An interview of William Underhill conducted 2002 June 8, by Margaret Carney, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Wellsville, N.Y.
Underhill speaks of being born in Berkeley, California, to parents who were art teachers; the differences between the West Coast Bay Area arts and crafts movement and that of the east coast; attending California College of Arts & Crafts for two years and then transferring to the University of California at Berkeley, in 1953, to enter the architecture program; building a dome out of aluminum for the city of Oakland's parks department with other students during the summer of 1956; being drafted into the Army in 1957; working for the U.S. Army headquarters in Germany as a draftsman; prominent and influential craft artists that he knew; marrying Linn Baldwin [Underhill], a fellow classmate, in 1957, and starting a family; re-entering UC Berkeley, finishing his B.A. degree in 1960 and completing his M.A. in 1961; his studies with Peter Voulkos; making bronze bowls, which led to his idea of casting wax, modeling wax fabrication, using sheet wax, and making textured sculpture and geometric shapes; having one of his bowl pieces in the Museum of Contemporary Crafts; the Oakland Museum buying a piece of his work; his teaching position at Highlands University in Las Vegas, N.M.; being in the "Young Americans" exhibit and receiving the "Best of Show" award in 1962; most teachers trying to "emulate" the style of Peter Voulkos; moving to New York; showing at the Blumenfeld Gallery; sharing a studio next to the Clay Arts Center in Port Chester, N.Y.; building a foundry and a melting facility; teaching part-time at a community adult art center in White Plains, N.Y.; his financial difficulties; teaching part-time at Pratt Institute in 1965; J. Gordon Lippincott, of the industrial firm Lippincott and Margolies, commissioning him to do large scale steel sculptures for major corporations; working as a draftsman in an architect's office in New York City to pay for rent and groceries in 1966; teaching a summer session at Columbia's Teacher's College; teaching full-time as an instructor at New York University in 1967; teaching a workshop at Alfred University, in 1963; interviewing for a teaching position at Alfred at the College Art Association meeting, in Boston, in 1968; moving in the summer of 1969 to Alfred to teach; his counter-culture lifestyle and consequent decrease in his artistic production; showing at the Lee Nordness Gallery in the 1960s; exhibiting at the Perimeter Gallery, Helen Drutt Gallery, Twining Gallery, and Garth Clark Gallery in the 1980s; creating the bronzed statue of King Alfred for Alfred University and selling his copyright to them; his signature stamp; having pieces in the American Craft Museum and in the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art's collection; teaching at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, the Anderson Ranch, and the Mendocino Art Center; various craft magazines including Craft Horizons and Metalsmith; being a member of the American Craft Council [ACC]; his retirement in 1997; and working at the Berkeley Art Foundry in the summer of 2002. Underhill also recalls Robert Arneson, Josephine Blumenfeld, Diane Cox, Val Cushing, Peter Dodge, Jack Earl, Andrew Jevremovic, Manuel Neri, Bill Parry, Ted Randall, Dan Rhodes, Glenn Zweygardt, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
William Underhill (1933- ) is a metalsmith from Wellsville, N.Y. Margaret Carney is an art historian from New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 7 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
The papers of ceramicist Robert Chapman Turner measure 13.3 linear feet and date from circa 1917 to 2005. The papers document Turner's career as an educator and studio potter through biographical material, correspondence, writings, teaching files, professional files including lectures, subject files, printed material, and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of ceramicist Robert Chapman Turner measure 13.3 linear feet and date from circa 1917 to 2005. The papers document Turner's career as an educator and studio potter through biographical material, correspondence, writings, teaching files, professional files including lectures, subject files, printed material, and photographs.
The bulk of Turner's papers relate to his role as an educator and a lecturer at various institutions including Alfred University, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Black Mountain College, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and Penland School of Crafts. Records, including two sound cassettes, regarding his time at these institutions may be found among his teaching and professional files as well as among photographs. Turner's professional files document his long affiliations with professional organizations such as the York State Craftsmen, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, and the International Academy of Ceramics. Correspondence is with artists, family, and friends. Notable correspondents include Margaret Carney, Kenneth Ferguson, Alice Parrott, Toshiko Takaezu, and Frans Wildenhain among many others and may be found in both the correspondence series and professional files. Photographs of note are by John Wood and depict the building of the pottery studio at Black Mountain College.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 8 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1930-2002 (0.4 linear feet; Boxes 1, 14)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1938-2005 (1.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1950s-2000s (0.6 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 4: Teaching Files, 1957-2005 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 3-4)
Series 5: Professional Files, 1952-2005 (5.5 linear feet; Boxes 4-9)
Series 6: Subject Files, 1950s-2000 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 9-10)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1939-2000s (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 10-12, 14)
Series 8: Photographs, circa 1917-2000s (1.9 linear feet; Boxes 12-14)
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Chapman Turner (1913-2006) was a ceramicist who was known for functional and abstract pottery. He was active in Alfred Station, New York where he was a longtime faculty member at Alfred University.
Robert Turner was born in Port Washington, New York in 1913. He attended Swarthmore College and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts where he studied economics and painting. With his wife Sue Turner, Robert lived in Europe to study Old Master paintings but returned to the United States after the start of World War II. A Quaker, Turner was a conscientious objector and served at multiple Civilian Public Service (CPS) camps in the United States during the war.
After leaving the CPS camps, Robert Turner enrolled at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University to study ceramics and graduated in 1949. Turner was a faculty member at Black Mountain College (1949-1951) and Alfred University (1958-1979). He conducted numerous ceramics workshops throughout his career at many institutions including Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and Penland School of Crafts. Additionally, he was an active member of the (New) York State Craftsman.
Turner died in 2005 in Sandy Spring, Maryland.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview of Robert Turner conducted 2001 June 11, by Margaret Carney, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America,
Provenance:
Robert Chapman Turner donated some of his papers in 1982. Additional materials were donated in 2005-2006 by Rosalind Turner Zuses, Turner's daughter.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- New York (State) -- Alfred Station Search this
An interview of Rosanne Somerson conducted 2006 August 7-2007 June 22, by Thomas Michie, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at the Rhode Island School of Design, in Providence, Rhode Island. In part one of this interview, Somerson speaks of growing up outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; attending RISD beginning in 1971; being asked to teach there nine years later; creating a new department of furniture design; tailoring that furniture design program to encompass the development from design to manufacture; introducing materials other than wood into the program; garnering international attention through worldwide exhibits; her first show at the Richard Kagan Gallery in Philadelphia; participating in a group show in New York City for female woodworkers; making connections through the Snyderman Gallery and Pritam and Eames Gallery; working directly with clients on commissioned pieces; the financial stability of teaching; designing a piece for the headquarters of Khon, Peterson Fox, and Conway in New York; the sculptural elements present in many of her works; moving from a small studio in Boston, Massachusetts, to a larger studio in Westport, Connecticut, and finally to a shared studio in Fall River, Massachusetts; the supportive and proud reaction of her children to her work; creating a production company with colleagues and designing furniture for the RISD dormitories; attempting to make these designs both flexible and environmentally-friendly; putting aside teaching for an administrative position in the department; recent travel to Japan, Australia, England, Israel, and France; enrolling in summer programs with art schools like Haystack Mountain School of Craft in Maine and others; and excitement for her upcoming sabbatical.
In the second portion of the interview, she discusses living in a house built by her father in Wyncote, Pennsylvania; enjoying the location of the house on a former cherry orchard and consequently being drawn cherry wood as a medium; the feeling of her parents that anything could be accomplished with a certain amount of study; her mother's interest in weaving and spinning later in life; the creative pursuits of her older brothers, including creative writing and photography; verbally communicating the outside world to her blind grandfather and gaining an aptitude for interpreting visual imagery; being more academically than artistically focused in her youth; visiting art museums and having other cultural experiences with her family; being fascinated with photography by seeing her brother's work; deciding to put off college in order to spend a year in Denmark studying photography; enrolling in RISD and feeling overwhelmed at first by her inexperience; taking a winter course in wood-working and preferring it to photography; being advised by her teacher Tage Frid to gain a wood-working education by pursuing sculpture at RISD; transferring into industrial design later; learning a great deal from and being extraordinarily influenced by Tage Frid as a furniture designer and teacher; taking a semester off to attend Peters Valley Craftsmen in New Jersey; spending a few years after graduation assisting Frid with the writing and publication of his articles; working as an assistant editor for Fine Woodworking magazine; being offered a job at RISD in the furniture department; creating the furniture design program; using RISD's collection as inspiration for her work and as a teaching tool; moving towards using more local woods in her designs; her recent lecture and travel in China; and looking forward to focusing on her work in the new studio.
Somerson recalls John Dunnigan, Dick Kagan, Ned Cooke, Jonathan Fairbanks, Wendy Maruyama, James Krenov, Dan Jackson, Jere Osgood, Alphonse Mattia, Peter Joseph, Ron Abramson, Charlie Swanson, Eck Follen, Peter Walker, and others. In the second part, Somerson recalls Merlin Szasz, LeRoy White, Hardu Keck, Gracia Melanson, Harry Callahan, Aaron Siskind, Paul Crot, Paul Capanigro, Tage Frid, Hans Wolfe, Mark Sfirri, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Rosanne Somerson (1954- ) is a professor of furniture design and furniture designer and maker in Westport, Massachusetts. Thomas Michie is a curator of decorative arts, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 5 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 3 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Names:
Haystack Mountain School of Crafts -- Faculty Search this
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Search this
Rhode Island School of Design -- Students Search this
Extent:
52 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2001 July 25-26
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Cynthia Schira conducted 2001 July 25-26, by Margo Mensing, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Schira's home and studio, in Westport, N.Y.
Biographical / Historical:
Cynthia Schira (1934- ) is a fiber artist from Westport, N.Y. Margo Mensing (1941- ) is a fiber artist from Gansevoort, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 22 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Topic:
Fiber artists -- New York (State) -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Carol Eckert conducted June 18-19, 2007 by Jo Lauria, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in the artist's home and studio in Tempe, Arizona.
Eckert speaks of moving from North Carolina to New York during her childhood; her interest in making things as a child; her love of reading and a particular interest in mythology, legends, and fairy tales; choosing to pursue painting as an art major at Arizona State University; working as a substitute teacher after graduation; teaching herself the needle arts; and teaching painting and drawing classes at a local community arts center.
She also discusses experimenting with clay; the process that guides her work; the influence of her painting training on her color and composition choices; her marriage to furniture maker Tom Eckert; the development of the basketry field over the past decades; participating in exhibitions and shows; teaching workshops at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts; the cross-cultural animal symbolism present in her pieces; the working environment in her studio; the importance of craft publications; the development in her own work towards larger pieces; her commitment to the longevity and preservation of her work; and upcoming exhibitions.
Eckert recalls Steven Covey, Barbara Rose Okun, Jane Sauer, Sandy Blaine, Lillian Elliot, Joanne Segal Branford, John Garrett, John McQueen, Leon Niehues, Norma Minkowitz, Sarah and David Lieberman, Janet Koplos, Marcia Docter, Doug and Dale Anderson, Karen Johnson Boyd, Rudy Turk, Marcia Manhart, Joanne Rapp, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Carol Eckert (1945- ) is a fiber artist from Tempe, Arizona. Jo Lauria is a curator and arts wrtier from Los Angeles, California.
General:
Originally recorded 3 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 40 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript is available on the Archives of American Art's website.
An interview of Frank E. Cummings, III conducted 2006 December 28 and 2007 January 5, by Jo Lauria, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in the artist's home, in Long Beach, California.
Cummings speaks of his childhood in Los Angeles and the challenges he faced in school; receiving a B.A. from California State University, Long Beach; working with troubled youth as a social worker with Neighborhood Youth Association; teaching at California State University, Long Beach while earning his M.F.A. at California State University, Fullerton through the Black Faculty Teaching Program; the invitation by Eudorah Moore to show in "California Design XI"; the importance of having his and his students' work published in Dona Meilach's book, "Creating Modern Furniture: Trends, Techniques, Appreciation"; the role of reflective surfaces in his work to capture the viewer's attention; using a diamond stylus to draw on glass; serving as the first M.F.A. graduate program coordinator at California State University, Long Beach; the development and creation of his famed clock, It's About Time, now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; working as a gofer for Sam Maloof during a three day seminar at Yosemite National Park; receiving an invitation from Maloof to teach at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina; his experiences at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine.; the consistent drive throughout his career to continue working, exhibiting, and publishing; his love of teaching; the honor of receiving the Outstanding Professor Award at California State University, Fullerton, in 1997; receiving a National Endowment of Arts grant in 1973 to spend two months in Ghana, Africa examining connections between the African American struggle for identity in the ghettoes of the United States and struggles faced in Africa; returning to various regions in Africa in 1981 at the request of the State Department to evaluate and help increase object making productivity in villages while exhibiting his art in museums throughout the continent; his deliberate selection of materials; the role race has played in his career; his reverence of nature; designing furniture for the set of the movie, "How Stella Got Her Groove Back;" the development and creative process of the Carousel series; finding inspiration in his wife, C.C.; and plans for the future. Cummings also recalls Raymond Hein, Thomas Ferreira, James Prestini, Wendell Castle, William Hunter, Edward Cooke, Gerald W.R. Ward, Kelly H. L'Ecuyer, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Frank E. Cummings III (1938- ) is a furniture maker and woodworker of Long Beach, California. Jo Lauria ( 1954- ) is a curator and art writer of Los Angeles, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 28 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
An interview of Wayne Higby conducted 2005 April 12-14, by Mary McInnes, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Alfred Station, New York. Higby speaks of growing up in Colorado Springs, Colorado; choosing to go to University of Colorado, Boulder; traveling to Europe, Asia, and Africa; being influenced by Minoan pottery; working for ceramicist Betty Woodman; deciding to become a teacher; getting a graduate degree at the University of Michigan; working at Archie Bray Foundation; teaching at the University of Nebraska and Rhode Island School of Design; having his first one person art show and exhibiting nationally; teaching at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts; the influence of landscape on his work; how the craft market has changed during his career; working with the Helen Drutt Gallery; writing about craft and the need for critical dialogue in craft publications; being inspired by Asian art; learning ceramics from Jim and Nan McKinnell, and the influence of other teachers on his career; getting hired at Alfred University; the challenges and benefits of teaching at Alfred; his colleagues at Alfred; making functional art and using the vessel form; his teaching philosophy; putting ceramics in a larger art context; his current project; his studio practice; themes in his artwork; choosing to work in porcelain; lecturing and touring in China; being interested in landscape painting; the public response to his work; and recently being awarded several honors. Higby also recalls Manuel Neri, Peter Voulkos, Paul Soldner, Fred Bauer, David Shaner, Francis Merritt, Ted Randall, Bob Turner, Val Cushing, Kenneth Ferguson, Robert Motherwell, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Wayne Higby (1943- ) is a ceramicist from Alfred Station, New York. Mary McInnes is a professor from Alfred, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 9 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 55 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Use requires an appointment.
Topic:
Ceramicists -- New York (State) -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Arline M. Fisch conducted 2001 July 29-30, by Sharon Church McNabb, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Fisch's home, in San Diego, California.
Biographical / Historical:
Arline M. Fisch (1931-) is a metalsmith from San Diego, California. Sharon Church McNabb (1948-) is a jewelry designer.
General:
Originally recorded on 6 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 12 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr., 13 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
The papers of metalsmith, jeweler, and educator Arline M. Fisch measure 9.8 linear feet and 3.82 GB date from 1931 to 2015. The papers include awards and certificates, correspondence, exhibition and gallery files, project files, San Diego State University teaching files, membership records, and printed and digital and photographic materials.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of metalsmith, jeweler, and educator Arline M. Fisch measure 9.8 linear feet and 3.82 GB and date from 1931 to 2015. The papers include awards and certificates, correspondence, exhibition and gallery files, project files, San Diego State University teaching files, membership records, and printed and and digital photographic materials.
Awards and certificates are from the Indonesian National Crafts Council, Internationale Handwerksmesse Munchen, San Diego State University, State of California, and other organizations. Correspondence is with Edith Antunes, Skidmore College and other educational institutions, as well as galleries, students, and colleagues. Files for exhibitions consist of inventory and price lists, loan and shipping records, printed material, correspondence, a digital disk, and a video recording for Elegant Fantasy: The Jewelry of Arline Fisch (2000), The Art of Arline Fisch (2003), Arline Fisch: Creatures from the Deep (2008), and various exhibitions.
Gallery files contain business records for Atrium, Electrum Gallery, Lee Nordness Galleries, and galleries in Germany and Switzerland. Project files include records for an advertising campaign, articles and lectures, Textile Techniques in Metal for Jewelers, Sculptors, and Textile Artists, a cataloging project, commercial ventures, curriculum development at Boston University, NEA and Fulbright grant projects, an artwork installation, an oral history project, a seminar, and workshops.
San Diego State University teaching files include correspondence, evaluations, exhibition material, grant programs and projects, university programs, recommendations, and sabbatical records. Membership records are for the American Craftsmen's Council (ACC), Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG), and World Crafts Council (WCC).
Printed materials consist of booklets, a calendar, clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, periodicals and posters, and chronological files. Photographic materials are of Fisch, her family, travel, her studio, with colleagues and in class, and works of art. A detailed archive of Fisch's work on slides and in digital format is also included.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as nine series.
Series 1: Awards and Certificates, 1961-2001 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 1, 11)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1956-2003 (0.8 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Exhibition Files, 1957-2010 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 4: Gallery Files, 1968-2010 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 2-3)
Series 5: Project Files, 1956-2010 (1.4 linear feet; Boxes 3-4, 11)
Series 6: San Diego State University, 1955-2014 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 4-5)
Series 7: Membership Records, 1964-1994 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 5-6)
Series 8: Printed Materials, circa 1960-2015 (3.3 linear feet; Boxes 6-9, 11, OV 12)
Series 9: Photographic Materials, 1931-circa 2005 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 9-11, 3.82 GB; ER01)
Biographical / Historical:
Arline M. Fisch (1931- ) is a metalsmith, jeweler, and educator in San Diego, California.
Fisch was born in Brooklyn, New York. She studied art education at Skidmore College and earned a master of arts degree from the University of Illinois. From 1956 to 1957 she studied at the School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen Denmark, and she returned to Denmark in 1966 under a Fulbright Research Grant. She also received Fulbright and NEA grants for multiple projects in Uruguay, Austria, and the U.S.
From 1954 to 1961, she taught at Wheaton College and Skidmore College. Fisch began teaching at San Diego State University (SDSU) in 1961 where she developed the Jewelry and Metalsmithing program. She retired from SDSU in 2000.
Fisch was a member of the American Craft Council (ACC), Haystack Mountain School of Crafts' Board of Trustees, and was vice president of the World Crafts Council (WCC) from 1976 to 1981. She was a founding member of Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG) and was president of the organization from 1982 to 1985.
Fisch has received numerous awards and honors for her accomplishments in craftsmanship including an honorary doctorate degree from Skidmore College, United States Artists fellowship award, and Fresno Art Museum Council of 100 Distinguished Woman Artist award in 2012.
Fisch has exhibited her work all over the world including her solo retrospective exhibition titled, Elegant Fantasy: The Jewelry of Arline Fisch, which was shown in San Diego, Oakland, New York, and Washington, D.C.
Related Materials:
Also at the Archives of American Art is an interview of Arline M. Fisch conducted July 29-30, 2001 by Sharon Church McNabb, for the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Fisch's home, in San Diego, California.
Provenance:
The papers were donated from 2003 to 2018 by Arline M. Fisch as a part of the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Use of archival audiovisual recordings and born-digital records with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
Rights:
Arline M. Fisch retains copyright for the manuscript for the 2nd edition of her book Textile Techniques in Metal for Jewelers, Sculptors, and Textile Artists (New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, c. 1975) and notes for the first edition.
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.
An interview of Harlan W. Butt conducted 2009 July 27-28, by Mija Riedel, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at Butt's studio, in Ptarmigan Meadows, Colorado.
Harlan Butt speaks of the influence of Asian art on his work; the use of text and imagery in his work; the use of pattern in his work; his undergraduate minor in weaving; the influence of Asian religion and mythology; series The Earth Beneath Our Feet , Garden Anagogies, and Snakes in Heaven; his childhood growing up in Hopewell, New Jersey, near Princeton; undergraduate work at Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; discovery of Buddhism and Eastern religions; his mother's death when he was 20; studying with Stanley Lechtzin and Elliot Pujol at Tyler; graduate school at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale; interest in Japanese tea ceremony; more exploration of Zen Buddhism; use of color in his work; studying with L. Brent Kington; reliquary series; move to Connecticut in 1974; second trip to Japan in 1984 to co-curate Kyoto Metal: An Exhibition of Contemporary Japanese Art Metalwork; introduction to Japanese system of artisan apprenticeship; early efforts as a writer and poet; the influence of poet Gary Snyder; summer teaching position at Rhode Island School of Design, Providence; teaching job at San Diego [California] State University in the mid-1970s; rattles and pipes series; exploring the Western landscape; the power of the snake image; taking a teaching position at University of North Texas, Denton (1976- ); first trip to Japan in 1980; differences in artisanal/metalworking practices in Japan and the United States; teaching workshops at various craft schools, Penland School of Crafts, Penland, North Carolina; Haystack School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine; and Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, Tennessee, compared with teaching in a university; the pros and cons of the gallery system; work with the Nancy Yaw Gallery, Birmingham, Michigan; the challenge of commission work; National Parks Project, Denton Center for the Visual Arts, Denton, Texas; the role of haiku and text in his pieces; series 1,001 Views of Mt. Mu; series Snakes in Heaven; the influence of his wife and children; trip to India and organizing Colour & Light: The Art and Craft of Enamel on Metal, National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai, 2001; trip to Australia; involvement with the Society of North American Goldsmiths, Enamelist Society, and American Craft Council; subtle issues of environmentalism in his work; his affinity for metalsmithing and enameling. He also recalls [Rudolf] Staffel, Robert Winokur, Italo Scanga, Jan Brooks, Mike Riegel, Rachelle Thiewes, Eleanor Moty, Albert Paley, Shumei Tanaka, Ken Glantz (Ken Chowder), Randy Thelma Coles, Sandy Green, Mickey McCarter, Gene Pijanowski, Hiroko Pijanowski, Toshihiro Yamanaka, Helen Shirk, Ana Lopez, and Sarah Perkins.
Biographical / Historical:
Harlan W. Butt (1950- ) is an artist, metalsmith, and educator in Denton, Texas. Mija Riedel (1958- ) is a writer and independent scholar in San Francisco, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound mini discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 7 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hr., 19 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
An interview of William J. Brown and his wife Jane Brown conducted 1991 January 19-1991 March 2, by Jane Kessler, for the Archives of American Art.
Brown and his wife Jane discuss his childhood in Michigan, his early interest in sculpture and his attitude towards education; military service in WWII; studies at Cranbrook Academy; designing for Steuben Glass; working with Francis Merritt at the Flint Institute of Arts and at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts; teaching design at the University of Delaware and working summers at Haystack; Robert Gray, director of the Southern Highland Handicraft Guild; first impressions of The Penland School of Crafts and its founder Lucy Morgan; the development of the Penland School and its various programs; craftspeople who taught at Penland; and relations with the Penland board of trustees.
Biographical / Historical:
William J. Brown, art administrator and designer. Director of the Penland School of Crafts (formerly Penland School of Handicrafts) from 1962 to 1983.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hr., 4 min.
2 of the cassettes are 60 min. and 2 are 90 min.
Sound quality of interview is poor.
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.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- North Carolina -- Interviews Search this
Topic:
Handicraft -- Study and teaching -- United States Search this
Korea (South) -- History -- April Revolution, 1960
Date:
2007 July 30-2008 July 26
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Chunghi Choo conducted 2007 July 30-2008 July 26, by Jane Milosch, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at the artist's home, in Iowa City, Iowa.
Choo speaks of establishing the Metalsmithing and Jewelry program at the University of Iowa in Iowa City; the elaborate equipment, tools, and safety protection used in the studio; her experience teaching silent metalforming at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine; participating in international workshops and seminars in Korea; the extensive world traveling she does with her husband, Dr. Charles Read, including destinations in Scandinavia, Thailand, Austria, Italy, and South Africa, among others; the house she designed in Iowa City; her love of the city and being surrounded by treasured friends, a supportive university, and beautiful environments; an interest in creative cooking and appreciation for diverse dishes from all around the world; her childhood and young adulthood in Inchon, Korea; growing up with an appreciation for beautiful art objects and classical music; an early interest and talent in drawing; attending Ewha Women's University as generations of women in her family had previously; experiences during the Korean War and April 19 Revolution in 1961; coming to the United States in 1961 as a student; studying English, ceramics, enameling, and stone cutting for one semester at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, N.C.; attending Cranbrook Art Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan and studying metalsmithing with Richard Thomas, ceramics with Maija Grotell, and weaving with Glen Kaufman; living with Mrs. Loja Saarinen during her three and a half years at Cranbrook; teaching general craft at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Rapids from 1965-1968; pioneering the mixed-media studies with her students at UNI; accepting the challenge to build a metalsmithing and jewelry program at the University of Iowa in Iowa City in 1968; learning and teaching electroforming; the development of the electro-appliqué technique; extensive donor support and fundraising for the Metalsmithing and Jewelry program and its students; finding inspiration in nature, East Asian calligraphy, classical music, and travel; her long friendship with Jack Lenor Larsen and the great influence he has had on her work; being represented in major art museums and institutions world-wide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Museum fur Kunsthandwerk in Frankfurt, Germany, and many others; the joy she has when her students succeed and surpass her; and plans for future work, writing projects, and travel. Choo also speaks of the 2008 flooding of Iowa City and the state of Iowa during which her studio was severely damaged and many things were lost. Choo also recalls Park, No Soo; Lee, Sang Bong; Ruth Kao; Stanley Lechtzin; Yuho Fujio; David McFadden; Paul J. Smith; Rosanne Raab; Cody Bush; Jocelyn Chateauvert; Mary Merkel Hess; Sandra Mayer-VanderMey; Kee-ho Yeun, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Chunghi Choo (1938- ) is a Korean American educator, metalsmith, jeweler, and textile and mixed media artist based in Iowa City, Iowa. Interviewer Jane Milosch is a curator from Silver Spring, Maryland.
General:
Originally recorded 5 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 27 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hr., 22 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
This transcript is open for research. Access to the entire recording is restricted. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Haystack Mountain School of Crafts -- Faculty Search this
Extent:
3.4 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketches
Photographs
Sketchbooks
Date:
1858, 1870, 1900-1993
bulk 1920-1993
Summary:
The papers of Italian-American painter, engraver, and printmaker Letterio Calapai measure 3.4 linear feet and date from 1858 through 1993 (bulk 1920s-1993). Found are correspondence, teaching and project files, writings and notes, printed materials, photographs, and sketchbooks, including one with scenes of Rockwell Kent's dairy farm in upstate New York.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of Italian-American painter, engraver, and printmaker Letterio Calapai measure 3.4 linear feet and date from 1858 through 1993 (bulk 1920s-1993). Found are correspondence, teaching and project files, writings and notes, printed materials, photographs, and sketchbooks, including one with scenes of Rockwell Kent's dairy farm in upstate New York. Calapai's teaching career is documented through correspondence, writings and notes, as well as files concerning his position at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine. Projects files are found for Calapai's reprint of an 1845 engraving of The Capture of Major Andre by Asher B. Durand for the Historical Society of the Tarrytowns, New York, reprints of print originals by Thomas Bewick, the Look Homeward Angel engravings, and a possible exhibition and book about British engraver William Hogarth.
Arrangement:
The Letterio Calapai papers are arranged into eleven series based primarily on type of material. Documents within individual folders are arranged chronologically by year.
Series 2: Correspondence, 1858, 1870, 1934-1992, undated (Boxes 1-2; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 3: Printed Material, 1925-1991, undated (Box 2; 12 folders)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1921, 1941-1992, undated (Boxes 2-3; 6 folders)
Series 5: The Historical Society of the Tarrytowns, New York, Project File, 1966, 1970-1980, undated
Series 6: Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, Maine, Teaching Files, 1965-1981, undated (Box 3; 5 folders)
Series 7: Thomas Bewick Project Files, 1938-1988, undated (Box 3; 4 folders)
Series 8: Thomas Wolfe, -- Look Homeward Angel -- Portfolio Project Files, 1929-1990, undated (Box 3; 7 folders)
Series 9: William Hogarth Engravings Project Files, undated
Series 10: Photographs, 1900-1990, undated
Series 11: Artwork and Sketchbooks, 1960-1988, undated
Biographical Note:
Italian-American painter, engraver, and printmaker Letterio Calapai was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1903. His parents emigrated from Sicily and encouraged his participation in the arts at an early age. Calapai studied at the Massachusetts School of Art, the Beaux Arts Institute of Design, under artist Robert Laurent at the Art Students League, and at the American Artists School under Ben Shahn.
While in New York, Calalpai worked as a lithographer in a commercial printing shop but eventually abandoned this to pursue his own printmaking and painting full time, an endeavor made possible with the financial help of his former professor, Charles Hopkins. In 1933, Calalpai received his first exhibition, a one man show of his oil paintings, at the Art Center in New York City.
In the 1940s, Calapai became William Hayter's personal assistant at the Atelier 17 printmaking workshop and began to focus much of his work on this medium. He created a hugely successful portfolio of wood engravings inspired by the Thomas Wolfe play Look Homeward Angel. New York's George Binet Gallery hosted an exhibition of these prints the same year, a show that resulted in purchases of the portfolio by the libraries of Harvard University, Princeton, and the Boston and New York Public Libraries. Calapai also created book illustrations for a number of manuscript projects including 45 wood engravings for How God Fixed Jonah (1946), a West African adaptation of Old and New Testaments accounts in the Bible.
Calapai founded and chaired the Graphic Arts Department of the Albright Art School in Buffalo from 1949-1955 and taught at various universities and colleges, including the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine, the New School for Social Research, and New York University. He also established the Intaglio Workshop for Advanced Printmaking in Greenwich Village. He later left New York to teach at the University of Illinois, where he established a training studio and gallery.
Letterio Calalapi died in Glencoe, Illinois in 1993.
Provenance:
The Letterio Calalapi papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by the artist in 1992.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. research facility.
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 papers of William J. and Jane Brown date from circa 1940-2014 and measure 7.9 linear feet and 0.32 gigabytes. The collection is comprised of biographical material, correspondence, interviews, writings and notes, printed material and documentaries, photographs and moving images, and administrative records from the Penland School of Crafts where William served as director from 1962 to 1983.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of William J. and Jane Brown date from circa 1940-2014 and measure 7.9 linear feet. The collection is comprised of biographical material, correspondence, interviews, writings and notes, printed material and documentaries, photographs and moving images, and administrative records from the Penland School of Crafts where William served as director from 1962 to 1983.
Biographical materials consists of awards, business cards, annotated calendars, consignment forms, material from Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, resumes, sketches, and student documents. Correspondence is with artists, former students, instructors, local residents, Paulus Berensohn, Robert Ebendorf, Theodore Hallman, Lucy Morgan, Toshiko Takaezu, and others.
Sound and video recordings are of interviews with Bill and Jane Brown, Lucy Morgan, and "Flossie" Perisho regarding personal and Penland history. One transcript of Marvin Lipofsky's conversation with Bill is also included. Bill's writings are on industrial design, directing Penland, and mankind. Two notebooks contain daily logs, sketches, and other notes. Notes by Bill and Jane are on inventions, John Ehle, metal history, poems, and other topics. Other writings are about Bill and a manuscript on craftsman education by Harold J. Brennan.
Penland's administrative records contain files documenting the board of trustees, residents program, a special 2-week session, artwork, Bill Brown's Glass Studio dedication ceremony schedule, a certificate of incorporation, financial material, grant proposals, and maps. Also found are records of Penland's 50th birthday celebration, including a video recording of "A Quest" by Dan Bailey.
Books, booklets, four documentary video recordings, exhibition catalogs and announcements, flyers, pamphlets, periodicals, postcards, posters, and stickers and patches designed by Bill are in printed materials. Photographs and slides are of Bill and Jane; family and friends; works of art; and of Penland's grounds, students, and faculty along with photographs and video recordings documenting Penland's history.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as seven series.
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1948-2011 (0.6 linear feet; Boxes 1, 9)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1949-2014 (1.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-3, 9)
Series 3: Interviews, 1968-1991 (0.4 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, circa 1950-2005 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 5: Penland School of Crafts Administrative Records, 1954-1995 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 3-4, 9)
Series 6: Printed Materials and Documentaries, 1942-2005 (1.8 linear feet, 0.32 GB; Boxes 4-6, 9; ER01)
Series 7: Photographic Materials and Moving Images, circa 1940-2011 (2.0 linear feet; Boxes 6-10, RD 11)
Biographical / Historical:
William "Bill" J. Brown (1923-1992) was a designer and educator who was married to Jane Brown (1932- ), an arts administrator. They lived in Bakersville, North Carolina.
Bill Brown was born in Flint, Michigan in 1923. He studied at the Cranbrook Academy of Art receiving a bachelor of fine art in 1949, a master of fine art in 1950, and was chosen to work at Corning Glass Works for a summer. After his studies, he taught at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and at the University of Delaware. In 1962 Lucy Morgan, who founded the Penland School of Crafts in 1929 in North Carolina, retired and offered the position of director to Bill. At the time, the school focused on traditional mountain crafts. As director, Bill changed the emphasis of the school to the advancement of professional craftsmen and the expansion of media to include iron and glass. He began a resident artist program that allowed artists to develop their skills at a low cost. Together, Bill and Jane created a supportive community of craftsmen that attracted renowned artists to teach and work at Penland. Bill resigned as director in 1983 but remained a respected member of the arts community. He earned several awards including the North Carolina Award in the Fine Arts in 1991.
Jane Brown graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor of arts in education and a master's degree in special education. Jane studied the Alexander Technique, a technique that can be used to improve the performance of dancers and musicians.
Bill Brown died in 1992. After his death, Jane participated in the dedication of the Bill Brown Glass Studio at Penland during a Glass Arts Society conference in 1995. She continues to live in Bakersville, North Carolina.
Related Materials:
Also found at the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with William J. Brown and his wife Jane Brown conducted on January 19, 1991 and March 2, 1991 by Jane Kessler.
Provenance:
The portions of the William J. and Jane Brown papers that were lent for microfilming in 1991 by Jane Brown were subsequently donated by Jane Brown 1995 and 2015 along with additional papers.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
The papers of metalsmith and jeweler Robert Ebendorf measure 4.8 linear feet and 0.554 GB and date from 1920 to 2015, with the bulk of the material from 1960 to 2010. The papers document Ebendorf's career through scattered biographical material; business correspondence with galleries, universities, and professional groups as well as personal correspondence with friends and family, including a large collection of mail art; artist statements, teaching philosophies, and reflections by Ebendorf as well as writings by others; application materials for the artist's position as Belk Chair at East Carolina University, student fellowship applications, and other teaching files; audio and video recordings of interviews in digital format; inventories, invoices, and publicity material, including several folders of notes and materials for retrospectives; exhibition catalogs, news clippings, and other printed material; sketches, cut paper, and collage work loose and in sketchbooks; and photographic materials of the artist, friends, family, and artwork.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of metalsmith and jeweler Robert Ebendorf measure 4.8 linear feet and 0.554 GB and date from 1920 to 2015, with the bulk of the material from 1960 to 2010. The papers document Ebendorf's career through scattered biographical material; business correspondence with galleries, universities, and professional groups as well as personal correspondence with friends and family, including a large collection of mail art; artist statements, teaching philosophies, and reflections by Ebendorf as well as writings by others; application materials for the artist's position as Belk Chair at East Carolina University, student fellowship applications, and other teaching files; inventories, invoices, and publicity material, including several folders of notes and materials for retrospectives; audio and video recordings of interviews in digital format; exhibition catalogs, news clippings, and other printed material; sketches, cut paper, and collage work loose and in sketchbooks; and photographic materials of the artist, friends, family, and artwork.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as nine series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1920-2014 (Boxes 1, 6; 0.2 linear feet, ER01-ER02; 0.554 GB)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1965-2015 (Boxes 1-2; 1.1 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, circa 1945-2014 (Box 2; 4 folders)
Series 4: Teaching Files, 1974-2012 (Box 2; 5 folders)
Series 5: Personal Business Records, circa 1963-2006 (Box 2; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1949-2015 (Boxes 2-3, 6; 0.7 linear feet)
Series 7: Artwork, circa 1940-1987 (Boxes 3, 6; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 8: Sketchbooks, circa 1963-1968 (Boxes 3, 6; 5 folders)
Series 9: Photographs, circa 1920-2012 (Boxes 3-7; 1.9 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Ebendorf (1938-) is a metalsmith and jeweler in Greenville, North Carolina. Ebendorf was born in Topeka, Kansas, and earned a BFA in 1958 and an MFA in 1963 from the University of Kansas. Upon receiving a Fulbright grant, he studied in Norway at the School for Applied Arts and Crafts in 1963 and returned to work at Norway Silver Designs in Fredikstad on a Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation grant from 1965 to 1966.
A founding member and once president of the Society of North American Goldsmiths, Ebendorf has been deeply committed to forwarding the metals field as an innovator, organizer, and teacher. The artist is known for his original combinations of precious and non-precious materials alongside found objects and has held teaching positions at Stetson University, the State University of New York at New Paltz, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Maine, Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina, and East Carolina University.
Related Materials:
Also in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview of Robert Ebendorf conducted 2004 April 16-18, by Tacey Rosolowski, in Greenville, N.C.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Robert Ebendorf in 2015.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of sound recordings requires advance notice. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Correspondence, with letters to Mary Bishop, founder of Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Francis Sumner Merritt, director of the school, his wife Priscilla, and copies of letters sent; organizational records including by-laws for the school, annual reports, meeting minutes, financial data, course outlines, and faculty lists; a file kept by Mary Bishop with records and writings concerning the school; two scrapbooks containing clippings, school catalogs and announcements, letters and memorabilia; printed material clippings, catalogs, and biographical data on Francis Sumner Merritt; and 16 photographs of works of art and exhibition installations.
Biographical / Historical:
Craft and art school; Deer Isle, Me.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1982 by the University of Maine at Orono.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
