An interview of Edwin Ruda conducted 1988 January 26, by Michael Chisolm, for the Archives of American Art. Ruda speaks of his education; his life in Mexico; his time as a G.I.; The Club; the Park Place Gallery; the Paula Cooper Gallery; phases of his work. He recalls Sidney Geist, Mark Di Suvero, Willem De Kooning, Milton Resnick and Forrest Myers.
Biographical / Historical:
Edwin Ruda (1922- ) is a painter from New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 42 min.
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.
Topic:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
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.
Interview of John W. Outterbridge conducted 1973 January 3, by Allen Bassing, for the Archives of American Art.
Outterbridge speaks of his family background and how that influenced him to lean toward the arts; attending Agriculture & Technical University and majoring in engineering even though he wanted to become an artist; joining the Army in order to get the G.I. Bill so he could afford school; painting during his three-year stint in the service, and how his company commander admired his work and got him a studio; attending the Chicago Academy of Art, then the American Academy of Art after leaving the military; moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career as an artist full-time; quitting painting and deciding to focus on sculpture; working at the Pasadena Art Museum, and how it disturbed him that there weren't any Black artists being represented in the shows he was installing there; getting involved with the Compton Communicative Arts Academy just as it was starting; and the present situation of the Compton Communicative Arts Academy and where he sees it going. He recalls Andy Warhol, Peter Alexander, Richard Serra, Robert Rauschenberg, Mark di Suvero, John Coplans, Judson Powell, Noel Puerefoy, Charles Dickson, Bobby Gilmore, and many others.
Biographical / Historical:
John Outterbridge (1933-2020) was an art administrator, painter, and sculptor from Los Angeles, California.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1959 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
This transcript is open for research. No audio exists. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
Interview of Robert Grosvenor conducted 1972 Aug. 9, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Grosvenor speaks of his early life and education in Newport, R.I.; studying in Europe; his first formal art instruction in Dijon, France; the art and architecture scene in Paris; his U.S. Army service; meeting Mark di Suvero, and his influence; his one-man show at the Dwan Gallery; materials; and the impermanence of his pieces. He recalls Richard Bellamy, Virginia Dwan, and William Congdon.
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Grosvenor (1937-) is a sculptor from New York N.Y.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
An interview of Dean Fleming conducted 2013 August 6 and 7, by Elissa Auther, for the Archives of American Art's, Stoddard-Fleischman Fund for the History of Rocky Mountain Area Artists, at Libre artist community, Libre, Colorado.
Fleming speaks of his personal history and education; development of drawing style; world travels; living as a part of Drop City in New Mexico, later starting his own community in Libre comprised of geodesic domes; teaching at various institutions including Carnegie Tech and the San Francisco Art Institute; iterations of the Park Place Gallery; his experiences in the Korean War; life and experiences with the Native American communities of the Southwest. Fleming also recalls Mark di Suvero, Chuck Denefer, Leo Valledor, Peter Forakis, wife Linda Fleming, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Dean Fleming (1933- ) is a painter in Libre, Colorado. Elissa Auther (1966- ) is an associate professor of contemporary art in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
General:
Originally recorded as 6 sound files. Duration is 4 hr., 57 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
The Samuel J. Wagstaff papers, circa 1932-1985 comprise 6.4 linear feet of correspondence, writings, miscellaneous records, printed material, and photographs documenting Wagstaff's professional and personal relationships with artists and photographers, his career as an art curator, and his position as an important collector of paintings and photographs. Correspondence with artists and others such as curators, arts organizations, galleries, and museums, reflects the diversity of contemporary American art and includes individuals associated with the abstract expressionist, Fluxus, pop, earth, conceptual, and minimalist art movements.
Scope and Content Note:
The Samuel J. Wagstaff papers, circa 1932-1985, comprise 6.4 linear feet of correspondence, writings, miscellaneous records, printed material, and photographs documenting Wagstaff's professional and personal relationships with artists and photographers, his career as an art curator, and his position as an important collector of paintings and photographs.
Correspondence with artists and others such as curators, arts organizations, galleries, and museums reflects the diversity of contemporary American art and includes individuals associated with the abstract expressionist, Fluxus, pop, earth, conceptual, and minimalist art movements. Wagstaff's importance as a collector and curator and his generosity to and interest in artists is evident from the large number of invitations to view and critique work, requests for fellowship and grant recommendations, and thank you notes from artists to whom he extended financial or moral support. Among the most prolific correspondents found here are: Dan Basen, George Brecht, James Lee Byars, Walter de Maria, Mark Di Suvero, Albert Fine, Dan Flavin, Ann Halprin, Grace Hartigan, Charles James, Philip Johnson, Ray Johnson, Doreen and Robert Manning, Agnes Martin, Gordon Newton, Claes Oldenburg, Ad Reinhardt, Dieter Rot, Alan Saret, Richard Tuttle, May Wilson, and Andy Warhol.
Writings by Wagstaff consist of "Looking at Modern Art" prepared for the Trinity College Reading Program, and an untitled, undated piece about multiplicity in art. Among the writings by other authors are Bruce Bennard's "The Photographer Rediscovered," "Pop Art" by Henry Geldzahler, and "Collecting Photographs" by Bonnie Barrett Stretch.
Miscellaneous records are drawings by Bruce Kleinsmith, a print by Harold Paris and artists' resumes. Also included is a costume consisting of a stuffed devil's tail and two red silk caps connected by a long sash, all in a matching red silk bag.
Among the printed material are books, exhibition catalogs and prospectuses, periodicals, press releases, reproductions, and a variety of other printed items relating to photography and art.
Photographs consist largely of copy prints and a small number of original prints. Also included are a few images of exhibition installations and other miscellaneous subjects. There are no portraits of Samuel J. Wagstaff among the photographs of people. Identified individuals include: Bella Abzug, Peter Allen, Michael Collins, Angela Davis, Candy Darling, Wendell Ford, Joseph Hirshhorn, W. A. Huffman, David Love, Marc Miller, Bettie Ringma, and Andy Warhol.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 5 series.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1932-1986 (Boxes 1-3, 8, OV 9-10; 2.5 linear ft.)
Series 2: Writings, 1961-1983 (Box 3; 0.2 linear ft.)
Series 3: Miscellaneous Papers and Artifacts, 1970s-1980s (Box 3; 0.2 linear ft.)
Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1914-1988 (Boxes 3-8, OV 11; 3.2 linear ft.)
Series 5: Photographs, 1975-1982 (Boxes 7-8; 0.1 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Samuel J. Wagstaff, Jr. (1921-1987), the son of a lawyer from an old New York family and fashion artist Olga Piorkowska, was born in New York City. A graduate of Yale University, he was an ensign in the Navy and took part in the D-day landing at Omaha Beach.
Following World War II, Wagstaff studied Renaissance art at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. A David E. Finley art history fellowship took him to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C. in 1959. He served as curator of contemporary art at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Conn., from 1961 to 1968, where he coordinated sculptor Tony Smith's first museum show in 1966. In 1971, during Wagstaff's tenure as curator at the Detroit Institute of Arts (1968-1971), he presented Michael Heizer's installation Dragged Mass Geometric on the grounds of the museum.
In addition to his curatorial work, Samuel J. Wagstaff was a noted collector. Originally, he was a fairly influential collector of avant-garde paintings. After seeing the exhibition "The Painterly Photograph" and meeting photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, Wagstaff became convinced that photographs were the most unrecognized and, possibly, the most valuable works of art. He moved to New York and began selling his collection of paintings, using the proceeds to begin his photography collection and concentrating on 19th century American, British, and French examples. Then, influenced by his lover, photographer Mapplethorpe, Wagstaff's taste veered toward the daring, and he began to depart from established names in search of new talent. His collection was soon recognized as one of the finest private holdings in the United States. An exhibition of his photographs was organized by the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D. C., in 1978, and A Book of Photographs from the Sam Wagstaff Collection was published to accompany the show that toured the country.
The photograph collection was sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, Calif., in 1984, for a reported $5 million. Wagstaff then focused his attention on collecting 19th century American silver, and a selection from that collection was exhibited at the New York Historical Society in 1987.
Samuel J. Wagstaff died in New York City on January 14, 1987, from pneumonia, a complication of HIV infection.
Provenance:
Samuel J. Wagstaff donated his papers between 1976 and 1986.
Restrictions:
The collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
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:
Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Peter Agostini (1913-1993) was a sculptor from New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 28 digital wav files. Duration is 10 hrs., 37 min.
Transferred from 4 3" reels.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics, and administrators.
Topic:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
The Robert Scull papers measure 2.2 linear feet and date from 1950 to circa 1984, with the bulk of the material dating from 1965 to 1970. Throughout the 1960s, Robert Scull was a wealthy and prominent art collector of Abstract, Pop, and Minimalist art whose collection included works by Michael Heizer, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, and Andy Warhol, among others. His papers include fourteen annotated appointment books, correspondence, financial and legal records, printed material, and photographs. There is a 0.2 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2020 that includes black and white photographs (and 1 color photograph), snapshots, negatives and negative strips of family, friends artwork and artists; correspondence; and loan forms for works of art.
Scope and Contents:
The Robert Scull papers measure 2.2 linear feet and date from 1950 to circa 1984, with the bulk of the material dating from 1965 to 1970. Throughout the 1960s, Robert Scull was a wealthy and prominent art collector of Abstract, Pop, and Minimalist art whose collection included works by Michael Heizer, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, and Andy Warhol, among others. His papers include fourteen annotated appointment books, correspondence, financial and legal records, printed material, and photographs. There is a 0.2 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2020 that includes black and white photographs (and 1 color photograph), snapshots, negatives and negative strips of family, friends artwork and artists; correspondence; and loan forms for works of art.
Fourteen appointment books include business dates, notes, and occasional sketches. Notes are on various subjects such as prices for paintings, appointments with art dealers, and visits with artists Mark di Suvero, Michael Heizer, Lucas Samaras, and others. There are sometimes items, i.e., business cards and receipts, interleaved between the pages of the books.
The bulk of the correspondence consists of letters to Robert Scull from various artists, such as Walter De Maria and Michael Heizer. There is limited correspondence with museums and galleries.
Financial and legal records mostly consist of invoices from art dealers to Robert Scull for his purchases of John Tweddle's artwork. Also included are art loan forms and charts tracking payments for various paintings and drawings. There are scattered legal papers on a settlement regarding payments for a group of paintings by Tweddle.
There is one exhibition catalog, Street Painters: Feelism (circa 1982), of printed material.
Photographs are of Robert Scull, friends, art dealers, artists, and art. Notable artists depicted include Alexander Calder, Gary Kuehn, Claes Oldenberg, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol, and many others. There are also images of sculptures, paintings, and other artwork by various artists.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series.
Series 1: Appointment Books, 1955-1973 (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1965-circa 1984 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 3: Financial and Legal Records, 1969-1980 (0.1 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1982 (1 folder; Box 3)
Series 5: Photographs, 1960-circa 1980 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 3-4)
Series 6: Unprocessed Addition, 1950-1984 (0.2 linear feet); Box 5)
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Scull (1917-1986) was a prominent New York City and Connecticut collector of contemporary American art primarily during the 1960s.
Robert Scull was born in Manhattan's Lower East Side. He dropped out of high school during the Depression and did various jobs while also taking art courses. He later became a freelance illustrator and industrial designer. When his wife Ethel's father died, the couple inherited a successful taxi business which Scull expanded into the Super Operating Corporation with a fleet of 130 cabs.
Throughout the 1960s, Robert and Ethel Scull were avid art collectors who acquired contemporary American art works through dealers Richard Bellamy and Leo Castelli. Robert Scull's patronage also helped fund art dealer Richard Bellamy's Green Gallery in New York City for five years. Initially the Sculls focused on collecting American Abstract Expressionists and owned works by Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, and others. In 1965, the couple held their first auction and part of the profits helped establish the Robert and Ethel Scull Foundation, dedicated to financially assisting upcoming artists. The foundation commissioned environmental works from Michael Heizer and Walter de Maria and gave the artists stipends and even bought them food and supplies.
Around the mid-1960s, the Sculls also began collecting Pop Art and acquired the works of Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, James Rosenquist, and Andy Warhol. In 1973, the couple sold 50 works from their personal collection of Pop Art through a Sotheby's auction that yielded $2.2 million - record-breaking for sales of contemporary American art. The Sculls were criticized of social-climbing and profiteering by various people in the media and art world, including the artist Robert Rauschenberg.
In 1975, Robert Scull divorced Ethel and in 1978 he founded the Robert C. Scull Foundation which again assisted younger artists and arts organizations with a focus on contemporary art. Scull remarried and sold his taxi business sometime in the early 1980s, and moved to Warren, Connecticut. He died in 1986.
In 2010, the exhibition Robert and Ethel Scull: Portrait of a Collection was held at Acquavella Galleries in Manhattan.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also has an oral history interview with Robert Scull conducted by Paul Cummings in 1972.
Provenance:
The 14 appointment books in the collection were donated in 1999 by Amy Newman, a writer, who received them from her friend, artist Chuck Close. Close received them from his brother-in-law, who found them in the trash, turned them over to Close, who, in turn, gave them to Newman. Additional papers were donated in 1993 and 2020 by Robert Scull's widow, Stephanie.
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.
Robert Scull papers, 1955-circa 1984, bulk dates 1965-1970. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, The Walton Family Foundation, and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Interview of Robert Scull conducted by 1972 June 15-28, Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. Scull speaks of his early life and education in New York City; attending night classes at the Art Students League; the importance of museum visits; becoming assistant art director for Saks 34th Street; financially successful ventures; the start of his collection in 1954; his criteria for acquisition; his relationships with artists; the pop art scene; portraits of Scull by various artists; the effects of publicity surrounding his collection; his interest in the future of art; the disposition of his collection; critics; relationships with dealers and museums.
He recalls Barnett Newman, Richard Bellamy, Franz Kline, Jasper Johns, James Rosenquist, George Segal, Andy Warhol, Alfred Leslie, Ivan Karp, Mark Di Suvero, Michael Heizer, Walter De Maria, Milet Andrejevic, and Judith Rutherford.
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Scull (1917-1986) was a collector from New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 28 min.
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.
Topic:
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- New York (State) -- Interviews Search this
Two silent 16mm films, approx. 8 min. each, one b/w and one color, documenting artists preparing for an exhibition at Park Place Gallery in New York, N.Y. Among the artists appearing in the films are: David von Schlegell, Robert Grovesnor, Mark di Suvero, Anthony Magar, Dean Fleming, and photographer Marty Topp.
Biographical / Historical:
Artist, filmmaker; La Veta, Colo.
Provenance:
Donated 2006 by Kenny Schneider. While living in New York City in the 1960s, Schneider would walk around various neighborhoods using his camera to "sketch", resulting in motion picture films.
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.
Correspondence and exhibition files documenting Audrey Sabol's involvement with the Arts Council of the Young Men's/Women's Hebrew Association of Philadelphia during the 1960s.
Exhibition files for Pop Art, contemporary sculpure, and artist-designed products include: "Art 1963/A New Vocabulary" (November 1962); "Dial Y for Sculpture" (October 1964); "How the West Has Done" (March 1966); and "Museum of Merchandise" (May 1967). The files contain correspondence, financial records, photographs, clippings, catalogs, announcements and other printed miscellany. The file for "Dial Y for Sculpture" includes untranscribed cassette tapes and CDs of artists describing their work and tapes of the Steve Reich composition "Buy Art, Buy Art"
Correspondence consists primarily of letters received from Mark di Suvero (1964-1965), whom Sabol became acquainted with during planning of "Dial Y for Sculpture," describing works in progress, materials, tools, personal impressions, and physical difficulties in working after his accident. Two letters contain sketches of his sculpture as well as sketches illustrating dismantling instructions for AMERIGO V. A few miscellaneous letters from Thomas Hess to Holmes Perkins and from Holmes Perkins, Nicholas Calas, and Dieter Rot to Sabol are included.
Biographical / Historical:
Audrey Sabol (1922- ) is a curator in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Partner with Joan Kron in the Beautiful Bag Co.
Provenance:
Donated 1986 by Audrey Sabol.
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.
The Barbara Rose papers date from 1962 to circa 1969 and measure 1.4 linear feet. Papers include letters, writings, printed material, interviews with artists, panel discussions, and lectures relating to Barbara Rose's research as an art historian.
Scope and Contents:
The Barbara Rose papers date from 1962 to circa 1969 and measure 1.4 linear feet. Papers include letters, interviews with artists, panel discussions, lectures, writings, and printed material relating to Barbara Rose's work as an art historian and critic.
Letters consist of responses to queries and questionnaires Rose and Irving Sandler sent to contemporary artists as research for writing projects. Questionnaires were sesnt in preparation for an article in Art in America on artists' sensibility of the 1960s, with responses from Robert Motherwell, Robert Craig Kauffman, Len Lye, Robert Morris, George Segal, David Hare, and others. A separate query asked sculptors for their assessment of contemporary sculptor's needs and the potential for patronage, and responses are found from Carl Andre, Charles Frazier, Robert Murray, Anthony Padovano, Ron Bladen, Roy Lichtenstein, Len Lye, Sol LeWitt, Heinz Mack, Otto Peine, Dan Flavin, and Donald Judd.
Interviews conducted by Rose between 1965 and circa 1969 are found with Richard Bellamy, Leo Castelli, James E. Davis, Henry Geldzahler, Ivan Karp, Lee Krasner, John Lefebre, John Myers, Donald Judd with Frank Stella, and Tom Wesselmann. All interviews include original sound recordings, and the Judd and Stella, Krasner, and Myers interviews include transcripts. Panel discussions and lectures include sound recordings and transcripts of seven events on a variety of contemporary art and architecture subjects held between 1962 and 1968. Sound recordings are present for five of the events on 10 sound tape reels, and transcripts are present for all events. Participants in the panel discussions and lectures include Barbara Rose, Ronald Davis, Dan Flavin, Robert Kauffman, John Harvey McCracken, Friedel Dzubas, Ansel Adams, Arthur Bierman, Kenneth Rexroth, Edward Taylor, Ernst Karl Mundt, John Bowles, Roy Dean De Forest, Seymour Locks, Walter Hopps, Mark Di Suvero, Donald Judd, Robert Morris, Kynaston McShine, Walter Darby Bannard, Donald Judd, Larry Poons, Robert Rauschenberg, Richard Meier, Paul Rudolph, Claes Oldenburg, and Robert Murray.
Writings include photocopied typescripts of "Myth, Symbol, or Me," by Emily Wasserman and "Excerpts from a Work Journal on Flying Sculpture," by Charles Frazier. Printed material consists of two copies of the premiere issue of the 57th Street Review, from Nov. 15, 1966.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 4 series.
Series 1: Letters (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Interviews (0.6 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Panel Discussions and Lectures (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 4: Writings and Printed Material (0.1 linear feet; Box 2)
Biographical / Historical:
Barbara Rose is an American art historian and critic who has published widely in the field of modern American art. Born in 1938 in Washington, DC, Rose studied at the Sorbonne, Smith College, Barnard, and finally, Columbia University under Meyer Shapiro. Rose became immersed in the New York-based circle of modernist artists and curators in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and made her substantial contribution to the discourse on contemporary art with the insider's perspective this afforded her. In 1961, she married the painter Frank Stella and they had two children before their divorce in 1969.
Rose taught at Yale University, Sarah Lawrence, University of California at Irvine and San Diego, and the American University Art in Italy program, and was senior curator at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, from 1981-1985. A prolific writer, Rose is the author of American Art Since 1900 (1967), The Golden Age of Dutch Painting (1969), American Painting: The 20th Century (Skira, 1969), and monographs on the artists Magdalena Abankawicz, Helen Frankenthaler, Robert Rauschenberg, Alexander Liberman, Larry Rivers, and others, as well as dozens of exhibition catalog essays. She held editorial positions at Art in America, Vogue, Artforum, Partisan Review, and Journal of Art, and her writing has also appeared in Art International, Studio International, Arts Magazine, and ARTnews, among many others.
Related Materials:
Barbara Rose papers, 1940-1993 (bulk 1960-1985) are located at The Getty Research Institute Special Collections.
Separated Materials:
Additional papers of Barbara Rose are held by The Getty Research Institute.
Provenance:
Donated 1971-1977 by Barbara Rose.
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:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art critics -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Thirty-five letters (1975-1979), miscellaneous notes, 9 edited typescripts, clippings (1974-1976), and miscellaneous photographs, including one of Sylvia Wilkinson Murphy (1976-1977) concern the production of the MICHIGAN ART JOURNAL. Twelve copies of 4 issues of the MICHIGAN ART JOURNAL include annotations and are accompanied by the camera-ready art and photographs used in their production (1976-1977). Photographs of artists include Mark Di Suvero, Jim Pallas, and Ted Ramsay.
Biographical / Historical:
Begun 1976. Last issue Winter 1982. Published by Sylvia Murphy, as an outgrowth of the Michigan Artists' Registry. The quarterly was designed as a vehicle for artists to publish their work.
Provenance:
Donated 1983 by Sylvia Majewska.
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.
The records of the New York artist-cooperative Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. and the Soho contemporary art gallery Paula Cooper Gallery measure 50 linear feet and 0.001 GB and date from 1961 to 2006. The collection documents the founding of the Park Place Gallery and its artists through correspondence, artists' files, photographic materials, financial records, printed and digital materials, and scattered business records. The bulk of the collection is Paula Cooper Gallery records; nearly two-thirds of which are artists' files containing a variety of materials such as correspondence, printed materials, and photographic materials. Also found is additional business correspondence, business records, financial records, and printed materials for Paula Cooper Gallery, as well as a handful of records from Paula Johnson Gallery.
Scope and Content Note:
The records of the New York artist-cooperative Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. and the Soho contemporary art gallery Paula Cooper Gallery measure 50 linear feet and 0.001 GB and date from 1961 to 2006. The collection documents the founding of the Park Place Gallery and its artists through correspondence, artists' files, photographic materials, financial records, printed and digital materials, and scattered business records. The bulk of the collection is Paula Cooper Gallery records; nearly two-thirds of which are artists' files containing a variety of materials such as correspondence, printed materials, and photographic materials. Also found is additional business correspondence, business records, financial records, and printed materials for Paula Cooper Gallery, as well as a handful of records from Paula Johnson Gallery.
The collection is divided in three series, one series for each gallery represented in this collection. The records in each series are not comprehensive and do not represent the full scope of operations at each gallery. Due to the original arrangement of materials, some records related to Park Place Gallery are found in Series 3, and scattered records related to Paula Cooper Gallery are found in Series 2. Researchers are encouraged to reference both series.
Series 1, Paula Johnson Gallery records, contains six folders and includes an artist file for Bob Thompson; two ledger pages of accounts receivables; scattered exhibition announcements and flyers; two photographs of artwork by Vernon Lobb; tax records, and a handful of legal organizational records.
Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. records are filed in Series 2 and is arranged in five subseries: correspondence, business files, artists' files, financial records, and printed materials. The correspondence is between gallery employees and clients, museums, and other galleries regarding artwork inquiries, sales and exhibitions. Business files are limited in scope and include documents related to the founding of the gallery, a guest book, and one folder of legal and financial records. Artists' Files for eight of the ten Park Place Gallery artists are found: Dean Fleming, Peter Forakis, Tony Magar, Tamara Melcher, Forrest Myers, David Novros, Edwin Ruda, and Leo Valledor. Not present in this collection are files for Mark di Suvero and Robert Grosvenor. Artists' Files contain a variety of materials including artists' statements, bibliographies, biographies, correspondence, exhibition flyers, interview transcripts, clippings and other printed materials, and photographic materials. Financial Records include check ledgers, a general ledger, paid bill receipts, sales invoices, tax forms, and other miscellaneous financial and banking records. Printed Materials include newspaper clippings, gallery announcements, an interview transcript, a handwritten gallery floor plan, and a poster for the 1964 Park Place Invitational Show drawn by Mark di Suvero with artists' names handwritten by Robert Grosvenor.
The bulk of the collection is the records of Paula Cooper Gallery, Series 3. This series contains similar materials as Series 2 and is arranged in the same five subseries. Correspondence includes responses to appraisal requests (1968-1997) and copies of outgoing gallery correspondence from 1985-1999. Business Files contain documentation related to advertising and renovations to the gallery, as well as an artwork inventory book from the early years of the gallery's operation. The bulk of this series is comprised of Artists' Files which contain varied materials such as correspondence with artists, museums, and galleries regarding installations, artwork fabrication, and other business; biographies and bibliographies; exhibition files; printed materials; and photographic materials of artwork and installations. There is considerable documentation for artists Jennifer Bartlett, Peter Campus, Zoe Leonard, Elizabeth Murray, Alan Shields and the estate of Tony Smith. Sales invoices, consignment records, payment ledgers, cancelled checks and other financial materials are found in Financial Records. Printed Materials are comprised of some newspaper and magazine clippings, an interview transcript, and a copy of a manuscript.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 3 series:
Series 1: Paula Johnson Gallery, 1963-1967 (Box 1; 6 folders)
Series 2: Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc., 1961-1973, 1989 (Boxes 1-4, 50-51, OV 52; 4.1 linear feet)
Series 3: Paula Cooper Gallery, 1962-2006 (Boxes 4-49, 51; 45.7 linear feet, ER01; 0.001 GB)
Historical Note:
The artists' cooperative Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. opened in November 1965 at 542 West Broadway, showing the work of ten young contemporary artists. The cooperative did not represent an art movement, but frequently exhibited large-scale, non-figurative, geometric paintings and sculptures.
Many of the gallery's artists had attended art school in California and shared similar ideas about art, community, and collaboration. Since 1962, they had been informally exhibiting together at 79 Park Place and other various New York City locations under the name Park Place Gallery. With the successes of their informal exhibitions, and the loss of their lease at 79 Park Place, the group formalized their cooperative under the umbrella non-profit, Art Research, Inc. in 1965.
The cooperative was comprised of five sculptors, five painters, and five collectors. Members included sculptors Mark di Suvero, Peter Forakis, Robert Grosvenor, Tony Magar, and Forrest Myers; painters Dean Fleming, Tamara Melcher, David Novros, Edwin Ruda, and Leo Valledor; and collectors Virginia Dwan, Allen and Betty Guiberson, J. Patrick Lannan, Vera List, and John and Lupe Murchison. The collectors each donated an artwork by one of the artists for sale in the gallery, as well as financed the gallery's annual operating budget. As compensation, each collector was given one major work of art by each artist every year.
Paula Cooper (nee. Johnson) joined Park Place Gallery in 1966 and she became director in late 1966-early 1967. Previously, from 1964-1966, she ran Paula Johnson Gallery, showing artwork by Bob Thompson and other young artists.
Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. had its first group show in February 1966. In addition to showing art, the gallery occasionally held jazz sessions and other art-related gatherings. The gallery physically closed at the end of July 1967. However, Paula Cooper continued managing the sale of artwork and organized exhibitions at various locations. The final exhibition of Park Place Gallery artists was held at M.I.T. in late spring of 1968.
Paula Cooper opened Paula Cooper Gallery in Soho at 96 Prince Street in 1968. Her gallery is often credited as being the first gallery in Soho and thus paved the way for the migration of uptown galleries to the neighborhood. From the beginning, the gallery showed primarily conceptual and minimalist art and she continued representing some of the Park Place artists. Artists represented by Paula Cooper Gallery and found in this collection include Jennifer Bartlett, Dara Birnbaum, Peter Campus, Michael Hurson, Zoe Leonard, Robert Mangold, Elizabeth Murray, Cady Noland, Adrian Piper, Ulrich Rückriem, Edwin Ruda, Alan Shields, the estate of Tony Smith, Joseph White, Chris Wilmarth, Kes Zapkus, and many others. The gallery continues to operate in Chelsea on West 21st Street.
Sources consulted include "Reimaging Space: the Park Place Gallery Group in 1960s New York" by Linda Dalrymple Henderson, published by Blanton Museum of Art, 2008; and, "Art and Space: Park Place and the beginning of the Paula Cooper Gallery," by Liza Kirwin, 2007 (http://www.aaa.si.edu/exhibitions/paula-cooper).
Related Material:
Related collections found among the holdings of the Archives of America include a sound recording of a lecture given by Paula Cooper (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston sound recordings, May 18, 1983-February 8, 1984); audio tapes which include Paula Cooper (Bruce D. Kurtz video and audio recordings and papers, 1966-1995); and two silent 16mm films by Kenny Schneider (Park Place Gallery artists films, 1967.)
Provenance:
Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. records and Paula Cooper Gallery records were donated by Paula Cooper, director of the galleries, in two accessions in 2006 and 2009.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
All collection material except photographs: Permission to quote, publish or reproduce requires written permission from Paula Cooper. Contact Reference Services for more information.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State) -- New York
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Transcripts
Photographs
Citation:
Park Place, The Gallery of Art Research, Inc. records and Paula Cooper Gallery records, 1961-2006. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Smithsonian Institution Collection Care Preservation Fund
The collection measures 6.8 linear feet and 0.263 GB, dates from 1934 to 2005, and documents the career of sculptor Mark di Suvero and family relationships. Found within the papers are biographical material; letters to and from di Suvero family members; scattered writings by di Suvero and Marie Louise Martignoni di Suvero, the artist's sister, about Mark di Suvero; drawings; a file on the Socrates Sculpture Park; a file on artist Helen Lessick, an acquaintance of Mark di Suvero; exhibition files; printed material; photographs of the artist, artwork, and members of the di Suvero family; audio and video recordings of interviews with di Suvero; and promotional Tee Shirts. A portion of this collection is sealed.
Scope and Content Note:
The collection measures 6.8 linear feet (including sealed portions of the collection) and 0.263 GB, dates from 1934 to 2005, and documents the career of sculptor Mark di Suvero and the importance of his family relationships. Found within the papers are biographical material; letters to and from di Suvero family members; scattered writings by di Suvero and Marie Louise Martignoni di Suvero, the artist's sister, about Mark di Suvero; drawings; a file on the Socrates Sculpture Park; a file on artist Helen Lessick, a friend of Mark di Suvero; exhibition files; printed material; photographs of the artist, artwork, and members of the di Suvero family; audio and video recordings of interviews with di Suvero; and promotional Tee Shirts. 57 folders of Mark di Suvero's letters to his brother Henry are sealed, as are 3 folders of letters to his sister Marie Louise Martignoni di Suvero. Also sealed are a typescript for a book by di Suvero, a play script by Henry di Suvero, and family photographs, per the donor's request. All series contain annotations by the donor, Marie Louise Martignoni di Suvero.
Arrangement:
The collection has been arranged into 11 series:
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1941-2004 (Box 1; 4 folders)
Series 2: Letters, 1956-2005, undated (Box 1, 7, and -- Sealed Box 6, 8, OV 10; -- 1.6 linear feet)
Series 3: Notes and Writings, 1961-2005, undated (Box 1, and -- Sealed Box 6 -- ; 15 folders)
Series 4: Drawings, 1983, undated (Box 1; 1 folder)
Series 5: Socrates Sculpture Park File, 1985-2004, undated (Box 1-2, 7; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 6: Helen Lessick File, 1986-2004 (Box 2, 7; 6 folders)
Series 7: Exhibition Files, 1975-2003 (Box 2-3, 7; 1.4 linear feet)
Series 8: Printed Material, 1958-2004, undated (Box 3-4, 7, OV 9; 1.4 linear feet)
Series 10: Audio and Video Recordings, 1982-1994, undated (Box 5; 7 folders)
Series 11: Promotional Tee Shirts, 1978-2001 (Box 7; 2 folders)
All series have been arranged chronologically. Unrestricted material is housed in Boxes 1-5, 7 (Sol), and OV 9. Sealed material is housed in Boxes 6, 8 (Sol), and OV 10.
Biographical Note:
Mark di Suvero was born September 18, 1933, in Shanghai, China, the son of Matilde Millo di Suvero and Victor E. di Suvero, an Italian diplomat. He was one of four children: Victor M., the eldest, Marie Louise, Mark, and the youngest son Henry. With the outbreak of World War II, the family immigrated to San Francisco, California, in 1941.
Mark di Suvero studied fine arts and philosophy at the San Francisco City College from 1953 to 1954, and attended the University of California, Santa Barbara, from 1954-1955, where he began creating sculpture. In 1956, he received a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of California, Berkeley. The following year, di Suvero moved to New York City to establish a career as a sculptor.
Shortly before his first solo exhibition at the Green Gallery in 1960, di Suvero suffered severe spinal injuries when he was pinned against an elevator shaft in a construction accident. Initially confined to a wheelchair for two years, di Suvero persevered in overcoming his injuries and continuing his work.
In protest of the Vietnam War, di Suvero left the United States in 1971, and exhibited his sculpture in Holland and Germany. A year later, he established a painting and drawing studio in Venice, where he also taught at the Università Internazionale dell'Arte, and, in 1973, he moved to France. Also during this time, di Suvero married Maria Teresa Capparotta, an architect, whom he later divorced.
The Whitney Museum of American Art honored Mark di Suvero in 1975 with the first retrospective and first American city-wide exhibition of his work, in New York City. At this time, di Suvero began working with a team in assembling his sculpture, first with Lowell McKegney, and later joined by his nephews Enrico and Matteo Martignoni.
In 1977, di Suvero founded the Athena Foundation to award grants to artists. In 1986, in conjunction with the Athena Foundation and with Enrico Martignoni, he created the Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City, New York, an outdoor space where sculptors are invited to create and exhibit their work. With Marcel Evrard in 1988, di Suvero created a foundation entitled La Vie des Formes (The Life of Forms) in the shipyards at Chalon-sur-Saône, France. Based upon the model of Socrates Sculpture Park, this organization hosted artists in studio and exhibition spaces at the shipyard and on di Suvero's converted canal barge Rêve des Signes, that was moored alongside.
Included in most major international gallery collections, Mark di Suvero's art work has also been the focus of major solo exhibitions including two at Storm King, and international city-wide exhibitions in Duisberg and Stuttgart in Germany, Chalon-sur-Saône, Paris, Valence, and Nice in France, and Valencia in Spain. During the summer of 1995, di Suvero was honored with a major installation of seven pieces along the Grand Canal to coincide with the Venice Biennale's 100th anniversary.
In 1993, Mark di Suvero married Kate Levin, Ph.D., a professor at the City University of New York and Commissioner of the New York Department of Cultural Affairs. Di Suvero and Levin have a daughter named Veri. At present, di Suvero maintains studios in Petaluma, California, Long Island City, New York, and Chalon-sur-Saône, France.
Provenance:
The Mark di Suvero and di Suvero family papers were donated in 2004 and 2005 by Marie Louise Martignoni di Suvero, the artist's sister. After donation, the donor requested that a portion of the papers be sealed (no access) until 2033. The sealed portion includes family letters, a typescript for a book, a play script, and family photographs.
Restrictions:
A portion of the the collection is open for research, Boxes 1-5, 7, and OV 9. Use requires an appointment. A portion of the collection (Boxes 6, 8, OV 10) is SEALED and unavailable for research.
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.
Barnett Newman's letter to Herman Warner Williams and seven letters to Green from Mark Di Suvero, Gerald Nordland, and Clyfford Still discuss the progress and exhibition of their work.
Reel 3567: Clyfford Still's 4 letters and a postcard concern plans to visit Green and his views on the state of the art world. Gerald Nordland's letter contains excerpts of his correspondence with Still and his wife regarding a 1967 exhibit of Still's work at the San Francisco Museum of Art. Barnett Newman's letter to Williams, director of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, concerns a proposed exhibit of Newman's work at the Corcoran.
Reel 4391: Mark Di Suvero's letter discusses his difficulties in producing work according to a timetable and thanks Green for releasing him from an exhibition deadline.
Biographical / Historical:
Gallery owner and art historian; Washington, D.C. During the late 1960s, Eleanor (Sue) Broome Green was curator of contemporary art at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
Provenance:
Donated 1985 by Eleanor Broome Green.
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.
An interview with Mark di Suvero conducted 2017 May 16 and 31, by Mija Riedel, for the Archives of American Art, at Di Suvero's studio in Petaluma, California.
Biographical / Historical:
Mark di Suvero (1933- ) is a sculptor in New York, New York. Mija Riedel (1958- ) is a writer and editor in San Francisco, California.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds the papers of Mark di Suvero and Di Suvero family papers.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Topic:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Sponsor:
Funding for this interview was provided by the Lichtenberg Family Foundation.
A portion of the the collection is open for research, Boxes 1-5, 7, and OV 9. Use requires an appointment. A portion of the collection (Boxes 6, 8, OV 10) is SEALED and unavailable for research.
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:
Mark di Suvero and di Suvero family papers, 1934-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
A portion of the the collection is open for research, Boxes 1-5, 7, and OV 9. Use requires an appointment. A portion of the collection (Boxes 6, 8, OV 10) is SEALED and unavailable for research.
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:
Mark di Suvero and di Suvero family papers, 1934-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
