The records of the New York City-based Cinque Gallery, a nonprofit organization, measure 1.1 linear feet and date from 1959 to 2010, with the bulk of materials dating from 1976 to 2004. The gallery's mission was to exhibit African American artists, to educate the public about their work, and to offer art programs to the community. This is documented by administrative records, artists' files, financial and legal records, printed material, and photographs. Materials dated before and after the gallery's years of operation relate to African American community organizations and were compiled by former Cinque Gallery Executive Director, Ruth Jett.
Scope and Contents:
The records of the New York City-based Cinque Gallery, a nonprofit organization, measure 1.1 linear feet and date from 1959 to 2010, with the bulk of materials dating from 1976 to 2004. The gallery's mission was to exhibit African American artists, to educate the public about their work, and to offer art programs to the community. This is documented by administrative records, artists' files, financial and legal records, printed material, and photographs. Materials dated before and after the gallery's years of operation relate to African American community organizations and were compiled by former Cinque Gallery Executive Director, Ruth Jett.
Administrative records consist of a broad range of material such as gallery history, an organizational outline, by-laws and articles, assorted forms, correspondence, mailing lists, and fundraising materials. Correspondence is mostly addressed to Executive Director Ruth Jett regarding business operations and funding efforts.
Artists' files consists of resumes, biographical statements, clippings, exhibition catalogs and announcements related to Cinque Gallery founders as well as other artists. Notable artists include Romare Bearden, Ernest Crichlow, Norman Lewis, Nadine DeLawrence, Joanne McFarland, Virginia Evans Smit, and many others.
Financial and legal records include bank statements, tax records, budget projections, price lists, ledgers, and contribution receipts.
Printed material consists of announcements, invitations, and catalogs of group and solo exhibitions held at Cinque Gallery. Some of the artists featured in the exhibitions are Romare Bearden, Ernest Crichlow, Edward Clark, and Charles Alston. Also found are a brochure, newsletter, press releases, and clippings. Other printed items relating to Cinque Gallery are a brochure, exhibition reviews, and clippings.
Photographs are mostly of Cinque Gallery events, exhibition openings and galas. Some of the photographs have annotations on the verso. Among the identified individuals are Ernest Crichlow, Ruth Jett, Romare Bearden, and Norman Lewis. This series also contains a small number of negatives and a few slides of artwork.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 5 series:
Series 1: Administrative Records, 1969-2010 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 2: Artists' Files, 1983-2009 (Box 1, OV 2; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 3: Financial and Legal Records, 1969-2005 (Box 1; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1959-2007, bulk 1976-2007 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Photographs, circa 1987-2003 (Box 1, OV 2; 0.2 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
The Cinque Gallery (est. 1969, closed 2004) was a nonprofit art gallery in New York City founded by African American artists Romare Bearden, Norman Lewis, and Ernest Crichlow. It was established to exhibit the work of both new and established African American artists, and to provide community educational programs.
In 1981, co-founder Ernest Crichlow invited Ruth Jett, an accomplished administrator and long-time arts supporter, to serve on the gallery's Board of Directors. One year later, Jett was appointed Executive Director of Cinque Gallery. Jett has been described as the glue that held the Cinque Gallery together during its prodigious programs and exhibitions of the 1980s and 1990s.
Cinque sponsored more than 350 exhibitions in a number of New York City venues, as well as travelling exhibitions in the New York and New England areas before closing in 2004. The Gallery was funded by public and individual contributors, such as the Romare Bearden Foundation, Philip Morris Companies and the Andy Warhol Foundation.
Although Cinque Gallery closed its doors in 2004, some of its central programs are still continued by the Romare Bearden Foundation in New York City.
Provenance:
The records were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2013 by Ruth M. Jett, former Executive Director of Cinque Gallery.
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.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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:
Cinque Gallery records, 1959-2010. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the digitization of this collection was provided by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.
Notebooks in Series 5 are access restricted; written permission is required. Contact Reference Services for more information. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
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:
Lowery Stokes Sims papers, 1967-2019. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of African American arts administrator and director of Cinque Gallery, Ruth Jett, measure 7.8 linear feet and 0.242 gigabytes, and date from 1914 to 2014. The collection contains biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues including William Branch, Vinie Burrows, John and Vivian Hewitt, Langston Hughes, and Charles and Frances White; and administrative and professional files which include material related to the American Society of African Culture, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Cinque Gallery, the Cinque Artists Program at the Romare Bearden Foundation, the Library of Congress Center for the Book, and the Schomburg Corporation. The collection also includes writings, primarily typescript copies of literary works by others, including Langston Hughes and Ossie Davis, as well as notes; printed material such as clippings, exhibition and event announcements, books and magazines, and press releases; and photographic material including photographs, snapshots, negatives, and slides depicting Ruth Jett and other individuals, travel, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace fellows and events, and works of art. Also found is a small amount of artwork including a sketchbook, sketches, a painting, and a print.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of African American arts administrator and director of Cinque Gallery, Ruth Jett, measure 7.8 linear feet and date from 1914 to 2014. The collection contains biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues including William Branch, Vinie Burrows, John and Vivian Hewitt, Langston Hughes, and Charles and Frances White; and administrative and professional files which include material related to the American Society of African Culture, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Cinque Gallery, the Cinque Artists Program at the Romare Bearden Foundation, the Library of Congress Center for the Book, and the Schomburg Corporation. The collection also includes writings, primarily typescript copies of literary works by others, including Langston Hughes and Ossie Davis, as well as notes; printed material such as clippings, exhibition and event announcements, books and magazines, and press releases; and photographic material including photographs, snapshots, negatives, and slides depicting Ruth Jett and other individuals, travel, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace fellows and events, and works of art. Also found is a small amount of artwork including a sketchbook, sketches, a painting, and a print.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in seven series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1914-2014 (Box 1, OV 9; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1952-2014 (Boxes 1-2; 1.2 linear feet)
Series 3: Administrative and Professional Files, 1954-2009 (Boxes 2-5, OV 9; 3.2 linear feet)
Series 4: Writings, 1949-circa 1990s (Box 5; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 5: Printed Material, 1928, 1949-2014 (Boxes 5-7, OVs 9-13; 2.1 linear feet, ER01; 0.242 GB)
Series 6: Photographic Material, 1947-2010 (Boxes 7-8, OV 14; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 7: Artwork, undated (Box 8, OV 14; 3 folders)
Biographical / Historical:
Ruth Jett (1920-2014) was an art administrator and Director of the Cinque Gallery, New York, N.Y.
Born and raised in Alabama, Ruth Jett attended Miles College in Birmingham before moving with her mother and some siblings to Harlem, New York. In the early 1950s, Jett worked with the Committee for the Negro in the Arts, overseeing early productions by several Black playwrights including William Branch, Alice Childress, Ossie Davis, and Julian Mayfield. From the 1950s until her retirement in 1978, Jett held a variety of positions at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, notably managing the Fellowships in Diplomacy program for a number of years.
After she retired from the Carnegie Endowment, Ruth Jett worked with a number of cultural and arts organizations, including the Library of Congress Center for the Book, the Schomburg Corporation/ Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, and the Friends of the Symphony of the New World.
Ruth Jett served on the Cinque Gallery Board of Directors beginning in 1981. She was appointed Executive Director in 1989 and served in that position until the early 2000s. When the gallery closed in 2004, she then worked with the Romare Bearden Foundation on the Cinque Artists Program to continue the gallery's legacy and commitment to supporting artists.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds the Cinque Gallery records, 1959-2010, bulk 1976-2004.
Provenance:
The Ruth Jett papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2018 by Juan Rodriguez, a friend of Jett.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. 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:
Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Ruth Jett papers, 1914-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Ruth Jett papers, 1914-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Ruth Jett papers, 1914-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Ruth Jett papers, 1914-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Ruth Jett papers, 1914-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
The administrative and professional files series is arranged in seven subseries: American Society of African Culture records; Carnegie Endowment for International Peace records; Cinque Gallery records; Cinque Artists Program, Romare Bearden Foundation records; Library of Congress Center for the Book records; other activities; and Schomburg Corporation records. Included in these subseries are by-laws, correspondence and memoranda, meeting minutes, financial documents, reports, and printed material. Cinque Gallery Records also include a small number of artist files, which may include resumes, agreements, printed material, and photographic material. Audiovisual and born digital material is also present in the Cinque Gallery records subseries.
Arrangement:
Files in subseries are arranged in rough chronological order, with the exception of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace subseries, which is arranged alphabetically. Original groupings and folder titles have been maintained when possible.
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Archival audiovisual recordings must be digitized for research access. Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Ruth Jett papers, 1914-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
