1.8 Linear feet ((partially microfilmed on 2 reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1930-1997
Scope and Contents:
Biographical material, correspondence, notes, writings, photographs, business and financial records, works of art, and printed material document the career of painter and educator Michael Loew.
REEL N68-94: Biographical material, 1957-1967, includes 5 biographical sketches, a bibliography of Loew's publications, and an artist's statement. Correspondence, 1935-1968, is with colleagues, galleries, and educational institutions. There are one or two letters each from colleagues Josef Albers, Willem de Kooning, Adolph Gottlieb, Philip Johnson, Richard Lahey, George L.K. Morris, and Clifford Odets. Nine letters relate to Loew's work for the U.S. Works Progress Administration and the New York World's Fair. Writings, 1966, consist of several drafts for essay "Is It the Function of the Artist to Communicate with his Audience." A contract, 1938, is between Loew and Willem de Kooning and the New York World's Fair 1939 Inc. Printed material, 1944-1968, consists of exhibition announcements and catalogs. Photographs, 1960-1964, are of Loew and his art works. Notes consist of 2 undated notebooks and a typescript concerning Josef Albers. A scrapbook, 1938-1965, contains 4 photographs of art works, clippings, and exhibition announcements and catalogs.
REEL 5053: Correspondence, 1944-1990, is with galleries, including the Holland-Goldowsky Gallery, educational institutions, including the University of California at Berkeley, and colleagues including Dorothy Dehner, Burt Hasen, and Aaron Siskind. Correspondence, 1956-1957, with Rockwell Kent concerns the rental of Kent's Monhegan Island cabin. One letter, 1959, includes 3 photographs of Loew, Louis Kahn, Allan Kaprow, and George McNeil. Lecture notes are for an Artists Equity symposium, 1956, and a panel discussion on painting, 1968. Writings, 1968-1979, consist of 3 essays by Loew and tributes written to Sarah Freedman McPherson by Loew and others. Printed material, 1932-1992, consists of clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, and a book "The Artist's World" by Fred W. McDarrah. Photographs, 1930-1979, are of Loew, his friends, and his art works. One photograph is of Alfred Jensen, Theodore Schempp, Max Schnitzler, and Loew in Tunis, 1930.
UNMICROFILMED Biographical material incudes curriculum vita, obituaries, and birth announcements of Jonathan Loew, Michael Loew's son. Correspondence is with Willem and Elaine de Kooning. Writings include notes and a transcription of Loew's 1966 MoMA talk Must the Artist Communicate with his Audience, drafts of an article by Loew regarding Joseph Albers NEA and Guggenheim grant applications. Photographs are of Loew, his artwork, and his travels in Mexico as well as a color photograph of Loew and Willem de Kooning in de Kooning's studio taken by Rose Slivka. Artwork includes original off-prints for book covers. Business files relate to the 1939 World's Fair mural commission and include information about gifts of artwork to museums. Financial material includes a sales record book and records of sales with the Marilyn Pearl and Landmark galleries. Also included are literature and directories from the Federation of Modern Painters & Sculptors, exhibition announcements,and newspaper clippings.
Biographical / Historical:
Born in New York City, Michael Loew (1907-1985) studied at the Art Students League from 1926-1929, Academie Scandinave in Paris from 1929-1930, the Hans Hofmann School of Fine Art from 1947-1949, and at the Atelier Fernand Leger from 1949-1950. Loew worked as a stained glass artist from 1926 to 1929, and painted murals with Willem de Kooning for the New York World's Fair of 1939. Between 1956 and 1966, he taught painting at the Portland (Oregon) Art Museum, University of California at Berkeley, and at the School of Visual Arts in New York.
Provenance:
Material on reel N68-94 lent for microfilming 1968 by Michael Loew; approximately 50 letters and an artists' statement were later received in subsequent donations. Additional papers were donated in 1981-1982 by Loew, and in 1994 and 2008 by his widow, Mildred C. Loew, a portion of which was microfilmed on reel 5053. The photograph of Loew and de Kooning taken by Rose Slivka was donated by Loew's niece, Jackie Cohen, in 2007.
Restrictions:
Microfilmed portion must be accessed on film. Use of original papers requires an appointment.
The papers of studio glass artist Marvin Lipofsky measure 46.0 linear feet and date from 1954 to 2018. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, writings and notes, travel diaries, artist files, exhibition and gallery files, organization files, professional files, technical studio files, printed material, photographic material, three scrapbooks, sketchbooks, and artwork. There is a 0.4 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2021 that includes personal and professional correspondence between Lipofsky and others regarding travel and shows, a file on teaching, and biographical information, and "In a Bottle" transparency. Materials date from circa 1964-2002.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of studio glass artist Marvin Lipofsky (1938-2016) measure 46.0 linear feet and date from 1954 to 2018. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, writings and notes, travel diaries, artist files, exhibition and gallery files, organization files, professional files, technical studio files, printed material, photographic material, three scrapbooks, sketchbooks, and artwork.There is a 0.4 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2021 that includes personal and professional correspondence between Lipofsky and others regarding travel and shows, a file on teaching, and biographical information, and "In a Bottle" transparency. Materials date from circa 1964-2002.
Of note are materials concerning Lipofsky's extensive travel, likely with the Glass Art Society, and his files on oher artists. 108 travel diaries contain notes and contact information and date from 1970 to 2015. Professional files contain Lipofsky's international files which are organized by country. Within these are correspondence and printed materials from local artists. Also found are photo albums for many of Lipofsky's trips abroad.
Artist files are for Fritz Driesbach, Nick Labino, Harvey Littleton, Ronald Pennell, Raechel Running, Italo Scanga, Jean-Pierre Umbdenstock, Patti Warashina, and many others.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 15 series
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1954-2017 (2.0 linear feet; Boxes 1-2, 46)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1960-2016 (3.3 linear feet; Boxes 3-6)
Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1962-2010 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 6-7)
Series 4: Travel Diaries, 1970-2015 (1.4 linear feet; Boxes 7-8)
Series 5: Artist Files, 1956-2016 (2.7 linear feet; Boxes 8-11, 46)
Series 6: Exhibition and Gallery Files, 1966-2016 (7.7 linear feet; Boxes 11-19)
Series 7: Organization Files, 1965-2015 (1.8 linear feet; Boxes 19-21)
Series 8: Professional Files, 1960-2018 (5.4 linear feet; Boxes 21-27)
Series 9: Technical Studio Files, circa 1960s-circa 2000s (3.9 linear feet; Boxes 27-30)
Series 10: Printed Material, 1960s-2000s (4.6 linear feet; Boxes 30-35, 46)
Series 11: Photographic Material, 1980-2004 (9.2 linear feet; Boxes 35-44, 46-47)
Series 12: Scrapbooks, 1960s-1995 (0.2 linear feet; Box 44)
Series 13: Sketchbooks, 1960s-2009 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 44-46)
Series 14: Artwork, 1960s-2000s (0.4 linear feet; Box 45)
Series 15: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1964-2002 (0.4 linear feet, Box 48)
Biographical / Historical:
Marvin B. Lipofsky (1938-2016) was a glass artist and educator active in Berkeley, California.
Marvin Lipofsky was born in Barrington, Illinois in 1938. He began his study of art at the University of Illinois, where he studied industrial design and received his MS and MFA in sculpture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. At Wisconsin, he studied under Harvey Littleton, one of the founders of the Studio Glass movement.
Lipofsky would have a long career as an educator and lecturer at institutions throughout the United States. He held positions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of California-Berkeley, and the California College of Arts and Crafts. He taught regular seminars at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and the Pilchuck Glass School.
In addition to his teaching career, Lipofsky was a founding and active member of the Glass Art Society which held conferences all over the world to promote the study and sharing of glass art techniques. He traveled extensively to places such as Czech Republic, Japan, Italy, Russia, Slovakia, and Ukraine. He visited glass factories and studios, usually forming professional relationships and friendships with other glass artists.
Marvin Lipofsky died in 2016 in Berkeley, California.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview of Marvin Lipofsky conducted 2003 July 30-August 5, by Paul Karlstrom, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Berkeley, California.
Provenance:
The Marvin Lipofsky papers were donated in 2004 by Ruth Okimoto, Lipofsky's spouse, on behalf of Marvin Lipofsky as part of the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, and in 2017, 2018 and 2021 by Lisa Lipofsky-Valenzula, Marvin Lipofsky's daughter.
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:
Glass artists -- California -- Berkeley Search this
An interview of Joel Philip Myers conducted 2007 May 1, by Daniel Klein, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in the artist's home, in Marietta, Pennsylvania.
Joel Philip Myers (1934- ) is a glass artist from Milton, West Virginia. Daniel Klein (1938- ) is an art consultant from London, England.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 15 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.
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Names:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Extent:
103 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2003 July 30-August 5
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Marvin Lipofsky conducted 2003 July 30-August 5, by Paul Karlstrom, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Berkeley, California.
Lipofsky speaks of growing up in the retail clothing trade; relating immediately in his early career to artists Peter Voulkos and John Mason; studying industrial design at the University of Illinois and sculpture at the University of Madison, Wisconsin, where Harvey Littleton introduced him to glass blowing; traveling to Europe to learn about glass; his desire to share education experiences with others; setting up education programs at Berkeley and the California College of Arts and Crafts; establishing the Great California Glass Symposium and creating a sense of community of glass art; artists versus artisans and craftsmen; studio glass as an American phenomenon; functional versus non-functional glass art; spirituality in his work; glassblowing associated with the breath of life; the Bay Area art scene; symbolic forms and organic quality of works; influences from working in factories and other countries; his experience working at the Venini Factory in Murano, Italy; his involvement in the California College of Arts and Crafts, Glass Arts Society, and National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts; abstraction as his main subject of works; inspirations of colorful clothing and color in nature; and the "American Glass Now" exhibition at the Toledo Museum of Art, the first major glass exhibit in the United States. Lipfosky also recalls Dante Marioni, Paul Marioni, Beatrice Wood, Christopher Wilmarth, Ken Holston, Dale Chihuly, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Marvin Bentley Lipofsky (1938- ) is a glass artist and educator from Berkeley, California. Paul Karlstrom (1941- ) is an art historian from San Marino, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 6 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 11 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hrs., 31 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.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Glass artists -- California -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Richard Marquis conducted 2006 September 16, by Mija Riedel, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at the artist's home and studio, in Freeland, Washington.
Marquis speaks of his childhood spent moving around Arizona, Colorado, and California; his lifelong affinity for collecting objects; attending University of California, Berkeley; the influence of seeing the shows "Abstract Expressionist Ceramics" at the University of California at Irvine in 1966 and "American Sculpture of the Sixties" at Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1967; receiving a Fulbright grant to study glassblowing in Murano, Italy; experiences at Venini Fabbrica Glass Factory in Murano; teaching experiences at University of Washington, Seattle and UCLA; traveling throughout Australia to set up glass workshops; working as artist-in-residence at Tasmanian School of Art in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia; establishing Marquis Deluxe Studios; large-scale installation collaborations with Therman Statom; the importance of teaching and sharing knowledge; the cyclical progression and diversity of his work; future plans to work less with glass and focus instead on daguerrotypes. Marquis also recalls Peter Voulkos, Ron Nagle, Marvin Lipofsky, James Melchert, Harvey K. Littleton, John Eubanks, John Pearson, Ludovico de Santillana, Lino Tagliapietra, Bob Naess, Fred Bauer, Nick Mount, Les Blakebrough, Jack Wax, Jody Fine, Therman Statom, Kenneth Price, Dante Marioni, Jerry Spagnoli, and Bill Concannon, among others.
Biographical / Historical:
Richard Marquis (1945- ) is glass artist and educator from Freeland, Washington. Mija Riedel (1958- ) is a curator and writer from San Francisco, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 9 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hrs., 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 papers of glass artist and educator Richard Marquis measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1967 to 2004. The collection comprises biographical materials including resumes and photographs of Marquis in his studio; correspondence with Scott Benefield, Susanna K. Frantz, Audrey Mann, Benjamin Moore, Anna Venini, and others; professional files containing correspondence, price lists, consignment forms, invoices, appraisals, exhibition forms, goblet lists, and other material from Marquis's professional activities; and printed materials.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of glass artist and educator Richard Marquis measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1967 to 2004. The collection comprises biographical materials including resumes and photographs of Marquis in his studio; correspondence with Scott Benefield, Susanna K. Frantz, Audrey Mann, Benjamin Moore, Anna Venini, and others; professional files containing correspondence, price lists, consignment forms, invoices, appraisals, exhibition forms, goblet lists, and other material from Marquis's professional activities; and printed materials.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as four series.
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1967-2004 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1973-2004 (10 folders; Box 1)
Series 3: Professional Files, 1983-2004 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 4: Printed Materials, 1970-2004 (0.3 linear feet; Box 2)
Biographical / Historical:
Richard Marquis (1945- ) is a glass artist and educator in Freeland, Washington. He is considered a pioneer of American glass art.
Marquis was born in Bumble Bee, Arizona. He attended the University of California in Berkeley where he received both his bachelor's and master's degrees. In 1969, he traveled to Italy on a Fulbright-Hays fellowship to work as a guest designer at the Venini glass factory where he mastered Venetian glass techniques. Marquis is a collector of a wide variety of objects and often uses found objects in his work. He has taught at the University of California in Los Angeles, the Penland School of Crafts, Pilchuk Glass School, and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts.
Related Materials:
Also in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Richard Marquis conducted on September 16, 2006 by Mija Riedel for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America at the artist's home and studio in Freeland, Washington.
Provenance:
The Richard Marquis papers were donated in 2004 by Richard Marquis as part of the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America.
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.
Correspondence with Benjamin Moore: Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from Richard Marquis. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Marvin Lipofsky, 2003 July 30-August 5. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Glass artists -- California -- Interviews Search this
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Richard Marquis, 2006 September 16. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Joel Philip Myers, 2007 May 1. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
