The New Arts records measure 1.3 linear feet and date from 1950 to 1979. The collection sheds light on the gallery's operations through correspondence, exhibition files, printed material, artists' files, and more.
Scope and Contents:
The New Arts records measure 1.3 linear feet and date from 1950 to 1979. The collection sheds light on the gallery's operations through administrative records and artists' files. Administrative records include artwork authentification records, correspondence with museums, galleries, and private collectors, exhibition files, ephemera from exhibitions held elsewhere, and editions of the Contemporary Arts Council calendar. Artists' files consist of correspondence, price lists, photos of artwork and installations, exhibition ephemera, reviews, some resumes, and more. Artists covered include Forrest Bess, James Boynton, Lawrence Calcagno, Joseph Cornell, Max Ernst, Walter Kuhlman, Peter Plagens, Hassel Smith, Richard Steinberg, and Jean Varda.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as two series.
Series 1: Administrative Records, 1952-1970 (Box 1; .4 linear feet)
Series 2: Artists' Files, 1950-1979 (Box 1-2, OV 3; .9 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
The New Arts was founded in 1956 in Houston, Texas by Kathryn Swenson. The gallery was initially established to exhibit and sell pre-Columbian artwork, the bulk of which came from Andre Emmerich's private collection. Swenson asked friend and museum specialist Jermayne MacAgy to help with the exhibition display, and then sometime in the next two years, the gallery began to show established local artists. Pre-Columbian shows persisted throughout The New Arts' existence, but the gallery shifted its focus towards exhibiting a wide range of contemporary painters and sculptors by the late 1950s. Artists exhibited at The New Arts include Jack Boynton, Forest Bess, Hassel Smith, Max Ernst, Walter Kuhlman, Lawrence Calcagno, Joseph Cornell, Peter Plagens, and Jean Varda.
The New Arts closed in 1974.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Marc Moldawer, Kathryn Swenson, and Robert Wilson conducted by Sandra Curtis Levy, August 15, 1984.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 1979 by gallery owner and director Kathryn Swenson.
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.
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.
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Texas
Citation:
The New Arts records, 1950-1979. 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.
The David Gallery records measure 0.5 linear feet and date from 1963 to 1982. This small collection sheds light on the gallery's operations through correspondence, photographs, printed material, exhibition ephemera, and several price lists. The collection also includes an etching by artist Lucas Johnson.
Scope and Contents:
The David Gallery records measure 0.5 linear feet and date from 1963 to 1982. The collection consists of correspondence with museums, friends, and artists, including Seymour Leichman and illustrated letters by Donald Roller Wilson; an essay, posters, announcements, and catalogs from exhibitions held at David Gallery; an etching made by Lucas Wilson; newspaper clippings, advertisements, and articles; and the resumes of artists Bob Fowler and Bruce Kleinsmith, also known as Futzie Nutzle. Photographs in the collection include images of artists Lucas Johnson, Forest Moses, Bob Fowler, Paul Maxwell, Bob Camblin, and others; events and exhibitions held at David Gallery; the gallery's exterior; an exhibition installation; and of Dianne David, the gallery's founder.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the records are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
The David Gallery was founded in Houston, Texas in 1963 by Dianne David. The gallery exhibited mostly local painters and sculptors, and had a large influence on the Houston contemporary art scene. David was known for representing and exhibiting artists whose work and personality she liked personally. Artists shown at the gallery include Bob Camblin, Lucas Johnson, Donald Roller Wilson, Seymour Leichmann, and Bob Fowler, all of whom she became friends with. David closed her gallery in 1982.
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming. Reel 3100 frames 1-138 consist of David Gallery exhibition announcements. Reel 3100 frames 143-583 consists of 14 artists' files compiled by Dianne David, which include correspondence, mostly letters received by Dianne David; printed material; sketches and 2 etchings by Bob Camblin; and photographs of artists, their works and 1 photo of the gallery. Artists' include: William C. Agee, Jack Boynton, Bob Camblin, Roy Fridge, James Kearns, Seymour Leichman, Jim Love, David McManaway, Robert Morris, Futzie Nutzle, Peter Paone, Mike Selig and Don Shaw. Materials were returned to the lenders after microfilming. Loaned materials were returned to the donor and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
Microfilmed as part of the Archives of American Art's Texas project, material on reel 3100, frames 1-138 were lent for microfilming 1983 by Lester Giese; and reel 3100 frames 143-583 were lent for microfilming in 1983 by Dianne David, owner of the gallery. The records were donated in 1981 by Dianne David.
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.
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.
Art -- Collectors and collecting -- Texas -- Houston Search this
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Texas
Citation:
David Gallery records, 1963-1982. 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.
The papers of Ary Stillman measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1924 to 1983. The papers document his career as a painter through reminiscences, a diary, and other writings on art; a video recorded conversation with Frances Stillman on her husband Ary, a documentary on Stillman's art career, correspondence, a file of photographs of artwork, list of artwork, and other professional activity; clippings, exhibition catalogs, and other printed material.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Ary Stillman measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1924 to 1983. The papers document his career as a painter through reminiscences, a diary, and other writings on art; a video recorded conversation with Frances Stillman on her husband Ary, a documentary on Stillman's art career, correspondence, a file of photographs of artwork, list of artwork, and other professional activity; clippings, exhibition catalogs, and other printed material.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.
Series 1: Writings, 1928-1952 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Professional Activity Files, 1944-1983 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Printed Material, 1924-1979 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1)
Biographical / Historical:
Ary Stillman (1891-1967) was painter in New York, N.Y. He was born in Russia and emigrated to the United States as a child. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and the National Academy of Design. In 1921 he moved to Paris and participated in numerous exhibitions there over the next twelve years. Stillman returned to the United States in 1933. When the horrors of the Holocaust were revealed, Stillman shifted his focus to abstract works, and by 1948, his work was completely non-objective. Stillman died in 1967. The Stillman-Lack Foundation was founded after his death in accordance with his wishes.
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm material lent for microfilming (reels 1772-1773) including correspondence, 1976-1979, between Frances Stillman and Clement Greenberg regarding Ary's work; a 109 page reminiscence, dictated by Stillman and supplemented by Frances, covering his early life, his move to the United States, and subsequent trips abroad; excerpts from Frances' diary; and Stillman's remarks about his art. Loaned materials were returned to the Stillman-Lack Foundation in Houston, Texas and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
Papters were donated in 1967 and 1980 by Frances Stillman, Ary Stillman's widow and president of the Stillman-Lack Foundation (http://www.stillmanlack.org/); she donated the videos in 1985. Material on reel 1772 and the scrapbook on reel 1773 were lent for microfilming by the Stillman-Lack Foundation, 1980.
Restrictions:
Reel 1772: ACCESS RESTRICTED: written permission required.
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 audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References 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.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Genre/Form:
Video recordings
Interviews
Diaries
Citation:
Ary Stillman papers, 1924-1983. 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.
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Vincent Valdez, 2020 August 13. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
An interview with Brenda Kingery conducted 2022 September 10-15, by Laura Marshall Clark for the Archives of American Art, at Kingery's studio in San Antonio, Texas.
Biographical / Historical:
Brenda Kingery (Chickasaw; 1939- ) is a painter and educator who creates syncretic works that incorporate elements from indigenous cultures around the globe. Kingery was raised in Oklahoma, studied in Okinawa, and is based in San Antonio, Texas. Laura Marshall Clark (Muscogee Creek; 1953- ) is an indigenous scholar, educator, and curator who has worked in Oklahoma City, OK and is currently based in Houston, TX.
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.
Restrictions:
This interview is open for research. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its Oral History Program interviews available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. Quotation, reproduction and publication of the recording is governed by restrictions. If an interview has been transcribed, researchers must quote from the transcript. If an interview has not been transcribed, researchers must quote from the recording. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
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:
Exhibition records of the Contemporary Study Wing of the Finch College Museum of Art, 1943-1975. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, administered through the Council on Library and Information Resources' Hidden Collections grant program. Funding for the digitization of two motion picture films was provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee, and for the remaining sound and video recordings from the Smithsonian's Collection Care Pool Fund. Funding for the digitization of the collection, not including audiovisual materials, was provided by The Walton Family Foundation and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
The papers of painter Joseph Glasco measure 8.3 linear feet and date from 1930 to 1996, with the bulk from 1950 to 1996. The collection documents Glasco's career through biographical material, extensive personal and professional correspondence, personal business records, gallery and exhibition files, photographic material, and printed material.
Biographical material includes a scrapbook (compiled by the artist's mother) containing report cards, military service records, and photographs, newspaper and magazine clippings related to his art career, and a few drawings. Also included are resumes, notebooks, and legal documents. Correspondence reflects relationships with other artists, galleries, museums, and family members. Writings include texts about Glasco by others. Personal business records include gallery sales records, studio records, and leases. Photographic materials document Glasco, his friends and family, home, and studio, as well as individual artworks and exhibition views. Photographic formats include color and black and white prints (including a large number of Polaroids), 35mm slides, and medium format transparencies. Printed material includes exhibition brochures and catalogues, invitations, and clippings related to Glasco and his work, as well as a small collection of clippings relating to the artist's personal friends.
Biographical / Historical:
Joseph Glasco (1925-1966) was an American painter and sculptor based in New York City and Galveston, Texas.
Provenance:
18 photocopies were donated in 1985 by Joseph Glasco and transferred to the NMAA/PG library after microfilming. A majority of the collection was donated in 2021 by Jospeh Galsco estate advisor, Marti Mayo, and estate trustee, Richard Orrock.
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.
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.
Painters of the Southwest landscape : Otis Dozier, William Lester, Everett Spruce / by Francine Carraro, undated. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers measure 3.1 linear feet and date from 1951 to 1985. The papers provide a snapshot of Camblin's career as an artist and educator through personal papers, printed material, artwork, photographs, and motion picture film and video recordings.
Scope and Contents:
The Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers measure 3.1 linear feet and date from 1951 to 1985. The papers provide a snapshot of Camblin's career as an artist and educator through personal papers, printed material, artwork, photographs, and motion picture film and video recordings.
Personal papers include resumes and printed material such as exhibition catalogs and announcements and clippings. Camblin's artwork includes sketches, expressive writings, drawings, and prints. Photographic material includes images of artwork, friends, family, trips, and miscellany; and moving images include home videos of art, art techniques, leisure activities, and autobiographical films.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 4 series.
Series 1: Personal Papers, 1951-1985 (5 folders; Box 1)
Series 2: Artwork, 1951-1985 (8 folders; Box 1)
Series 3: Photographs, 1951-1980 (1 linear foot; Box 1, 2)
Series 4: Moving Images, circa 1970-1976 (1.8 linear feet; Box 2; FCs 3-19)
Biographical / Historical:
Bob Bilyeu Camblin (1928-2010) was a modernist painter and educator active in Houston, Texas. Camblin experimented with a wide variety of media and is known for collaborative projects with many artists, including a collective known as The Holding Firm with Earl Staley and Joe Tate in Houston.
Born in Ponca City, Oklahoma, Camblin served in the United State Army (1948-1949) and Air Force (1950-1951) before receiving his bachelor of fine arts in 1954, and his master of fine arts degree in 1955. He worked as a map make from 1955-1958 before holding teaching posts at multiple institutions including the Kansas City Art Institute, the Ringling School of Art, Sarasota Florida, the University of Illinois, the University of Detroit, the University of Utah, and Rice University in Houston.
While living in Houston Camblin collaborated with artists Earl Staley and Joe Tate, as the B. E. and J. Holding Firm, or The Holding Firm. The collective worked on multiple projects including paintings, drawings, art excursions, and exhibitions.
Camblin's first one-man show was held in 1955 at the Kansas City Art Institute and his work has been exhibited in other solo exhibitions including at Oklahoma State University (1961), Plumtree Gallery, Salt Lake City, Utah (1965-1966), Windsor College, Canada (1965), David Gallery, Houston (1969-1970), and the Graham Gallery in Houston (1989). Camblin participated in many group exhibitions including ART:USA 58 (1958), Fulbright Artists Exhibition, Nelson Gallery of Art, Kansas City (1958), Childe Hassam Purchase Fund Show, American Academy of Arts and Letters (1958), and Printmaking in Texas: The 1980s Modern Art Museum, Fort Worth (1990).
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming by Mrs. Eldon Jensen on Reel 2248, including six sketchbooks, 1979-1980, containing sketches, writings, and a few letters. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Some of the material from reels 3461 and 3462 including correspondence, clippings, files on the Document Show, the Barter Show, B. E. and J. Holding Firm and the Venice Venture are available for use only at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston and through interlibrary loan, and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Sandra Curtis Levy in a series of accessions between 1979-1986.
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 audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References 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.
Bob Bilyeu Camblin papers, 1951-1985. 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.
1.7 Linear feet ((partially microfilmed on 4 reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Date:
1960-1981
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence, photographs, slides, sketches and sketchbooks, printed material, journals, and motion picture films.
REEL 2879: Two journals containing daily entries concerning Staley's work and family; ink sketches; photographs of his family, friends, and art work; clippings; and exhibition announcements.
REELS 2880-2882: Correspondence with Jack Boynton, Bob Camblin, and Dick Wray; exhibitions list, announcements, invitations, catalogs, and clippings; lecture notes; "B & E Productions" file; sketches and 9 sketchbooks; and ca. 75 photographs.
UNMICROFILMED: Ca. 300 slides of drawings, prints, paintings, ceramics, belts, planters, and weather vanes by Staley, Bob Camblin, and Joe Tate; films by Staley, "Smoked Links," "All the Signs from Houston to Galveston and Back," and "Staley Draws"; films by Roy Fridge, "Student Film," and "Cube Art"; films by Staley, Camblin and Tate, "BEJ I" and "Holding Firm II"; and unidentified film and tapes.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, craftsman, and filmmaker; Houston, Tex.
Provenance:
Material on reels 2879-2882 lent for microfilming by Staley, 1981, as part of the Archives of American Art's Texas project. Unmicrofilmed material donated by Staley, 1981.
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 records of the American Federation of Arts (AFA) provide researchers with a complete set of documentation focusing on the founding and history of the organization from its inception through the 1960s. The collection measures 79.8 linear feet, and dates from 1895 through 1993, although the bulk of the material falls between 1909 and 1969. Valuable for its coverage of twentieth-century American art history, the collection also provides researchers with fairly comprehensive documentation of the many exhibitions and programs supported and implemented by the AFA to promote and study contemporary American art, both nationally and abroad.
Scope and Content Note:
The records of the American Federation of Arts (AFA) provide researchers with a complete set of documentation focusing on the founding and history of the organization from its inception through the 1960s. The collection measures 79.8 linear feet, and dates from 1895 through 1993, although the bulk of the material falls between 1909 and 1969. Valuable for its coverage of twentieth-century American art history, the collection also provides researchers with fairly comprehensive documentation of the many exhibitions and programs supported and implemented by the AFA to promote and study contemporary American art, both nationally and abroad.
The earliest documentation from 1895 to 1909 concerns the organization's history and founding and is located in Series 1: Board of Trustees. Also found in this series are meeting minutes, 1909-1963 and 1968. Interfiled with the board meeting minutes are minutes of the executive committee and other special and ad hoc committees, reports to the board, financial statements and reports, and lists of committee appointments and board membership. This series also contains the scattered correspondence and subject files of various officers. Although not a complete set of officers' files, Presidents' Frederick Allen. Whiting (1931-1936), Lawrence M.C. Smith (1948-1952), Thomas Brown Rudd (1952-1954), Daniel Longwell (1954-1956), James S. Schramm (1956-1958), and Roy R. Neuberger (1958-1961) are represented. Leila Mechlin served on AFA's board as secretary from its founding to 1929, and her files are a particularly rich resource for AFA's activities during its early years. Lawrence M.C. Smith's files documenting his years as board treasurer are also arranged in this series. Additional officers' correspondence is interspersed throughout the Alphabetical Files and other series.
General information about the scope of AFA's programs, affiliations, founding, functions, and proceedings are arranged in Series 2: Administrative Records. The first subseries, Alphabetical Files, houses a wide variety of subject files that contain memoranda, correspondence, printed materials, lists, reports, and other papers. These files document the AFA's general history and founding, organizational affiliations, buildings and moves, grants, federal and state government art programs, auctions and other fund-raising efforts, publicity and public relations, publications, and fiftieth anniversary celebration. The subject headings by which these files are arranged are, for the most part, the ones designated by the AFA. The second subseries, Staff Records, houses the scattered files of AFA's director, assistant director, registrar, and special state representative, Robert Luck.
During its most active period, the AFA sponsored or participated in several special programs and Series 3: Special Programs houses the files that document many of them. The first subseries consists of the files for the Artists in Residence program that was funded by the Ford Foundation. Awarded in 1963, the grant sponsored short-term teaching residencies for artists in museums throughout the United States. The host museums were encouraged to hold exhibitions of the artists' works. This subseries contains both the general files of the program, as well as individual files on the participating artists. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the AFA and the Ford Foundation also sponsored additional programs for artists, including Grants in Aid, Purchase Awards, and the Retrospective Exhibitions Program. The files documenting these three programs are also arranged in Series 3, under the subseries Ford Foundation Program for Visual Artists. In the late 1950s, the AFA implemented the Museum Donor Program with benefactors and philanthropists Audrey Bruce Currier and Stephen Richard Currier. Through the administration of the AFA, the Curriers donated funds to selected institutions specifically for the purchase of contemporary American art. The Curriers preferred to remain anonymous throughout the program. Files documenting this program include correspondence, applications from the accepted institutions, rejections, a summary report, and clippings about the untimely deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Currier in 1967.
Also found in Series 3 are the files documenting AFAs working relationship with the first state arts council, the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). In 1961, AFA and NYSCA implemented a traveling exhibition program in New York State. Found here are files for possible itineraries, proposals, publicity, loans, budgets, and the actual exhibition files. Additional AFA special programs documented in Series 3 include the Picture of the Month program of the mid-1950s and the Jean Tennyson Foundation Color Slide Lecture Program.
AFA Annual Convention files constitute Series 4. Beginning with the Third Annual Convention in 1912 and continuing through the 1963 Annual Convention, the files contain official proceedings, speeches, programs, clippings, correspondence, and press releases. Files are missing for 1913, 1915, 1918, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926, 1931, 1936-1949, 1952, 1956, 1958, 1960, and 1962. There are also audio recordings in the form of reel-to-reel tapes for the 1951 Annual Convention.
Series 5: Exhibition Files forms the bulk of the collection at circa 62 linear feet and is arranged into twenty subseries. The first subseries, Exhibitions, General, houses primarily the records of the Board of Trustees Exhibition Committee and documents the AFA's earliest involvement with traveling exhibitions. These files contain reports, budgets, correspondence, memoranda, scattered exhibition catalogs, and photographs. They are primarily the files of the chair of the Exhibition Committee and include the files of Juliana R. Force, Eloise Spaeth, and Mrs. John Pope. Also found in this series is a subseries of Mrs. John Pope's records documenting circulating exhibitions from 1934 to 1955, arranged by state.
The remaining nineteen subseries of the Exhibition Files reflect either specific exhibition programs, many of which have unique numbers assigned by AFA to individual exhibitions, or other exhibition-related files, such rejected, canceled, and suggested exhibitions and miscellaneous installation photographs. The Annual Exhibitions files constitute the largest of the subseries and are numbered according to the system assigned by AFA, following a typical chronological order. Although the documentation for each exhibition varies widely by both type and amount, most of the files contain contracts and legal agreements, correspondence, memoranda, itinerary information, condition reports, publicity materials, catalogs, announcements, price lists, and other such information arranged into one or more files. The files were labeled "documentation files," "dispersal files," "report form files," "loan agreement files," and "publicity files" according to the filing system devised by AFA. Many of the files also house a significant amount of correspondence with museum officials, lenders, and artists.
Additional subseries document AFA's exhibition venues and partnerships with the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the New York State Council on the [UNK] Life magazine, and Addison Gallery. A complete list of all of the subseries, including specific exhibition programs, follows in the Series Outline.
The final three series of the collection are small: Printed Material, Miscellaneous Files, and Oversized Material. The printed material was donated much later to the Archives and dates from 1990 to 1993. Found here are scattered press releases, annual reports, and an exhibition program. Miscellaneous Files contain scattered records, 1926-1962, of the Architectural League of New York relating to national award programs. It is not clear why this small group of Architectural League records was found mixed with the AFA records but perhaps the collaboration between the two organizations on several special projects provides an explanation. Also found in Miscellaneous Files is a group of black and white lantern slides from a lecture series, "New Horizons in America." Oversized Material includes a portfolio, a work of art, and posters.
See Appendix for a list of artists exhibiting with the American Federation of Arts
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into eight primary series based primarily on administrative units or program areas. Several of the series are further subdivided into subseries. While processing, it became clear that the two filing systems were redundant and overlapped in both subject area and type of material. Most of these files were subsequently merged into the now broader Alphabetical Files or into separate series. Oversized material may be found at the end of the collection arranged in a separate series.
In most cases, files related to one another by subseries or subject areas (in the case of the Alphabetical Files) or by individual name (in the case of officers and staff files) are arranged in chronological order. The entire subseries of Alphabetical Files in Series 2 is arranged by subject heading, as assigned by the AFA, or individual name. The Alphabetical Files originally formed two broad filing systems as established by the AFA: one for general correspondence arranged by subject; and one for director's and other staff correspondence, also arranged by subject.
Series 1: Board of Trustees, circa 1895-1968 (Boxes 1-3)
Series 2: Administrative Records, 1910-1966 (Boxes 4-8)
Series 3: Special Programs, 1950-1967 (Boxes 9-13)
Series 4: Annual Conventions, 1912-1963 (Boxes 14-16)
Series 5: Exhibition Files, 1934-1969 (Boxes 17-78)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1990-1993 (Box 78)
Series 7: Miscellaneous Files, 1926-1962, undated (Box 79)
Series 8: Oversized Materials, 1890, undated (Boxes 80-85)
Historical Note:
Founded in 1909 by Elihu Root, the American Federation of Arts (AFA) exists today as a national nonprofit museum service organization striving to unite American art institutions, collectors, artists, and museums. Elihu Root, then secretary of state in the administration of Theodore Roosevelt, spoke of his idea at the first meeting of the AFA held in New York at the National Academy of Arts. He envisioned an organization that would promote American art most often seen only by the elite in the major cities of the East and upper Midwest by sending "exhibitions of original works of art on tour through the hinterlands across the United States."
The American Academy in Rome, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, and Metropolitan Museum of Art were influential organizing member institutions. Individual members included such notables as William Merritt Chase, Charles L. Freer, Daniel C. French, Charles L. Hutchinson, Henry Cabot Lodge, J.P. Morgan, and Henry Walters. The founding of the AFA provided the American art world with a forum for communication and participation among artists, cultural institutions, patrons of the arts, and the public.
To accomplish its mission, the AFA established volunteer committees for membership, exhibitions, and publications. During its first year, the AFA began publishing Art and Progress (later changed to Magazine of Art) and the American Art Annual (now the American Art Directory). In 1909, the AFA also organized its first traveling exhibition, Paintings by Prominent American Artists, which was shown at museums in Fort Worth, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and New Ulm, Minnesota.
By the end of the first year, the headquarters of the organization moved to Washington, D.C., to facilitate lobbying the federal government for favorable art legislation. In 1913, the AFA lobbied successfully for the removal of the tariff on foreign art entering the United States. In 1916, the Federation met with the Interstate Commerce Commission to protest prohibitively high interstate taxes on traveling art exhibitions.
Throughout the next fifteen years, the AFA continued to grow in membership and influence. By 1919, membership included 438 institutions and 2,900 individuals. The AFA's annual conventions were held in major national art centers and were attended by members, chapter delegates, and the public. At the conventions, scholars, patrons, and curators lectured on and discussed subjects of national interest, thereby fostering an exchange of ideas. The AFA also sponsored periodic regional conferences to promote institutional cooperation and to discuss mutual problems and needs. To facilitate exhibition venues west of the Mississippi River, in 1921 the AFA opened regional offices at the University of Nebraska and at Stanford University. The AFA produced and circulated slide programs and lecture series to museums and educational institutions that fostered art education. By 1929, the Federation had developed forty-six slide-lecture programs that covered American mural painting, European and American contemporary art, and textiles.
During the 1930s, the Federation expanded its services by providing schools with teaching guides, student workbooks, slides, and films about art. In 1935, the AFA began publishing Who's Who in American Art, later publishing The Official Directory of Illustrators and Advertising Artists and Films on Art reference guides. To reach an even larger audience, the AFA began collaborating with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to organize national circulating exhibitions to "bring the museum to the people."
One of AFA's priorities was to make American art more visible abroad. The Federation focused on encouraging the representation of American artists in foreign exhibitions, and in 1924 it lobbied successfully for additional American participation in the Venice Biennale. The AFA's focus on exhibiting American art abroad continued to expand, particularly following World War II. In 1950, recognizing that the AFA could assist in promoting American culture, the State Department awarded the AFA a grant for a German "re-orientation program" consisting of educational exhibitions shown in German museums. Additional government funding further enabled the AFA to organize American participation in exhibitions in India, Japan, Paris, Switzerland, and Rotterdam between 1950 and 1970. Later, the AFA collaborated with the United States Information Agency (USIA) to create the Overseas Museum Donor Program which permitted donations of American art to foreign institutions on a restriction-free, tax-deductible basis. During the 1950s, the AFA was a very active member of the Committee on Government and Art, a national committee with members from across the art and museum world concerned with government sponsorship of and legislation affecting art sales, commissions, and trade.
In 1952, the headquarters of the AFA returned to New York, sparking a period of innovation and expanded of programs. Throughout the 1950s, the AFA distributed films about art and co-sponsored the Films on Art Festival in Woodstock, New York. The AFA also introduced its Picture of the Month Program in 1954, renting original works of art to small American art and educational institutions. In 1956, the AFA organized the Art Collectors Club of America to provide fellowship for art collectors through meetings and activities. The club disbanded in the 1970s.
The Federation's exhibition programs continued to flourish during the 1950s and 1960s. Private and public financial support allowed the AFA to achieve many of its goals. In 1958, the Ford Foundation awarded an important grant to organize a series of traveling one-person shows and a series of monographs devoted to contemporary American artists. Milton Avery, Andrew Dasburg, José DeCreeft, Lee Gatch, Walter Quirt, Abraham Rattner, and others were among the artists who participated. Private foundation support for the AFA's Museum Donor Program provided an annual allowance that was distributed to regional museums for the pourchase of contemporary American art. Cooperative programs and joint venues also became popular during this period. For example, public support from the New York State Council on the Arts allowed the AFA to circulate exhibitions to small New York State communities, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts provided the AFA with five exhibitions for national tours.
Throughout its history, the American Federation of Arts has concentrated on its founding principle of broadening the audience for contemporary American art. Through its numerous exhibition and film programs, the AFA has succeeded in "breaking down barriers of distance and language to broaden the knowledge and appreciation of art." Annual exhibitions such as New Talent in the USA and Art Schools USA, organized by the AFA, brought before the public the most contemporary American artists and craftspeople, genres, and artistic forms of experimentation, exposing viewers to new ways of thinking and expression. In 1965, AFA produced The Curriculum in Visual Education, a series of films created to heighten the aesthetic awareness of children.
A vital part of American art history, the AFA was one of the first organizations to develop successfully the concept of traveling art exhibitions on a national and international level. The AFA was instrumental in assisting museums with circulating important juried exhibitions of contemporary art, such as the Whitney Annual and Corcoran Biennial. The AFA also recognized the importance of the exchange of cultural ideas, and it brought exhibitions of the European masters to the American public as well as exhibitions focusing on foreign contempoorary art, photography, and architecture. Many organizations and museums have followed the AFA's precedent, and traveling national and international venues are now commonplace.
Since 1909, women have served as officers and members of the Board of Trustees. Leila Mechlin was a founding participant and served as secretary from 1909 to 1933. Juliana R. Force and Eloise Spaeth both chaired the Exhibition Committee in the late 1940s. Women and artists of diverse backgrounds and nationalities were widely represented in the AFA's exhibition programs, most notably during the 1960s. In 1960, the AFA organized, with financial support from the Ford Foundation, a major Jacob Lawrence retrospective. Additional culturally diverse exhibitions included Contemporary Jewish Ceremonial Art (1961), The Heart of India (1962), 1,000 Years of American Indian Art (1963), and Ten Negro Artists from the United States (1966).
The AFA also had an impact on patronage in the arts. AFA exhibitions of contemporary art provided collectors with knowledge of new artists and avant-garde art forms, creating a broader demand and market for this type of work. Museums and collectors began purchasing work by new or obscure American artists whom they learned about through AFA exhibitions and programs.
The historical records of the American Federation of Arts offer the researcher a unique opportunity to study the development of American art and artists in the twentieth century as well as providing insight into trends in American culture.
Missing Title
1909 -- Founded in New York City. Began publishing Art and Progress (later retitled Magazine of Art) and the American Art Annual.
1910 -- Moved headquarters to Washington, D.C.
1913 -- Lobbied successfully for the removal of the tariff on art entering the United States.
1915-1916 -- Lobbied successfully against the Cummins Amendment and the Interstate Commerce Commission's prohibitively high interstate tax on traveling art.
1920 -- Organized a lobbying campaign for the development of a national gallery of art at its national convention.
1921 -- Opened two new offices at the University of Nebraska and at Stanford University.
1924 -- Arranged American participation in the Venice Biennale exhibition.
1927 -- Closed office at Stanford University.
1929 -- Organized American participation in exhibitions in France and Germany.
1933 -- Closed office at the University of Nebraska.
1935 -- Began publishing Who's Who in American Art.
1948 -- Published The Official Directory of Illustrators and Advertising Artists.
1949 -- Collaborated with the Metropolitan Museum of Art to circulate exhibitions from its collections.
1950 -- Participated in the U.S. government's German re-orientation program.
1951 -- Joined forces with the United States Information Agency (USIA) to create the Overseas Museum Donor Program. Published the reference guide Films on Art. Co-sponsored the Films on Art Festival in Woodstock, New York, through 1957.
1952 -- Moved headquarters to New York City.
1953 -- Magazine of Art liquidated.
1954 -- Introduced the Picture of the Month Program.
1956 -- Founded the Art Collectors Club of America.
1958 -- Received a Ford Foundation grant to finance a series of one-person shows of contemporary American artists.
1960 -- Created the Museum Donor Program.
1961 -- Received a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts to circulate exhibitions to small New York state communities.
1963 -- Received a grant from the Ford Foundation for the Artists in Residence program.
1964 -- Introduced the List Art Poster Program.
1965 -- Produced The Curriculum in Visual Education, a series of films that attempted to heighten the aesthetic awareness of children.
Appendix: List of Artists Exhibiting with American Federation of Arts:
The following is an alphabetical list of artists who exhibited with the American Federation of Arts; many are obscure. The alpha-numeric codes and numbers appearing with the artist's name represent specific AFA exhibition programs and, most often, AFA's exhibition numbering system. In cases where the AFA did not assign an exhibition number, Archives' staff have done so.
The primary reference source for the names and name variants is the American Federation of Arts Records. The names are documented in handwritten notes and lists, typed lists, and exhibition catalogs and announcements. The Archives of American Art name authority file was also consulted in questionable cases. The majority of names, however, were not found in either the AAA name authority file or standard bibliographic resources, and only in the AFA records.
Examples:
55-1: AFA annual exhibitions program
AD-1: Addison Gallery exhibitions
L-1: Life Magazine Exhibitions
ME-1: Misceallaneous exhibitions (numbers assigned by AAA staff)
NMA-1: Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibitions
NE-96: Contemporary Color Lithography
NY-1: New York State Council on the Arts exhibitions
VA-1: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts exhibitions
Missing Title
A. Quincy Jones, Frederick E. Emmons & Assoc: 62-34
The records of the American Federation of Arts (AFA) were donated to the Archives of American Art (AAA) over a thirteen-year period, with the bulk of the material arriving between 1964 and 1966. In 1979, Preston Bolton donated his letters and those from John de Menil, Ann Drevet, Lee Malone, and others regarding planning for the 1957 AFA annual convention held in Houston, Texas; convention committee minutes from 1956; and AFA newsletters. This material, as well as a 1979 gift from Louise Ferrari of transcripts from a panel discussion from the 1957 AFA convention in Houston, was microfilmed on AAA Reel 1780. All material previously microfilmed on Reel 1780 has been fully integrated into the collection and arranged within proper series and subseries. The provenance of the 1990-1993 printed material is unknown.
Restrictions:
Use requires an appointment.
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.
The Frank and Eleanor Freed papers measure 2.9 linear feet and date from 1923-1992 with bulk dates from 1943-1975. The papers document Frank Freed's career through biographical material, printed material, and artwork. Both Freeds are documented through writings and printed material.
Scope and Contents:
The Frank and Eleanor Freed papers measure 2.9 linear feet and date from 1923-1992 with bulk dates from 1943-1975. The papers document Frank Freed's career through biographical material, printed material, and artwork. Both Freeds are documented through writings and printed material. Biographical material includes Frank Freed's resumes, a tv documentary interview video and related audio tape and correspondence from friends congratulating Freed on the TV special. Also found is a Museum of Fine Arts, Houston reel-to-reel panel discussion: The Fine Arts from Various Points of View, and a home video of friends remembering and celebrating Freed on what would have been his 80th birthday. Writings contains essays by Frank Freed on war along with essays and memorial speeches about Freed and writings by Eleanor Freed on artist and professor Donald J. Weismann. The series also contains thirteen guest books from the Freed's home, signed by visitors often with accompanying drawings. Printed material includes clippings by and about Frank Freed including articles written under Freed's pseudonym "Caliph McFloe", along with copies of student cartoons Freed drew for Rice University's student humor magazine the Rice Owl. Also found are exhibition catalogs and announcements and newsletters written by Eleanor Freed. Photographic material contains over two hundred photographs of Freed's paintings, along with portraits of Frank Freed and photographs of the filming of the channel KUHT 8 TV documentary on Freed, depicting Frank, Elanor and Freed's studio. Also found are two hundred and thirteen slides of Freed's artwork. Artwork consists of four of Freed's sketchbooks along with four loose large charcoal drawings.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as five series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1950-1986 (0.5 Linear feet: Box 1)
Series 2: Writings, 1943-1992 (1 Linear foot Box: 1-2)
Series 3: Printed Material, 1923-1984 (0.7 Linear feet: Box 2-3, OV 1-2)
Series 4: Photographic Material, 1958-1989 (0.3 Linear feet: Box 3-4)
Series 5: Artwork, 1948-1975 (0.2 Linear feet: Box 4, OV 3)
Biographical / Historical:
Frank Freed was a self taught painter, cartoonist and writer. His wife, Eleanor (1914-1992) was an art critic for The Houston Post and an active member in the arts and culture sector of Houston, Texas where the couple lived. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Freed and his family moved to Houston in 1913, where Freed drew cartoons for his high school yearbook and the Rice Owl, the campus humor magazine, during a year of study at Rice University. Ultimately, Freed graduated from Harvard in 1927 with a degree in English Literature. After graduation he published several articles and began a forty-two-year career as a life-insurance salesman. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1943 and from 1944 to 1946 served in Normandy with the United States Corps of Engineers. In 1948 Freed began to paint and in 1949 he was included in two group shows in Houston galleries and then participated in annual group shows of Houston artists sponsored by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston in 1950–1952 and 1958–1959. Freed went on to participate in numerous group and solo exhibitions in the United States and abroad, including a 1970 solo show in Mexico City. Freed's work can be found in the collections of the Museum of Fine Art, Houston; the Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum in San Antonio; and the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas, Austin.
In addition to her career as an art critic Eleanor Freed served as member and subsequent president of the Friends of the Houston Public Library organization, and then later served on the Houston Public Library Board. In her will, Eleanor left a bequest to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston for a lecture series and renovation funding to the museum's Glassell School of Art, which contains the Eleanor and Frank Freed Auditorium and Image Library.
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reels 432-3433, 3538) including
3 scrapbooks containing clippings regarding a trial on which Frank was a juror and Mexican Painting and Drawing, a show curated by Frank; articles written by Eleanor as art critic for the Houston Post, 1965-1973; and an article written for Texas Humanist, 1984, Dominique de Menil: Rare Visions in the Arts, outlining the collecting philosophy of Menil and the establishment of a private museum to exhibit the collection; source material for paintings; a guestbook from an exhibition at Instituto Mexicanos Norteamerico de Relaciones Culturales; and sketches. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
Material on reels 3432-3433 lent for microfilming 1985, by Frank and Eleanor Freed as part of the Archives of American Art's Texas project. The remainder was donated by the Freeds, 1978-1985, and by Eleanor Freed Stern's estate, 1993. The estate bequest included the guestbooks which were part of the 1985 loan.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
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.
Frank and Eleanor Freed papers, 1923-1992. 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.
