Walsh of Peabody and Stearns and Matthew Sullivan of Wheelwright's company to form their own company. In 1905, Maginnis, Walsh, and Sullivan became Maginnis and Walsh. Maginnis married Amy Brooks in 1908. He was the author of a book, PEN DRAWING, and served as chairman of the Boston Art Commission, president of the American Institute of Architects, and trustee of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, among other activities.
Related Materials:
Reel 1451: The Archives also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (Reel 1451), comprising: 4 brief biographical accounts on Maginnis, an interview transcript (1952-1953), and certificates; correspondence (1909-1978), primarily about architectural projects, including letters from John Angel, Giovanni Castano, Charles Connick, Walter Gropius, and Aimée Lamb; two photographs of Maginnis (ca. 1936); two subject files (1945-1948) containing letters, announcements, proposals, and lecture notes concerning work on St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York, and construction at Boston College; art works consisting of 10 drawings (1913-1929) and a heliotype print of a landscape by Maginnis, and 2 drawings by Bertram Goodhue; and printed material including booklets on Catholic architecture (1900) and Maginnis (1956), 2 clippings (1955), invitations and a program.
located at Business records of the firm Maginnis & Walsh are located at the Boston Public Library, Boston, Massachusetts.
Provenance:
The lender and donor, Alice Maginnis Walsh, is Charles Donagh Maginnis' daughter and the wife of his junior partner, Robert Walsh.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
