New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Extent:
28 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1965 November 29
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Herbert J. Brown conducted 1965 November 29, by Geoffrey Swift, for the Archives of American Art. Brown speaks of his background in music, duties in the Federal Art Project of Massachusetts, artists and their works associated with the Project, the Index of American Design, and government support of artists.
Biographical / Historical:
Herbert J. Brown was an art administrator from Natick, Massachusetts. Assistant State Director for Federal Art Project, Massachusetts.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav file. Duration is 47 min.
Provenance:
Conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- Massachusetts -- Natick -- Interviews Search this
Papers relating to Jensen's work as supervisor of the WPA art projects in Maine and her work on the Index of American Design. Included are: several letters received, primarily from the National Gallery of Art's curator for the Index of American Design, 1949 and 1984-1991; notebook of a working list for the Index of American Design, which also contains annotations, notes and newspaper clippings, ca. 1940; notes; photographs of quilting, stencils, painting, and woodcarving; a rendering of a rocking chair; and printed material.
Biographical / Historical:
Art administrator; Maine. Supervisor of the Federal Art Project in Maine, 1936-1941; gathering information for the Index of American Design was one phase of their work. The Index of American Design was a research division of the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration which produced approximately 20,000 reproductions (photographs and original drawings) and classifications of a wide variety of American art, paintings, sculpture, handicrafts and folk art.
Provenance:
Donated 1992 by Dorothy Hay Jensen.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
In his correspondence with Hartigan (1979-1984), Harnly discusses Cornell, the Levy Gallery, the Index of American Design, his own career, and other artists such as Howard Taft Lorenz. Hartigan's correspondence concerning the exhibition includes letters from Harnly's friend Henry Warshaw. Hartigan's research materials on Harnly include her typed interview questions with Harnly's written responses, newspaper and magazine articles, exhibition catalogs and announcements, copies of the Index of American Design data sheets for Harnly's watercolors, an exhibition history and chronology, Harnly's undated autobiographical notes, two photographs of Harnly, and photographs of works of art by Harnly not included in the NMAA exhibition.
Biographical / Historical:
Lynda Hartigan is an art historian and museum curator; Washington, D.C. Perkins Harnly is best known for his imaginative watercolor renderings of Victorian interiors for the Index of American Design. Harnly grew up in Nebraska. From childhood he was fascinated by the decorative and popular arts, especially by late Victorian design and domestic architecture. Through travel and self-education, he broadened his knowledge of design and developed his skill as a watercolorist. The Index of American Design commissioned him to compose watercolor renderings of American interiors decorated and furnished in the Victorian style. After the dissolution of the Federal Project in 1943, he worked as a sketch artist for the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio in Hollywood.
Provenance:
Collected by Lynda Hartigan for the exhibition PERKINS HARNLY: FROM THE INDEX OF AMERICAN DESIGN, which she co-curated with Virginia Mecklenberg, at the National Museum of American Art (1981-1982). Hartigan initially became interested in Harnly because he had exhibited in a three-man show at the Julien Levy Gallery with Joseph Cornell in the early 1930s. After some searching, she found Harnly living in a hotel in Culver City, California, and began a detailed correspondence with him.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Furniture designer; draughtsman for Index of American Design; New Mexico.
Provenance:
Donated 1971 by Sylvia Loomis who probably received it from Thomas.
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.
An interview of Nina Perera Collier conducted 1964 October 23, by Sylvia Loomis for the Archives of American Art.
Collier speaks of her background and parental influence; her education at Columbia University; coming to Washington in 1932; working for the Public Works of Art Project on a survey of Indian arts and crafts work; her work for the Index of American Design; work on other Federal Art Project programs; her post-W.P.A. career, including working for the Cultural Relations division of the State Department; going to Bolivia and working on educational programs; her feelings about government support for the arts; political problems with the project; and Eleanor Roosevelt.
Biographical / Historical:
Nina Perera Collier (1907- ) is an art administrator in Alcade, New Mexico. Worked on various federally supported art programs during the Depression.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav file. Duration is 1 hr., 53 min.
Provenance:
This interview conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Typed notes dated November 6, 1963, excerpted from her notebook. Boyd describes her work for the Index of American Design in New Mexico, 1936-1937, where she was engaged in research, did renderings of folk art for the Index and especially the Portfolio of Spanish Colonial Design, and handled photographs by project photographers. She comments on the quality of work done by artists and photographers on the project.
Biographical / Historical:
Museum curator (Santa Fe, N.M.)
Provenance:
Donated 1964 by E. Boyd.
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.
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Extent:
24 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1964 October 8
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Elizabeth Boyd conducted 1964 October 8, by Sylvia Loomis, for the Archives of American Art.
Boyd discusses her early art training in Philadelphia and Paris; involvement with the Index of American Design; work on the Federal Art Project; New Mexico folk artists; folk art exhibitions in Philadelphia; and the inception of Spanish Colonial department of New Mexico State Museum.
Biographical / Historical:
Elizabeth Boyd (1903-1974) is an art administrator, painter, and writer from Santa Fe, New Mexico.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav file. Duration is 55 min.
Provenance:
Conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
An interview of Adele Brandeis conducted 1965 June 1, by Harlan Phillips, for the Archives of American Art. Brandeis speaks of her involvement on the Index of American Design; murals for the Federal Art Project in Kentucky; Kentucky artists; and Frank Long, Richard Morrison, Henry Varnum Poor, Harold Weston, and Kenneth Donahue.
Biographical / Historical:
Adele Brandeis (1885-1975) was the director of the Federal Art Project and from Louisville, Kentucky.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav file. Duration is 1 hr., 4 min.
An interview of Lou Block conducted by H. Phillips is also on this tape.
Provenance:
Conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- Kentucky -- Louisville -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Richard Hood conducted by Richard Doud on 1964 Dec. 15 for the Archives of American Art, as part of the Oral History Project.
Hood speaks of joining the Federal Art Project; the development of a graphic arts section of the program; the events leading up to his becoming state director for the FAP in Pennsylvania; for the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project. how projects were assigned and work carried out; the Index of American Design in Pennsylvania, and particularly its study of Pennsylvania Dutch design; budget and administrative problems; political problems and public perception of the Project; his post-FAP career; his opinions about government support for the arts.
This interview conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Sound recording: 1 sound tape reel, 7 in. ; (24 p. transcript on partial microfilm reel)
24 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1965
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Joseph Hirsch conducted by Harlan Phillips in 1965 for the Archives of American Art.
Hirsch speaks of his early education and background in industrial art; his first involvement with the Federal Art Project, including the easel painting project, murals, and the Index of American Design; artistic experimentation during the 1930s; public perception of federally suuported art projects. He recalls Holger Cahill, Audrey McMahon and Mary Curran.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, lithographer; New York, N.Y. and Pennsylvania.
General:
An unrelated interview of Louis Schanker conducted by H. Phillips is also on this tape.
Provenance:
Conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.
Material relating to the Federal Art Project; and correspondence.
REEL D/NDA/B: Reports; directives; articles; lectures; speeches; clippings; publications; the mock-up of a projected book on the project; and essays written for the book by Stuart Davis and Balcomb Greene. Papers were kept by Benson as consultant to the Federal Art Project and are mostly related to the Community Art Centers and the Index of American Design.
REEL 2384: 482 cards and letters from artists and friends; lecture notes and writings; and a photograph (unidentified). Correspondents include Karl Knaths, Alexander Calder, Gustav Wolff, Alfred Stieglitz, Jacques Lipchitz, George Grosz, Arthur Machen, John Marin, Franklin Watkins, Wassily Kandinsky, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Educator, writer, and lecturer; Philadelphia, Pa. Was a consultant for the WPA Federal Art Project. Began a book on the project and died before it was finished. Francis V. O'Connor edited and completed the book, ART FOR THE MILLIONS.
Provenance:
Donated 1964-1978 by Benson and his widow, Elaine Benson.
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.
