An interview of Elisabeth D. Model conducted 1977 May 19, by William McNaught, for the Archives of American Art.
Model speaks of early mentors and friendships with sculptor Moissey Kogan, author Herman Hesse, art dealer Jacques Goudstikker, and others. She recalls visits with artists and collectors, including Aristide Maillol, Charles Despiau, Jacob Epstein, and Jean Paul Getty. She also describes several events, such as the Han van Meegeren art forgeries, her family's escape to New York during WW II, and her career successes.
Biographical / Historical:
Elisabeth D. Model (1897-1993) was a painter and sculptor from New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 8 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 others.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Reminiscences, letters, a scrapbook, interviews, printed material, and photographs document Model's career as a sculptor, and her friendship with German author Hermann Hesse.
REEL N69/40: A scrapbook, 1946-1968, contains 2 biographical accounts, several letters from colleagues, 1955-1967, exhibition catalogs, clippings, 2 award certificates from the Brooklyn Society of Artists, 35 photographs of works of art and one photograph of Model.
REEL 2323: Two biographical accounts; letters, 1939-1976, primarily from family members and colleagues, including a thank you note from Henry Moore; a file on Hermann Hesse, 1946-1962, including letters from Hesse, a photograph of him, and booklets written by him; a phonograph record (digitized) and 10 p. radio transcript from "Art Review", 1951, from an interview of Model and Lena Gurr conducted by Peter Lipman-Wulf; 12 exhibition catalogs, 1940-1976; a clipping, 1951; a photograph of Model, 1960; and 64 photographs of art works and gallery installations.
REEL 4866: A 96 p. manuscript by Model, "Memories of Persons and Places," describes the people and events of her early life. The cover is decorated with collage and drawings and a photograph of sculpture "The Mother"; a 46 p. typescript by Model, "For My Grandchildren--In Memorium--Max Model," recounts her family's escape from the Nazis; 5 clippings, 1964-1969; 2 brochures advertising Model's sculpture "Family Group"; and an audiocassette interview of Model conducted by Dwight Cooke for "Art and the World," CBS Radio, 1951.
UNFILMED Interview of artists Elisabeth Model and Lena Gurr conducted by Peter Lipman-Wulf on 16" transcription disc.
Biographical / Historical:
Sculptor; New York, N.Y. Born in Bayreuth, Bavaria, Model studied sculpture in Munich under Professors Thor and Cericioli, in Amsterdam at the Rijksakademie under Professor Jurgens, and in Paris under Moissi Kogan. Model, her husband, Max, and their children fled the Netherlands during World War II and moved to New York City in 1941.
Provenance:
Donated by Elisabeth Model, 1977 and 1989. Microfilmed 1994 with funding provided by the Henry and Lucy Moses Fund, the Lucius N. Littauer Foundation, the Goldie-Anna Charitable Trust, the Samuel Bronfman Foundation, and the Louis and Anne Abrons Foundation.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Falterschönheit : exotische Schmetterlinge in farbigen Naturaufnahmen / zwölf vielfarbige Tafeln ; mit Einführung von ... Adolf Portmann ... Vorwort von Hermann Hesse