Search Results

Provenance:

The Summit Garden Club  Search this

Collection Creator:

Garden Club of America  Search this

Type:

Archival materials

Place:

Botanical Illustrations (Summit, New Jersey)

United States -- New Jersey -- Union -- Summit

Scope and Contents:

The folder includes worksheets and other information.

General:

Illustrations from a book.

Related Materials:

Botanical Illustrations related holdings consist of 1 folder (1 lantern slide)

Collection Restrictions:

Access to original images by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.

Collection Rights:

Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens.

Topic:

Gardens -- New Jersey -- Summit  Search this

Collection Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.

Sponsor:

A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.

Identifier:

AAG.GCA, File GCA041

See more items in:

The Garden Club of America collection

The Garden Club of America collection / Unidentified Garden Images / United States / New Jersey

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aag-gca-ref5120

Collection Creator:

Garden Club of America  Search this

Extent:

1 Photograph (lantern slide, black-and-white, 3.25 in. x 4in.)

Type:

Archival materials

Photographs

Lantern slides

Place:

Botanical Illustrations (Summit, New Jersey)

United States -- New Jersey -- Union -- Summit

Date:

[between 1914 and 1949?]

Collection Restrictions:

Access to original images by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.

Collection Rights:

Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens.

Topic:

Gardens -- New Jersey -- Summit  Search this

Botanical illustration  Search this

Plants  Search this

Botany  Search this

Horticulture  Search this

Genre/Form:

Lantern slides

Collection Citation:

Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.

Sponsor:

A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.

Identifier:

AAG.GCA, Item GCA041001

See more items in:

The Garden Club of America collection

The Garden Club of America collection / Unidentified Garden Images / United States / New Jersey / GCA041: Summit -- Botanical Illustrations

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Gardens

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aag-gca-ref5291

Interviewee:

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Interviewer:

Selvig, Forrest  Search this

Subject:

United States. Work Projects Administration  Search this

Type:

Interviews

Topic:

Art, American  Search this

Painters -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt -- Interviews  Search this

Art -- Philosophy  Search this

Artists -- Political activity  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)13314

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)213091

AAA_collcode_shahn68

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_213091

Interviewee:

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Interviewer:

Phillips, Harlan B. (Harlan Buddington),, 1920-  Search this

Subject:

Rivera, Diego  Search this

New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Topic:

Federal aid to the arts  Search this

Painting, American  Search this

Art -- Economic aspects  Search this

Painting -- Technique  Search this

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

Artists -- Political activity -- California  Search this

Theme:

New Deal  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)12500

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)213824

AAA_collcode_shahn65

Theme:

New Deal

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_213824

Interviewee:

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Interviewer:

Doud, Richard Keith  Search this

Subject:

Evans, Walker  Search this

Lange, Dorothea  Search this

Rosskam, Edwin  Search this

Rothstein, Arthur  Search this

Stryker, Roy Emerson  Search this

United States. Farm Security Administration. Historical Section  Search this

New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Topic:

Documentary photography  Search this

Federal aid to the arts  Search this

Photographers -- New Jersey -- Interviews  Search this

Theme:

Photography  Search this

New Deal  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)12760

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)213825

AAA_collcode_shahn64

Theme:

Photography

New Deal

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_213825

Interviewee:

von Eckardt, Nina, 1940-  Search this

von Eckardt, Nina, 1940-  Search this

Interviewer:

Berman, Avis, 1949-  Search this

Subject:

Leo Castelli Gallery  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Topic:

Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews  Search this

Theme:

Women  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)16061

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)311672

AAA_collcode_voneck12

Theme:

Women

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_311672

Interviewee:

Smith, Kiki, 1954-  Search this

Smith, Kiki, 1954-  Search this

Interviewer:

Lyon, Christopher, 1949-  Search this

Subject:

Pollock-Krasner Foundation  Search this

Type:

Interviews

Sound recordings

Topic:

Installations (Art)  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Women sculptors  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)17502

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)390043

AAA_collcode_smith17

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_390043

Interviewee:

Bryson, Bernarda, 1903-2004  Search this

Bryson, Bernarda, 1903-2004  Search this

Interviewer:

Kirwin, Liza, 1957-  Search this

Subject:

Shahn, Ben  Search this

Artists' Union (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

John Reed Club  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Topic:

Art front  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States -- Political aspects  Search this

Printmakers -- New Jersey -- Interviews  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Theme:

Women  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)11655

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)212312

AAA_collcode_shahn83

Theme:

Women

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_212312

Interviewee:

Bryson, Bernarda, 1903-2004  Search this

Bryson, Bernarda, 1903-2004  Search this

Interviewer:

Meecham, Pamela J.  Search this

Subject:

Rivera, Diego  Search this

Shahn, Ben  Search this

United States. Farm Security Administration. Historical Section  Search this

Type:

Interviews

Sound recordings

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Theme:

Women  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)12779

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)215864

AAA_collcode_bryson95

Theme:

Women

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_215864

Creator:

Bryson, Bernarda, 1903-2004  Search this

Bryson, Bernarda, 1903-2004  Search this

Subject:

Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich)  Search this

Osborn, Robert Chesley  Search this

Robbins, Warren M.  Search this

Shahn, Jonathan  Search this

Shahn, Ben  Search this

Calder, Alexander  Search this

Lionni, Leo  Search this

Knight, Gwendolyn  Search this

Lynes, Russell  Search this

Javitz, Jacob  Search this

Hayes, Helen  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Scrapbooks

Sketches

Diaries

Photographs

Drawings

Sketchbooks

Watercolors

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Theme:

Women  Search this

Lives of American Artists  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)5712

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)208550

AAA_collcode_brysbern

Theme:

Women

Lives of American Artists

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_208550

Interviewee:

Smith, Kiki, 1954-  Search this

Interviewer:

Lyon, Christopher  Search this

Names:

Pollock-Krasner Foundation  Search this

Extent:

4 Items (sound files (3 hrs., 21 min.) Audio, digital, wav)

33 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Interviews

Sound recordings

Date:

2017 July 20 and August 16

Scope and Contents:

An interview with Kiki Smith conducted 2017 July 20 and August 16, by Christopher Lyon, for the Archives of American Art, at Smith's home and studio in New York, New York.

Smith speaks of her approach to art as a means of investigating form, scale, and technique; her first printmaking experiences; her childhood in South Orange, New Jersey; her fascination with the human body and religious iconography; early exposure to art and artists through her father, Tony Smith; her involvement in Collaborative Projects, Inc.; the effect of her father's death on her artwork; her experimental art-making process; her first exhibitions in her mid-30s and 40s; her work in glass painting; the role of animals and pets in her life and artwork; her experiences with puppet theatre; the influence of illustrated books on her artwork; the influence of other artists such as Eva Hesse, Lee Bontecou, Frida Kahlo, and Nancy Spero on her artwork; the role of her femininity in her representations of bodies; her formative period of living and working in Berlin during the early 1980s; differences she has observed in the American and European art worlds; her experiences making sculptures in foundries; her experiences working with different gallerists; and her experiences working with four "generations" of assistants. Smith also recalls Malcolm McLaren, Vivienne Westwood, Robert Rauschenberg, Richard Tuttle, Tom Otterness, Charlie Ahearn, Cara Perlman, Walter Robinson, Amy Taubin, Leslie Tonkonow, Joe Fawbush, Raimund Kummer, Geneviève Cadieux, Hermann Pitz, Brooke Alexander, Bill Goldston, Chuck Close, Barbara Krakow, Anthony d'Offay, Susan Dunne, Lorcan O'Neill, and others.

Biographical / Historical:

Kiki Smith (1954- ) is a sculptor, installation artist, and printmaker in New York, New York. Christopher Lyon (1949- ) is a writer in Brooklyn, New York.

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:

Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Topic:

Installations (Art)  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Women sculptors  Search this

Genre/Form:

Interviews

Sound recordings

Sponsor:

Funded by the Pollock-Krasner Foundation.

Identifier:

AAA.smith17

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-smith17

Interviewee:

Bryson, Bernarda  Search this

Interviewer:

Meecham, Pamela J.  Search this

Names:

United States. Farm Security Administration. Historical Section  Search this

Rivera, Diego, 1886-1957  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Extent:

39 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Interviews

Sound recordings

Date:

1995 July 3

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Bernarda Bryson Shahn conducted 1995 July 3, by Pamela J. Meecham, for the Archives of American Art.

Bryson Shahn talks about Ben Shahn's involvement in the Farm Security Administration's photographic project during the 1930s; her and her husband's involvement with socialism, unions, and the Communist Party during the 1930's; the removal of Diego Rivera's mural from Rockefeller Center; changes in Ben Shahn's critical status as a painter -- particularly during the Red Scare, and relative to the rise of Abstract Expressionism; her own career as an illustrator; the Jersey Homesteads and Ben Shahn's mural in Roosevelt, New Jersey; as well as her impressions of Italy and Japan.

Biographical / Historical:

Bernarda Bryson (1903-2004) was a painter from New Jersey. She was the wife of artist Ben Shahn.

General:

Originally recorded on 2 sound cassette tapes. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 39 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. Funding provided by Midtown-Payson Grant.

Occupation:

Painters -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Printmakers -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Illustrators -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Genre/Form:

Interviews

Sound recordings

Sponsor:

Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.

Identifier:

AAA.bryson95

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-bryson95

Interviewee:

Brynner, Irena  Search this

Interviewer:

Fisch, Arline M.  Search this

Creator:

Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this

Names:

Craft Students League -- Faculty  Search this

Metal Arts Guild  Search this

Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.) -- Faculty  Search this

Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this

Renwick Gallery  Search this

Society of North American Goldsmiths  Search this

Bergman, Franz  Search this

Campbell, David Robert, 1907-1963  Search this

Daniels, Grete  Search this

De Patta, Margaret, 1903-1964  Search this

Faber, Aaron  Search this

Jensen, Georg Arthur, 1866-1935  Search this

Jeremias, Trudy  Search this

Renk, Merry, 1921-2012  Search this

Resnikoff, Florence Lisa Herman  Search this

Rosene, Caroline Gleick, 1907-  Search this

Stackpole, Ralph, 1885-1973  Search this

Winston, Robert, 1915-  Search this

Extent:

67 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

2001 April 26-27

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Irena Brynner conducted 2001 April 26-27, by Arline M. Fisch, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Brynner's home and studio, New York, New York.

Brynner speaks of her childhood in Vladivostok in Primorski Krai, Russia; her artistic family including her cousin Yul Brynner; fleeing from Russia to Darian (on the southern tip of the Liaotung peninsula, in the Kwantung Leased Territory of Manchuria); her art studies in Lausanne, Switzerland; her father's illness during World War II; moving with her mother to San Francisco in 1946; her studies with Ralph Stackpole and Franz Bergman in San Francisco; her relationship with architect Frank Merwin; teaching art in Catholic schools in San Francisco; her decision to make jewelry after seeing Claire Falkenstein's sculpture; working as an apprentice to Caroline Rosene and Franz Bergman; forming the Metal Arts Guild with Bob Winston, Merry Renk, Florence Resnikoff, Margaret De Patta, and others; and introducing forging and three-dimensional jewelry in the Metal Arts Guild. She also talks about her move to New York City in 1957; acting as her own agent; "open-air art shows" in San Francisco; her first show at Walker & Eberling; starting her own shop; teaching at the Craft Students League and at MoMA's Institute of Modern Art, at Victor D'Amico's invitation, circa 1962; her friendships with students and clients; her book, "Jewelry as an Art Form" (New York : Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1979) and its influence; learning to work with a Henes water welder; the treatment of women artists in America; her move to Geneva, Switzerland, in 1972, and the difficulties of starting a shop there; and her return to New York and reestablishing her career in the United States. Brynner also discusses her interest in singing, her voice lessons, her public performances of Russian classical music, and her health.

She comments on the intuitive development of her jewelry; the influence of Margaret De Patta; learning wax techniques from Bob Winston at Mills College; her progression from geometric to organic forms; her large-scale sculpture; her invention of "wrap-around earrings"; her use of niobium in the 1980s; drawing inspiration from Antonio Gaudi, Alberto Jaccometti, and others; involvement with the community of artists in the San Francisco Bay Area; the Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG); craft periodicals; her exhibitions at the Little Gallery of the Museum of Contemporary Crafts, the Musée de l'horlogerie et de l'émaillerie in Geneva, the Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C., and others; her work in museum collections; serving as a juror; and writing her memoir. Brynner recalls Georg Jensen, Grete Daniels, Trudy Jeremias, Aaron Faber, David Campbell, and others.

Biographical / Historical:

Irena Brynner (1917-2003) was a jeweler from New York, New York. Arline M. Fisch (1931- ) is a metalsmith from San Diego, California.

General:

Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 7 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 41 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.

Occupation:

Painters -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Printmakers -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Illustrators -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Decorative arts  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Sponsor:

Funding for this interview was provided by the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America.

Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.

Identifier:

AAA.brynne01

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-brynne01

Interviewee:

Bryson, Bernarda  Search this

Interviewer:

Kirwin, Liza  Search this

Names:

Artists' Union (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

John Reed Club  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Extent:

37 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

1983 April 29

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Bernarda Bryson conducted 1983 April 29, by Liza Kirwin, for the Archives of American Art.

Bryson speaks of her family background and education; writing for the Ohio State Journal; teaching etching and lithography; meeting Diego Rivera and Ben Shahn; the formation of the Unemployed Artists Group and her role as secretary, 1933; the Gibson Committee, the John Reed Club, and the Artists' Union in New York City; founding Art Front magazine; pressure from the Communist Party; demonstrating at the Whitney Museum of American Art, 1934; lithography under Adrian Dornbush; assisting Ben Shahn; her work as an illustrator; and her painting since 1971.

Biographical / Historical:

Bernarda Bryson (1903-2004) was a printmaker and painter from Roosevelt, New Jersey. She is the widow of artist Ben Shahn.

General:

Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 26 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.

Occupation:

Painters -- New Jersey -- Interviews  Search this

Topic:

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States -- Political aspects  Search this

Printmakers -- New Jersey -- Interviews  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Sponsor:

Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.

Identifier:

AAA.shahn83

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-shahn83

Creator:

Bryson, Bernarda  Search this

Names:

Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976 -- Photographs  Search this

Hayes, Helen, 1900-1993  Search this

Javitz, Jacob  Search this

Knight, Gwendolyn  Search this

Lionni, Leo, 1910-  Search this

Lynes, Russell, 1910-1991  Search this

Osborn, Robert Chesley, 1904-1994  Search this

Robbins, Warren M.  Search this

Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979  Search this

Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969  Search this

Shahn, Jonathan, 1938-  Search this

Extent:

14.6 Linear feet

5.88 Gigabytes

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Gigabytes

Sound recordings

Scrapbooks

Sketches

Diaries

Photographs

Drawings

Sketchbooks

Watercolors

Date:

1872-2004

bulk 1904-2004

Summary:

The papers of painter, printmaker, and illustrator Bernarda Bryson Shahn measure 14.6 linear feet and 5.88 GB and date from 1872 to 2004, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1904-2004. Found within the papers are family and biographical materials, correspondence, writings including sound recordings of lectures by the Shahns, some in digital format, voluminous notebooks, five diaries, exhibition files, personal business records, printed material, seven scrapbooks, one sketchbook and other art work, and photographs. Although the bulk of the collection documents Bernarda's work, there are materials about or created by Ben Shahn scattered throughout the collection. There is a 2.7 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2011 that includes administrative files regarding Bernarda Shahn's work on the board of Skowhegan correspondence of both Bernarda and Ben Shahn; an inventory ledger with names of works of art by Ben Shahn; a scrapbook regarding Ben Shan's work in Japan; photographs of Ben and Bernarda Shahn and images of works of art by Ben Shahn; sketchbooks and notebooks by Ben and Bernarda Shahn; and printed material.

Scope and Content Note:

The papers of painter, printmaker, and illustrator Bernarda Bryson Shahn measure 11.9 linear feet and 5.88 GB and date from 1872 to 2004, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1904-2004. Found within the papers are family and biographical materials, correspondence, writings including sound recordings of lectures by the Shahns, voluminous notebooks, five diaries, exhibition files, personal business records, printed material, seven scrapbooks, one sketchbook and other art work, and photographs. Although the bulk of the collection documents Bernarda's work, there are materials about or created by Ben Shahn scattered throughout the collection. There is a 2.7 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2011 that includes administrative files regarding Bernarda Shahn's work on the board of Skowhegan correspondence of both Bernarda and Ben Shahn; an inventory ledger with names of works of art by Ben Shahn; a scrapbook regarding Ben Shan's work in Japan; photographs of Ben and Bernarda Shahn and images of works of art by Ben Shahn; sketchbooks and notebooks by Ben and Bernarda Shahn; and printed material.

Biographical material includes biographical accounts for Bernarda and Ben Shahn, identification cards, membership cards, awards, appointment books and calendars, address books, and a video recording.

Correspondence is primarily between Bernarda Bryson Shahn and publishers, educational institutions, and colleagues and friends including Leo Lionni, Russell Lynes, Robert Osborn, and Warren Robbins.

There are four linear feet of notes, notebooks, typescripts, and other writings by Bernarda Bryson Shahn and others, many of which concern Ben Shahn. Included are numerous files of research notes for published and planned books about Ben Shahn, notebooks concerning art-related topics, card files of art work, lists, sound recordings of lectures by the Shahns and Gwen Knight, some in digital format, and many typescripts of writings about art and Ben Shahn, among other topics. There is also a folder of notes by Ben Shahn for the Mural for the Rural Rehabilitation Program. Five of Bernarda Shahn's diaries contain very brief daily entries and some illustrations. The 1972 diary contains much more elaborate illustrations.

The exhibition files contain letters, notes, and printed material concerning exhibitions of art work by Ben Shahn.

Personal business records include files concerning property, the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, miscellaneous contracts, files concerning publishing, art price lists, and other scattered legal and/or financial records.

Printed material includes clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases for Bernarda Bryson Shahn, Ben Shahn, and others, books including A Partridge in a Pear Tree, illustrated by Ben Shahn, and printed reproductions of art work. Seven scrapbooks also contain printed materials, notes, and photographs. Scrapbooks 1-4 document the creation of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial for which Jonathan Shahn created the large portrait bust. Scrapbooks 5-7 concern a book by Bernarda Bryson Shahn, and scrapbook 8 contains obituaries for Ben Shahn.

Art work includes a sketchbook with annotations, drawings, a portfolio of drawings, lettering designs, watercolor sketches, and layouts for publications.

Photographs are of unidentified and identified Shahn family members, Ben Shahn, Ben Shahn with friends and colleagues including Alexander Calder, Helen Hayes, Senator Jacob Javitz, and Nelson Rockefeller, Ben Shahn's studio, exhibition installations, and art work by Bernarda Bryson Shahn, Ben Shahn, and others. There are also travel photographs.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as 11 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1937-1999 (Box 1, 13; 35 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1934-2004 (Box 1-5, 13, OV 14; 3.6 linear feet)

Series 3: Notes and Writings, 1946-2001 (Box 5-9; 4.0 linear feet, ER01-ER09; 5.88 GB)

Series 4: Diaries, 1965-1985 (Box 9; 5 folders)

Series 5: Exhibition Files, 1955-2000 (Box 9; 5 folders)

Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1932-2001 (Box 9, 10; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1904-2004 (Box 10-11, 13, OV 14-15; 1.2 linear feet)

Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1945-1978 (Box 11, 13, OV 15; 30 folders)

Series 9: Art Work, 1970-2002 (Box 11-13, OV 14; 70 folders)

Series 10: Photographs, 1872-1985 (Box 12; 34 folders)

Series 11: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1904-2004 (Box 16-19, OV 20; 2.7 linear feet)

Biographical Note:

Bernarda Bryson Shahn (1903-2004) worked primarily in New Jersey as a painter, printmaker, and illustrator. She was married to Ben Shahn and often collaborated with him.

Bernarda Bryson was born on March 7, 1903 in Athens, Ohio, the daughter of the owner-editor of newspaper The Athens Morning Journal. After receiving early drawing and painting lessons from her mother, Bryson attended a private girls' school where she continued her studies in art and art history.

At Ohio University, Bryson majored in philosophy and attended art classes in which David Smith was a classmate. She later attended the Cleveland Art School where she studied printmaking.

Following graduation, Bryson taught etching and lithography at the art school of the Columbus Gallery of Fine Art. She also wrote for The Ohio State Journal and became editor of community paper The South Side Advocate. While in New York City to interview Diego Rivera, she met Ben Shahn who was assisting Rivera in painting the mural at Rockefeller Center. Bernarda Bryson and Ben Shahn were married in 1935.

Bernarda Bryson Shahn moved to New York and helped organize the Artists' Union and exhibited at the Whitney Gallery on Eighth Street. She then went to Woodstock to study lithography with Bolton Brown and was invited to set up a lithographic shop for the Resettlement Administration in Washington, D.C.

During the 1950s and 1960s, Bernarda Bryson Shahn executed illustrations for Harper's Magazine, Scientific American and Fortune in addition to random assignments from Life, Sports Illustrated and other publications. She illustrated many books including Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice as well as writing and illustrating her own books Gilgamesh, The Twenty Miracles of Saint Nicolas, and The Zoo of Zeus. Following the death of her husband in 1969, she wrote and designed a large monograph Ben Shahn, published by Abrams.

In the mid-1970s, Bernarda Bryson Shahn won further recognition when she returned to painting.

Bernarda Bryson Shahn died on December 12, 2004 in Roosevelt, New Jersey.

Related Material:

Also found in the Archives of American Art are two oral histories with Bernarda Bryson Shahn, one completed in 1983 by Liza Kirwin and another in 1995 by Pamela Meecham. The Archives also holds the Ben Shahn papers.

Provenance:

Donated 1983 by Bernarada Bryson Shahn and in 2005 and 2011 by Bernarda Brsyon Shahn estate via Jonathan Shahn and Abigail Shahn, co-executors.

Restrictions:

Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.

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:

Painters -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Printmakers -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Illustrators -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt  Search this

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Scrapbooks

Sketches

Diaries

Photographs

Drawings

Sketchbooks

Watercolors

Citation:

Bernarda Bryson Shahn papers, 1872-2004, bulk 1904-2004. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

AAA.brysbern

See more items in:

Bernarda Bryson Shahn papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-brysbern

Author:

Skinner, Alanson 1886-1925  Search this

Physical description:

7 pages II illustrations 17 cm

Type:

Electronic resources

Place:

New Jersey

Pennsylvania

Date:

1920

Topic:

Delaware Indians--Antiquities  Search this

Indian masks  Search this

Masks (Sculpture)  Search this

Call number:

E51 .I393 no. 3

Data Source:

Smithsonian Libraries

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:siris_sil_940176

Collection Creator:

Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-2003  Search this

Extent:

0.8 Linear feet (Boxes 14-15, OV 27)

Type:

Archival materials

Date:

circa 1965-1987

Scope and Contents note:

In 1969 Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANJY) Austin J. Tobin established a committee to commission and acquire artwork for PANJY's facilities and hired Miller as the primary art consultant. Files are found here that document Miller's work with the committee, including committee meeting minutes and agendas, correspondence and notes, printed materials, photographs.

Several files are related to Miller's work with the committee for selecting artwork for the World Trade Center in the early 1970s. These contain letters from Alexander Calder discussing the purchase of Calder's World Trade Center Stabile, also known as Three Wings and The Cockeyed Propeller which was originally commissioned for the entrance to 1 World Trade Center on West Street, but was moved around the plaza over time. One of Calder's letters is illustrated with a picture indicating how he wanted the stabile's "feet" to be installed. Also found here are several photographs of Calder and his mobiles and stabiles, letters from Joan Miró, Chryssa, and photographs of artwork by other artists.

One file in this series contains writings by Miller concerning the collections of the PANJY.

Collection Restrictions:

Use of original papers requires an appointment.

Collection Rights:

The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.

Collection Citation:

Dorothy C. Miller papers, 1853-2013, bulk 1920-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art

Identifier:

AAA.milldoro, Series 6

See more items in:

Dorothy C. Miller papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_component:sova-aaa-milldoro-ref516

Creator:

Beerman, Miriam  Search this

Extent:

2.3 Linear feet

2.34 Gigabytes

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Gigabytes

Video recordings

Date:

circa 1930-2006

Summary:

The papers of printmaker and painter Miriam Beerman measure 2.3 linear feet and 2.34 GB and date from circa 1930 to 2006. Found are scattered biographical materials including artwork and a video recording, correspondence, writings including digitial video recordings, and printed material.

Scope and Contents:

The papers of printmaker and painter Miriam Beerman measure 2.3 linear feet and 2.34 GB and date from circa 1930 to 2006. Found are scattered biographical materials including artwork and a video recording, correspondence, writings including digitial video recordings, and printed material.

Biographical materials include Beerman's artist statements and curriculum vitae, scattered personal business records, artworks, and a video recording titled Miriam Beerman: Drawings, Prints, Collage.

Correspondence includes professional and personal letters including Beerman's letters to her parents when she was a student in Paris, France.

Writings by Beerman include two digital video recordings of artist books: Three Sentences Beginning with the Letter S [featuring poems by Halvard Johnson and others], 2006, and Washing the Corpse [poem by Rainer Maria Rilke], 2006, narrated by Beerman.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as 4 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1930-2006 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 1, 3)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1945-2005 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)

Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1949-2006 (0.3 linear feet; Box 2, 2.34 GB; ER01-ER02)

Series 4: Printed Material, 1956-2005 (0.5 linear feet; Box 2)

Biographical / Historical:

Miriam Beerman (1923- ) is a painter and printmaker in Upper Montclair, New Jersey.

Beerman was born in Providence, Rhode Island and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Rhode Island School of Design. She continued her studies with Yasuo Kuniyoshi at the Art Students League and with Adja Yunkers at the New School for Social Research.

In 1972, Beerman's exhibition The Enduring Beast, based on a book of poems that she edited and illustrated, was the first one-woman show ever presented by the Brooklyn Museum. Since that time Beerman has taken part in numerous solo and group exhibitions over the last 50 years and is represented in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Related Materials:

The Archives of American Art also holds an interview of Miriam Beerman conducted 2009 December 28, by Anne Louise (Bayly) Berman, at Beerman's home, in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Provenance:

Miriam Beerman donated her papers in several installments from 2005 to 2009. Additional materials were donated by Beerman's son, William Jaffe in 2015.

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.

Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.

Rights:

All works of art and images of works of art: The donor retains all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own.

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:

Painters -- New Jersey  Search this

Printmakers -- New Jersey  Search this

Topic:

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women printmakers  Search this

Genre/Form:

Video recordings

Citation:

Miriam Beerman papers, circa 1930-2006. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Processing of this collection received federal support from the Collections Care Initiative Fund, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative and the National Collections Program

Identifier:

AAA.beermiri

See more items in:

Miriam Beerman papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-beermiri

Creator:

Gray, Cleve  Search this

Names:

Berry-Hill Galleries  Search this

Betty Parsons Gallery  Search this

Connecticut. Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film  Search this

Jacques Seligmann & Co  Search this

Neuberger Museum of Art  Search this

Pratt Institute  Search this

Princeton University  Search this

Rhode Island School of Design  Search this

Barzun, Jacques, 1907-  Search this

Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this

Davis, Jim, 1901-1974  Search this

Dillenberger, Jane  Search this

Duchamp, Marcel, 1887-1968  Search this

Ernst, Jimmy, 1920-1984  Search this

Gabo, Naum, 1890-1977  Search this

Grace, Louise N.  Search this

Gray, Francine du Plessix  Search this

Lipchitz, Jacques, 1891-1973  Search this

Marin, John, 1870-1953  Search this

Pollock, Jackson, 1912-1956  Search this

Richter, Hans, 1888-1976  Search this

Smith, David, 1906-1965  Search this

Villon, Jacques, 1875-1963  Search this

Weber, Nicholas Fox, 1947-  Search this

Extent:

9.2 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Poems

Articles

Photographs

Reviews (documents)

Notes

Illustrations

Notebooks

Sketches

Drafts (documents)

Video recordings

Sound recordings

Interviews

Manuscripts

Paintings

Prints

Watercolors

Drawings

Lectures

Date:

1933-2005

Summary:

The Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005, measure 9.2 linear feet. Papers include biographical material, alphabetical files, writings, artwork, audio/visual records, artifacts, printed material, and photographs. Extensive alphabetical files contain personal and professional correspondence as well as subject files relating to projects and interests. Especially well-documented are: Gray's involvement with the Vietnam protest movement; and Threnody, his best-known work composed of fourteen large panels lamenting the dead of both sides sides in Vietnam, commissioned by the Neuberger Museum of Art.

Scope and Content Note:

The Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005, measure 9.2 linear feet. Papers include biographical material, alphabetical files, writings, artwork, audio/visual records, artifacts, printed material, and photographs. Extensive alphabetical files contain personal and professional correspondence as well as subject files relating to projects and interests. Especially well-documented are: Gray's involvement with the Vietnam movement; and Threnody, his best-known work composed of fourteen large panels lamenting the dead of both sides sides in Vietnam, commissioned by the Neuberger Museum of Art.

Among the biographical material are award and membership certificates, biographical notes, and personal documentation.

The alphabetical files contain Cleve Gray's personal and professional correspondence, as well as subject files relating to projects and interests. Correspondence is with friends and family, colleagues, publishers, museum curators and directors, art dealers, collectors, and fans. Among the correspondents of note are: Jacques Barzun, James E. Davis, Naum Gabo, Louise N. Grace, Hans and Fridel Richter, and Jacques and Gaby Villon. Other substantial correspondence includes: Berry-Hill Galleries, Betty Parsons Gallery, Connecticut Commission on the Arts, Jacques Seligmann and Co., Neuberger Museum of Art, Pratt Institute, Princeton University, and Rhode Island School of Design. Subject files mostly consist of correspondence, but include printed material and some photographs. Among the subject files are: Art Collection of Cleve and Francine Gray, Artist-Dealer Consignments and Visual Artists' Rights Act of 1989, Artists' Tax Equity Act of 1979, Promised Gifts to Museums, Threnody, Vestments, and Vietnam Protest. Of particular interest are files relating to the Estate of Hans Richter (Cleve Gray, executor), and Gray's research correspondence and illustrations for his Cosmopolitan article "Women-Leaders of Modern Art."

Writings are manuscripts and drafts, research materials, notes, and miscellaneous writings by Cleve Gray and other authors. Those by Gray include articles and catalog introductions on a wide range of art-related topics, as well as book and exhibition reviews. Also found are a book proposal, texts and notes for lectures and talks, miscellaneous notes, poems, political statements, and student papers. Of particular interest are autobiographical notes in the form of a chronology that his biographer, Nicholas Fox Weber, cited as an "autochronology."

Among the writings by other authors are pieces about Cleve Gray including Nicholas Fox Weber's manuscript Cleve Gray. A significant amount of material relates to three books edited by Gray: David Smith by David Smith: Sculpture and Writings, Hans Richter, and John Marin. Research material survives for an unpublished volume, Naum Gabo. Also included are notes relating to his translation of A l'Infinitif by Marcel Duchamp. Jane Daggett Dillenberger is represented by a lecture, "The Resurrection in Art." The remaining items by other authors are unsigned; of particular interest is a small notebook of reminiscences and notes about Jackson Pollock.

Artwork by Cleve Gray consists mostly drawings and sketches, and a small number of paintings, prints, and watercolors. Works by other artists consist are an unsigned mobile of paper cut-outs, possibly by Alexander Calder, and a pencil drawing signed Dick (probably Richard Avedon).

Audio recordings are a radio broadcast featuring Cleve Gray, several lectures by Gray on John Marin, and a lecture titled "Meaning in the Visual Arts." Other recordings are of Hans Richter and an interview with Jimmy Ernst conducted by Francine du Plessix Gray. Also found is a videocassette of "Glenville School Students at SUNY (Lincoln Center Activity)."

Artifacts are a Chinese scroll representative of those that hung in Cleve Gray's studio, two of his paintbrushes, Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association blue ribbon, and Neuberger Museum of Art Lifetime Achievement Award.

The vast majority of printed material - articles, clippings, exhibition catalogs and announcements, reproductions of art work, etc. - are about or by Cleve Gray. Miscellaneous items and publications mentioning Gray consist of annual reports, brochures, calendars, newsletters, programs, etc. Clippings about Vietnam and Vietnam protest memorabilia reflect his passionate involvement in the anti-war movement; a small number of these items mention Gray or were written by him.

Photographs are of artwork, events, people, places, and miscellaneous subjects. Most of the art work appearing in the photographs is by Cleve Gray and includes images of destroyed paintings. Also found is an original print of Photo Abstraction by Gray, circa 1934. Of particular note are photographs of Threnody, among them preparatory drawings and views of the work in progress. Photographs of artwork by other artists include Louise N. Grace, Jacques Lipchitz, John Marin, Hans Richter, and Jacques Villon.

Photographs of people are mainly portraits of Gray, and views of him with his wife and sons. Other individuals appearing in photographs are Hans Richter and some of Richter's descendants. Pictures of places consist of Gray's studio.

Events are an unidentified exhibition opening. Miscellaneous subjects are mostly exhibition installations. Illustrations consist of photographs published in David Smith by David Smith: Sculpture and Writings. Also found are small number of negatives and color transparencies.

Arrangement:

The collection is organized into 8 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1943-circa 2001 (Box 1; 0.1 linear ft.)

Series 2: Alphabetical Files, 1936-2005 (Boxes 1-5, 9; 4.3 linear ft.)

Series 3: Writings, 1935-2000 (Boxes 5-6; 0.85 linear ft.)

Series 4: Artwork, circa 1933-1987 (Boxes 6, 9, OV 12; 0.45 linear ft.)

Series 5: Audio/Visual Records, 1971-1989 (Box 6; 0.25 linear ft.)

Series 6: Artifacts, 1957-1999 (Box 6, RD 11; 0.45 linear ft.)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1933-2005 (Boxes 7-8; 1.25 linear ft.)

Series 8: Photographs, circa 1934-2002 (Boxes 8-10; 1.15 linear ft.)

Biographical Note:

Abstract Expressionist painter, sculptor, and writer Cleve Gray (1918-2004) lived and worked in Connecticut where he was politically active in the Vietnam protest movement and other liberal causes.

Born Cleve Ginsberg in New York City (the family changed its name to Gray in 1936), he attended the Ethical Culture School and at a young age developed a fascination with color and paint. At the urging of friends, Cleve's parents allowed him to accompany a school friend for lessons with George Bellows' student Antonia Nell. She encouraged and inspired the young artist, and a still life he painted in her class was shown at the National Academy of Design's 1932 annual exhibition. Miss Nell also introduced him to Louise N. Grace, an artist who became a good friend and had a lasting influence on him. While a student at Phillips Academy, Cleve studied painting with Bartlett Hayes and aspired to paint in France. Upon his graduation in 1936, he was awarded the Samuel F. B. Morse Prize for most promising art student.

Gray's mother was always supportive of his career choice. His businessman father, who didn't understand his son's desire to be an artist, insisted on a college education. Cleve chose Princeton, where he majored in art and archaeology, and studied painting with James E. Davis. His senior thesis was on Chinese landscape painting; both Eastern philosophy and art were long-term influences on Gray's work and outlook. He graduated summa cum laude in 1940, and then spent several months painting while living at the farm of a family friend in Mendham, New Jersey.

When a doctor suggeted that a dry climate might relieve sinus and asthma problems, Gray moved to Tucson, Arizona. Once settled in the desert, he contacted Louise N. Grace, whom he had met as a young teenager through his art instructor. Miss Grace, an artist and daughter of the founder of W. R. Grace and Co., was a highly cultured and independent woman older than his parents. The summer before Gray entered Phillips Academy, she had hired him to brush ground color onto canvases for murals she was painting for "Eleven Arches," her home in Tuscon then under construction. Miss Grace invited Gray to visit "Eleven Arches" to see the completed murals, and despite the substantial age difference, their friendship deepened; Gray found in her intellectual and spiritual guidance that was lacking in his own family. He remained in Tucson until enlisting in the U. S. Army in 1942, and they corresponded frequently during the the war. When a stroke in 1948 prevented Miss Grace from participating in the extensive tour of Europe she was arranging for a small group of friends, including Gray, she provided sufficient funds and insisted he make the trip on his own. Another stroke, suffered while Gray was traveling, left her in a coma; he was not permitted to see her again. Upon her death in 1954, Gray inherited "Eleven Arches."

Between 1943 and 1946, Gray was stationed in England, France, and Germany, serving in Army Signal Intelligence. Most of his work was performed at night, and he spent his free time drawing. While in London, Gray produced many colored pencil drawings of buildings that had been bombed. In France, a Red Cross volunteered to introduce him to Jacques Villon; although unfamiliar with the artist, Gray knew of Villon's brother, Marcel Duchamp, and accepted the invitation. Jacques and Gaby Villon lived near Gray's billet and he became a frequent visitor. Their friendship was important to his development as an artist. After being discharged from the Army in 1946, Gray remained in France to work with Villon who introduced him to the study of color and the concept of intellectual quality in painting. Gray also studied informally with André Lhote, Villon's former teacher. "American Painters in Paris," an exhibition presented in 1946 at Galerie Durand-Ruel, included work by Cleve Gray.

He returned to New York City in 1946. In the tight post-war rental market Gray managed to find a small room upstairs from a grocery store on East 106th Street for use as a studio. He commenced painting the London Ruins series based on drawings he had made during the war, and began thinking about exhibiting in New York. Gray secured introductions to Pierre Matisse, Curt Valentin, and Dorothy Miller. They encouraged him, but no opportunities came his way until Germain Seligmann, whose gallery was expanding its scope to include contemporary art, followed the advice of Curt Valentin and looked at Gray's work. Gary's first solo exhibition, held at Jacques Seligmann and Co., included selections from the London Ruins series, paintings done in Maine and Arizona, and a few portraits. The New York Times called it "an auspicious first," and one of the London Ruins series was selected by Edward Alden Jewell for the "Critic's Exhibition" at Grand Central Gallery.

Gray found New York City too frenetic. In 1949 he bought a large, old house in Warren, Connecticut, and lived and worked at "Graystones" for the remainder of his life. Half of a 6-car garage was converted to a studio; many years later, his studio moved to a barn, its renovation and design planned by sculptor and architect Tony Smith.

He married Francine du Plessix in 1957. Always interested in literature and philosophy, in the 1960s Francine du Plessix Gray began contributing articles to The New Yorker and is still affiliated with the magazine. Her reviews and articles appeared in prominent publications, and she wrote several award-winning novels and biographies. Their sons, Thaddeus and Luke (now a painter), were born in 1959 and 1961. Francine's mother, Tatiana du Plessix (the hat designer Tatiana of Saks), and step-father, the sculptor Alexander Liberman (also former art director of Vogue and later editorial director of Condé Nast publications) became Cleve Gray's closest friends.

The paintings and drawings of Cleve Gray - first consisting of figures and portraits, and then abstract compositions - were often produced in series. The earliest series, London Ruins, grew from the colored pencil drawings made while stationed in London during World War II. Travels to France, Italy, Greece, Morocco, Hawaii, Spain, Egypt, Japan, and Czechoslovakia, inspired many series, among them: Etruscan, Augury, Ceres, Demeter Landscape, Hera, Morocco, Hawaii, Ramses, Perne, Hatshepsut, Roman Walls, Zen, and Prague. His hometown, the Holocaust, and musicians inspired other series: Warren, Sleepers Awake!, Bela Bartok, and Four Heads of Anton Bruckner. Some series were works on paper, others were collage canvases, and a few series later spawned prints. Gray began using acrylics in the 1940s. Although the medium offered many benefits, he did not always like its appearance and frequently returned to oils. Around 1966 Gray was painting almost exclusively with acrylic, and eventually developed a technique of thinning the paint and applying successive layers of color (sometimes by pouring or with a sponge) on cotton duck rather than traditional canvas.

Gray was attracted to sculpture, too, working in that medium at different points in his career. His first sculpture, in plaster, was completed in 1959. In the early 1960s he visited a commercial sand-casting foundry and became excited about learning to cast in bronze. He made about a dozen sculptures to cast in sand, but due to too much undercutting, their casting became too difficult a problem. Lava flows seen while in Hawaii during 1970 and 1971 inspired a return to sculpture. This time, he used wood, papier maché, and metal. Gray then decided these pieces should be cast in bronze, and he was determined to do it himself. Friends taught him the lost wax process and he began working at the Tallix Foundry in Peekskill, New York where, over the next year, he cast about forty bronzes.

Gray's best known work is Threnody, a lament for the dead of both sides in Vietnam. In 1972, Gray received a commission to fill a very large gallery of the soon-to-open Neuberger Museum of Art (State University of New York, College at Purchase) designed by Philip Johnson. Friends of the Neuberger Museum paid his expenses and Gray, who was enormously excited about the project he considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, donated his time. Developing plans for the execution of Threnody consumed most of his time during 1972 and 1973. Composed of a series of fourteen panels, each approximately twenty feet square, the piece presented a number of technical challenges. It was constructed and painted in situ during the summer and early fall of 1973. Since then, Threnody has been reinstalled at the Neuberger Museum of Art on several occasions.

Gray was commissioned to design liturgical vestments for two Episcopal churches in Connecticut in the 1970s. A chasuble, stoles, and a mitre were commissioned by the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut in 1984.

He won the "Outdoor Art at the Station Competition," for Union Station, Hartford, Connecticut. His very large porcelain enamel tile mural, Movement in Space, was installed on the façade of the transportation center in 1988.

Gray began writing occasional articles and exhibition reviews in the late 1940s. His concern with rational structure in art led him to question Abstract Expressionism and write "Narcissus in Chaos." This article, published in 1959 by The American Scholar, drew considerable attention. In 1960, Cosmopolitan published "Women - Leaders of Modern Art" that featured Nell Blaine, Joan Brown, Elaine de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Sonia Gretchoff, Grace Hartigan, Ethel Magafan, Louise Nevelson, and Georgia O'Keeffe. Between 1960 and 1970, Gray was a contributing editor of Art In America, producing numerous articles (a few co-authored with Francine) and reviews for the periodical. He edited three books, David Smith by David Smith: Scupture and Writings, Hans Richter, and John Marin, all published by Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, and translated Marcel Duchamp's A l'Infinitif.

During the early 1960s, Gray became intensely focused on the situation in Vietnam. His first artistic response came in 1963 with Reverend Quan Duc, painted to commemorate a Buddhist monk who had immolated himself. Francine, too, felt strongly about the issue and over time the couple became increasingly active in the anti-war movement. They joined a number of organizations and helped to found a local chapter of Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam. The years 1968 and 1969 were an especially intense and active period for the Grays. They protested, wrote and spoke out against the war, raised funds to support anti-war political candidates, and on a few occasions were arrested and jailed. Writing for Art in America, editing the book series, and anti-war activities left little time for his art. In 1970 Gray refocused his attention on painting.

Beginning in 1947, Gray was always represented by a New York Gallery: Jacques Seligmann and Co. (1947-1959), Staempfli Gallery (1960-1965), Saidenberg Gallery (1965-1968), Betty Parsons Gallery (1968-1983), Armstrong Gallery (1984-1987), and Berry-Hill Galleries (1988-2003). He was represented by galleries in other cities, as well, but not as consistently or for such long periods.

He exhibited extensively in group and solo exhibitions throughout the United States and internationally. In addition to numerous solo exhibitions presented by the dealers who represented Gray, there were retrospective exhibitions at: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Brooklyn Museum, Columbus Museum of Art, Krannert Art Museum (University of Illinois, Champaign), Princeton University Art Museum, Rhode Island School of Design, and Wadsworth Atheneum.

Many museums' permanent collections include the work of Cleve Gray, among them: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Butler Institute of American Art, Columbus Museum of Art, Neuberger Museum of Art (SUNY, College at Purchase), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Newark Museum, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Phillips Collection, Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery (University of Nebraska, Lincoln), Smithsonian Institution, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Whitney Museum of American Art, and Yale University Art Gallery.

Cleve Gray served as artist-in-residence at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in 1963 and at the Honolulu Academy of Arts in 1970, both sponsored by Ford Foundation programs. In 1980, he was appointed an artist-in-residence at the American Academy in Rome, where Francine concurrently served as a writer-in-residence; they returned for shorter periods during each of the subsequent seven years. Cleve Gray was presented the Connecticut Arts Award in 1987, and the Neuberger Museum of Art Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999. He was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Hartford in 1992, and was elected a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1998. In addition, he was a trustee of the Neuberger Museum of Art, New York Studio School, Rhode Island School of Design, and Wadsworth Atheneum.

Cleve Gray hit his head and suffered a massive subdural hematoma after falling on ice outside of his home. He died the following day, December 8, 2004.

Separated Material:

Exhibition catalogs and announcements and two scrapbooks donated to the Archives in 1967 and 1968 were microfilmed on reels D314-D315. Items on reel D315, transferred to the Smithsonian American Art Museum Library in 1975, are not described in this finding aid.

Provenance:

The Cleve Gray papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by Mr. Gray in 1967 and 1968. The bulk of the collection was given by his widow, Francine du Plessix Gray, in 2007 and 2008.

Restrictions:

Use of original material requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordigs with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.

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 -- Connecticut  Search this

Painters -- Connecticut  Search this

Topic:

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this

Vietnamese Conflict, 1961-1975 -- Protest Movements -- United States  Search this

Designers  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women sculptors  Search this

Genre/Form:

Poems

Articles

Photographs

Reviews (documents)

Notes

Illustrations

Notebooks

Sketches

Drafts (documents)

Video recordings

Sound recordings

Interviews

Manuscripts

Paintings

Prints

Watercolors

Drawings

Lectures

Citation:

Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

AAA.grayclev

See more items in:

Cleve Gray papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-grayclev

Creator:

Oakley, Violet, 1874-1961  Search this

Names:

Pennsylvania State Capitol (Harrisburg, Pa.)  Search this

Extent:

56.4 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Diaries

Glass plate negatives

Renderings

Scrapbooks

Sketchbooks

Visitors' books

Sketches

Date:

1841-1981

Summary:

The papers of painter, stained glass artist, and muralist Violet Oakley measure 56.4 linear feet and date from 1841-1981. Found within the papers are biographical materials; personal and business correspondence; writings, including essays, lectures, and project drafts; diaries and journals; financial material; artwork; printed material, including scrapbooks; and photographs, 3 albums, 322 glass plate negatives, and 1600 film negatives of Oakley, her family and friends, and her work.

Scope and Contents:

The papers of painter, stained glass artist, and muralist Violet Oakley measure 56.4 linear feet and date from 1841-1981. Found within the papers are biographical materials; personal and business correspondence; writings, including essays, lectures, and project drafts; diaries and journals; financial material; artwork; printed material, including scrapbooks; and photographs, 3 albums, 322 glass plate negatives, and 1600 film negatives of Oakley, her family and friends, and her work.

Biographical materials include certificates, family records, curriculum vitae, and identification cards, and studio guest books. About one-half of the collection is comprised of correspondence with family, friends, and business associates. Writings include Oakley's notes, essays and lectures, and writings related to 16 of her major artworks and publications, including her work on the Pennsylvania Capitol murals in Harrisburg. Diaries and journals include Oakley's travel notes and research on planned artworks.

Financial materials include a catalog of artworks and price lists, accounting records, and art supply receipts. Artwork includes early childhood juvenilia, a sketchbook, sketches of travel and friends, architectural renderings, and artwork by others. Printed materials include books, clippings, exhibition catalogs, programs, and reproductions of artwork by Oakley and others. Photographic materials include photographs, albums, and negatives depicting Oakley, her friends and family, her studio at Cogslea, and reproductions of artwork.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as 8 series. A comprehensive index of individidual correspondents for the chronological correspondence is found in the first folder of the chronological correspondence in box 5, folder 41. Glass plate negatives are housed separately and closed to researchers, but listed where they fall intellectually within the collection.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1841-1970 (2.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-3, OV 69, OV 71)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1857-1979 (26.7 linear feet; Boxes 3-30)

Series 3: Notes and Writings, 1899-1976 (10.6 linear feet; Boxes 30-38, 58-64, OV 66, OV 70)

Series 4: Diaries and Journals, 1891-1958 (0.9 linear feet, Boxes 38-39)

Series 5: Financial Material, 1874-1977 (3.1 linear feet; Boxes 39-42)

Series 6: Artwork, 1883-1955 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 43-43, 64, OV 67, OV 71)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1866-1981 (7.3 linear feet, Boxes 43-50, 65, OV 67)

Series 8: Photographs, 1890-1980 (5.3 linear feet; Boxes 50-57, 65, OV 68)

Biographical / Historical:

Painter, muralist, and stained glass designer Violet Oakley (1874-1961) lived and worked in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was known for her Renaissance-revival style of art and the series of murals she completed for the Pennsylvania State Capitol.

Born in Bergen Heights, New Jersey, to a family of artists, both of Violet Oakley's grandfathers were painters and members of the National Academy. In 1892, she began her art studies at the Art Students' League and traveled abroad a year later to study in Paris at the Academie Montparnasse, and in England with Charles Lazar. Upon her return to the states in 1896, she continued her studies at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and at Drexel Institute with Howard Pyle.

For fourteen years, Oakley shared her early studios at Red Rose Inn and Cogslea Estate with fellow artists and illustrators Elizabeth Shippen Green and Jessie Willcox Smith. These two studio homes were managed by their friend Henrietta Cozens in a cooperative arrangement which allowed all three artists to focus on their work as commercial artists. Early in her career, Oakley designed covers for magazines such as Collier's Weekly and Century Magazine, and also found work as a stained glass designer for the Church Glass and Decorating Company of New York. In 1900, she received her first major commission to design and execute two large murals and six stained glass pieces for the All Angels' Church in New York City.

In 1902 Oakley was approached by architect Joseph Huston to design 13 murals for the Governor's reception room in the new Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg. She eventually completed two additional mural commissions for the Capitol's Senate (1911-1920) and Supreme Court (1917-1927) chambers. Her studies of William Penn in connection with her murals for the State Capitol inspired Oakley to work for international peace and eventually led to the publication of a portrait folio depicting League of Nations delegates (1932). Other significant works include murals, panels, and stained glass commissions completed for the Vassar College Alumni house, Charlton Yarnall house (Philadelphia), and Cuyuhoga County courthouse.

While working as an established artist, Oakley also taught courses at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, arranged a yearly lecture series, and published folios and other writings on topics ranging from art history to Christian Science under the Coslea Studios imprint. Her later studio, Lower Cogslea, was shared by artist and lifelong companion Edith Emerson, who after Oakley's death in 1961, established a memorial foundation in her name.

Oakley was the first woman elected to the National Society of Mural Painters, was a recipient of the Gold Medal of Honor of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and was the first woman to receive the Gold Medal of Honor from the Architectural League of New York. Her writings include The Holy Experiment: A Message to the World from Pennsylvania (1922) and Law Triumphant: The Opening of the Book of Law (1933).

Related Materials:

Also found among the holdings of the Archives of American Art are the Violet Oakley Memorial Foundation records and the Violet Oakley autograph and photograph. The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts holds the Violet Oakley Foundation Art Collection, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art holds the Violet Oakley Collection.

Separated Materials:

The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming (reels 1204, P12, 1187-1188, 1272, and 1194-1195).

Reel 1204 consists of two scrapbooks (circa 1896-1952) containing clippings from magazines of illustrations by Violet Oakley and her sister, Hester, and of Violet's murals for the State Capitol at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Reel P12 is of a scrapbook (1898-1936) containing a photograph of Oakely at her easel, clippings, and letters. Reels 1187-1188 consist of five scrapbooks (1920-1962) containing letters, clippings, exhibition announcements, catalogs, and awards. One of the scrapbooks is devoted to "The Holy Experiment", a limited edition publication by Oakley which commemorating William Penn, and which includes reproductions of Oakley's capitol murals in Harrisburg.

Reel 1272 contains two albums (circa 1900-1949) containing photos of Oakley working on murals in her studio, as well as her works of art, including stained glass windows at the Church of All Angels, New York; murals at the Harrisburg State Capitol; preliminary drawings and site photographs of "Dante's Window"; the lunettes and window for the Yarnall House; murals and preliminary drawings for the Cuyahoga Court House; the mural and dedication ceremonies for the Vassar Alumnae House; and photos and printed material on "Divine Presence--Christ at Geneva," "The Life of Moses," "Great Women of the Bible," and triptychs for the Army and Navy.

Reels 1194-1195 cobsist of photograph albums (circa 1870-1960) containing photographs of the Oakley and Swain families, of Violet Oakley, Edith Emerson, Jessie Willcox Smith, Elizabeth Shippen Green, friends, her home, Oakley's "Red Rose" studio in Villanova, Pennsylvania, her "Cogslea" studio in Philadelphia, and of her works of art, mainly portraits of her friends and of delegates to the League of Nations.

Lent materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.

Provenance:

Violet Oakley first loaned the Archives of American Art materials for microfilming in 1959. Edith Emerson, Oakley's longtime friend and companion, donated and lent papers for microfilming in 1977 and 1984. The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, who had received the papers from Emerson's estate, donated two feet of materials in 1988.

Restrictions:

Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' research center in Washington, D.C.

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:

Stained glass artists -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this

Muralists -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this

Topic:

Artists' materials  Search this

Artists' studios -- Photographs  Search this

Mural painting and decoration -- United States  Search this

Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs

Diaries

Glass plate negatives

Renderings

Scrapbooks

Sketchbooks

Visitors' books

Sketches

Citation:

Violet Oakley papers, 1941-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.

Identifier:

AAA.oaklviol

See more items in:

Violet Oakley papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-oaklviol