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Paul Jenkins papers

Creator:
Jenkins, Paul, 1923-2012  Search this
Names:
Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Martha Jackson Gallery  Search this
Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
New York University  Search this
Baber, Alice  Search this
Bluhm, Norman, 1921-1999  Search this
De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this
Dusanne, Zoe, -1977  Search this
Erma, Thomas, 1939-1964  Search this
Gilot, Francoise, 1921-  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Jenkins, Esther Ebenhoe  Search this
Krasner, Lee, 1908-1984  Search this
Prantl, Karl  Search this
Prince, Frank  Search this
Extent:
11.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Travel diaries
Manuscripts
Sketches
Watercolors
Prints
Collages
Visitors' books
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Place:
China -- Description and Travel
Date:
circa 1915-2010
Summary:
The papers of abstract expressionist painter and playwright Paul Jenkins measure 11.1 linear feet and date from circa 1915 to 2010. Jenkins's career in New York and Paris is documented through biographical material, family papers, correspondence, writings, personal business records, printed material, photographs of Jenkins in his studio and at various events, and original artwork by Jenkins and others.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of abstract expressionist painter and playwright Paul Jenkins measure 11.1 linear feet and date from circa 1915 to 2010. Jenkins's career in New York and Paris is documented through biographical material, family papers, correspondence, writings, personal business records, printed material, photographs of Jenkins in his studio and at various events, and original artwork by Jenkins and others.

Biographical material and family papers consist of awards and certificates, calendars, marriage, divorce, and estate papers, and military service records. Also included are family papers and a scrapbook belonging to Jenkins's aunt, Louise Jenkins.

Correspondence, which makes up the bulk of the collection, is with family, friends, and fellow artists, including Alice Baber, Norman Bluhm, Willem de Kooning, and Lee Krasner Pollock, as well as art organizations, schools, museums, galleries, and gallery owners, such as the Art Students League of New York, New York University, Museum of Modern Art, Martha Jackson Gallery, Zoe Dusanne, and Peggy Guggenheim.

Writings includes scattered writings by Paul Jenkins, two of his travel diaries, and the guest book for an exhibition in Tokyo. Also found are a copy of Lili Krahmer Verame's China travel diary and the writings and research materials of others.

Personal business records consist of financial records, lease documents, price lists, travel documents, and papers regarding Jenkins's rental property. Also included are a file on the New York University medal designed by Jenkins and a file concerning a Karl Prantl statue.

Printed material consists of event programs, newsletters, bulletins, member reports, press releases, art exhibition announcements and catalogs, concert and theater announcements and programs, news and magazine clippings, and obituaries and memorial announcements.

Artwork contains miscellaneous sketches and collages by Paul Jenkins. Additional artworks include sketches, watercolors, and prints by other artists, as well as 8 oversize mixed media sketches by Frank Prince of Jenkins's Meditation Mandala Sundial sculptures.

Photographs of Paul Jenkins depict him in his studio, with family and friends, and at events. Photographs of family and friends include Esther Ebenhoe Jenkins, Alice Baber Jenkins, Norman Bluhm, Thomas Erma, Françoise Gilot, Matsumi "Mike," Carole, and Bunshi Paul Kanemitsu, and Frank Prince.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 7 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1915-1997 (Box 1; 9 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1930-2010 (Box 1-9, 13; 9 linear feet)

Series 3: Writings, circa 1950-2003 (Box 9-10; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 4: Personal Business Records, circa 1944-1990 (Box 10; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Material, circa 1952-2010 (Box 10-11; 0.6 linear feet)

Aeries 6: Artwork, circa 1935-2007 (Box 11-12, OV 14; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 7: Photography, circa 1940-1998 (Box 12; 0.4 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Paul Jenkins (1923-2012) was an abstract expressionist painter and playwright in New York, New York, and Paris, France. Jenkins was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1923, and moved to Youngstown, Ohio as a teenager. After serving in the U.S. Maritime Service and the U.S. Naval Air Corps, Jenkins studied playwriting with George McCalmon at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University). In 1948, he moved to New York City, where he studied with Yasuo Kuniyoshi at the Art Students League of New York.

Over the course of his career, Jenkins experimented with multiple techniques, including oil on primed canvas, flowing paints, acrylics, watercolor, and mixed media collages. After traveling extensively and meeting many artists, Jenkins ultimately became associated with the Abstract Expressionists. His work gained the attention of other members of the art world and he held solo exhibitions at venues such as the Zoe Dusanne Gallery in Seattle and the Martha Jackson Gallery in New York. Jenkins' paintings were purchased by both museums and private collectors, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Peggy Guggenheim.

In addition to his painting, Jenkins continued to explore other creative endeavors. He experimented with sculpture, producing works for events and permanent displays, including the Sculptors' Symposium at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum and the Sculpture Garden of the Hofstra Museum. His plays, such as Strike the Puma, were published and performed off Broadway in New York City. Jenkins's art served as the backdrop for multiple stage productions, and in 1978, his paintings were featured in the Academy Award nominated movie An Unmarried Woman. Jenkins also collaborated on a number of book projects, including Anatomy of a Cloud, a collection of autobiographical collages and texts.

Throughout his adult life, Jenkins split most of his time between New York and Paris. He continued to create and exhibit new works until his death in New York in 2012.
Related Materials:
Also found at the Archives of American Art are an interview of Paul Jenkins, August 1969, conducted by Albert Elsen, and an oral history interview, 1968, conducted by Colette Roberts.
Provenance:
The papers were donated 2007-2009 and in 2012 by Paul and Suzanne Jenkins.
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.
The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own.
Occupation:
Dramatists -- France -- Paris  Search this
Dramatists -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Abstract expressionism  Search this
Artists' studios -- Photographs  Search this
Medals -- Design  Search this
Painters -- France -- Paris  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Genre/Form:
Travel diaries
Manuscripts
Sketches
Watercolors
Prints
Collages
Visitors' books
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Citation:
Paul Jenkins papers, circa 1915-2010. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.jenkpaul2
See more items in:
Paul Jenkins papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw97a17d1c1-3b35-4e96-b562-6daf3559775e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-jenkpaul2
Online Media:

Claire Falkenstein papers

Creator:
Falkenstein, Claire, 1908-1997  Search this
Names:
Coos Art Museum  Search this
Fresno Art Museum  Search this
Galerie Anderson-Mayer  Search this
Galerie Stadler  Search this
Jack Rutberg Fine Arts (Los Angeles, Calif.)  Search this
John Bolles Gallery (San Francisco, Calif.)  Search this
Los Angeles Museum of Art  Search this
Malvina Miller  Search this
Martha Jackson Gallery  Search this
Merging One Gallery  Search this
Mills College -- Faculty  Search this
Pond Farm Workshop  Search this
San Francisco Museum of Art  Search this
University of California, San Francisco. School of Fine Arts -- Faculty  Search this
Green, Ray, 1908-1997  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Kuh, Katharine  Search this
O'Donnell, May, 1906-2004  Search this
Sawyer, Kenneth B.  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-  Search this
Still, Patricia  Search this
Tapie, Michel  Search this
Temko, Allan  Search this
Tobey, Mark  Search this
Wildenhain, Frans, 1905-1980  Search this
Extent:
42.8 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Interviews
Date:
circa 1914-1997
bulk 1940-1990
Summary:
The papers of sculptor, painter, jewelry designer, and teacher Claire Falkenstein measure 42.8 linear feet and date from 1917 to her death in 1997. There is extensive correspondence with fellow artists, collectors, critics, friends, museums, and galleries. The collection also contains biographical materials, much of it collected and organized by Falkenstein, personal and business records, writings, diaries, exhibition files, commission files, teaching files, photographs, original artwork, scrapbooks, and printed materials. There is a short motion picture film of an interview with Falkenstein featuring the windows she designed for St. Basil's Church in Los Angeles.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of sculptor, painter, jewelry designer, and teacher Claire Falkenstein measure 42.8 linear feet and date from 1917 to her death in 1997. There is extensive correspondence with fellow artists, collectors, critics, friends, museums, and galleries. The collection also contains biographical materials, much of it collected and organized by Falkenstein, personal and business records, writings, diaries, exhibition files, commission files, teaching files, photographs, original artwork, scrapbooks, and printed materials. There is a short motion picture film of an interview with Falkenstein featuring the windows she designed for St. Basil's Church in Los Angeles.

Biographical material includes appointment calendars, awards and honorary degrees, interview transcripts, passports, resumes, wills, and scrapbooks. Scrapbooks were compiled by Falkenstein and focus primarily on her exhibitions at the Galerie Stadler and Gallery Meyer in 1959 and 1960. Also of interest are the "biography files" created and arranged by Falkenstein. These files contain material that she personally felt was the most important in documenting her activities each year. They include correspondence, exhibition catalogs, printed material, and invitations.

Measuring nine linear feet, correspondence is extensive and comprehensively documents Falkenstein's work, social life, relationships, and other business and personal activities. Correspondence dates from 1941 to 1997 and includes business letters and correspondence with friends and family. Her communications with friends, family, clients, gallery owners, collectors, museums, publishers, foundations, and grant agencies reveal many of her ideas and techniques. Individual correspondents include Ray Green, Peggy Guggenheim, Katharine Kuh, May O'Donnell, Ken Sawyer, Clyfford and Pat Still, Michel Tapie, Allan Temko, Mark Tobey, and Frans Wildenhain. Gallery and museum correspondence is with the San Francisco Museum of Art, Coos Art Museum, Los Angeles Museum of Art, Galerie Stadler (Paris), Gallery Mayer (Paris), Malvina Miller (New York), Martha Jackson Gallery (New York), Jack Rutberg Fine Arts (Los Angeles), Galerie Anderson-Mayer (Paris), and Bolles Gallery. Correspondence is also found in the Commission Files and Exhibition Files.

Personal and business records contain a wide variety of material documenting Falkenstein's business, financial, legal, professional, and personal transactions. Files are found for sales and prices, art inventories, smaller jewelry commissions, her work as a juror, her business with galleries, legal affairs and contracts, expenses, records of arts organizations to which she belonged, conferences, grants and fellowships, studio and house renovations, her Paris studio and Paris expenses, travel, donations, loans and consignments, conservation, art shipping, insurance, and taxes. Oversized visitor's logs contain comments from visitors to Falkenstein's studio in Venice, California.

Falkenstein maintained comprehensive documentation of her exhibitions from her first exhibition in the 1930s to the last one at the Merging One Gallery in 1996. Files include both a chronological record and individual record for nearly all of her exhibitions. Found with the files are correspondence, photographs, loan and shipping records, catalogs, announcements, clippings, articles, and other records. Most of the photographs related to exhibitions are found in the Photographs Series. The files for exhibitions at the Fresno Art Museum, Martha Jackson Gallery and Jack Rutberg Fine Art Gallery are particularly rich.

Commission files document nearly all of Falkenstein's public and private large-scale projects and often contain a visual record of the work, as well as correspondence, design notes, contracts, and expense reports. There is documentation of the St. Basils Church windows in Los Angeles; the Peggy Guggenheim gate in Venice, Italy; and the fountain at the California Savings and Loan, in Los Angeles; and many others. There is also a chronological record of her commissions. The bulk of the photographs of commissions are found in the Photograph series. Also, most of Falkenstein's jewelry design commissions are found in the Personal and Business Records series.

Falkenstein's work as a prolific writer, particularly in the 1940s and 1950s, is well-documented here through her numerous published articles in Arts and Architecture magazine, and the New York Herald-Tribune. Her work for Arts and Architecture was primarily written for the "Art Comments from San Francisco" section. She was living in Paris when she contributed an art news column to the New York Herald-Tribune. Also found here are five diaries and one journal dating from circa 1929-1978. The entries are inconsistent and concern mostly travel. The diaries from 1929 and 1934 are more personal. Falkenstein also maintained extensive notes and notebooks about artwork ideas, observations about art, research, and even drafts of letters. There are also many notes about various topics, including art and class notes. Additional writings are eclectic and cover a wide range of topics, including music, poetry, the script for Falkestein's film entitled Touching the Quick, and drafts of her unpublished book on murals. A handful of writings by others are found, most with annotations by Falkenstein.

Teaching files include Falkenstein's numerous lectures given while teaching at Mills College, Pond Farm Workshops, and California School of Fine Arts, and various symposiums and conferences. Also found are lesson plans, contracts, scattered correspondence, and notes. The files on her tenure at the Pond Farm Workshops are particularly interesting, with notes about her fellow teacher Frans Wildenhain and correspondence with workshop owners, Jane and Gordon Herr.

There are extensive photographs of Falkenstein, her family and friends, colleagues, commissions, exhibitions, and works of art. Included are many images of Falkenstein, of Falkenstien with her art, of Falkentstien working, and of Falkenstein's studio. There are numerous photographs of Falkenstein with friends, family, and colleagues in social or work settings. Also found are photographs of exhibition openings, installation views, and works of art exhibited. Additional photographs document Falkenstein's commissions, including images of her at work. Additional images of commissions may also be found in the Commission Series, but the bulk are filed here. There are numerous photographs of Falkenstein's works of art, including drawings, sculpture, jewelry, murals, lamps, and ceramics.

Falkenstein's papers include a large amount of sketches, sketchbooks, and drawings. Many of the sketches and drawings relate to her ideas about commissions and large sculpture, jewelry designs, and general sketches. Sketches are also found in the Commission Files. Also included are drawings by Mark Tobey and Michel Tapie, and others.

Finally, printed materials include general exhibition catalogs, newspapers clippings, and clippings of articles by and about Falkenstein. Also included are books that have been inscribed and signed by the author.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 9 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1934-1997 (Box 1-4, 41; 4.3 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1931-1997 (Box 5-13; 9 linear feet)

Series 3: Personal and Business Records, 1936-1997 (Box 14-17, 41, 46-49; 4.2 linear feet)

Series 4: Exhibitions, 1930-1996 (Box 18-21, 42, OV 50; 3.3 linear feet)

Series 5. Commissions, 1930-1992 (Box 21-22, OV 50-54 ; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 6: Writings, circa 1929-1993 (Box 22-26, 42, 55; 4.6 linear feet)

Series 7: Teaching Files, 1929-1995 (Box 26; .8 linear feet)

Series 8: Photographs, circa 1917-1997 (Box 27-35, 43, 55-56; 9.5 linear feet)

Series 9: Artwork, circa 1937-1995 (Box 36-37, 44, 57; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 10: Printed Materials, circa 1914-1990 (Box 37-40, 45, 58; 3.9 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Claire Falkenstein (1908-1997) spent the majority of her life working as an artist, sculptor, jewelry designer, teacher, and writer in California.

Claire Falkenstein was born in 1908 and grew up in Coos Bay, Oregon. In 1920, Falkenstein and her family moved to Berkeley, California, where she attended high school and then college at the University of California at Berkeley, studying philosophy, anthropology, and art. She graduated in 1930. Falkenstein had her first solo show at the East-West Gallery in San Francisco in 1930, the only member of her class to have an exhibition before graduation.

During the early 1930s, Falkenstein studied at Mills College with modernist sculptor Alexander Archipenko. There she also met Bauhaus artists Laszlo Moholy-Nagy and Gyorgy Kepes. Falkenstein married her high school sweetheart, Richard McCarthy in 1936.

In 1944, Falkenstein had her first New York exhibition at the Bonestall Gallery. At that time, Falkenstein's primary mediums were stone and wood. However, she became increasingly experimental with new materials that included sheet aluminum, Cor-Ten steel, glass, plastics, and welded wire rods while maintaining a connection to organic and natural forms. Her work in jewelry design was an outlet for exploring these new materials, forms, and techniques on a small scale. As her work grew physically larger, so did her recognition and it was her work in sculpture that won her a faculty appointment at the California School of Fine Arts from 1947-1949. It was here that she met Patricia and Clyfford Still, Hassel Smith, and Richard Diebenkorn.

In 1948, Falkenstein was invited to exhibit at the Salon des Realites Nouvelle in Paris, her first European show. She eventually moved to Europe in 1950 and had studios in Paris, Venice, and Rome. While in Europe, Falkenstein executed a number of large scale commissions, including the stair screen for Galerie Stadler (1955), grotto gates for Princess Pignatelli's villa in Rome (1957), and the bronze, steel, and the glass gate at the Peggy Guggenheim Museum in Venice (1961). While in Paris, she became acquainted with noted art critic Michel Tapie, with whom she maintained a life-long friendship.

During the 1940s and 1950s Falkenstein was a regular contributor to Arts and Architecture magazine, most often writing the "Art Comments from San Francisco" section. While in Paris, she also wrote a column on art news for the New York Herald Tribune.

Falkenstein returned to the United States in 1962, eventually renovating a studio space in Venice, California. It was here that she conceived her largest commissions. In 1965, Falkenstein received a commission from the California Savings and Loan to create a sculpture for a large fountain at the front of the bank in downtown Los Angeles. The copper tube fountain, entitled "Structure and Flow #2," was the first of many large scale public art commissions that Falkenstein completed during her years in California. Her most important commission in the United States, completed in 1969, was for the doors, rectory gates and grills and stained-glass windows for St. Basil's Church on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. The eight doors and fifteen rectory screens, including 80 foot high windows in the nave, were an expansion of the "never ending screen" concept that Falkenstein executed with the Pignatelli commission in Rome. She continued to use this motif in her work throughout her career.

Claire Falkenstein worked as an arts instructor, visiting artist, and guest lecturer at many colleges, workshops, and schools in California. Her first position was at Mills College from 1946-1947. Shortly thereafter, she was appointed to the faculty at the California School of Fine Arts and later taught in the Extension Divisions of the University of California, Berkeley. She taught classes at California State Polytechnic University, California State University at Davis, and the Anna Head School. Falkenstein also taught art at the Pond Farm Workshops in California, and lectured at numerous colleges and museums. She served on many juried art shows in Southern California.

Falkenstein was acquainted with many artists, writers, instructors, collectors, gallery owners, and critics. Close friends included Esther and Bob Robles, Clyfford and Patricia Still, Michel Tapie, Allan Temko, Mark Tobey, Frans Wildenhain, and other notable figures in the art world.

Falkenstein continued to complete large scale private and public commissioned sculptures during the 1960s through the 1980s, including work for the University of Southern California, Hyland Biological Laboratory, California State University at Dominquez Hills and the California State Department of Motor Vehicles. Throughout her career, Falkenstein's work was featured in numerous exhibitions across the country. Her sculpture and other artwork can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Coos Art Museum, Harvard University Art Museum, University of Southern California Fisher Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Tate Gallery.

Falkenstein died in 1997 at the age of 89.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds two oral history interviews with Claire Falkenstein. The interview on April 13, 1965 was conducted by Betty Hoag and the one on March 2 and 21, 1995 was conducted by Paul Karlstrom.
Provenance:
The Claire Falkenstein papers were donated in 1997 by Steffan Wacholtz and Nancy Kendall, trustees for the Claire Falkenstein Trust.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- California  Search this
Painters -- California  Search this
Jewelers -- California  Search this
Educators -- California  Search this
Authors -- California  Search this
Topic:
Art patronage  Search this
Artists' studios  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women designers  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Women authors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketchbooks
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Interviews
Citation:
Claire Falkenstein papers, circa 1914-1997, bulk 1940-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.falkclai
See more items in:
Claire Falkenstein papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9911c74ff-413b-4b54-9280-89c8b0480495
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-falkclai
Online Media:

Dorothy C. Miller papers

Creator:
Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-2003  Search this
Names:
Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this
Chase Manhattan Bank -- Art collections  Search this
Federal Art Project  Search this
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden  Search this
Mark Rothko Foundation  Search this
Municipal Art Exhibition (1st : 1934 : New York, N.Y.)  Search this
PepsiCo, Inc.  Search this
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey -- Art collections  Search this
Rockefeller University  Search this
Smith College -- Students  Search this
Smith College. Museum of Art  Search this
World Trade Center (New York, N.Y.) -- Art collections  Search this
Asher, Elise, 1914-  Search this
Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981  Search this
Bontecou, Lee, 1931-  Search this
Byars, James Lee  Search this
Cahill, Holger, 1887-1960  Search this
Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this
Canady, John  Search this
Charlton, Maryette  Search this
Christo, 1935-  Search this
Chryssa, 1933-  Search this
Coggeshall, Calvert, 1907-1990  Search this
Copley, Alfred L.  Search this
Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this
DeFeo, Jay, 1929-1989  Search this
Feininger, Lyonel, 1871-1956  Search this
Feitelson, Lorser, 1898-1978  Search this
Gorky, Arshile, 1904-1948  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Hartigan, Grace  Search this
Hicks, Edward, 1780-1849  Search this
Horwitt, Will  Search this
Johns, Jasper, 1930-  Search this
Karpel, Bernard, 1911-1986  Search this
Levy, Julien  Search this
Mather, Eleanore Price, 1910-  Search this
Matisse, Pierre, 1900-1989  Search this
Nevelson, Louise, 1899-1988  Search this
Newman, Barnett, 1905-1970  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988  Search this
O'Keeffe, Georgia, 1887-1986  Search this
Pereira, I. Rice (Irene Rice), 1902-1971  Search this
Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert, 1925-2008  Search this
Reinhardt, Ad, 1913-1967  Search this
Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979 -- Art collections  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Sage, Kay  Search this
Scharf, William, 1927-  Search this
Sheeler, Charles, 1883-1965  Search this
Sterne, Hedda, 1910-2011  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-1980  Search this
Extent:
34.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Sketches
Christmas cards
Drawings
Date:
1853-2013
bulk 1920-1996
Summary:
The papers of contemporary and folk art curator, historian, and consultant Dorothy C. Miller measure 34.6 linear feet and date from 1853-2013, with the bulk of the material dating from 1920 to 1996. The papers primarily concern Miller's private art consulting work outside of her curatorial work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Found are scattered biographical materials, extensive correspondence and subject files, and project files for her art consulting work for the Rockefeller family, Rockefeller University, Chase Manhattan Bank, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the World Trade Center, and other miscellaneous corporate and private clients. Miller's work as a trustee and committee member of various public and private boards and commissions is also represented here. Additionally, the papers contain Miller's research files on Edward Hicks and folk art, and a small number of files of her husband Holger Cahill about his work as Director of the Federal Art Project. There is a scattered documentation of Miller's early curatorial work with Holger Cahill on the First Municipal Art Exhibition (1934) held at the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center. Also found is Dorothy Miller's collection of artists' Christmas cards and photographs of Miller and others. An addition to the papers includes biographical material; family papers; correspondence; professional files; art collection and client files; printed material; and photographic material. While a small number professional files are included, the majority of the addition relates to her personal life, including correspondence with her husband Holger Cahill, and files pertaining to her personal art collection.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of contemporary and folk art curator, historian, and consultant Dorothy C. Miller measure 34.6 linear feet and date from 1853-2013, with the bulk of the material dating from 1920 to 1996. The papers primarily concern Miller's art consulting work outside of her curatorial work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York city. Found are scattered biographical materials, extensive correspondence and subject files, and project files for her art consulting work for the Rockefeller family, Rockefeller University, Chase Manhattan Bank, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and other miscellaneous corporate and private clients. Her work as a trustee and committee member of various public and private boards and commissions is also represented here. Additionally, the papers contain Miller's research files on Edward Hicks and folk art, and a small number of files related to Miller's husband Holger Cahill and his work as Director of the Federal Art Project. There is important documentation of Miller's early curatorial work with Holger Cahill on the First Municipal Art Exhibition (1934) held at the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center. Artwork includes scattered sketches and drawings enclosed with correspondence and original Christmas cards sent to Miller by various artists. Photographs of Miller date from 1926 - circa 1950.

Scattered biographical material mostly concerns Miller's education at Smith College and awards and honorary degrees that she received. Extensive correspondence and subject files document her professional and personal relationships with family, friends, colleagues, museums, art dealers and artists, as well as her research interests. Individual files may contain a mix of correspondence with, as well as about, the person or subject, compiled research documents, printed materials, and scattered photographs. Files are found for Lewin Alcopley, Alfred Barr, Betty Parsons Gallery, Cahill family members, Lee Bontecou, James Byars, Holger Cahill, Alexander Calder, Christo, Chryssa, Calvert Coggeshall, John Canaday, Maryette Charlton, Stuart Davis, Jay DeFeo, Lorser Feitelson, Arshile Gorky, Peggy Guggenheim, Grace Hartigan, Will Horwitt, Jasper Johns, Julien Levy, Pierre Matisse, Louise Nevelson, Barnett Newman, Isamu Nauchi, Georgia O'Keeffe, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, Ad Reinhardt, Kay Sage, Charles Sheeler, Hedda Sterne, travel, Clyfford Still, William Scharf, among many others.

Detailed records of Miller's art consulting and advisory work for the Rockefeller family include correspondence with Nelson A. Rockefeller and David Rockefeller about building their personal collections of contemporary and folk art, meeting notes and minutes, research notes and writings, and printed materials. The largest group of records concerns the writing and publication of The Nelson A. Rockefeller Collection: Masterpieces of Modern Art. Miller's curatorial work for David Rockefeller and the Rockefeller University's Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Hall art collection is documented in Series 4 through curatorial files, correspondence, printed materials, photographs and slides, artists files, and design records.

Series 5 contains files relating to Miller's work as the first art consutant to the Chase Manhattan Bank and the building of the corporation's extensive collection of contemporary art. There is a draft of Miller's text for the bank's published catalog, Art At Work: Chase Manhattan Bank Collection. A smaller set of records is found in Series 6 documenting Miller's work on the Art Committee of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, including files about selecting artwork for the World Trade Center during the early 1970s. Files concerning Miller's advisory work with additional public and private clients, boards, and commissions are arranged in Series 7 and 8 and concern the Amstar Corporation, Fidelity International Bank, First National Bank of Tampa, First National City Bank, Inmont Corporation, Pepsico, United Mutual Savings Bank, the Empire State Plaza Art Commission, the Hancock Shaker Village, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Mark Rothko Foundation, the Museum of American Folk Art, and the Smith College Museum of Art.

Miller's papers include a small group of files relating to the WPA Federal Art Project (FAP)created by her husband Holger Cahill when he was director of the FAP, Holger Cahill. A small series is devoted to Miller's work with Eleanore Price Mather researching and writing Edward Hicks: His Peaceable Kingdom and Other Paintings. A series of general research files contain miscellaneous research notes and photographs related to Miller's interests in early American art and folk art. Series 12 contains important documentation of Miller's early curatorial work with Holger Cahill on the First Municipal Art Exhibition (1934) held at the RCA Building in Rockefeller Center.

Works of art are primarily in the form of Christmas cards sent to Miller by various artists including Elise Asher, Lyonel Feininger, Bernard Karpel, and Irene Rice Pereira. A small group of photographs includes photographs of Miller from 1926-circa 1950 and a few photographs of others.

The addition includes biographical material; family papers; correspondence; professional files; art collection and client files; printed material; and photographic material. While a small number of professional files are found here, the majority of material relates to Miller's personal life, including correspondence with her husband Holger Cahill, and files pertaining to her personal art collection. Scattered correspondence, inventories, research, and notes created by curator and donor of the papers, Wendy Jeffers, are found throughout the collection. These materials date from the 1980s-2000s.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 15 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1917-1986 (Box 1; 0.3 linear ft.)

Series 2: Correspondence and Subject Files, circa 1912-1992 (Boxes 1-8, OV 27; 7.2 linear ft.)

Series 3: Rockefeller Family Art Collections, circa 1949-1985 (Boxes 8-12, 25; 3.9 linear ft.)

Series 4: Rockefeller University Collection, 1923-1984 (Boxes 12-13, OV 27; 1.0 linear ft.)

Series 5: Chase Manhattan Bank Collection, 1959-circa 1985 (Boxes 13-14, 26; 1.4 linear ft.)

Series 6: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Art Committee, circa 1965-1987 (Boxes 14-15, OV 27; 0.8 linear ft.)

Series 7: Other Corporate and Private Clients, 1968-1984 (Boxes 15-16; 1.3 linear ft.)

Series 8: Other Boards, Committees and Commissions, 1925, 1949-1985 (Boxes 16-20; 3.6 linear ft.)

Series 9: Works Project Administration Federal Art Project Files, 1935-1979 (Box 20, OV 27; 0.5 linear ft.)

Series 10: Edward Hicks Catalog, 1934-1984 (Boxes 20-22; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 11: Research Files, 1930s-1980 (Boxes 22-23; 0.8 linear ft.)

Series 12: Exhibition Files, 1932-1986 (Box 23; 0.6 linear ft.)

Series 13: Works of Art, circa 1924-circa 1982 (Boxes 23-25; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 14: Photographs, 1926-circa 1970s (Boxes 24-25; 0.3 linear ft.)

Series 15: Addition to the Dorothy C. Miller Papers, 1853-2003, bulk 1920-1996 (Boxes 28-38, OVs 39-41; 9.9 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Dorothy Canning Miller (1904-2003) worked in New York City as a highly influential curator of contemporary and folk art at the Museum of Modern Art and as the first curator of the museum. Later, she was the primary art consultant for Nelson A. Rockefeller, the Rockefeller family, Rockefeller University, Chase Manhattan Bank, and the Port Authority of and New Jersey. Dorothy Miller was also married to Holger Cahill, director of the WPA Federal Art Project.

Dorothy C. Miller was born in Hopedale, Massachusetts in 1904 and received her Bachelor of Arts from Smith College in 1925. She was first introduced to modern art through classes at the Newark Museum taught by John Cotton Dana and Holger Cahill. Miller joined the curatorial staff of the Newark Museum in 1926. The museum was one of the first to organize exhibitions of American folk art, American Primitives (1930-1931) and American Folk Sculpture (1931-1932). Miller worked with Cahill and others on the exhibition and developed a life-long interest in folk art.

After four years at the Newark Museum, Miller moved to New York city, hoping to get involved with the newly opened Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and, likely, to be with Holger Cahill, with whom she lived with on 8th Street prior to their marriage in 1938. Between 1930 and 1932 she took odd jobs and worked with Mrs. Henry Lang cataloging, researching and installing Lang's collection of Native American art Lang donated to the Montclair Art Museum. At the same time, Holger Cahill was serving as Acting Director of the Museum of Modern Art during an absence of Director Alfred H. Barr. In 1932, Cahill asked Miller to assist him with curating the American Painting and Sculpture, 1862-1932 exhibition at MoMA, and together they also curated the First Municipal Art Exhibition, 1934 at the Rockefeller Center.

In 1934, Barr hired Miller as his assistant and one year later appointed her as MoMA's first curator. Miller spent the next 35 years organizing many of this country's most important exhibitions of contemporary art and building personal relationships with new artists and photographers, as well as the collections of MoMA. Miller retired from MOMA in 1969 and focused more on her art consulting work begun in the late 1950s.

Dorothy Miller's most notable client was Nelson A. Rockefeller. She assisted and advised Rockefeller as he acquired a vast personal collection of modern art - some of which was later donated to MoMA. Just prior to her retirement, Miller organized a large exhibition of Rockefeller's collection. The exhibition catalog written by Miller was the basis for the book she worked on with Rockefeller up until and following his death in 1979, ultimately published as The Nelson A. Rockefeller Collection: Masterpieces of Modern Art. In the preface, Rockefeller credited Miller with being one of the four people to whom he was indebted "for the understanding and endless joy I have found in the collecting of modern art in all forms."

Miller also served as the primary art consultant for projects to furnish federal spaces, including Henry Kissinger's State Department office suite, and the official Vice-Presidential residence at the Admiral's House in Washington D.C.

In 1959 Miller was invited to join the art collection committee of the Chase Manhattan Bank and served on the committee until the mid-1980s, contributing her expertise to the development of one of this country's oldest and largest corporate collections of modern and contemporary art.

Miller was also an advisor to other members of the Rockefeller family, including David Rockefeller, and assisted with developing the art collections of Rockefeller Institute/University. From 1960 through the late 1980s Miller was a member of the art committee for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANJY) and was responsible for selecting much of the artwork for the World Trade Center in the 1970s. She served on numerous boards and commissions, including the Hancock Shaker Village, the Smithsonian Institution's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Empire State Plaza in Albany, Smith College Museum of Art, and the Museum of American Folk Art. She also became a member of the Mark Rothko Foundation Board of Directors after the litigation following Rothko's death between Rothko's executors and his daughter.

In the mid-1970s Miller assisted the Whitney Museum of American with planning an exhibition and supporting catalog of the work of folk artist Edward Hicks. Although the exhibition and catalog were only partially realized in 1980, Miller and Eleanore Price Mather compiled and published a book on Hicks, Edward Hicks: His Peaceable Kingdoms and Other Paintings, published in 1983.

In 1982-1983 Miller received the Art Dealers Association Special Award, an honorary degree from Williams College, and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture governor's award. In 1984 she was named honorary trustee of the Museum of Modern Art. In 1985 the Smith College Museum of Art honored her important contributions to museum connoisseurship with the exhibition Dorothy C. Miller: With An Eye to American Art.

Dorothy Miller died in 2003 at the age of 99 at her home in Greenwich, New York.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art holds two oral history interviews with Dorothy C. Miller. The first was conducted by Paul Cummings between May 26, 1970 and September 28, 1971, and details Miller's life from childhood up to, and including, her years at the Museum of Modern Art. The second was conducted by Avis Berman on May 14, 1981 and covers Miller's relationships with Mark Rothko and Clyfford Still. Also found among the holdings of the Archives are the papers of Holger Cahill, Dorothy Miller's husband and colleague.

The Museum of Modern Art Achives holds Dorothy Miller's papers related to her curatorial work at the museum.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Dorothy C. Miller via Wendy Jeffers between 1986 and 1997, and Reid White, Executor of Miller's estate, in 2004. Two subsequent additions were donated by Wendy Jeffers in 2014 and 2015.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Art museum curators -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Corporations -- Private collections  Search this
Art -- Private collections  Search this
Folk art  Search this
Women museum curators  Search this
Women art historians  Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Sketches
Christmas cards
Drawings
Citation:
Dorothy C. Miller papers, 1853-2013, bulk 1920-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.milldoro
See more items in:
Dorothy C. Miller papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f1ed6cb6-f194-4b76-a8dd-fce3352c09b8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-milldoro
Online Media:

Peggy Guggenheim, New York, N.Y. letter to Betty Parsons, New York, N.Y.

Creator:
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Parsons, Betty  Search this
Subject:
Pollock, Jackson  Search this
Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this
Type:
Correspondence
Date:
1947 May 5
Citation:
Peggy Guggenheim. Peggy Guggenheim, New York, N.Y. letter to Betty Parsons, New York, N.Y., 1947 May 5. Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers, 1916-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art dealers  Search this
Art galleries, Commercial  Search this
Collectors and collecting  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA)494
See more items in:
Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers, 1916-1991, bulk 1946-1983
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_item_494
Online Media:

Bernard J. Reis papers

Creator:
Reis, Bernard J.  Search this
Names:
Dallas Museum of Fine Arts  Search this
Marlborough Gallery  Search this
Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Peggy Guggenheim Foundation  Search this
Albee, Edward, 1928-  Search this
Birnbaum, Abe, 1899-1966  Search this
Chagall, Marc, 1887-1985  Search this
De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Pepper, Beverly  Search this
Poe, Barbara Reis  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Ray, Man, 1890-1976  Search this
Read, Herbert Edward, Sir, 1893-1968  Search this
Reis, Rebecca G., 1896-1988  Search this
Rivers, Larry, 1925-2002  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Rothko, Mary Alice  Search this
Vail, Sinbad  Search this
Extent:
2.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Drawings
Date:
circa 1913-1983
Summary:
The papers of New York accountant and art collector Bernard J. Reis measure 2.1 linear feet and date from circa 1913 to 1983. The papers document his friendships with artists, his role as accountant for Art of This Century and the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation, and executor of the Mark Rothko Estate. Included are biographical and family papers, correspondence, professional files, scrapbooks, printed material, and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of New York accountant and art collector Bernard J. Reis measure 2.1 linear feet and date from circa 1913 to 1983. The papers document his friendships with artists, his role as accountant for Art of This Century and the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation, and executor of the Mark Rothko Estate. Included are biographical and family papers, correspondence, professional files, scrapbooks, printed material, and photographs.

Biographical and family papers includes a biographical essay, a caricature of Bernard Reis by Abe Birnbaum, documents regarding Rebecca Reis's 1963 cookbook and Barbara Reis Poe's art career, as well as memorabilia from tours of the Reis house and art collection.

Correspondence is with family, friends, and artists, such as Marc Chagall, Sir Herbert Read, and Robert Motherwell. Also found is correspondence with art organizations, galleries, and museums, including the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts and the Museum of Modern Art.

A small set of professional files include copies of others' correspondence, miscellaneous legal documents and reports, Marlborough Gallery records from Reis's time as a New York Director, and copies of wills drawn up by Reis, including those of Edward Albee, Willem De Kooning, Peggy Guggenheim, Beverly Pepper, Abraham Rattner, Man Ray, and Larry Rivers.

Art of This Century and Peggy Guggenheim Foundation records are comprised of accountant's reports, an architect's essay, papers concerning exhibitions and films, a catalog of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Foundation dissolution documents, meeting minutes, gift agreements, and news clippings. Also included is correspondence between Peggy Guggenheim and Bernard and Rebecca Reis, correspondence between Peggy Guggenheim and her son, Sindbad Vail, and financial correspondence.

Mark Rothko Estate papers include administrative records, financial documents, inventories, sales records, papers concerning the Mary Alice "Mell" Rothko Estate, news clippings, and two scrapbooks. Also found are Mark Rothko's correspondence and estate correspondence. Of note are papers related to the Rothko estate trial.

Printed material consists of exhibition announcements and catalogs, copies of articles by Reis, news and magazine clippings, and printed materials regarding Marc Chagall.

Photographs depict Bernard Reis, Reis with wife Rebecca and friends, the Reis home and collection, and Reis at events. Also found are photographs of Peggy Guggenheim's Palazzo in Venice.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 7 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical and Family Papers, circa 1943-1975 (Box 1; 8 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1935-1979 (Box 1, OV 3; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 3: Professional Files, circa 1947-1975 (Box 1; 9 folders)

Series 4: Art of This Century and Peggy Guggenheim Foundation Records, circa 1942-1978 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 5: Mark Rothko Estate Papers, circa 1958-1983 (Box 1-2; 0.9 linear feet)

Series 6: Printed Material, circa 1913-1978 (Box 2, OV 3; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 7: Photographs, circa 1920-1975 (Box 2, OV 3; 0.3 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Bernard J. Reis (1895-1978) was an accountant and art collector in New York, as well as the exector of Mark Rothko's estate.

Reis was born in New York City, in 1895. He received a degree in Commercial Science from New York University in 1915 and graduated from the New York University School of Law in 1918. He passed the New York State Bar Examination but was unable to complete the required one year clerkship as he was supporting his parents financially, and subsequently became a Certified Public Accountant in 1921.

Reis and his wife, Rebecca, built a collection of art in their home, which they opened for charity tours starting in 1948. During this time, Reis became acquainted with many individuals involved in the art world. He developed friendships with art collector Peggy Guggenheim and artists Marc Chagall and Mark Rothko. Reis served as a director for Art of This Century Films and the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation, as well as Guggenheim's personal financial advisor and confidant.

Following the death of Mark Rothko in 1970, Reis was named one of the executors of his estate. The estate was largely managed by the Mark Rothko Foundation, of which Reis was a director. Reis and the other executors entered into an agreement with Marlborough Gallery to sell Rothko's paintings, and in 1971, Mark Rothko's daughter, Kate, accused the estate and gallery of fraudulent practices and sued to release the estate from the sale agreement. The case was not fully resolved until after Reis's death in 1978.
Related Materials:
Also found at the Archives of American Art is an interview of Bernard Reis conducted June 3-10, 1976, by Paul Cummings. Bernard and Rebecca Reis papers, circa 1924-1985, are also located at the Getty Research Institute in California.
Provenance:
The papers were donated in 1979 and 1980 by Bernard J. Reis's widow, Rebecca G. Reis.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers 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:
Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Accountants  Search this
Genre/Form:
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Drawings
Citation:
Bernard J. Reis papers, circa 1913-1983. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.reisbern
See more items in:
Bernard J. Reis papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9d95afd3e-1722-47ce-b62b-d5ec9342f4e4
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-reisbern
Online Media:

Works from the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation

Author:
Peggy Guggenheim Foundation  Search this
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum  Search this
Subject:
Guggenheim, Peggy 1898-1979 Art collections  Search this
Peggy Guggenheim Foundation  Search this
Physical description:
184 pages illustrations (part color), portrait 26 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Expositions
Exhibition catalogues
Catalogues d'exposition
Exhibition catalogs
Place:
Italy
Venice
Italie
Venise
Date:
1969
20th century
20e siècle
Topic:
Art, Modern  Search this
Art--Private collections  Search this
Art--Collections privées  Search this
Art  Search this
Call number:
N5220.G94 S6
N5220.G94S6
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_503

Edwin David Porter papers

Creator:
Porter, David, 1912-  Search this
Names:
G Place Gallery (Washington, D.C.)  Search this
Cortor, Eldzier, 1916-2015  Search this
Crosby, Caresse, 1892-  Search this
Day, Worden, 1916-1986  Search this
De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this
Gottlieb, Adolph, 1903-1974  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Halpert, Edith Gregor, 1900-1970  Search this
Knaths, Karl, 1891-1971  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Extent:
2 Linear feet ((on 5 microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1929-1969
Scope and Contents:
Family correspondence; personal and professional correspondence relating to Porter's career as a gallery owner, with Caresse Crosby, Eldzier Cortor, Worden Day, Edith Halpert, Adolph Gottlieb, Karl Knaths, Peggy Guggenheim, Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning, and many others; diaries; notes; financial papers; clippings; publicity catalogs; and miscellany.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, sculptor, gallery owner; Wainscott, N.Y. Porter opened the G Place Gallery with Caresse Crosby in 1943.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1970 by Edwin David Porter.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State)  Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State)  Search this
Gallery owners -- New York (State)  Search this
Topic:
Painting, American  Search this
Sculpture, American  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.portedwi
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw992829fdb-4f7e-4a5f-991f-9e1f13f7af67
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-portedwi

Katharine Kuh papers

Creator:
Kuh, Katharine  Search this
Names:
Albright-Knox Art Gallery  Search this
Art Institute of Chicago -- Faculty  Search this
Biennale di Venezia  Search this
Katharine Kuh Gallery (Chicago, Ill.)  Search this
Adams, Ansel, 1902-1984  Search this
Albers, Josef  Search this
Albright, Ivan, 1897-1983  Search this
Archipenko, Alexander, 1887-1964  Search this
Arensberg, Louise S. (Louise Stevenson), 1879-1953  Search this
Arensberg, Walter, 1878-1954  Search this
Arp, Jean, 1887-1966  Search this
Barnet, Will, 1911-  Search this
Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981  Search this
Biddle, George, 1885-1973  Search this
Breuer, Marcel, 1902-  Search this
Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this
Campoli, Cosmo  Search this
Chagall, Marc, 1887-1985  Search this
Chavez Morado, José, 1909-2002  Search this
Chermayeff, Serge, 1900-  Search this
Cornell, Joseph  Search this
Cox, Richard  Search this
Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this
Day, Worden, 1916-1986  Search this
De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this
Dickinson, Edwin Walter, 1891-1978  Search this
Dubuffet, Jean, 1901-  Search this
Duchamp, Marcel, 1887-1968  Search this
Elizabeth, Queen of Great Britain, II, 1926-  Search this
Ernst, Jimmy, 1920-1984  Search this
Falkenstein, Claire, 1908-1997  Search this
Feitelson, Lorser, 1898-1978  Search this
Friendly, Fred W.  Search this
Giacometti, Alberto, 1901-1966  Search this
Golub, Leon, 1922-2004  Search this
Goto, Joseph, 1920-  Search this
Grabe, Klaus  Search this
Graves, Robert, 1895-1985  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Guston, Philip, 1913-1980  Search this
Hare, David, 1917-  Search this
Hare, Denise Browne  Search this
Hayter, Stanley William, 1901-1988  Search this
Hirshhorn, Joseph  Search this
Hofmann, Hans, 1880-1966  Search this
Hélion, Jean, 1904-1987  Search this
Inverarity, Robert Bruce, 1909-1999  Search this
Johns, Jasper, 1930-  Search this
Johnson, Philip, 1906-2005  Search this
Johnson, Ray, 1927-  Search this
Kandinsky, Wassily, 1866-1944  Search this
Kepes, Gyorgy, 1906-2001  Search this
Kepes, Juliet  Search this
Klee, Paul, 1879-1940  Search this
Kline, Franz, 1910-1962  Search this
Knox, Seymour H., 1898-1990  Search this
Le Corbusier, 1887-1965  Search this
Lundeberg, Helen, 1908-1999  Search this
Lye, Len, 1901-1980  Search this
Léger, Fernand, 1881-1955  Search this
Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig, 1886-1969  Search this
Millier, Arthur, 1893-  Search this
Moholy-Nagy, László, 1895-1946  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Mérida, Carlos, 1891-1984  Search this
Nutting, Muriel Leone Tyler, b. 1892  Search this
Nutting, Myron Chester, 1890-1972  Search this
O'Higgins, Pablo, 1904-  Search this
Orozco, José Clemente, 1883-1949  Search this
Ozbekhan, Hasan, 1921-2007  Search this
Perkins, Frances  Search this
Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973  Search this
Putnam, Wallace, 1899-1989  Search this
Ray, Man, 1890-1976  Search this
Rich, Daniel Catton, 1904-1976  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Sandberg, Carl  Search this
Seligmann, Kurt, 1900-1962  Search this
Shackelford, Shelby  Search this
Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this
Spaeth, Otto, d. 1966  Search this
Sterne, Hedda, 1916-  Search this
Stevenson, Adlai E. (Adlai Ewing), 1900-1965  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-  Search this
Tanning, Dorothea, 1910-2012  Search this
Tobey, Mark  Search this
Winston, Harry Lewis  Search this
Woolf, Olga  Search this
Young, Victor  Search this
Photographer:
Pollack, Peter, 1909-1978  Search this
Extent:
12 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Illustrated letters
Resumes
Travel diaries
Minutes
Calendars
Visitors' books
Photographs
Paintings
Awards
Drawings
Sound recordings
Collages
Scrapbooks
Lithographs
Prints
Wills
Watercolors
Poetry
Lecture notes
Lectures
Sales records
Date:
1875-1994
bulk 1930-1994
Summary:
The papers of art historian, dealer, critic, and curator Katharine Kuh measure 12 linear feet and date from 1875-1994, with the bulk of the material dating from 1930-1994. The collection documents Kuh's career as a pioneer modernist art historian and as the first woman curator of European Art and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago. Found within the papers are biographical material; correspondence with family, friends and colleagues; personal business records; artwork by various artists; a travel journal; writings by Kuh and others; scrapbooks; printed material; photographs of Kuh and others; and audio recordings of Kuh's lectures and of Daniel Catton Rich reading poetry.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of art historian, dealer, critic, and curator Katharine Kuh measure 12 linear feet and date from 1875-1994, with the bulk of the material dating from 1930-1994. Found within the papers are biographical material; correspondence with family, friends and colleagues; personal business records; artwork by various artists; a travel journal; writings by Kuh and others; scrapbooks; printed material; photographs of Kuh and others; and audio recordings of Kuh's lectures and of Daniel Catton Rich reading poetry.

Biographical material consists of copies of Kuh's birth certificate, resumés, passports, award certificates, honorary diplomas, and address books listing information about several prominent artists and colleagues.

Four linear feet of correspondence offers excellent documentation of Kuh's interest in art history, her travels, her career at the Art Institute of Chicago, her work as a corporate art advisor, and as an author. There are letters from her mother Olga Woolf, friends, and colleagues. There is extensive correspondence with various staff members of the Art Institute of Chicago, the First National Bank of Chicago, and The Saturday Review. Also of interest are letters from artists and collectors, several of whom became life-long friends including Walter and Louise Arensberg, Cosmo Campoli, Serge Chermayeff, Richard Cox, Worden Day, Claire Falkenstein, Fred Friendly, Leon Golub, Joseph Goto, David Hare, Denise Brown Hare, Jean Hélion, Ray Johnson, Gyorgy and Juliet Kepes, Len Lye, Wallace Putnam, Kurt Seligmann, Shelby Shackelford, Hedda Sterne, and Clyfford Still. Many letters are illustrated with original artwork in various media.

There are also scattered letters from various artists and other prominent individuals including Josef Albers, George Biddle, Marcel Breuer, Joseph Cornell, Stuart Davis, Edwin Dickinson, Joseph Hirshhorn, Daniel Catton Rich, and Dorothea Tanning.

Personal business records include a list of artwork, Olga Woolf's will, inventories of Kuh's personal art collection, miscellaneous contracts and deeds of gift, receipts for the sale of artwork, files concerning business-related travel, and miscellaneous receipts.

Artwork in the collection represents a wide range of artist friends and media, such as drawings, watercolors, paintings, collages, and prints. Included are works by various artists including lithographs by David Hare and a watercolor set, Technics and Creativity, designed and autographed by Jasper Johns for the Museum of Modern Art, 1970.

Notes and writings include annotated engagement calendars, travel journals for Germany, a guest book for the Kuh Memorial gathering, and many writings and notes by Kuh for lectures and articles concerning art history topics. Of interest are minutes/notes from meetings for art festivals, conferences, and the "Conversations with Artists Program (1961). Also found are writings by others about Kuh and other art history topics.

Six scrapbooks contain clippings that document the height of Kuh's career as a gallery director and museum curator. Scrapbook 6 contains clippings about Fernand Léger, the subject of a retrospective exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1953.

Additional printed material includes clippings about Kuh and her interests, a comprehensive collection of clippings of Kuh's articles for The Saturday Review, exhibition announcements and catalogs, calendars of events, programs, brochures, books including Poems by Kuh as a child, and reproductions of artwork. Of particular interest are the early and exhibition catalogs from the Katharine Kuh Gallery, and rare catalogs for artists including Jean Arp, Alexander Calder, Marc Chagall, Jean Dubuffet, Marcel Duchamp, Stanley William Hayter, Hans Hofmann, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Franz Kline, Le Corbusier, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and Pablo Picasso.

Photographs provide important documentation of the life and career of Katharine Kuh and are of Kuh, family members, friends, colleagues, events, residences, and artwork. Several of the photographs of Kuh were taken by Will Barnet and Marcel Breuer and there is a notable pair of photo booth portraits of Kuh and a young Ansel Adams. There are also group photographs showing Angelica Archipenko with Kuh; designer Klaus Grabe; painters José Chavez Morado and Pablo O'Higgins in San Miguel, Mexico; Kuh at the Venice Biennale with friends and colleagues including Peggy Guggenheim, Frances Perkins, Daniel Catton Rich, and Harry Winston; and "The Pre-Depressionists" including Lorser Feitelson, Robert Inverarity, Helen Lundeberg, Arthur Millier, Myron Chester Nutting, and Muriel Tyler Nutting.

Photographs of exhibition installations and openings include views of the Katharine Kuh Gallery; Fernand Léger, Man Ray, and László Moholy-Nagy at the Art Institute of Chicago; and Philip Guston, Jimmy Ernst, Seymour H. Knox, Franz Kline, Robert Motherwell, and Mark Rothko at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York. There are also photographs depicting three men posing as Léger's "Three Musicians" and the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to the Art Institute of Chicago. There is a photograph by Peter Pollack of an elk skull used as a model by Georgia O'Keeffe.

Additional photographs of friends and colleagues include Ivan Albright, Alfred Barr, Alexander Calder, Marc Chagall, Willem De Kooning, Edwin Dickinson, Marcel Duchamp, Claire Falkenstein, Alberto Giacometti, poet Robert Graves with Len Lye, Philip Johnson, Gyorgy and Juliet Kepes, Carlos Mérida, José Orozco, Hasan Ozbekhan, Pablo Picasso, Carl Sandberg, Ben Shahn, Otto Spaeth, Hedda Sterne, Adlai Stevenson, Clyfford Still, Mark Tobey, and composer Victor Young.

Photographs of artwork include totem poles in Alaska; work by various artists including Claire Falkenstein, Paul Klee, and Hedda Sterne; and work donated to the Guggenheim Museum.

Four audio recordings on cassette are of Katharine Kuh's lectures, including one about assembling corporate collections, and of Daniel Catton Rich reading his own poetry. There is also a recording of the Second Annual Dialogue between Broadcasters and Museum Educators.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 9 series. Undated correspondence, artwork, and photographs of individual artists are arranged alphabetically. Otherwise, each series is arranged chronologically.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1945-1992 (Box 1; 16 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1908-1994 (Boxes 1-5, 13-14, OV 15; 4.0 linear feet)

Series 3: Personal Business Records, 1941-1989 (Box 5; 19 folders)

Series 4: Artwork, 1931-1986 (Boxes 5, 13-14, OVs 15-23; 1.7 linear feet)

Series 5: Notes and Writings, 1914-1994 (Boxes 5-7; 1.7 linear feet)

Series 6: Scrapbooks, 1935-1953 (Box 7; 8 folders)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1916-1992 (Boxes 7-10, 13, OV 22; 3.0 linear feet)

Series 8: Photographs, 1875-1993 (Boxes 10-13; 1.2 linear feet)

Series 9: Audio Recordings, 1977 (Box 12; 1 folder)
Biographical Note:
Katharine Kuh (1904-1994) worked primarily in the Chicago area as an modern art historian, dealer, critic, curator, writer, and consultant. She operated the Katharine Kuh Gallery from 1935-1943 and was the first woman curator of European and Art and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago.

Katharine Kuh (née Woolf) was born on July 15, 1904 in St. Louis, Missouri, the youngest of the three daughters of Olga Weiner and Morris Woolf, a silk importer. In 1909, the family moved to Chicago, Illinois. While traveling with her family in Europe in 1914, Katharine contracted polio, causing her to spend the next decade in a body brace. During this time of restricted movement, she developed an interest in art history through the collecting of old master prints.

After her recovery, Katharine Woolf attended Vassar College where one of her professors, Alfred Barr, encouraged her to study modern art. She graduated from Vassar in 1925 and received a master's degree in art history from the University of Chicago in 1929. Later that year, she moved to New York to pursue a Ph.D. in Renaissance and medieval art at New York University.

In 1930, Katharine Woolf returned to Chicago and married businessman George Kuh and began to teach art history courses in the suburbs of Chicago. After divorcing George Kuh in 1935, she opened the Katharine Kuh Gallery, the first gallery devoted to avant-garde art in Chicago. It was also the first gallery to exhibit photography and typographical design as art forms, and featured the work of Ansel Adams, Josef Albers, Alexander Calder, Wassily Kandinsky, Fernand Léger, and Man Ray, among others. From 1938 to1940, Kuh was the Visiting Professor of Art at the University School of Fine Arts, San Miguel, Mexico.

After the Katharine Kuh Gallery closed in 1943, Kuh was hired by museum director Daniel Catton Rich to fill a position in public relations at the Art Institute of Chicago. During the following years, Kuh edited the museum's Quarterly publication, took charge of the museum's Gallery of Interpretive Art, and began a long term relationship with Rich. In 1946, Kuh was sent on a special mission for the U. S. Office of Indian Affairs to make a detailed study of Native American totemic carvings in Alaska.

In 1949, Kuh persuaded Mr. and Mrs. Walter Arensberg of Los Angeles to exhibit their collection of modern art, creating the first post-war exhibition of modern art in Chicago. She published her first book Art Has Many Faces in 1951, and in the following year, she began writing art criticism for The Saturday Review. In 1954, Kuh was appointed the first woman curator of European Art and Sculpture at the Art Institute. She assembled the American contribution for the Venice Biennale in 1956 and during these years, Kuh helped acquire many of the works of modern art currently in the museum's collection.

A year following Daniel Catton Rich's 1958 resignation from the Art Institute of Chicago, Kuh also resigned and pursued a career in New York as an art collection advisor, most notably for the First National Bank of Chicago. In 1959, Kuh was made art critic for The Saturday Review, and she continued to publish books, including The Artist's Voice in 1962, Break-Up: The Core of Modern Art in 1965, and The Open Eye: In Pursuit of Art in 1971.

Katharine Kuh died on January 10, 1994 in New York City.
Provenance:
The Katharine Kuh papers were donated in several installments from 1971 to 1989 by Katharine Kuh and in 1994 by her estate. Artwork was donated in 1995 by Kuh's former employer, the Art Institute of Chicago.
Restrictions:
Authorization to quote, publish or reproduce requires written permission until 2019. Contact the Archives of American Art Reference Services department for additional 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:
Authors -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Art historians -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Art dealers -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Art critics -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Curators -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Art consultants -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Art, Abstract -- United States  Search this
Art, American  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Women art dealers  Search this
Women art historians  Search this
Women museum curators  Search this
Women authors  Search this
Women art critics  Search this
Function:
Art festivals
Genre/Form:
Illustrated letters
Resumes
Travel diaries
Minutes
Calendars
Visitors' books
Photographs
Paintings
Awards
Drawings
Sound recordings
Collages
Scrapbooks
Lithographs
Prints
Wills
Watercolors
Poetry
Lecture notes
Lectures
Sales records
Citation:
Katharine Kuh papers, 1875-1994, bulk 1930-1994. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.kuhkath
See more items in:
Katharine Kuh papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw987a0763e-de6c-4f9e-b143-4875b3a2244a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-kuhkath
Online Media:

William and Ethel Baziotes papers

Creator:
Baziotes, William, 1912-1963  Search this
Names:
Kootz Gallery (N.Y.)  Search this
Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Peter A. Juley & Son  Search this
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum  Search this
Alloway, Lawrence, 1926-1990  Search this
Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981  Search this
Baziotes, Christos  Search this
Baziotes, Ethel  Search this
Baziotes, Harry  Search this
Bernshṭin, Meʼir, -1978  Search this
Blesh, Rudi, 1899-1985  Search this
Bodin, Paul, 1910-1994  Search this
Canaday, John, 1907-1985  Search this
Castano, Giovanni, 1896-1978  Search this
Greenberg, Clement, 1909-1994  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Halper, Nathan  Search this
Hare, David, 1917-1992  Search this
Hélion, Jean, 1904-1987  Search this
Janis, Harriet Grossman  Search this
Kamrowski, Gerome  Search this
Kootz, Samuel Melvin, 1898-1982  Search this
Lee, Francis P.  Search this
Licht, Michel, 1893-1953  Search this
Matta, 1912-2002  Search this
Motherwell, Maria  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Namuth, Hans  Search this
Onslow-Ford, Gordon  Search this
Paneth, Donald  Search this
Peterson, Charles  Search this
Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973  Search this
Pollock, Jackson, 1912-1956  Search this
Ricci, F.  Search this
Ruiz-Picasso, Maya  Search this
Schumm, Gertrud  Search this
Schwabacher, Ethel, 1903-1984  Search this
Sievan, Maurice  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-1980  Search this
Vazakas, Byron  Search this
Zulieta, Orlando  Search this
Extent:
6.3 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Interviews
Photographs
Sketchbooks
Date:
circa 1900-1992
bulk 1935-1980
Summary:
The papers of New York City abstract expressionist painter William Baziotes and his wife Ethel measure 6.3 linear feet and date from circa 1900-1992, bulk 1935-1980. The collection includes William Baziotes biographical material, correspondence, writings, printed material, and photographs. The papers of Ethel Baziotes consists of correspondence mostly dated after her husband's death regarding exhibitions of his work, along with limited biographical material and writings.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of New York City abstract expressionist painter William Baziotes and his wife Ethel measure 6.3 linear feet and date from circa 1900-1992, bulk 1935-1980. The collection includes William Baziotes biographical material, correspondence, writings, printed material, and photographs. The papers of Ethel Baziotes consists of correspondence mostly dated after her husband's death regarding exhibitions of his work, along with limited biographical material and writings.

Biographical material on William Baziotes consists of a bibliography, teaching files, a sound recording of an interview, membership cards, sales records, a sketchbook, and other miscellaneous material. There is one folder regarding Ethel Baziotes containing a few certificates and her college diploma.

Correspondence consists of letters to William and Ethel Baziotes. Notable correspondents include Lawrence Alloway, Alfred Barr, Andre Breton, Clement Greenberg, Peggy Guggenheim, David Hare, Jean Helion, Maria and Robert Motherwell, Jackson Pollock, and others. There are also letters from the Samuel M. Kootz Gallery regarding the sales of William Baziotes's artwork and letters written by William Baziotes to his brother Christos. Letters to Ethel Baziotes include condolence letters as well as letters from museum and galleries regarding exhibitions of her husband's work.

Writings include William Baziotes's notes on various subjects, a list of book titles, and a transcript for a speech. Writings by others include essays about William Baziotes and other subjects.

Printed materials consist of clippings, announcements, magazines, and many exhibition catalogs, mostly on group exhibitions which included artwork by William Baziotes.

Photographs are of William Baziotes, Ethel Baziotes, family and friends, their residence, and his artwork. There are a also photographs of Meir Bernstein, Samuel Kootz, Paul Bodin, Maria Motherwell, Pablo and Maya Picasso, Rudi Blesh, Nathan Halper, Ethel Schwabacher, Clyfford Still, and others.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 5 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1933-1982 (Box 1; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1936-1988 (Boxes 1-2; 1 linear feet)

Series 3: Writings, circa 1950-1992 (Box 2; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 4: Printed Material, 1944-1992 (Boxes 2-7, 9; 4.1 linear feet)

Series 5: Photographs, circa 1900-1979, bulk 1940-circa 1963 (Boxes 7-9; 0.7 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
William Baziotes (1912-1963) was an abstract expressionist painter in New York City. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Baziotes moved to New York City in 1933, where he studied painting at the National Academy of Design, 1933-1936. He participated on the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project as a teacher, 1936-1938, and painted for the Easel Painting Project, 1938-1940.

In 1941 he married Ethel Copstein. He had his first one-man show at Peggy Guggenheim's Art of This Century Gallery in 1944. The Samuel M. Kootz Gallery, Inc. held a solo show for Baziotes in 1946 and continued to exhibit his works until 1958.

Baziotes taught at Subjects of the Artist, 1948; the Brooklyn Museum Art School and New York University, 1949-1952; the People's Art Center at the Museum of Modern Art, 1950-1952; and Hunter College, 1952-1962. Baziotes died in 1963.
Provenance:
The William and Ethel Baziotes papers were donated by Ethel Baziotes, widow of William Baziotes, in several installments from 1969 to 1993.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Topic:
Abstract expressionism  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Art, Abstract  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Photographs
Sketchbooks
Citation:
William and Ethel Baziotes papers, circa 1900-1992, bulk 1935-1980. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.baziwill
See more items in:
William and Ethel Baziotes papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9d6f7f943-90c5-4dd7-b527-e69d86772014
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-baziwill

Oral history interview with Rebecca Reis

Interviewee:
Reis, Rebecca G., 1896-1988  Search this
Interviewer:
McNaught, William  Search this
Creator:
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project  Search this
Names:
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project  Search this
Baziotes, William, 1912-1963  Search this
Chagall, Marc, 1887-1985  Search this
Ernst, Max, 1891-1976  Search this
Frankenthaler, Helen, 1928-2011  Search this
Gottlieb, Adolph, 1903-1974  Search this
Grosz, George, 1893-1959  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Guston, Philip, 1913-1980  Search this
Kline, Franz, 1910-1962  Search this
Lipchitz, Jacques, 1891-1973  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Pollock, Jackson, 1912-1956  Search this
Reinhardt, Rita  Search this
Reis, Bernard J.  Search this
Rivers, Larry, 1925-2002  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Extent:
123 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1980
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Rebecca Reis conducted in 1980, by William McNaught, for the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and His Times oral history project.
Reis speaks of her life in New York City. At their home in the city they entertained artists, art dealers, and other art lovers and had a great desire to provide a haven for people who loved art. Reis recalls many stories of the people they met and supported including Jacques Lipchitz, George Grosz, Jackson Pollock, Peggy Guggenheim, Max Ernst, Marc Chagall, Larry Rivers, Philip Guston, Robert Motherwell, Helen Frankenthaler, William Baziotes, Franz Kline, Adolph Gottlieb, and Mark Rothko, the legal case involving Rothko's estate, and Rothko's relationship with Rita Reinhardt. They were particular friends of Peggy Guggenheim. Bernard Reis gave financial advice to many people in the art world. The latter portion of the interviews concentrates on their great friend, Mark Rothko, his suicide, and subsequent court case brought by the family.
Biographical / Historical:
Rebecca Reis (1896-1988) was a collector, from New York, New York. She was married to Bernard Reis, one of the executors of Mark Rothko's will.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 7 digital wav files. Duration is 7 hr., 20 min.
Provenance:
This interview was conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and his Times oral history project, with funding provided by the Mark Rothko Foundation.
Others interviewed on the project (by various interviewers) include: Sonia Allen, Sally Avery, Ben-Zion, Bernard Braddon, Ernest Briggs, Rhys Caparn, Elaine de Kooning, Herbert Ferber, Esther Gottlieb, Juliette Hays, Sidney Janis, Buffie Johnson, Jacob Kainen, Louis Kaufman, Jack Kufeld, Katharine Kuh, Stanley Kunitz, Joseph Liss, Dorothy Miller, Betty Parsons, Wallace Putnam, Maurice Roth, Sidney Schectman, Aaron Siskind, Joseph Solman, Hedda Sterne, Jack Tworkov, Esteban Vicente and Ed Weinstein. Each has been cataloged separately.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Abstract expressionism  Search this
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.reis80
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9602d8f55-af1a-4b50-b7d0-02ceb0d9976c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-reis80
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Thomas M. Messer

Interviewee:
Messer, Thomas M.  Search this
Interviewer:
Decker, Andrew  Search this
Names:
American Federation of Arts  Search this
Institute of Contemporary Art (Boston, Mass.)  Search this
Národní galerie v Praze  Search this
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum  Search this
Guggenheim, Harry Frank, 1890-1971  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Kandinsky, Wassily, 1866-1944  Search this
Klee, Paul, 1879-1940  Search this
Extent:
83 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1994 Oct.-1995 Jan
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Thomas M. Messer conducted 1994 Oct.-1995 Jan., by Andrew Decker, for the Archives of American Art, at the Americas Society, New York, N.Y.
Messer speaks about his youth in pre-World War II Czechoslavakia, his directorship of the American Federation of Arts; the Roswell Museum in Roswell, N.M.; the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston; and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. He discusses his collecting interests in connection with the development of the Guggenheim, particularly Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky; his working relationship with Harry, Peter, and Peggy Guggenheim; numerous exhibitions; and the acquisitions of several major collections. Finally, he comments on post-retirement projects, particularly at the National Gallery of Prague.
Biographical / Historical:
Thomas M. Messer (1920- ) is a museum director in New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 7 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 12 digital wav files. Duration is 7 hrs., 23 min.
End of interview session Jan. 24, 1995 (Tape 6, side B) not recorded due to equipment malfunction.
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:
Art museum directors -- United States -- Interviews  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.messer94
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw957ef0735-6683-46b1-93aa-e18758e8ec21
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-messer94
Online Media:

Barnett Newman papers

Creator:
Newman, Barnett, 1905-1970  Search this
Names:
Kootz Gallery (N.Y.)  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979 -- Photographs  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-1980  Search this
Tomlin, Bradley Walker, 1899-1953  Search this
Zarnower, Teresa -- Photographs  Search this
Extent:
0.2 Linear feet ((partially microfilmed on 1 reel))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1943-1971
Scope and Contents:
REEL 3481: Six letters from Bradley Walker Tomlin, 1948-1952, and 15 from Mark Rothko, 1945-1950; catalogs with introductions by Newman, and other writings; catalogs, announcements and clippings on Newman, 1943-1971; a photograph of Newman at the opening of "The Intrasubjectives" at Kootz Gallery, 1949; and a photograph of Peggy Guggenheim with Polish artist Teresa Zarnower, ca. 1950.
UNMICROFILMED: Thirty letters from Clyfford Still, 1946-1956, addressed to Barnett and Annalee Newman. The letters were written during the period Still was teaching at the California School of Fine Art in San Francisco. He writes of his alienation from the New York and California art world, Clement Greenberg, the Bauhaus aesthetic, and his CSFA colleagues, including Ad Reinhardt, and his rift with Mark Rothko.
Biographical / Historical:
Barnett Newman (1905-1970) was a painter and writer in New York.
Provenance:
Donated by Mrs. Barnett Newman, 1976-1994.
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.
Occupation:
Painters -- United States  Search this
Painters  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.newmbarn
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9a271ad29-77fb-4e53-be1f-50453a98a8d3
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-newmbarn

Oral history interview with Buffie Johnson

Interviewee:
Johnson, Buffie  Search this
Interviewer:
Shikler, Barbara  Search this
Creator:
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project  Search this
Names:
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project  Search this
Rothko Chapel (Houston, Tex.)  Search this
Goossen, E. C.  Search this
Gottlieb, Adolph, 1903-1974  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Krasner, Lee, 1908-1984  Search this
Newman, Barnett, 1905-1970  Search this
Putzel, Howard, 1898-1945  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Smith, Tony, 1912-1980  Search this
Extent:
2 Cassettes (Sound recording, analog.)
16 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Cassettes
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1982 Nov. 13
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Buffie Johnson conducted 1982 Nov. 13, by Barbara Shikler, for the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and His Times oral history project.
Johnson talks about her friendship with Rothko, recalling their meeting in 1942 or 1943; introducing Rothko to Peggy Guggenheim; Rothko's philosophical interests; a visit to Rothko's studio shortly before his death; the women in his life; and the Houston chapel paintings. She recalls Howard Putzel, Peggy Guggenheim, Barney Newman, Adolf Gottlieb, Gene Goossen, Tony Smith, Lee Krasner, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Buffie Johnson (1912-2006) was a painter from New York, N.Y.
Provenance:
This interview was conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and his Times oral history project, with funding provided by the Mark Rothko Foundation.
Others interviewed on the project (by various interviewers) include: Sonia Allen, Sally Avery, Ben-Zion, Bernard Braddon, Ernest Briggs, Rhys Caparn, Elaine de Kooning, Herbert Ferber, Esther Gottlieb, Juliette Hays, Sidney Janis, Jacob Kainen, Louis Kaufman, Jack Kufeld, Katharine Kuh, Stanley Kunitz, Joseph Liss, Dorothy Miller, Betty Parsons, Wallace Putnam, Rebecca Reis, Maurice Roth, Sidney Schectman, Aaron Siskind, Joseph Solman, Hedda Sterne, Jack Tworkov, Esteban Vicente and Ed Weinstein. Each has been cataloged separately.
Restrictions:
Transcript is available on the Archives of American Art's website.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Abstract expressionism  Search this
Painting, Abstract  Search this
Mural painting and decoration  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women muralists  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.johnso82
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw931ce1518-030f-4316-b80b-12f849b3bb90
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-johnso82
Online Media:

Oral history interview with John Stephan

Interviewee:
Stephan, John Walter, 1906-1995  Search this
Interviewer:
Brown, Robert F.  Search this
Names:
Art Institute of Chicago  Search this
Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this
Fairleigh Dickinson University -- Faculty  Search this
Hunter College  Search this
Public Works of Art Project  Search this
United States. Work Projects Administration  Search this
Bennett, Rainey  Search this
Bohrod, Aaron  Search this
Breinin, Raymond, 1910-  Search this
Bulliet, C. J. (Clarence Joseph), 1883-1952  Search this
Cahill, Holger, 1887-1960  Search this
Calas, Nicolas  Search this
Constant, George  Search this
Coryllis, Peter  Search this
Cunningham, Inez  Search this
De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this
Denby, Bill  Search this
Ernst, Max, 1891-1976  Search this
Fabian, John  Search this
Flaherty, Robert Joseph, 1884-1951  Search this
Gendel, Milton  Search this
Goossen, E. C.  Search this
Greenberg, Clement, 1909-1994  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Harrison, Caleb  Search this
Johnson, Ben  Search this
Jones, Jack  Search this
Kiesler, Frederick  Search this
Kline, Franz, 1910-1962  Search this
Knopf, Alfred  Search this
Kuh, Katharine  Search this
Levy, Julien  Search this
MacLeish, Norman, 1898-1949  Search this
Matta, 1912-2002  Search this
Miller, Edgar, 1899-1993  Search this
Millman, Edward, 1907-1964  Search this
Moran, Connie, 1898-  Search this
Motherwell, Robert  Search this
Nathanson, Winn  Search this
Newman, Barnett, 1905-1970  Search this
Ossorio, Alfonso, 1916-1990  Search this
Ott, Peterpaul, 1895-1992  Search this
Parsons, Betty  Search this
Porter, Fairfield  Search this
Praz, Mario, 1896-1982  Search this
Robinson, Increase, 1890-1981  Search this
Rosenberg, Harold, 1906-1978  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Sebartes, Jaime  Search this
Shapiro, Myra  Search this
Siporin, Mitchell, 1910-1976  Search this
Stephan, Dart  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-1980  Search this
Torres, Jesús  Search this
Walgreen, Ruth  Search this
Watson, Dudley Crafts, 1885-  Search this
Watson-Schütze, Eva, 1867-1935  Search this
Weisenborn, Rudolph, b. 1881  Search this
Wheeler, Monroe, 1899-  Search this
Wilhelm, Jerry  Search this
Zadkine, Ossip  Search this
de Diego, Juan  Search this
Extent:
10 Items (Sound recording: 10 sound files (6 hr., 54 min.), digital, wav)
100 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1986 May 20-1987 May 7
Scope and Contents:
Interview of John Walter Stephan, conducted by Robert F. Brown for the Archives of American Art, at Newport, Rhode Island, on May 20, 1986 and May 7, 1987.
Stephan speaks of Chicago childhood and adolescence; life during the Depression; the Art Institute of Chicago; the 1930s Chicago leftist movement; the WPA and PWAP; The Tiger's Eye art magazine; Rome artistic and literary society; the New York School of artists; Betty Parsons Gallery; the Surrealists; teaching at Fairleigh Dickenson University; Hunter College; and his critiques of Pop and contemporary artists. Stephan also recalls Ruth Walgreen, Dart Stephan, Rainey Bennett, Clyfford Still, Juan de Diego, Caleb Harrison, Aaron Bohrod, Dudley Crafts Watson, Jack Jones, George Constant, Connie Moran, CJ Bulliet, Rudolph Weisenborn, Inez Cunningham, Eva Watson-Schütze, Jesus Torres, Edgar Miller, Katherine Kuh, Increase Robinson, Peterpaul Ott, Mitchell Siporin, Raymond Breinin, Holger Cahill, John Fabian, Eddie Millman, Winn Nathanson, Fairfield Porter, Norman MacLeish, Ossip Zadkine, Betty Parsons, Alfonso Ossorio, Max Ernst, Julien Levy, Peggy Guggenheim, Bill de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Franz Kline, Barney Newman, Nicolas Calas, Bob Motherwell, Monroe Wheeler, Myra Shapiro, Clement Greenberg, Harold Rosenberg, Alfred Knopf, Robert Flaherty, Jaime Sebartés, Frederick Kiesler, Robert Matta, Mario Praz, Bill Denby, Ben Johnson, Milton Gendel, Walter Auerbach, Jerry Wilhelm, Eugene Goossens, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
John Walter Stephan (1906-1995) was a painter.
General:
Originally recorded on 6 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 10 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr., 54 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.
Occupation:
Painters -- Interviews  Search this
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Great Depression  Search this
New York school of art  Search this
Pop art  Search this
Surrealism  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.stepha86
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw99597ee0d-a705-446d-af03-ff9fce4f051e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-stepha86
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Bernard J. Reis

Interviewee:
Reis, Bernard J.  Search this
Interviewer:
Cummings, Paul  Search this
Names:
Grosz, George, 1893-1959  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Lipchitz, Jacques, 1891-1973  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Extent:
64 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1976 June 3-1976 June 10
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Bernard Reis conducted 1976 June 3-1976 June 10, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Reis speaks of his family background and education; the development of his art collection; and his friendship with various artists, including Jacques Lipchitz, George Grosz and Mark Rothko. He also recalls Peggy Guggenheim.
Biographical / Historical:
Bernard J. Reis (1895-1978) was a art collector and patron from New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 31 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are 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:
Art, American  Search this
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this
Art patrons -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.reis76
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9cbdc1da9-bb60-45c7-af14-ea01af3e0937
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-reis76
Online Media:

Oral history interview with David Hare

Interviewee:
Hare, David, 1917-1992  Search this
Interviewer:
Seckler, Dorothy Gees, 1910-1994  Search this
Names:
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Kootz, Samuel Melvin, 1898-1982  Search this
Levy, Julien  Search this
Extent:
3 Sound cassettes (Sound recording)
83 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound cassettes
Pages
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
1968 Jan. 17
Scope and Contents:
An interview of David Hare conducted 1968 Jan. 17, by Dorothy Seckler, for the Archives of American Art.
Hare speaks of his background and education; his start in commercial and color photography; his early sculpture; his first exhibition in 1944 with Peggy Guggenheim; later shows with Sam Kootz and Julien Levy; materials and techniques; his philosophy; abstract expressionism versus surrealism. He discusses several contemporary artists, including Barnett Newman, Kenneth Noland, Frank Stella and Jackson Pollock.
Biographical / Historical:
David Hare (1917-1992) was 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.
Topic:
Abstract expressionism  Search this
Surrealism  Search this
Sculpture -- Technique  Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.hare68
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw98104066f-2d4c-4058-b410-dbbd844ec20f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-hare68
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Hedda Sterne

Interviewee:
Sterne, Hedda, 1910-2011  Search this
Interviewer:
Tuchman, Phyllis  Search this
Creator:
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project  Search this
Names:
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project  Search this
Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this
Greenberg, Clement, 1909-1994  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Newman, Barnett, 1905-1970  Search this
Reinhardt, Ad, 1913-1967  Search this
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-1980  Search this
Extent:
27 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
1981 December 17
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Hedda Sterne conducted 1981 December 17, by Phyllis Tuchman, for the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and His Times oral history project.
Sterne remembers Mark Rothko's personality and relations with other artists. She recalls her involvement with a roundtable discussion in 1950, and describes seeing Rothko shortly before his death. Sterne goes on to speak about her childhood in Romania, art education in Paris and Vienna, and emigration to America in 1941. She describes the New York gallery scene of the 1940s and 1950s, the evolution of her work through the years, and her painting habits. She recalls Peggy Guggenheim, Clyfford Still, Milton Avery, Ad Reinhardt, Barney Newman, Clement Greenberg, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Hedda Sterne (1910-2011) was a painter from New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 19 min.
Provenance:
This interview was conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and his Times oral history project, with funding provided by the Mark Rothko Foundation.
Others interviewed on the project (by various interviewers) include: Sonia Allen, Sally Avery, Ben-Zion, Ernest Briggs, Rhys Caparn, Elaine de Kooning, Herbert Ferber, Esther Gottlieb, Juliette Hays, Sidney Janis, Buffie Johnson, Jacob Kainen, Louis Kaufman, Jack Kufeld, Katharine Kuh, Stanley Kunitz, Joseph Liss, Dorothy Miller, Betty Parsons, Wallace Putnam, Rebecca Reis, Maurice Roth, Aaron Siskind, Joseph Solman, Jack Tworkov, Esteban Vicente and Ed Weinstein. Each has been cataloged separately.
Restrictions:
Transcript is available on the Archives of American Art's website.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Abstract expressionism  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.sterne81
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw96ed824fe-2044-421c-ab59-29fba4b8d7c0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-sterne81
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Leo Castelli

Interviewee:
Castelli, Leo  Search this
Interviewer:
Rose, Barbara  Search this
Names:
Club (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Leo Castelli Gallery  Search this
Drouin, René  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Janis, Sidney, 1896-1989  Search this
Levy, Julien  Search this
Extent:
10 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1969 July
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Leo Castelli conducted 1969 July, by Barbara Rose, for the Archives of American Art. Castelli speaks of his first gallery with Rene Drouin, 1939; the Surrealists; the post-World War II art scene in New York City; the influence of Willem de Kooning, Arshile Gorky, Franz Kline, and Jackson Pollock; The Club; the Ninth Street Show, 1951; Clement Greenberg and French and Co.; and art movements. He recalls Peggy Guggenheim, Sidney Janis, and Julien Levy.
Biographical / Historical:
Leo Castelli (1907-1999) was an art dealer in New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded as 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav file. Duration is 34 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.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.castel69july
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9404fa943-167f-487f-b310-eb0c834cbedc
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-castel69july
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Lee Mullican

Interviewee:
Mullican, Lee, 1919-1998  Search this
Interviewer:
Karlstrom, Paul J.  Search this
Names:
Diebenkorn, Richard, 1922-1993  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Hockney, David  Search this
Moholy-Nagy, Sibyl, 1905-  Search this
Moses, Ed, 1926-  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988  Search this
Onslow-Ford, Gordon  Search this
Paalen, Wolfgang, 1907-  Search this
Rosenthal, Rachel, 1926-  Search this
Stauffacher, Jack Werner  Search this
Extent:
160 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
1992 May 22-1993 Mar. 4
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Lee Mullican conducted 1992 May 22-1993 Mar. 4, by Paul Karlstrom for the Archives of American Art, at the artist's home/studio in Santa Monica, Calif.
Mullican speaks of his family background, childhood, and his first introductions to art; the influence of abstraction and surrealism in his work; his studies at Abilene College, University of Oklahoma, and the Kansas City Art Institute; his service in WWII; his interest in French painting, theater, opera and ballet; meeting Jack Stauffacher; the influence of Wolfgang Paalen in Mexico; and the connection between modern and primitive, and tribal art, especially in the American Indians of Mexico. He discusses his arrival in San Francisco and the art world and lifestyle there; the Dynaton group; early years in Los Angeles; his trip and exhibition in Rome; UCLA politics; his relationship to modernism and place in American art; regionalism; and the mystical and transcendental expressed in his work. He recalls Gordon Onslow-Ford, Jack Stauffacher, Peggy Guggenheim, Rachel Rosenthal, Richard Diebenkorn, David Hockney, Ed Moses, Isamu Noguchi, Sibyl Moholy-Nagy, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Lee Mullican (1919-1998) was a painter from San Francisco and Santa Monica, Calif.
General:
Originally recorded on 8 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 14 digital wav files. Duration is 7 hrs., 4 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 administrators. Funding for this interview was provided by the Lannan Foundation.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- California  Search this
Painters -- California -- Santa Monica -- Interviews  Search this
Dynaton (Group of artists)  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.mullic92
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw96a5468cd-e225-4df9-8ec2-f8f74a5aba94
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-mullic92
Online Media:

Printed material relating to Guggenheim Jeune and Art of this Century galleries, 1938-1946

Creator:
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Citation:
Printed material relating to Guggenheim Jeune and Art of this Century galleries, 1938-1946. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Theme:
Art Market  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)8268
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)210439
AAA_collcode_guggpegg
Theme:
Art Market
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_210439

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