An interview of Shirley Jaffe conducted 2010 Sept. 27 and 28, by Avis Berman, for the Archives of American Art's Elizabeth Murray Oral History of Women in the Visual Arts project, at Jaffe's studio, in Paris, France.
Jaffe speaks of living with her family in Elizabeth, NJ and Brooklyn, NY; attending Abraham Lincoln High School, Parsons School of Design, Brooklyn College, and The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art; visiting the Brooklyn Museum, the Museum of Non-Objective Art (now the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum), and The Museum of Modern Art; living on St. Mark's Place and in Brooklyn, NY ; her marriage in 1949 to Irving Jaffe; moving to Washington, DC and visiting The Philips Collection; moving to and adjusting to life in France; socializing with American artists in Paris, France; moving between New York and France; working and living in Berlin, Germany with a grant from the Ford Foundation; living independently in France; visiting the cathedrals and galleries in Italy; teaching undergraduate students; the evolution of her paintings and technique; her painting process and use of cellophane; painting on glass; murals; and her exhibitions and commissions. Jaffe also recalls Leon Friend, Morris Kantor, Pierre Bonnard, Karl Knaths, Max and Esther Gould, Jules Olitski, Michael Goldberg, Joan Mitchell, Beauford Delaney, Sam Francis, Janice Biala, Hermine Tworkov Ford, Edwin Dickinson, Jean-Paul Riopelle, Kimber Smith, Jean Fournier, Al Held, Haywood Bill Rivers, Milton Glaser, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Shirley Jaffe (1923-2016) was an abstract painter and sculptor in Paris, France. Avis Berman (1949- ) is a scholar in New York, N.Y.
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.
Rights:
Transcript: Authorization to quote or reproduce for the purposes of publication requires written permission from Jerome Sternstein. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Biographical material, letters, business records, notes, writings, art works, an interview transcript, printed material, and photographs.
A resume, 1969; letters, 1951-1972, from Joan Mitchell (some mention painter Jean Paul Riopelle), from his wife Patricia Southgate and her children, Karen Edwards, Vera "Bunny" Lang (identified as "B" in her letters), Jim Brodey, Paul Jenkins, and Philip Pavia; grant applications, 1970-1971; miscellaneous receipts, 1958-1974; and price lists, 1965-1969; nine address/appointment books, 1963-1970; an essay "The Canvas as a Plane" by Goldberg; poems by Jim Brodey, Diane De Prima, and Frances Whyatt, a typescript for an untitled play, and a script for play "The Sideshow" by Arthur Williams; a sketchbook; 12 drawings; a transcript of an interview of Goldberg by Jill Neimark, 1979; clippings, 1953-1979; exhibition announcements and catalogs, 1950-1981, a floorplan for Goldberg's studio, 1963; photographs of Goldberg, his family, including Joan Mitchell, Patricia Southgate, her children, and friends, including Larry Rivers, Jim Brodey, Robert Grosvenor, Alain Kirili, and Susanna Tanger; three group photographs taken in East Hampton by Hans Namuth, 1962, of 35 artists including Goldberg, James Brooks, Adolph Gottlieb, Balcomb Greene, Grace Hartigan, Al Held, Buffie Johnson, Lee Krasner, Ibram Lassaw, and Larry Rivers.
Biographical / Historical:
Michael Goldberg (1924-2007) was a painter in New York, New York.
Provenance:
Donated 1972-1983 by Michael Goldberg.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
