Hutchinson, Mabel Christina Bennett, 1903-1999 Search this
Extent:
1.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Date:
ca. 1910-1990
Scope and Contents:
Memoirs (2 v.); 2 scrapbooks, containing early drawings, letters, cards designed by Hutchinson, articles, catalogs, photographs, and writings; two letters from the Fine Arts Gallery, San Diego, April 1929 outlining the invitation to exhibit in the San Francisco Exposition of 1939; photographs of watercolors and wood constructions; exhibition catalogs; and clippings.
Biographical / Historical:
Sculptor, painter, craftsperson; Capistrano Beach, Calif.
Provenance:
Donated 1995 by Mabel Hutchinson.
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.
The papers of California painter, printmaker, and art instructor Dorr Bothwell date from 1900-2006, and measure 10.6 linear feet and 1.72 GB. Found within the papers are biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, notes and writings, five diaries, art work and 19 sketchbooks, three scrapbooks, printed material, and print and digital photographs.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of California painter, printmaker, and art instructor Dorr Bothwell date from 1900-2006, and measure 10.6 linear feet and 1.72 GB. Found within the papers are biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, notes and writings, five diaries, art work and 19 sketchbooks, three scrapbooks, printed material, and print and digital photographs.
Biographical material consists of biographical sketches, resumés, identity cards, award certificates, typescripts of autobiographical interviews, address books, and a file concerning UFOs, spirituality, and philosophy.
Correspondence consists of letters exchanged between Bothwell and her colleagues and friends discussing their art-related activities, travel, and birthday greetings. There are scattered letters from Ansel and Virginia Adams, Etel Adnan, Benjamin Chinn, Claire Falkenstein, and Emmy Lou Packard.
Personal business records include teaching contracts, contracts and royalty statements for the publication of Bothwell's book Notan, insurance records, income tax records, records concerning a grant from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, estate records, card files, lists of art work, price lists, exhibition entry cards, receipts for the sale of art work, travel receipts, medical receipts, and consignment/sales records.
Notes and writings include three diaries, two travel journals, guest books, miscellaneous lists, schedules of classes for various organizations and art schools including the Ansel Adams Yosemite Workshop, typescripts of lecture notes, and miscellaneous notes. There are also scattered writings by Bothwell and others.
Seventeen sketchbooks, including several completed during Bothwell's travels, and one dated 1942 illustrated with daily drawings of her activities while preparing for World War II, are found within the papers. There are also miscellaneous drawings, collages, a serigraph It's Time for a Change, an etching by Martha Jackson, and a drawing by Charles Howard.
Three scrapbooks contain clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, programs, and photographs of art work. Scrapbook 3 contains materials concerning spiritualism and mysticism. Additional printed material consists of clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases, brochures for art classes, the sale of art work, travel, and camera equipment, reproductions of art work, picture postcards, programs, books, and miscellaneous commercial business cards.
Photographs are of Bothwell, her mother and brother, her studio/residences, miscellaneous friends and colleagues including her former husband, sculptor Donal Hord, miscellaneous events, and art classes conducted by Bothwell. There are also photographs of art work by Bothwell and others, as well as numerous photographs and slides of travel various forms in nature that Bothwell would incorporate into her art work.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 8 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1939-2001 (Box 1, 11, 13, 15; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1942-2002 (Box 1-3, 13; 2.3 linear feet)
Series 3: Personal Business Records, 1925-2006 (Box 3-4; 0.7 linear feet)
Series 4: Notes and Writings, 1949-1998 (Box 4, 11, 14, 15; 0.8 linear feet.)
Series 5: Art Work, 1920-1994 (Box 4-5, 11, 13, 16, 17; 1.5 linear feet)
Series 6: Scrapbooks, 1926-1979 (Box 5, 11, 12; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1923-2000 (Box 5-7, 12, 13; 1.8 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographs, 1900-2001 (Box 7-9, 10; 2.4 linear feet, ER01-ER04; 1.72 GB)
Biographical Note:
Dorr Bothwell (1902-2000) worked primarily in California as a painter, printmaker, and art instructor.
Doris Bothwell was born on May 3, 1902 in San Francisco, and later changed her first name to Dorr in order to more easily enter the art business. Bothwell began her art studies in 1916 with her parents' friend Anna Valentien, a student of Rodin. Between 1921 and 1922, she studied at the California School of Fine Art, and continued her studies at the University of Oregon at Eugene. After attending the Rudolph Schaeffer School of Design in 1924, she established her own studio in San Francisco from 1924 to 1927. Also during this time Bothwell, with eight other artists opened the Modern Gallery on Montgomery Street, mounting her first solo exhibition there in 1927.
Between 1928 and 1929, Bothwell traveled to American Samoa, where she created paintings and drawings, and documented tapa (barkcloth) drawings for the Bishop Museum of Honolulu. She then spent a year of study in Europe, returning to San Diego, California in 1931 and marrying sculptor Donal Hord. Four years later, they divorced and she moved to Los Angeles where she worked for the pottery manufacturer Gladding McBean, joined the post-surrealist group around Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg and opened the Bothwell-Cooke Gallery.
Between 1936 and 1939, Bothwell worked in the mural division of the Federal Arts Project of Los Angeles, and learned the art of serigraph printing. She designed dioramas and mechanized exhibitions for the Los Angeles County Museum. In 1940 she also created murals in the Manning Coffee Restaurant in San Francisco.
After teaching color and design at the California School of Fine Art in San Francisco from 1944 to 1948, Bothwell was awarded the Abraham Rosenberg Traveling Scholarship that financed study in Paris from 1949 to the fall of 1951. In 1952 she taught textile design for mass production at the Parsons School of Design in New York City.
Returning to San Francisco, Bothwell taught again at the California School of Fine Art from 1953 to 1958, and at the San Francisco Art Institute from 1959 to 1960. From 1960 to 1961 she took a sabbatical in England and France, creating paintings for an exhibition. In 1962 she was asked to teach at the new Mendocino Art Center and she taught there until 1983. She was also asked by Ansel Adams to teach design and composition for photographers at his Yosemite Workshop summer sessions, which she did from 1964 to 1977.
From 1966 to 1967, Bothwell documented indigo dying techniques, strip weaving, and pottery in Western Nigeria and Tunisia. In 1968, she published her book, co-authored with Marlys Frey, NOTAN The Principle of Dark-Light Design. The book was reissued in 1991. Bothwell continued her travels from 1970 to 1971, when she studied 12th century enamels in England, France, and Holland, and conducted a symposium, "Notan Design," for the London Educational Authority. In 1974, she traveled to Bali, Java, and Sumatra, making a slide documentary on batik, woodcarving, and folk design.
In 1977 Bothwell moved to Joshua Tree, California, from Mendocino in Northern California, but moved back and forth between the two studio/residences until 1992 when she moved to her last residence on the desert at Apache Junction, Arizona. From 1979 to 1980, she taught composition at the Victor School of Photography in Colorado and a design course at the Women's Art Guild in Kauai, Hawaii. Following a tour of China with a watercolor artists' group in 1982, Bothwell conducted workshops at the Mendocino Art Center. In 1985, she traveled to Japan.
Dorr Bothwell died on September 24, 2000 in Fort Bragg, California.
Provenance:
The Dorr Bothwell papers were donated in 1978 by the artist, and in 2002, 2009, and 2012 by the Dorr Bothwell Trust.
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.
An interview conducted by Stan and Irene Poon Andersen on July 3-4, 1996, New York City, with Dong Kingman. Accompanying the interview are a few newspaper and magazine articles, and a photograph of Kingman, taken by Irene Poon Andersen, 1996. The material was compiled following the 1995 exhibition "With New Eyes: Toward An Asian American Art History in the West," for which Poon Andersen was a curator and exhibitor.
Kingman discusses his early years and education in Oakland, Calif. and Hong Kong; teaching at Mills College, Oakland, University of Wyoming, Laramie and the San Diego Museum; working on the WPA art project; military service with the US Army OSS art department; leaving the Bay Area when he was drafted, moving first to Washington, D.C. and later to New York City where has remained; and work on movies including "Flower Drum Song," "55 Days to Peking," and "Virgin Soldier."
Biographical / Historical:
Dong Kingman (1911-2000) was a Chinese American painter and illustrator based in the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City. Kingman taught at Columbia University and Hunter College. He worked for the Works Progress Administration.
Provenance:
Donated 1997 by Stan Andersen and Irene Poon Andersen.
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.
Occupation:
Artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Artists -- California -- San Francisco Bay Area Search this
Photographs of Carles' works of art; 14 exhibition catalogs and announcements; a Philadelphia Art Museum Bulletin entitled "Arthur B. Carles: A Critical Biographical Study" (Vol. LXIV, Nos. 302-303, 1970) by Gardiner; list of exhibitions in which Carles participated; and a card file index of all of Carles' works.
Biographical / Historical:
Museum curator; San Diego, Calif. Carles was a Philadelphia painter and art instructor.
Provenance:
Donated 1974 by Gardiner of the Fine Art Gallery of San Diego.
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.
Occupation:
Museum curators -- California -- San Diego Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Topic:
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Names:
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Extent:
1 Sound tape reel (Sound recording, 5 in.)
16 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound tape reels
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1964 July 31
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Everett Gee Jackson conducted by Betty Hoag on 1964 July 31 for the Archives of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Everett Gee Jackson (1900-1995) was a painter and illustrator from San Diego, Calif.
General:
An interview of Belle Baranceanu and Hilda Preibisius conducted by B. Hoag 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.
An interview of Harry Sternberg, conducted 1999 March 19-2000 January 7, by Sally Yard, for the Archives of American Art, in Sternberg's studio and nearby restaurant in Escandido, California.
Sternberg discusses his early life in New York, his studio, teaching and the WPA in NYC in the 1930s, including artists' camaraderie and causes. He remembers his childhood and youth; he speaks about his religion and culture. Robert Hoehn also participated in the interview.
During a discussion about printmaking, Sternberg recalled a Martin Schongauer print and the first meeting with Bob Hoehn at the San Diego Museum of Art. He talks about the nature of doing prints and the dialogue with and challenge of the medium. In this context he mentions printer Will Barnet. Among his early exhibition activity, Sternberg recalls his first gallery exhibition at the Weyhe Gallery in NYC, his first review, which was in New Yorker, and his first museum exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Harry Sternberg (1904-2001) was a Graphic artist/painter of Escondido, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 5 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 9 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hr., 23 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 for this interview provided by Robert Hoehn grant.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
New York World's Fair (1939-1940 : New York, N.Y.) Search this
Extent:
1 Sound tape reel (Sound recordings, 5 in.)
15 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound tape reels
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1964 June 25
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Monty Lewis conducted 1964 June 25, by Betty Hoag, for the Archives of American Art.
Interview conducted at Coronado School of Fine Arts in San Diego, Calif. Lewis discusses his art training at the Art Students' League in N.Y., his study of mural and easel painting in Europe, and his freelance mural work before his involvement with the Public Works of Art Project. He describes the developing presence of mural art in New York with Diego Rivera's mural at Rockefeller Center and the 1939 New York World's Fair. Lewis tells of the Artists, Painters, and Sculptors Collaborators, a collaborative group interested in developing community art projects, and discusses the use of murals in the 1939 New York World's Fair and the different techniques used for those and other public projects.
Biographical / Historical:
Monty Lewis (1907-1997) was a painter, designer, muralist in New York and California.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav files. Duration is 49 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.
Topic:
Painters -- California -- San Diego -- Interviews Search this
Muralists -- California -- San Diego -- Interviews Search this
2 Reels (ca. 130 items (on 2 partial microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Reels
Date:
1919-1962
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence of Alfred R. Mitchell and miscellaneous biographical information.
Reel 682: Correspondence with Susan Eakins (Mrs. Thomas); a letter from the Spanish artist Ignacio Zoloaga; and clippings.
Reel 2434: Correspondence with John H. Cox concerning Cox's purchases and sales of Mitchell's paintings; letters from other buyers of his paintings; and an autobiographical sketch. [microfilm title: San Diego Museum of Art]
Biographical / Historical:
Painter and instructor; San Diego, California.
Other Title:
San Diego Museum of Art. [microfilm title, reel 2434]
Provenance:
Lent 1972 and 1982 by San Diego Museum of Art, formerly the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
The papers of sculptor and educator John Battenberg measure 9.4 linear feet and 1.41 GB and date from 1936 to 2013, with the bulk of the records dating from the 1950s to 2012. The records document Battenberg's career through biographical material, correspondence with artists, potential clients, and others, gallery and museum files documenting sales and exhibitions, and professional files related to Battenberg's participation in exhibitions, his teaching work, public art, and other activities. Also found are project files including digital and video recordings documenting specific projects in Arizona, California and elsewhere, in addition to personal business records, printed material, photographic material, and artwork including sketches and a sketchbook.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of sculptor and educator John Battenberg measure 9.4 linear feet and 1.41 GB and date from 1936 to 2013, with the bulk of the records dating from the 1950s to 2012. The records document Battenberg's career through biographical material, correspondence with artists, potential clients, and others, gallery and museum files documenting sales and exhibitions, and professional files related to Battenberg's participation in exhibitions, his teaching work, public art, and other activities. Also found are project files including digital and video recordings documenting specific projects in Arizona, California and elsewhere, in addition to personal business records, printed material, photographic material, and artwork including sketches and a sketchbook.
Biographical material contains writings; appointment books; education, military service, and organization membership records; family histories and genealogical surveys; addresses; and several audiovisual recordings.
Correspondence files consist of Battenberg's communications with other artists, potential clients, collectors, galleries, universities, and others interested in Battenberg's artwork, his exhibitions, commissions, and projects. Personal correspondents include Battenberg's family and friends.
Gallery and museum files document Battenberg's relations with various galleries and museums through correspondence, photographs, sales records, inventories, exhibition material, and some audiovisual recordings.
Professional files shed light on Battenberg's involvement in several group exhibitions; papers related to Battenberg's lectures and teaching activities as well as public art commission competitions.
Project files include correspondence, site plans, photographs and digital photographs, slide copies, sketches, contractual agreements, audiovisual recordings, and more related to projects taken on by Battenberg in Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Nevada.
Personal business records contain studio inventories, records of auctions, donations, and sales, legal documents, financial papers, and papers related to Battenberg's San Francisco studio.
The collection's printed material consists of newspaper clippings and other articles reviewing Battenberg's work, exhibitions, and career; exhibition invitations, announcements, posters, catalogs, and books; copies of Battenberg's self-published books and promotional materials; and two scrapbooks.
Photographs depict models as well as friends and family who posed for Battenberg; his artwork; and personal photographs of Battenberg, his friends, other artists, and family. Artwork consists primarily of sketches, some of which include color, created by Battenberg for various projects and series of work.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 9 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1952-2012 (Box 1; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1962-2008 (Box 1-2; 1 linear foot, ER01; 0.011 GB)
Series 3: Gallery and Museum Files, 1957-2006 (Box 2-3; 1.1 linear feet)
Series 4: Professional Files, 1969-2005 (Box 3-4; 1 linear foot)
Series 5: Project Files, 1983-2005 (Box 4-6; 1.1 linear feet, ER02-ER06; 0.381 GB)
Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1973-2008 (Box 6; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1956-2013 (Box 6-8, 10, OV 11, 1.8 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographic Material, 1936-2012 (Box 8-9; 0.9 linear feet, ER07; 1.01 GB)
Series 9: Artwork, circa 1950-2000s (Box 9-10; 0.7 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
California and Arizona sculptor, painter, and educator John Battenberg (1931-2012) was known primarily for his sculptures of wildlife including wolves, birds, and bears, and was influential in establishing bronze casting on the West Coast of the United States in the 1960s.
Battenberg attended the University of Wisconsin (1949), St. Cloud State College, Minnesota (1954), and Oxford University in England (1955-1957). He received Master of Fine Arts degrees from both Michigan State University (1960) and California College of Arts of Crafts (1964).
Battenberg began exhibiting his work in the late 1940s as a participant in Wisconsin state fair exhibitions. He held had first solo show in 1955 at St. Cloud State College, and had multiple shows during his career including exhibitions at Temple Gallery, London, University of Nevada, Nevada Museum of Art, and the Fresno Art Museum. Group shows that exhibited Battenberg's work included New American Sculpture, U.S. Information Agency (1972), 15th Biennial Exhibit of Contemporary American Painting and Sculpture, University of Illinois (1974), Chicago International Art Show (1990), and many more.
Battenberg had several public art commissions throughout his career for projects in California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Arizona. These projects led to the creation of his sculptures Mystical Bear (1992), Creatures of Nevada (1991), and Flying Pilots (1980). Battenberg's artwork can be found in private collections as well as public collections of the Commune di Pietrasanta, Italy, Royal British War Museum, England, San Diego Museum of Art, National Museum of Wildlife Art, Wyoming, and many more.
Battenberg was also a professor of art at San Jose State University from 1966-1985 and subsequently received the title of professor emeritus. He also worked as an instructor at Contra Costa College, California, California College of Arts and Crafts, and New Mexico Western University. Around 2007 Battenberg returned to painting after an injury prevented him from sculpting, and relocated to Scottsdale, Arizona where he remained for the rest of his life.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 2015 by Lynn Battenberg, John Batternberg's wife.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment, and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital and audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
John Battenberg papers, 1936-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.
An interview of David Avalos conducted 1988 June 16-July 5, by Margarita Nieto, for the Archives of American Art. Avalos speaks of his childhood, education at the University of California at San Diego; his involvement with the Centro Cultural de la Raza; the socio-political environment that produced the San Diego Chicano Muralist movement (specifically Chicano Park); the formation of the Border art Workshop (BAW/TAF); the collaboration between the Centro and the La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art (presently the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art); art activity in San Diego; Chicano activity distinct from Los Angeles; his philosophy on conceptual art; and his art career.
Biographical / Historical:
David Avalos (1947-) is a painter and administrator from San Diego, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 5 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 10 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 44 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Painters -- California -- San Diego -- Interviews Search this
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Names:
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Search this
Extent:
47 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1964 August 1
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Belle Baranceanu and Hilda Preibisius conducted by Betty Hoag on 1964 August 1 for the Archives of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Belle Baranceanu (1902-1988) was a printmaker; San Diego, California. Hilda Preibisius was an illustrator from San Diego, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav file. Duration is 1 hr., 25 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.
Restrictions:
This interview is open for research. Contact Reference Services for more information.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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:
Mel Casas papers, 1963-1998. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing and digitization of this collection received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. Additional funding for the digitization of the papers was provided by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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:
Mel Casas papers, 1963-1998. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing and digitization of this collection received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. Additional funding for the digitization of the papers was provided by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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:
Mel Casas papers, 1963-1998. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing and digitization of this collection received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. Additional funding for the digitization of the papers was provided by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.
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.
Seven linoleum block prints of animals made by Baranceanu for the Works Progress Administration, Fine Art Project, San Diego Curriculum Project begun in 1936.
Provenance:
Relationship of donors, Mr. and Mrs. James Clarke of San Diego, to Baranceanu is unknown. Information on the block prints was taken from an index card stored with the prints.
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.
The papers of painter Marjorie Nodelman measure 1.8 linear feet and date from 1950-2014. Included are biographical material, correspondence, Nodelman's writings about art philosophy, photographs and slides of works of art, commission files, works of art, and printed material.
Biographical / Historical:
Marjorie Nodelman (1950-2014) was a painter in San Diego and Los Angeles, California.
Provenance:
Donated 2018 by Robert Niedringhaus, Nodelman's widower.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
