Rembrandt: Etsen. Tentoonstelling ter herdenking van de geboorte van Rembrandt op 15 juli 1606. Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, 18 mei - 5 augustus 1956. Museum Boymans Rotterdam, 8 augustus - 21 oktober 1956
The papers of Chicago art conservator, Louis Pomerantz, measure 34.2 linear feet and date from 1937 to 1988, with the bulk of the material dating from the 1950s-1980s. The papers document two principal aspects of Pomerantz's professional life: his conservation work for institutions and individuals, and the development of his professional expertise as documented through his writings and teachings, his continued conservation training, and his involvement in professional organizations. Files include scattered biographical material, professional correspondence, interviews, writings, project and client files, teaching and reference files, printed material, and photographic material primarily documenting conservation treatments and techniques.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Chicago art conservator, Louis Pomerantz, measure 34.2 linear feet and date from 1937 to 1988, with the bulk of the material dating from the 1950s-1980s. The papers document two principal aspects of Pomerantz's professional life: his conservation work for institutions and individuals, and the development of his professional expertise as documented through his writings and teachings, his continued conservation training, and his involvement in professional organizations. Files include scattered biographical material, professional correspondence, interviews, writings, project and client files, teaching and reference files, printed material, and photographic material primarily documenting conservation treatments and techniques.
Biographical material includes military and educational records, as well as resumés and references from various art institutions and individuals.
Pomerantz's professional correspondence is with other conservators including Anton J. Konrad, Nathan Stolow, and Jean Volkmer, conservation scientists such as Robert L. Feller, and people who assisted Pomerantz early in his career such as George Stout. Also documented is Pomerantz's relationship with the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) which undertook his traveling Know What You See exhibition, his involvement with museums and other art institutions, and companies who developed and manufactured conservation equipment such as Eastman Kodak.
Interviews include circa 9 radio station interviews on sound tape reels and sound cassettes of Pomerantz individually or with others, including a recording of a conversation regarding the Florence flood.
Writings and notes are by Pomerantz and include typescripts, notes and background material for lectures and papers delivered from the 1950s-1980s. Also found is a portfolio of his writings from 1962-1978, and a notebook Pomerantz compiled while working at the Rijksmuseum which includes notes, hand-drawn colored illustrations and photographs of conservation techniques.
Project/client files form the largest series and document Pomerantz's work, both in private practice and as conservator at the Art Institute of Chicago, through conditions reports, recommendations for and records of treatment, related correspondence, financial documentation, and photographic material.
Teaching and reference files comprise material gathered by Pomerantz during participation in professional organizations and events, such as the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, and the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. Also found are subject files, consisting of reference material and correspondence, on a wide range of conservation-related subjects.
Personal business records from the 1950s consist of receipts for conservation-related supplies and one folder of business tax records.
Printed material primarily includes news clippings documenting Pomerantz's career up to and including the 1970s, clippings on conservation-related news, blank postcards of artwork, and two exhibition catalogs.
Photographic material includes images demonstrating a wide variety of conservation techniques, including sets of slides used for lectures and presentations, and images of Pomerantz at work. Also found are photos of artists including Ulfert Wilke. Photographic media include black and white and color photos, slides, glass slides, X-rays and corresponding prints, negatives and 5 glass plate negatives.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 9 series. Glass plate negatives are housed separately and closed to researchers.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1940s-1980s (12 folders; Boxes 1, 33)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1940s-1988 (3.6 linear feet; Boxes 1-4)
Series 3: Interviews, 1961-circa 1970s (8 folders; Box 4)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1950s-1980s (2.8 linear feet; Box 7)
Series 5: Project/Client Files, 1950s-1987 (13.8 linear feet; Boxes 7-20)
Series 6: Teaching and Reference Files, 1940s-1980s (3.9 linear feet; Boxes 20-24)
Series 7: Personal Business Records, 1950s (0.6 linear feet; Boxes 24-25)
Series 8: Printed Material, 1937-1970s (0.6 linear feet; Boxes 25, 33)
Series 9: Photographic Material, 1940s-1980s (8.4 linear feet; Boxes 25-36, OV 37, MGP 1)
Biographical / Historical:
Chicago art conservator Louis Pomerantz (1919-1988), established and operated the conservation lab at the Art Institute of Chicago and then maintained a private practice conducting conservation work for individual collectors and various museums and art institutions in the midwest.
Pomerantz had originally intended to be an artist and enrolled at the Art Students League. After serving in World War II, he returned to Europe to study conservation as an apprentice to a private restorer in Paris, followed by a year spent working under the chief restorer at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and study at the Courtauld Institute and the National Gallery in London. As head of the Art Institute of Chicago's first conservation lab from 1956-1961, Pomerantz employed new and emerging techniques such as powerful binocular microscopes, ultra-violet, infra-red and X-ray machines to study paintings, and a hot table to bond new canvasses to support old ones. Following his resignation from the Art Institute of Chicago to pursue his private practice, Pomerantz organized conservation training programs, and wrote widely on conservation. He served on the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) and was a member of the committee which adopted the AIC's first code of ethics for art conservators in May 1967. He became consultant to various art and natural history museums including the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, where he formed part of the conservation team that completed an extensive renovation of the museum's Javanese gamelan ensemble composed of 23 brass and wood musical instruments.The gamelan was presented and played for the first time since 1893 in 1978, following the restoration.
Pomerantz also organized several museum exhibitions on conservation, including Know What You See, which was shown at more than 100 museums around the United States, Canada and Mexico, as part of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES).
Provenance:
The Louis Pomerantz papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by Else Pomerantz in 1988.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington D.C. research center. Use of 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.
Museum conservation methods -- Technique Search this
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Interviews
Illustrations
Sound recordings
Citation:
Louis Pomerantz papers, 1937-1988, bulk 1950s-1988. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection is provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
Eighteenth-century watercolors from the Rijksmuseum printroom, Amsterdam / J.W. Niemeijer ; with the assistance of R.J.A. te Rijdt ; [translator, Michael Hoyle]
Vorstenportretten uit de eerst helft van de 16de eeuw : houtsneden als propaganda : [tentoonstelling], 16 augustus - 29 oktober, Rijksprentenkabinet, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Author:
Rijksmuseum (Netherlands) Rijksprentenkabinet Search this
Louis Pomerantz. Louis Pomerantz Rijksmuseum student notebook, 1950-1951. Louis Pomerantz papers, 1937-1988. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of Cuban born painter Baruj Salinas measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1971-1996. The collection documents the artist's prolific painting career and his friendships and professional relationships with a variety of contemporary artist in the U.S. and Europe. The papers of Baruj Salinas are an important addition to the documentation of Cuban-American art and artists.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of Cuban born painter Baruj Salinas measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1971-1996. The collection primarily consists of letters from friends and artists. Also found are diary entries, scattered financial and business papers, printed material, and photographs. Of special interest in the last series are photographs taken of a visit to the home and art studio of Spanish artist Joan Miró.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as six series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Diary Entries, 1982 (box 1; 1 folder)
Series 2: Letters Received, 1979-1996, undated (box 1; 21 folders)
Series 3: Financial Papers, 1993-1994 (box 1; 1 folder)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1976-1992, undated (box 1; 2 folders)
Series 5: Photographs, 1971-1992, undated (box 1; 3 folders)
Series 6: Miscellany, 1992 (box 1; 1 folder)
Biographical Note:
Born in Havana, painter Baruj Salinas' (b. 1938) career began in the field of architecture. He graduated from the University of Ohio with an architectural degree and left Cuba permanently in 1959. Salinas settled in Miami and later moved to Barcelona where he studied alongside artists Joan Miró and Antoni Tàpies.
Provenance:
Baruj Salinas donated his papers to the Archives of American Art in 1997.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. 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.
English delftware. Engels Delfts aardewerk. Catalogue of the exhibition held at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, March 23-July 8. Catalogus van de tentoonstelling gehouden in het Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 23 maart-8 juli. [Foreword by A. Van Schendel
Discarding the brush : Gao Qipei (1660-1734) and the art of Chinese finger painting / Klaas Ruitenbeek ; with an essay by Joan Stanley-Baker ; editor, Klaas Ruitenbeek = Schilderen zonder penseel : Gao Qipei (1660-1734) en de Chinese vingerschilderkunst / Klaas Ruitenbeek ; met een essay van Joan Stanley-Baker ; eindredactie, Klaas Ruitenbeek
