An interview of S. Morton Vose conducted 1986 July 24-1987 April 28, by Robert F. Brown, for the Archives of American Art.
Vose speaks of the pervasive effect of his family's art gallery upon his life; studying languages at Harvard College; his affiliation with the gallery from 1927 on; the increasing emphasis on American painting during his career at the Vose Gallery, and the gradual de-emphasis on European work. He reminisces about some Vose Gallery clients, especially Maxim Karolik, and some art dealers; he discusses a traveling exhibition he was involved in; he speaks of the gallery's relations with prominent museum personnel, such as William Reinhold Valentiner and E.P. Richardson. Vose also discusses the pitfalls of appraising art collections, his father's last years, and the firm's move, and his recent work on a dictionary of American painters. He recalls William Morris Hunt, Thomas Robinson, Leopold Seyffert, Catherine Morris Wright, Maxim Karolik, Elizabeth Paxton, Paul Sample, John Whorf, Hermann Dudley Murphy, Winslow Homer, James Fitzgerald, Arthur Healey, and many others.
Biographical / Historical:
Seth Morton Vose (1909-2007) was an art dealer and art historian from Brookline, Massachusetts.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hr., 25 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
Transcript is available on the Archives of American Art's website.
Occupation:
Art historians -- Massachusetts -- Brookline Search this
Art dealers -- Massachusetts -- Brookline 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.
Artists' files containing correspondence, price lists, exhibition announcements, publications and clippings; and general files containing photographs, sales receipts, correspondence with galleries, and miscellany.
Artists' files include Eric Anderson, Michael and Penny Arntz, Frank Barton, T. H. Benton, Helen Bickham, John Dawson, Heather P. Edwards, Louis Efstathiou, Edward S. Faiers, Barclay Ferguson, Don Foster, Frank and Eleanor Freed, Haskell E. Ivy, Mary F. Judge, Elizabeth Leitner, Paul McGaughy regarding Ben Woitena and others, Gregory Palmer, Alexander Proctor, Frank Ribelin, Reginald Rowe, Ben Shahn, Emma de Sigaldi, Norman Singer, Michael John Smith, Ary Stillman, Paul Suttman, Rufino Tamayo, A. M. van Fossen, John Walker,, Travis Whitfield, Ben Woitena, Charles Umlauf, and Judy Youens.
General files include Robinson Graphics: U. S. Olympic Editions 1976, Proposals, Publicity, Art layout, Robinson Gallery publications, Amarillo Art Center Association exhibition, "Genesis, the 1960s", Art in Public Places,Artists (general), Gallery Uno, May 1980 exhibition: Barnett, Elliott, and Patrick, Introductions, KLEF radio program advertisement file, Lithographic workshops, McAllen International Museum, Midtown Art Center, Houston, Perception Galleries, Taller de Graphica, Photographs, people, Kwaku, photograph file, Photography of art work, Resumes, William Rimmer 1816-1879,Peter Rose Gallery, Rosewood Hotels Inc., Wunderlich and Co. Gallery, Sabinal, Publishers of Fine Art, Gallery sales receipts, Miscellany, Advertising, Affidavits, and Instituto Allende/ James Pinto and group show.
Biographical / Historical:
Art gallery; Houston, Tex. Deals primarily in 19th and 20th century painting and sculpture.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1983 by Thomas V. Robinson, founder, owner and director of the gallery.
Microfilmed as part of the Archives of American Art's Texas project.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
