Search Results

Creator:

Carter, Nanette  Search this

Names:

Pratt Institute. Art School  Search this

Freeman, Bettye  Search this

Pindell, Howardena, 1943-  Search this

Extent:

4.9 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

1972-2009

Summary:

The papers of African American abstract artist and educator Nanette Carter measure 4.9 linear feet and date from 1972 to 2009. The collection documents Carter's education and career through biographical materials, correspondence with artists and others, writings including notebooks documenting Carter's studies, exhibition files for Carter's solo and group exhibitions, files documenting teaching and other professional activities, research material including sound recordings for a book project on Carter's mentors, personal business records, and printed material.

Scope and Contents:

The papers of African American abstract artist and educator Nanette Carter document Carter's education and career through 4.9 linear feet of papers dating from 1972 to 2009.

The collection includes biographical materials consisting of an address book, 11 appointment books, resumes, Carter's student records, and a sound recording of an interview with Carter and Vincent Smith for the radio program "Dialogues with Contemporary Artists." Correspondence is with Joan Digby, Bettye Freeman, Miriam Perlman, and various organizations regarding exhibitions, workshops, and employment. Carter's writings and notes include 13 notebooks documenting her studies and career activities, speech notes, and her student papers from Pratt Institute of Art.

Also found in the collection are exhibition files documenting Carter's solo and group exhibitions, and professional activity files consisting of Carter's teaching files, files regarding fellowships and grants, workshop records, and research material for a book project on female mentors that includes 5 sound recordings of Howardena Pindell and Marcia Lloyd. Carter's personal business records include consignment and sales records, contracts and agreements, and price lists; and printed materials consist of announcements and catalogs for Carter's exhibitions, event programs, posters, press releases, and other material relating to Carter's career as an artist.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as seven series.

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1972-1998 (0.7 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1976-2009 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-2, OV 7)

Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1975-2002 (0.5 linear feet; Box 3)

Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1976-2008 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 3-4)

Series 5: Professional Activity Files, 1977-2008 (0.7 linear feet; Box 4, OV 7)

Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1979-2008 (0.4 linear feet; Boxes 4-5)

Series 7: Printed Materials, 1979-2009 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 5-6, OV 7)

Biographical / Historical:

Nanette Carter (1954- ) is an African American abstract artist and educator in New York, New York.

Carter was born in Columbus, Ohio, to Frances Hill and Matthew G. Carter. In 1960, Carter and her family, including her sister Bettye Carter Freeman, moved from Ohio to Montclair, New Jersey where her father became the city's first African American mayor. After graduating from Montclair High School, Carter attended Oberlin College studying studio art and art history. She spent her junior year abroad studying in Perugia, Italy and traveling through Europe and North Africa. Carter graduated from Oberlin in 1976 and continued her education at the Pratt Institute of Art receiving a Master of Fine Arts in 1978.

In the 1970s, Carter spent time in Sag Harbor where her parents had a house. She became involved with the local art scene through her college job at the Guild Hall Museum where she met artist Al Loving. Loving became a mentor to Carter and later curated one of her earliest group exhibitions, Eastville Artists (1979), featuring African American artists working in eastern Long Island, New York. Carter has continued to exhibit her artwork frequently throughout the United States, as well as overseas. She has been the recipient of numerous fellowships and grants including Bob Blackburn's Printmaking Workshop, the Pollock-Krasner Foundation grant, and the New York State Council on the Arts residency at Cinque Gallery.

In addition to her career as an artist, Carter has held teaching positions at various institutions including Dwight-Englewood School, Guild Hall Museum, City College of New York, Rhode Island School of Design, and the Pratt Institute of Art where she is a tenured professor.

Provenance:

The collection was donated in 2019 by Nanette Carter as part of the Archives' African American Collecting Initiative funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.

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 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.

Occupation:

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

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

Topic:

African American artists  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women painters  Search this

Women educators  Search this

African American educators  Search this

African American painters  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Citation:

Nanette Carter papers, 1972-2009. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Identifier:

AAA.cartnane

See more items in:

Nanette Carter papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9a28f9060-aa59-49a9-b48a-54b6b19866ba

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-cartnane

Creator:

Smith, Houghton Cranford, 1887-1983  Search this

Subject:

Lhote, André  Search this

Ozenfant, Amédée  Search this

Saint-Gaudens, Homer  Search this

Smith, Laura Gilbert Williams  Search this

Webster, E. Ambrose (Edwin Ambrose)  Search this

University of Kansas  Search this

Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art  Search this

Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Académie Julian  Search this

Butler Institute of American Art  Search this

Cape Cod School of Art  Search this

Passedoit Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Pratt Institute. Art School  Search this

Type:

Photographs

Postcards

Notebooks

Notes

Sketches

Scrapbooks

Place:

Chile -- description and travel

Paris (France) -- description and travel

Provincetown (Mass.) -- description and travel

Citation:

Houghton Cranford Smith papers, 1890-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Color in art  Search this

Color guides  Search this

Art, American -- Massachusetts -- Provincetown  Search this

Art students -- France -- Paris  Search this

Theme:

Lives of artists  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)6424

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)215521

AAA_collcode_smithoug

Theme:

Lives of artists

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_215521

Interviewee:

McNeil, George, 1908-1995  Search this

Interviewer:

Seckler, Dorothy Gees, 1910-1994  Search this

Names:

American Abstract Artists  Search this

Art Students League (New York, N.Y.) -- Students  Search this

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

Pratt Institute. Art School -- Students  Search this

United States. Work Projects Administration  Search this

Cavallon, Giorgio, 1904-1989  Search this

De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this

Dehner, Dorothy, 1901-1994  Search this

Diller, Burgoyne, 1906-1965  Search this

Dlugoszewski, Lucia, 1931-2000  Search this

Gorky, Arshile, 1904-1948  Search this

Hofmann, Hans, 1880-1966  Search this

Hopper, Jo N. (Josephine Nivison), 1883-1968  Search this

Kline, Franz, 1910-1962  Search this

Levy, Edgar  Search this

Manso, Leo  Search this

Matulka, Jan, 1890-1972  Search this

Pereira, I. Rice (Irene Rice), 1902-1971  Search this

Pollock, Jackson, 1912-1956  Search this

Reinhardt, Ad, 1913-1967  Search this

Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970  Search this

Smith, David, 1906-1965  Search this

Tworkov, Jack  Search this

Vytlacil, Vaclav, 1892-1984  Search this

Extent:

18 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

1965 June 3

Scope and Contents:

An interview of George McNeil conducted by Dorothy Seckler for the Archives of American Art. McNeil speaks of his childhood and his family; becoming interested in art during high school; attending Pratt Institute, and not being satisfied there; deciding to drop out of Pratt after attending a lecture from Vaclav Vytlacil; going to the Metropolitan Museum every day drawing and analyzing paintings; meeting Arshile Gorky while at the Metropolitan Museum; attending the Art Students League; studying with Hans Hofmann; the start of the American Abstract Artists; his involvement in the WPA's mural project; attending Teachers College at Columbia before joining the Navy; re-entering the New York art scene during the forties and liking it very much; meeting and being influenced by Pollock; his views on the state of painting; how his work has evolved; the various stages in the way a painting developed for him; how The Club and the Eighth Street Club has influenced him; the ideas discussed at The Club, and how he feels surrealism was not a big influence on them; Jackson Pollock's influence on abstract expressionism; artists he admires or has admired; and his thoughts on the contemporary art scene. He recalls Vaclav Vytlacil, Arshile Gorky, Jan Matulka, David Smith, Dorothy Dehner, Edgar Levy, Leo Manso, Burgoyne Diller, Irene Rice Pereira, Hans Hofmann, Jo Hopper, Giorgio Cavallon, Linda Lindaberg (Cavallon), Mercedes Kahls, George Byron Brown, Albert Swinden, Willem de Kooning, Jackson Pollack, Franz Kline, Jack Tworkov, Ad Reinhardt, Mark Rothko, and many others.

Biographical / Historical:

George McNeil (1908-1995) was a painter and a printmaker in Brooklyn, N.Y.

General:

Originally recorded on 2 sound tapes. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 49 min.

Provenance:

This interview is 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 is available on the Archives of American Art's website.

Topic:

Art, American  Search this

Painters -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

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

Abstract expressionism  Search this

Painting  Search this

Surrealism  Search this

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Identifier:

AAA.mcneil65

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw94b6fc63b-c3c0-47b0-b1df-174fd019ac4e

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-mcneil65

Creator:

Tobias, Abraham Joel, 1913-1996  Search this

Names:

Congress of Industrial Organizations (U.S.)  Search this

Fine Arts Federation of New York  Search this

United States. Work Projects Administration  Search this

Block, Irving  Search this

Brooks, James, 1906-1992  Search this

Caswell, Edward C.  Search this

Evergood, Philip, 1901-1973  Search this

Gaber, George  Search this

Gill, Brendan, 1914-1997  Search this

La Gambina, Vincent, 1909-1994  Search this

Lishinsky, Abraham  Search this

Orozco, José Clemente, 1883-1949  Search this

Spivak, Max, 1906-1981  Search this

Tobey, Alton S. (Alton Stanley), 1914-2005  Search this

Extent:

2.8 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Interviews

Video recordings

Photographs

Date:

1913-2000

Summary:

The Abraham Joel Tobias papers date from 1913 to 2000 and measure 2.8 linear feet. Through project and exhibition files, printed material, correspondence, and photographs, the collection provides an overview of Tobias's career as a painter and muralist in New York City.

Scope and Content Note:

The Abraham Joel Tobias papers date from 1913 to 2000 and measure 2.8 linear feet. Through project and exhibition files, printed material, correspondence, and photographs, the collection provides an overview of Tobias's career as a painter and muralist in New York City.

General correspondence regards mural proposals, exhibitions, professional activities, and museums' acquisitions of artwork by Tobias. A file of correspondence with the Fine Arts Federation of New York concerns efforts to recognize murals by Irving Block, James Brooks, Philip Evergood, Abraham Lishinsky, José Clemente Orozco, and Max Spivak as landmarks; it also includes minutes of meetings, 1988-1995, that reflect Tobias's service as a board member. Other correspondence is with friends and artists including Edward Caswell, George Gaber, Filia Holtzman, Vincent La Gambina, and Alton S. Tobey.

Project files document murals such as: The Four Freedoms, Midwood High School, Brooklyn, New York, honoring students and teachers who died in World War II (circa 1946); Birth for the maternity ward at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City (1951-1953); and Medical Science and Medical Research, Long Island Jewish Hospital (1954). The Science and Engineering project file (1958) contains a patent certificate for striated plastic, a material Tobias used in two murals. Also of interest is correspondence with the Harman Foundation regarding a documentary film about Tobias's use of ethyl silicate for outdoor murals. Among the exhibitions documented are: "Plastics U.S.A.," "New York WPA Artists Then and Now," and "Abraham Joel Tobias: Sculptural Paintings of the 1930s."

Printed material consists of announcements, invitations, solo and group exhibition catalogs, and clippings relating to Tobias's artistic career. Also found are pamphlets he designed for the Congress of Industrial Organizations. Photographs are of Tobias's artwork and the artist with friends and family. There is a video recording of an interview with Tobias conducted by Brendan Gill in 1995.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as 8 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1913-1996 (Boxes 1, 4; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1933-1997 (Box 1; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 3: Project and Exhibition Files, 1938-2000 (Boxes 1, 2, 4, OV 5; 1.6 linear feet)

Series 4: Writings, circa 1928-1992 (Box 2; 0.1 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1913-1999 (Boxes 3, 4; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 6: Artwork, circa 1990s (Box 3; 1 folder)

Series 7: Photographs, 1929-1970 (Box 3; 0.1 linear feet)

Series 8: Video Recording, 1995 (Box 3, 1 folder)

Biographical Note:

Abraham Joel Tobias (1913-1996) was a painter, muralist, and educator in New York City. He was a pioneer in the use of shaped canvases.

A native of Rochester, New York, Tobias came to New York City to study at the Cooper Union School of Art, 1930-1931, and at the Art Students League, 1930-1933. He worked for the Federal Arts Project,1938-1940, where he continued his training as a muralist, working with artist and technicians.

During World War II, Tobias served in the armed forces. He was an art director with the Intelligence Division, Army Air Force, and in 1945 was employed as a graphic designer for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Tobias was artist-in-residence and served as instructor in painting and drawing at Adelphia College, Garden City, Long Island, 1947-1957. He also was was a visiting lecturer at various schools including Howard University, Brooklyn Museum Art School, Pratt Institute Art School, as well as at colleges in Illinois and Kansas.

Tobias completed over ten mural commissions for governmental agencies and educational institutions, including: United States Post Office, Clarendon, Arkansas; Howard University, Washington, D.C.; James Madison High School, Brooklyn, New York; Beth Israel Hospital, New York City; Domestic Relations Court Building, Brooklyn, New York; and Adelphi College, Garden City, New York. In 1962, Tobias began The History of Science mural for the lobby of the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn; it was never completed.

Tobias experimented with diverse materials such as terrazzo and mosaic for mural application. He also broke new ground with the use of ethyl silicate paint as a permanent medium for outdoor murals. In 1958, he patented striated plastic, a pliable material used to achieve an effect similar to stained glass.

He participated in many solo and group exhibitions. In 1935, Tobias presented his shaped canvas painting in the "Sculptural Painting" exhibition at Delphic Studios in New York City. In 1987, Tobias was recognized for his earlier pioneering work with a retrospective exhibition, "Abraham Joel Tobias: Sculptural Paintings" at The Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum of Rutgers University. Other exhibitions included: "Plastics U.S.A.," the United States Information Service's exhibition in Moscow (1961); "New York City WPA Art," Parsons School of Design, New York City (1977); "For a Permanent Public Art," Tweed Gallery, New York City (1989); and "The Technological Muse," Katonah Museum of Art, New York (1991).

Tobias's professional memberships included the Architectural League of New York, National Society of Mural Painters, and New York Artists Equity Association. He served on the Board of Directors for the Fine Arts Federation of New York from 1988-1996. He won the Architectural League Award in 1952. The Art Commission of the City of New York recognized Tobias, posthumously, for distinguished service to public art.

Abraham Joel Tobias married Carolyn Pratt in 1949; the couple had one daughter. Abraham Joel Tobias died in Rego Park, New York, in 1996 at the age of 82.

Provenance:

The papers were donated in 2001 by Carolyn Tobias, the widow of Abraham Joel Tobias.

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.

Topic:

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

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

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

Genre/Form:

Interviews

Video recordings

Photographs

Citation:

Abraham Joel Tobias papers, 1913-2000. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:

AAA.tobijoel

See more items in:

Abraham Joel Tobias papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw98be0c478-da69-4155-9f53-1ac5d5ac617b

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-tobijoel

Interviewee:

Knowles, Alison, 1933-  Search this

Interviewer:

Richards, Judith Olch  Search this

Creator:

Elizabeth Murray Oral History of Women in the Visual Arts Project  Search this

Names:

California Institute of the Arts -- Faculty  Search this

Elizabeth Murray Oral History of Women in the Visual Arts Project  Search this

Middlebury College -- Students  Search this

Pratt Institute. Art School -- Students  Search this

Albers, Josef  Search this

Brecht, George  Search this

Callahan, Harry M.  Search this

Chicago, Judy, 1939-  Search this

De Kooning, Willem, 1904-1997  Search this

Duchamp, Marcel, 1887-1968  Search this

Gordon, Coco, 1938-  Search this

Gottlieb, Adolph, 1903-1974  Search this

Hamilton, Richard, 1922-  Search this

Hendricks, Jon  Search this

Higgins, Dick, 1938-1998  Search this

Johnson, Ray, 1927-1995  Search this

Jones, Joe, 1909-1963  Search this

Kaprow, Allan  Search this

Kuehn, Kathy  Search this

Lauf, Cornelia  Search this

Lindner, Richard, 1901-1978  Search this

Mac Low, Jackson  Search this

Maciunas, George, 1931-1978  Search this

Moorman, Charlotte  Search this

Ono, Yōko  Search this

Paik, Nam June, 1932-  Search this

Pollock, Jackson, 1912-1956  Search this

Rauschenberg, Robert, 1925-2008  Search this

Saito, Takako, 1929-  Search this

Schapiro, Miriam, 1923-2015  Search this

Schneemann, Carolee, 1939-  Search this

Schöning, Klaus  Search this

Shiomi, Mieko, 1909-1948  Search this

Silverman, Gilbert  Search this

Spoerri, Daniel, 1930-  Search this

Teitelbaum, Richard  Search this

Tenney, James  Search this

Waśko, Ryszard  Search this

Extent:

86 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

2010 June 1-2

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Alison Knowles conducted 2010 June 1-2, by Judith Olch Richards, for the Archives of American Art's Elizabeth Murray Oral History of Women in the Visual Arts Project, at Knowles' home and studio, in New York, N.Y.

Knowles speaks of her family background; her father's (an English professor) influence on her education; her love of nature and isolation as a young girl; her French studies at Middlebury College; her transfer to Pratt Institute to study art; the social and academic environment at Pratt; her inclinations towards abstraction; her first marriage to Jim Ericson; her first studio at 423 Broadway; her early jobs as a commercial artist; her first gallery show at Nonagon, in 1958, and how she subsequently burned the paintings in that show; her second marriage to Dick Higgins in 1960; her Judson Gallery Show in 1962 and how she subsequently discarded those works; her involvement in the Fluxus group; her involvement with the "Cage class," and its early performances; her collaboration with John Cage on the book, "Notations" (1968); her collaboration with Marcel Duchamp on a print (1967); the circumstances surrounding her performance piece, "Make a Salad" (1962), her travels through Europe with Higgins; the birth of her twins; her computerized poetic piece and installation, "House of Dust" (1967) and how it was later vandalized; her move to Los Angeles to teach at CalArts; the rebuilding of "House of Dust" at CalArts; her move back to New York; the processes leading up to several projects and collaborations including "Loose Pages," "Big Book," "Bread and Water," and more; where she finds her inspiration; her thoughts on performance art; her studio environment in Barrytown, N.Y.; the influence and support of Germany on her work and Fluxus in general; her recent work, including "Identical Lunch"; and current challenges she faces as an artist.

She recalls Richard Lindner, Adolph Gottlieb, Willem de Kooning, Jackson Pollock, Judy Chicago, Josef Albers, Dorothy Podber, Ray Johnson, Dick Higgins, Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage, Klaus Schöning, Jon Hendricks, Gilbert Silverman, George Maciunas, George Brecht, Jack Mac Low, Yoko Ono, Mieko Shiomi, Takako Saito, Joe Jones, Marcel Duchamp, Daniel Spoerri, Richard Hamilton, Nam June Paik, Charlotte Moorman, Helmut Becker, Coco Gordon, Jim Tenney, Cornelia Lauf, Rirkrit Tirvanija, Allan Kaprow, Simone Forte, Carolee Schneemann, Richard Teitelbaum, Miriam Schapiro, Miguel Abrau, James Fuentes, Cyrilla Wozenter, Kathy Kuehn, Ryszard Wasko.

Biographical / Historical:

Alison Knowles (1933- ) is an artist and a founding member of Fluxus in New York, N.Y. Judith Olch Richards (1947- ) is a former director of iCI in New York, N.Y.

General:

Originally recorded on 5 mini discs. Duration is 5 hr., 45 min.

Provenance:

This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.

Occupation:

Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Topic:

Fluxus (Group of artists)  Search this

Women artists  Search this

Women performance artists  Search this

Performance art  Search this

Function:

Artists' studios

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Sponsor:

This interview is part of the Elizabeth Murray Oral History of Women in the Visual Arts Project, funded by the A G Foundation.

Identifier:

AAA.knowle10

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw98f89c1d9-b4ed-49cb-8fac-4f5e5dedfa4e

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-knowle10

Interviewee:

McNeil, George, 1908-1995  Search this

Interviewer:

Seckler, Dorothy Gees, 1910-1994  Search this

Subject:

Smith, David  Search this

Gorky, Arshile  Search this

De Kooning, Willem  Search this

Matulka, Jan  Search this

Pereira, I. Rice (Irene Rice)  Search this

Dlugoszewski, Lucia  Search this

Manso, Leo  Search this

Vytlacil, Vaclav  Search this

Hofmann, Hans  Search this

Rothko, Mark  Search this

Levy, Edgar  Search this

Hopper, Jo N. (Josephine Nivison)  Search this

Reinhardt, Ad  Search this

Pollock, Jackson  Search this

Tworkov, Jack  Search this

Dehner, Dorothy  Search this

Cavallon, Giorgio  Search this

Kline, Franz  Search this

Diller, Burgoyne  Search this

Art Students League (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Pratt Institute. Art School  Search this

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

United States. Work Projects Administration  Search this

American Abstract Artists  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Citation:

Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with George McNeil, 1965 June 3. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Art, American  Search this

Painters -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this

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

Abstract expressionism  Search this

Painting  Search this

Surrealism  Search this

Mural painting and decoration  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)13160

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)214125

AAA_collcode_mcneil65

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_214125

Interviewee:

Erlebacher, Walter, 1933-1991  Search this

Interviewer:

Hunter, Anne S.  Search this

Subject:

Pearlstein, Philip  Search this

Beal, Jack  Search this

Kostellow, Alexander  Search this

Hesse, Eva  Search this

Leslie, Alfred  Search this

Rigby, Ivan B.  Search this

Pratt Institute. Art School  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Citation:

Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Walter Erlebacher, 1991 Jan. 19. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this

Figurative art  Search this

Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)12750

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)214374

AAA_collcode_erleba91

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_214374

Creator:

Smith, Houghton Cranford, 1887-1983  Search this

Names:

Académie Julian  Search this

Art Students League (New York, N.Y.) -- Students  Search this

Butler Institute of American Art  Search this

Cape Cod School of Art  Search this

Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art  Search this

Passedoit Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Pratt Institute. Art School -- Students  Search this

University of Kansas -- Faculty  Search this

Lhote, André, 1885-1962  Search this

Ozenfant, Amédée, 1886-1966  Search this

Saint-Gaudens, Homer, b. 1880  Search this

Smith, Laura Gilbert Williams  Search this

Webster, E. Ambrose (Edwin Ambrose), 1869-1935  Search this

Extent:

2.2 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Postcards

Notebooks

Notes

Sketches

Scrapbooks

Place:

Chile -- description and travel

Paris (France) -- description and travel

Provincetown (Mass.) -- Description and Travel

Date:

1890-1991

Summary:

The papers of painter Houghton Cranford Smith measure 2.2 linear feet and date from 1890-1991. They consist of eight scrapbooks compiled by his widow containing correspondence with family and friends, biographical materials, sketches, school work, extensive clippings, exhibition catalogs, travel documents and numerous photographs of family and friends.

Scope and Content Note:

The papers of painter Houghton Cranford Smith measure 2.2 linear feet and date from 1890-1991. They consist of eight scrapbooks compiled by his widow containing correspondence with family and friends, biographical materials, sketches, school work, extensive clippings, exhibition catalogs, travel documents and numerous photographs of family and friends.

Biographical materials include photographs of Smith, of his artwork and of friends and family in Provincetown and New Mexico, school documents from the Foebel Academy, the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and the Art Students' League, autographed menus, correspondence, including postcards and letters to family and friends sent from Bermuda and Jamaica, customs declarations, exhibition catalogs, newspaper clippings, a passport to Chile, newsletters, and Smith's teaching contract from the University of Kansas. Additionally, there are significant photographs and letters documenting Smith's art studies with E. Ambrose Webster at the Cape Cod School of Art in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

The collection also includes Smith's correspondence from France and South America. A significant portion of the collection includes papers from his time in France from 1913-1914, where he studied at the Parisian art school Academie Julian. These include a log from a tandem bicycle trip with classmate Harold P. Browne, an invitation to the Bal Randolphe, a Browne Art Class brochure and a narrative entitled "A Party of Fugitives from France," which describes Smith's forced fleeing from France after the French mobilization in 1914. There are also papers describing his South American travels which include notes and correspondence about Argentina, Uruguay and his time in Chile, which spans five years.

Materials documenting Smith's return to France and studies at the Academie Ozenfant from 1926 to 1933 include Smith's passport, ship passenger lists and other travel documents, correspondence with family, French identification letters, exhibition catalogs, newspaper clippings and his Academie Ozenfant list of classes and student card. Of particular note are correspondence from and a picture of Sir Walter Kitchener, governor of Bermuda, and letters from wife Elena Peralta to her parents-in-law. Topics covered in the correspondence of this scrapbook include sons Houghton Jr. and Gerrit and the birth of daughter Florence, financial difficulties, art teachers Amadee Ozenfant and Andree L'hote and the family's travels to Bermuda, New Mexico and New York City.

Materials from later in Smith's life include correspondence from Smith to second wife Laura Gilbert Williams, exhibition catalogs and registers, photographs of artwork, newspaper clippings of reviews received for Smith's exhibited paintings and congratulatory letters from family and friends on Smith's successful exhibits and feature article in The American Artist. Additionally, there is significant correspondence with the Passedoit Gallery, Homer Saint-Gaudens of the Carnegie Institute regarding the exhibition and purchase of Smith's artwork and Smith's gifted painting to the Butler Institute of American Art. Additionally, there are several biographical newspaper articles and a biographical sketch written by his wife Laura after his death.

Of note is the artist's original handwritten notes and final published version of his reminiscence "The Provincetown I Remember," notes about painting with various colors and color charts, related assignments from Smith's Color Theory Class, a signed copy of the book Color by E. Ambrose Webster, Smith's former art teacher, pencil sketches, a class notebook about lettering and an address book.

Arrangement:

As requested by the donor, the original arrangement has been maintained, but the collection has been rehoused for preservation purposes. The collection is arranged as 4 series.

Missing Title

Series 1: Scrapbooks, 1890-1991 (Boxes 1-2; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 2: Writings, 1963-1991 (Box 2; 2 folders)

Series 3: Printed Material, 1916-1991 (Box 2, OV 4; 6 folders)

Series 4: Miscellany, circa 1920s-1977 (Box 2, OV 3; 7 folders)

Biographical Note:

Painter Houghton Cranford Smith (1887-1983) traveled extensively and painted throughout his life. He lived and studied art in France, South America, New York City and Provincetown. He had three children, Houghton Jr., Gerrit and Florence with his first wife, Elena Peralta. He held the position of Assistant Professor at the University of Kansas department of Drawing and Painting from 1921-1925.

Smith became widely recognized for his artwork in the 1940s. He married his second wife, Laura Gilbert Williams, in 1941. He has exhibited at many venues including the Passedoit Gallery, Corcoran Gallery, Richmond Museum, Columbia Art Museum, Walker Memorial Gallery, Art Institute of Kansas City and the Provincetown Art Association. For six consecutive years he was represented at Carnegie Institute's annual invitation exhibition.

Provenance:

Florence Cranford Smith Shepard donated her father's papers in 1993-1994.

Restrictions:

Use of original papers 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.

Occupation:

Painters -- Massachusetts -- Provincetown  Search this

Art teachers -- Kansas  Search this

Topic:

Color in art  Search this

Color guides  Search this

Art, American -- Massachusetts -- Provincetown  Search this

Art students -- France -- Paris  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs

Postcards

Notebooks

Notes

Sketches

Scrapbooks

Citation:

Houghton Cranford Smith papers, 1890-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for a portion of the processing was provided by the Laura Cranford Smith Art Trust.

Identifier:

AAA.smithoug

See more items in:

Houghton Cranford Smith papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9c91ed2e8-4c21-403e-970c-80ba6269d66f

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-smithoug

Interviewee:

Erlebacher, Walter, 1933-1991  Search this

Interviewer:

Hunter, Anne S.  Search this

Names:

Pratt Institute. Art School  Search this

Beal, Jack, 1931-  Search this

Hesse, Eva, 1936-1970  Search this

Kostellow, Alexander, 1897-1954  Search this

Leslie, Alfred, 1927-  Search this

Pearlstein, Philip, 1924-  Search this

Rigby, Ivan B.  Search this

Extent:

5 Sound cassettes (Sound recording)

297 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Sound cassettes

Pages

Sound recordings

Interviews

Date:

1991 Jan. 19

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Walter Erlebacher conducted 1991 Jan. 19, by Anne Hunter, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.

Erlebacher discusses his early years in Frankfurt, immigrating with his family to New York City in 1940; his education and early visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art; issues such as the Vietnam War and the resulting changes, multiculturalism; his interest in philosophy, Plato, mathematics and the golden section; his studies at Pratt, Alexander Kostellow and Ivan Rigby and the program they developed at Pratt; military service in Europe; returning to Pratt, his fellow students, and issues of representational art;

Eva Hesse; his shift to representational sculpture; his interest in anatomy which he taught himself and others in a private class; his friendship with other representational artists such as Philip Pearlstein, Alfred Leslie and Jack Beal; his use of mythology; Marcel Duchamp; exhibitions and his dislike of them; and a few major commissions including the Jesus in Philadelphia, the ARA commission, and the Jefferson Hospital commission he lost; Philadelphia as an art community and such controversies as the "Rocky" sculpture.

Biographical / Historical:

Walter Erlebacher (1933-1991) was a sculptor and instructor from Philadelphia, Pa.

Provenance:

These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.

Restrictions:

Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.

Topic:

Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this

Figurative art  Search this

Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews  Search this

Genre/Form:

Sound recordings

Interviews

Sponsor:

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

Identifier:

AAA.erleba91

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9b230a5ea-0149-433a-b2ef-eddde6205a76

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-erleba91