National Museum of American Art (U.S.) Search this
Extent:
0.4 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Video recordings
Date:
1985-1989
Scope and Contents:
Photographs, slides, and video of self-taught artists taken by Liza Kirwin, Southeast Regional Collector, Archives of American Art, when traveling for the Archives.
Subjects include Howard Finster, Vollis Simpson, Clyde Jones, Dilmus Hall, Mary Smith, David Butler, Royal Robertson, Horacio Valdez, Eddie Owens Martin, Burgess Dulaney, Joseph Fury, Sam Doyle, James "Money Man" McClain, and William C. Rice. Many photographs include images of works of art. Two video recordings taken by Kirwin are of Horacio Valdez at his home in Dixon, New Mexico, in conversation with Andrew L. Connors, Associate Curator, National Museum of American Art (NMAA), and Tonia L. Horton, October 20, 1987, on a research trip in preparation for the exhibition, "Made with Passion: The Hemphill Folk Art Collection in the National Museum of American Art," 1990.
Also found are contact sheets and slides of Finster taken by Smithsonian photographer Richard Strauss on the occasion of filming of "The Living Smithsonian" for Smithsonian World (public television) at Finster's Paradise Garden in Pennville, Georgia, January 1988.
Biographical / Historical:
Liza Kirwin is a curator, arts administrator and author, and Deputy Director and former Southeast Regional Collector, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Provenance:
Donated 2015 by Liza Kirwin.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- Washington (D.C.) Search this
Taylor, Joshua C. (Joshua Charles), 1917-1981 Search this
Names:
National Collection of Fine Arts (U.S.) Search this
National Museum of American Art (U.S.) Search this
Extent:
20.3 Items (linear ft. (partially microfilmed))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1931-1982
Scope and Contents:
The papers of museum director and art historian Joshua Charles Taylor, measure 20.3 linear feet and date from 1931-1982 and include biographical information, correspondence, writings, works of art, a scrpabook, photographs, teaching material and printed material. Biographical information consists of curriculum vitae, bibliographies, and a military honorable discharge certificate. Correspondence is with students and others. Writings include journals 1967, 1969, 1978-1981. Works of art consist of 12 sketchbooks and sketches by Taylor and others. A scrapbook contains programs, photographs, and clippings concerning puppet shows, musical reviews, symphony concerts, and plays, 1933, 1935-1941. Writings include notes, manuscripts, and typescripts for forewords, publications and lectures. photographs and slides are of Taylor, others and artwork. Taylor;s teaching material regards the University of Chicago and includes minutes of meetings, class lists and course outlines, and students' papers.
Biographical / Historical:
Museum director, art historian; Washington, D.C. Taylor was born in Oregon and received his B.A. from Reed College in 1939. He taught theater and served in World War II before completing his M.F.A. and Ph.D. in Art History at Princeton. For more than twenty years he was professor of art history and humanities at the University of Chicago. In 1970 he became the director of the National Museum of American Art (then the National Collection of Fine Arts) a position he held until his death in 1981.
Provenance:
Material on reels 2228-2232 and 14 feet of unmicrofilmed material donated 1981 by Mrs. Stanley Johnson and Mrs. William Wuorinen, sisters of Joshua C. Taylor. Additional 2 feet of additional material was transferred from the National Museum of American Art, 1982-1984.
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.
Restricted for 15 years, until Jan-01-2033. Records may contain personally identifiable information (PII) that is permanently restricted; Transferring office; 2/23/1988, memorandum Shaffer to McManus; Contact reference staff for details
Restricted for 15 years, until Jan-01-2032. Box 3 contains materials restricted indefinitely; see finding aid; Transferring office; 2/23/1988, memorandum Shaffer to McManus; Contact reference staff for details
Interviews of Charles Coiner, Agnes Denes, Leo Leonni, John Vincent Massey, Elizabeth Paepcke (wife of Container President Walter Paepcke), and Edward Warwick, regarding the Container Corporation of America's advertising campaigns and the development of the art collection. Also discussed is the role of the advertising agency N. W. Ayer and Son to the Container Corporation of America. The interviews were conducted by Martina Norelli, associate curator of graphic arts of the National Museum of American Art, in preparation for the exhibition and catalog "Art, Design, and the Modern Corporation," held October 24, 1985-January 19, 1986.
Provenance:
Donated 1991 by the National Museum of American Art.
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.
Guilbeau, Honore (Honore Cooke), 1907- Search this
Extent:
21 Items ((on partial microfilm reel))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1969-1972
Scope and Contents:
Records relating to a possible demonstration and exhibition of a Synchroma machine at the National Collection of Fine Arts. Correspondence is between Adelyn Breeskin and Jan Mulhert of the museum's 20th century department and inventors Stanley Elliott and Honore Guilbeau. Photographs, descriptive statements, and clippings are also included.
Biographical / Historical:
The National Collection of Fine Arts, a branch of the Smithsonian Institution, changed its name through an act of Congress to the National Museum of American Art in 1980. The Syncroma machine creates constantly changing visual images using sonic inputs supplied by the artist.
Provenance:
Adelyn Breeskin represented NCFA in this gift to the Archives.
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.
Occupation:
Kinetic artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An audiotape recording (3 cassettes) of "Dada and Surrealism in America: A Symposium in honor of Man Ray," sponsored by the National Museum of American Art, December 3, 1988, in conjunction with the exhibition, "Perpetual Motif: The Art of Man Ray." Also included is a videotape (VHS 118 min.) of the afternoon session of the symposium, a list of speakers and brief summaries of the papers; and printed material concerning the symposium.
Papers were delivered by Dawn Ades, Professor of Art History and Theory, University of Essex, England; Michel Sanouillet, Director, Centre du Vingtieme Siecle, University de Nice, France; and Dickran Tashjian, Chair, Dept. of Comparative Culture, University of California at Irvine. Panel discussion participants included Merry Foresta, Curator of the exhibition; John Baldessari, artist; Walter Hopps, Director, The Menil Collection, Houston, Texas; Jean-Hubert Martin, Director, Musee Nationale d'Art Moderne, Paris; Roberta Smith, critic; Lucien Treillard, personal ass't to Man Ray, 1960-1976; and William Wegman, artist.
Provenance:
Transferred from the National Museum of American Art in 1989.
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.
The papers of art historian, curator, and professor Robert Rosenblum measure 38.3 linear feet and 1.17 GB and date from circa 1927 to 2009, with the bulk dating from 1950 to 2006. They include biographical material, extensive personal and professional correspondence; lectures, writings, and writing project files by Rosenblum and others; exhibition files; research reference files; teaching files; personal business records; printed and digital material; photographs; and artwork.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of art historian, curator, and professor Robert Rosenblum measure 38.3 linear feet and 1.17 GB and date from circa 1927 to 2009, with the bulk dating from 1950 to 2006. They include biographical material, extensive personal and professional correspondence; lectures, writings, and writing project files by Rosenblum and others; exhibition files; research reference files; teaching files; personal business records; printed and digital material; photographs; and artwork.
Biographical materials include Rosenblum's bibliography and resume materials, various school related ephemera and diplomas, a transcript of an interview with Amy Newman for Artforum, and a digital video recording of a Josef Levi interview. Extensive personal and professional correspondence is with friends, family, colleagues, publishers, museums, and others. Some of the correspondents include Melvin Becraft, the Guggenheim, Harry Abrams, Inc., Hilton Kramer, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the National Museum of American Art. Also found are numerous postcards.
Lectures, writings, and writing project files document Rosenblum's prolific writing and speaking career, and include notes, copies, and manuscript drafts of lectures, articles, catalog essays, and books, as well as additional materials related to the writings and the publication of books, such as as correspondence, editing feedback, photographs, and lists of photographs. There are manuscript, notes, and other materials related to many of Rosenblum's notable books, including Transformations in Late Eighteenth-Century Art, Paintings in the Musee D'Orsay, 19th-Century Art, The Dog in Art, Ingres, Modern Painting and the Northern Tradition, and others. Also found are Rosenblum's dissertation and other student writings. There is also a series containing writings by or about others, such as students and colleagues.
Rosenblum planned and facilitated numerous exhibitions that are well-documented within the exhibition files, including French Painting, 1774-1830: The Age of Revolution (1974), 1900: Art at the Crossroads (2000), Norman Rockwell: Pictures for the American People (2001), Best in Show: Dogs in Art from the Renaissance to the Present (2006), and Citizens and Kings: Portraits in the Age of Revolution, 1760-1830 (2007), among many others. Contents of each exhibition file vary considerably but often include correspondence, lists of artwork, proposals, notes, catalog drafts and outlines (see also series 3), and printed materials. There are a few sound cassettes, including a recorded interview with James Rosenquist with transcripts. Also included are digital photographs of Norman and Irma Braman Collection exhibition.
Research reference files cover a wide variety of art related topics, but are arranged within a separate series because they are not related to specific named projects as are the files in Series 3. These files contain research notes, bibliographies, and syllabi kept by Rosenblum presumably for a variety of publications, research interests, and teaching references.
Teaching files and class notes document Rosenblum's professorial career at Columbia University, New York University, Princeton University, University of Michigan, Yale College, and Yale University, and include a variety of course materials.
Personal business records consist of various financial and legal documents, expense and income records, publishing and speaking contracts, and royalties received.
The papers also include a variety of printed materials, photographs, student sketches by Rosenblum, and an unidentified collage.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 11 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1927-2006 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1, 1.00 GB; ER02)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1927-2006 (4.5 linear feet; Boxes 1-5)
Series 3: Lectures, Writings, and Writing Project Files, 1940-2006 (13.5 linear feet; Boxes 5-16, OV 39-41, 0.063 GB; ER01)
Series 4: Writings by Others, circa 1954-2006 (2.9 linear feet; Boxes 16-19)
Series 5: Exhibition Files, circa 1965-circa 2006 (5.2 linear feet; Boxes 19-24, 0.109 GB; ER03)
Series 6: Research Files, circa 1927-2006 (2.9 linear feet; Boxes 24-27)
Series 7: Teaching Files and Class Notes, 1955-2006 (4.3 linear feet; Boxes 27-31)
Series 8: Personal Business Records, 1951-2009 (4.4 linear feet; Boxes 31-36)
Series 9: Printed Material, 1927-2009 (2.4 linear feet; Boxes 36-38)
Series 10: Photographs, circa 1950s-circa 2000 (0.3 linear feet; Box 38, OV 41)
Series 11: Artwork, circa 1940s-circa 1980s (0.1 linear feet; Box 38)
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Rosenblum (1927-2006) was an art historian, curator, and professor who worked primarily in New York City.
Rosenblum received his B.A. from Queens College, his M.A. from Yale, and his Ph.D. from the Institute of Fine Art at New York University in 1956. He spent a year teaching art at the University of Michigan before becoming an associate professor at Princeton, ultimately accepting a Professor of Fine Arts position at NYU in 1966, where he spent the rest of his professorial career interspersed with visiting professorships at Oxford University and Yale University. Rosenblum was named Henry Ittleson, Jr. Professor of Modern European Art at NYU in 1976, and received the Frank Jewett Mather Award for Distinction in Art Criticism in 1981. After being appointed Stephen and Nan Swid Curator of 20th-Century Art at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 1996, Rosenblum went on to curate such exhibitions as 1900: Art at the Crossroads (2000) and Norman Rockwell: Pictures for the American People (2001). Prior to this appointment, he was one of the organizers of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's French Painting, 1774-1830: The Age of Revolution (1974). He received a Distinguished Teaching Award from NYU in 2005, and continued to curate, lecture, teach, and write.
Rosenblum was a prolific author, and his seminal works include: Cubism and Twentieth-Century Art (1959), Transformations in Late Eighteenth-Century Art (1967), Modern Painting and the Northern Romantic Tradition: Friedrich to Rothko (1975), and 19th-Century Art (co-authored with H.W. Janson, 1984).
Rosenblum married Jane Kaplowitz in 1978. He died in New York City in 2006.
Provenance:
The papers were donated in multiple accessions by Robert Rosenblum between 1986 and 2003, and by his widow, Jane Kaplowitz between 2010 and 2013.
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. Use of archival audiovisual recordings and electronic media 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:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
A letter from Finster to Barbara Shissler Nosanow at the National Museum of American Art, discussing his upcoming visit to Washington, D.C. The letter is illustrated in pencil with sketches of Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, William Henry Harrison, Andrew Jackson and William Shakespeare. Finster writes: "I am excited to be coming to Washington where these great men once had our future responsibility upon them I feel so unworthy to live in a world of luxery (sic) and these great men paved our way..." Also included are several handmade cards and leaflets, enclosed in a note to Nosanow: "I was going to demastrat (sic) how I make these card in the show but we ran out of time."
Biographical / Historical:
Barbara Shissler Nosanow was the curator of an exhibit titled "More than land or sky: art from Appalachia," which ran at the National Museum of American Art from October 30, 1981 to January 3, 1982, and featured works by self-taught artist Howard Finster.
Provenance:
Transferred 1993 from the National Museum of American Art, which received the materials from Howard Finster.
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.
