The folder includes a worksheet, copies of garden plans, a photocopy of an article about the garden from St. Louis Magazine, and other information. The garden is noted for its rich plantings, variety of garden types, and skillful planning to complement its relationship to the house.
General:
This eight-acre site incorporates a range of garden settings, and a variety of types of plants. The entrance garden features coleus and Alabama fountain grass, while the entrance courtyard includes a fountain, pool, sculpture, an alpine miniature collection, hostas, and azaleas. A perennial border between the two wings of the house is faced by a line of threadneedle arborvitae, and highlighted by a bronze sculpture of a gardener. Pool area plantings include azaleas, rhododendrons, ornamental grasses, daylilies, pleached hawthorns, and roses, while the south side of the house features azaleas, crabapples, and pink dogwoods.
To the north of the house lie a woodland garden, an enclosed vegetable garden, and an orchard of 24 fruit trees, among them apple, pear, plum, and cherry.
Persons associated with the property include: C. M. Guthrie (former owner); V. Gorguze (former owner); William Bernoudy (architect); and Jane deDecker (sculptor).
Related Materials:
Kummer Garden related holdings consist of 1 folder (20 35 mm. slides)
Collection Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, The Garden Club of America collection.
Sponsor:
A project to describe images in this finding aid received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care Initiative, administered by the National Collections Program.
The papers of modernist painter and printmaker George Constant measure 4.6 linear feet and date from 1912-2007, with the bulk of the material dating from 1932-1978. They consist of biographical material, inventories of artwork, audio interviews and recorded statements on art, personal and business related correspondence, holiday cards, printed material, an exhibition related video recording, and photographs of Constant, his family and friends, and his work.
Scope and Contents note:
The papers of modernist painter and printmaker George Constant measure 4.6 linear feet and date from 1912-2007, with the bulk of the material dating from 1932-1978. They consist of biographical material, inventories of artwork, audio interviews and recorded statements on art, personal and business related correspondence, holiday cards, printed material, an exhibition related video recording, and photographs of Constant, his family and friends, and his work. A small portion of the correspondence and printed materials are written in Greek.
Biographical material includes artist statements written and recorded by Constant, two audio interview recordings discussing his philosophies on art and his work, inventories of artwork, personal property deeds and legal correspondence, and other miscellaneous material.
Correspondence is predominantly in the form of business and personal letters, postcards, and holiday cards received from family and friends. These include correspondence from Constant's daughter, Georgette Preston, and extended family members. Other frequent personal correspondents include Milton and Sally Avery, Lewis Balamuth, Margaret Brunning, David Burliuk, Nathaniel Burwash, Rhys Caparn, Julia Shaw Patterson Carnell, Phillip Cavanaugh, Morris Davidson, Charles Eaton, Vilko Gecan, Marchal Landgren, Roy Neuberger, Walter Pach, Nell Perret, Constantine Pougialis, Wallace Putnam and Consuelo Kanaga, Hi Simons, and Helen Slosberg. Business related correspondents include Audubon Artists, Art Institute of Chicago, Brooklyn Museum, Carnegie Institute, Dayton Art Institute, Federation of Modern Painters and Sculptors, Ferargil Galleries, Guild Hall, Heckscher Museum, Lyman Allyn Museum, Metropolitan Museum, Museum of Modern Art, Spanish Refugee Appeal, and the Whitney Museum. Other business correspondence related to Constant's work with the WPA are also included in the series.
Printed material includes books and booklets on American and Greek art, including a limited print edition of George Constant by George Constant, clippings and articles reviewing Constant's work, exhibition announcements and catalogs of Constant's shows, periodicals profiling his artwork, and dance and theater related programs that Constant consulted on.
Photographs include black and white prints of Constant and his family and friends in St. Louis, Missouri, Dayton, Ohio, and in and around his studio in Shinnecock Hills, New York. The collection also includes photo stills from his 1965 exhibition at the Parrish Art Museum and a comprehensive set of black and white prints, a handful of color prints, and several color slide sheets of Constant's artwork from the 1920s to 1978.
Arrangement note:
The collection is arranged into 4 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1923-2007 (Box 1; 17 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1930-1979 (Box 1-2; 1.4 linear feet)
Series 3: Printed Material, 1927-2005 (Box 2-3; 2 linear feet)
Series 4: Photographic Material, 1912-1978 (Box 4-6; 1 linear foot)
Biographical/Historical note:
Greek American George Zachary Constant (1892-1978) worked from his studios in Shinnecock Hills, and New York City, New York as a painter and printmaker. A founder and lifelong member of the Federation of Modern Painters and Sculptors, Constant worked for the Work Projects Administration (WPA) during the Depression and early years of World War II, and exhibited regularly at major galleries and museums from the 1920s to 1970s.
Born in Arahova, Greece, Constant was raised by his two uncles after the death of his parents in 1896. In school and at the monestary one of his uncles led, Constant showed an early interest in classical Greek aesthetics. At the age of eighteen, he immigrated to the United States and continued his art studies at Washington University before transferring to the Art Institute of Chicago. From 1918 to 1922, Constant taught at the Dayton Art Institute and continued to produce and exhibit his work locally. In 1922, he moved to New York, joined the Society of Independent Painters, and became close friends with Society founder and art critic Walter Pach. During the 1920s, his etchings were shown at the Valentine and Downtown Galleries, and at the New Art Circle of J.B. Neumann, where he presented his first one man gallery show in 1929.
From the 1930s to 1940s, Constant produced prints, watercolors, and oil paintings for the WPA, many of which were purchased by museums and public institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Philadelphia Museum. During this same period, Constant exhibited his work at the Boyer Gallery in the late 1930s, and at the Ferargil Gallery from the 1940s to early 1950s. In the decade between 1955 and 1965, Constant also worked on color and set design for seventeen dance productions created by the choreographer Alwin Nikolais. In the last two decades of his career, Constant produced works from his studio in Shinnecock Hills, New York and continued to exhibit at numerous galleries, including Grace Borgenicht Gallery, Guild Hall, Mari Galleries, Tirca Karlis Gallery, and Artium Gallery.
Provenance:
The papers of George Constant were donated by the artist in 1969 and 1978. Additional materials were donated in 2001 and 2007 by his daughter Georgette Preston.
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.
Topic:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The Oliver Lee Jackson papers measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1993-2016. Found are biographical materials, photographs of Jackson and of works of art,and printed material. Professional files document Jackson's participation as Artist in Residence for Harvard Art Museums in 2000 and contains correspondence with Harry Cooper, then Curator of Modern Art at Harvard Art Museums. Also found is a USB drive.
Scope and Contents:
The Oliver Lee Jackson papers measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1993-2016. Found are biographical materials, photographs of Jackson and of works of art,and printed material. Professional files document Jackson's participation as Artist in Residence for Harvard Art Museums in 2000 and contains correspondence with Harry Cooper, then Curator of Modern Art at Harvard Art Museums. Also found is a USB drive.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Oliver Lee Jackson (1935- ) is an African American painter, printmaker and sculptor active in Oakland, California.
Oliver Lee Jackson was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1935. He earned his BFA from Illinois Wesleyan University and later attended the Unviersity of Iowa and received an MFA in 1963. He returned to St. Louis and served as assistant director of the People's Art Center. In 1967, he became director of Program Uhuru' at the Pruitt–Igoe public housing project through which he encouraged creative outlets for youth.
In 1971, Jackson moved to Oakland, California where he established his art studio. He exhibited his works around the world including at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. In 2000, Jackson served as artist-in-residence at Harvard University.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 2019 by Oliver Lee Jackson, via Jackson's assistant Diane Roby as part of the Archives' African American Collecting Initiative funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Use of born digital records with no duplicate copy requires advance notice.
Rights:
The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own.
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.
The papers of sculptor Bessie Potter Vonnoh measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1860 to 1991, with the bulk of material dating from 1890 to 1955. The scattered papers document the personal life and career of Bessie Potter Vonnoh, and, to a lesser degree, her husband, painter Robert William Vonnoh. Found within the papers are Vonnoh family correspondence, including letters between Bessie and Robert, and professional and personal correspondence, primarily Bessie's. The collection also contains scattered biographical materials, photographs of the Vonnohs, a photograph album, photographs of artwork, clippings, exhibition catalogs, and other printed material.
There is a 2.3 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2022 that includes typescripts of Vonnoh's journals; scrapbooks; photographs of Vonnoh, works of art and events and photograph albums; letters to Vonnoh; exhibition catalogs and other printed material; and biographical material including marriage certificate and Last Will and Testament. Materials date from circa 1875-1991.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of sculptor Bessie Potter Vonnoh measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1860 to 1991, with the bulk of material dating from 1890 to 1955. The scattered papers document the personal life and career of Bessie Potter Vonnoh, and, to a lesser degree, her husband, painter Robert William Vonnoh. Found within the papers are Vonnoh family correspondence, including letters between Bessie and Robert, and primarily Bessie's professional and personal correspondence. There is one folder of correspondence of Robert William Vonnoh. Bessie's correspondents include Daniel Chester French, Hamlin Garland, Rupert Hughes, Archer Huntington, Larkin G. Mead, Jean Francois Raffaelli, Cornelia Otis Skinner, and others. Robert's correspondents include Charles M. Carter, Daniel Chester French, William M. R. French, and Charles Vezin. The collection also contains scattered biographical materials, photographs of Bessie Potter Vonnoh and Robert William Vonnoh, a photograph album, photographs of artwork, clippings, exhibition catalogs, and other printed material.
There is a 2.3 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2022 that includes typescripts of Vonnoh's journals; scrapbooks; photographs of Vonnoh, works of art and events and photograph albums; letters to Vonnoh; exhibition catalogs and other printed material; and biographical material including marriage certificate and Last Will and Testament. Materials date from circa 1875-1991.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 5 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1922-1955 (Box 1; 5 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1863-1985 (Box 1; 11 folders)
Series 3: Photographs, circa 1860-1950 (Box 1-2; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1901-1991 (Box 2; 9 folders)
Series 5: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1875-1991 (Boxes 3-5; 2.3 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Bessie Potter Vonnoh (1872-1955) was born in St. Louis, Missouri to Alexander and Mary McKenney Potter. In 1874, after the death of her father, her family moved to Chicago. Also at this time, she suffered from a series of illnesses that she did not recover from until she was ten. In school she enjoyed clay-modeling class and decided at an early age that she wanted to be a sculptor. Beginning in 1890 she studied with Lorado Taft at the Art Institute of Chicago and later became one of his assistants (known as the "White Rabbits") for the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. She was also given her own commission for the Illinois building at the fair. After this success, Vonnoh opened her own studio in Chicago and made plaster figurines of society women, friends, and their children. She visited New York and took her first trip to Paris in 1895, visiting the studios of many eminent sculptors such as Auguste Rodin. Her work was influenced by the American Impressionist movement, depicted in one of her most famous works, Young Mother. This piece was exhibited in the National Sculpture Society exhibition of 1898 and led to several public sculpture commissions.
In 1899 Bessie Potter Vonnoh moved to New York City and married Impressionist painter, Robert William Vonnoh (1858-1933). They lived in New York and maintained a summer home in Lyme, Connecticut. During her career she received many awards for her works at international exhibitions, including two bronze medals at the Paris Exposition in 1900. Other landmark events included a solo exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum in 1913 and membership into the National Academy of Design in 1921 - the first female sculptor accepted as a permanent member. Vonnoh's work was very well received by the public, and in the 1920s she began working on a larger scale, creating large fountains, such as the Frances Hodgson Burnett Memorial Fountain in Central Park, New York, and other decorative garden figures. Robert Vonnoh died in 1933 and, in 1948, she married Dr. Edward Keyes. Bessie Potter Vonnoh died in New York City in 1955 at the age of 82.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 1995 by Lulette Jenness Thompson, a cousin of Bessie Potter Vonnoh and in 2022 by Kerry Oliver-Smith, who received the collection from his father, Waren McKenney, a second cousin of Vonnoh.
Restrictions:
A portion of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
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:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
A portion of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
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:
Bessie Potter Vonnoh papers, circa 1860-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
The Avis Berman research material on art dealer and curator Katharine Kuh measures 3.6 linear feet and dates from 1939 to 2006. The materials were compiled by art historian Avis Berman in preparing Katharine Kuh's memoir, which was published posthumously as My Love Affair with Modern Art: Behind the Scenes with a Legendary Curator. The collection includes Katharine Kuh's files; Kuh's drafts, manuscripts and interviews for her memoir; and Avis Berman's files relating to the book's publication. Also included is memorabilia.
There is a 0.6 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2021 that includes research material consisting of correspondence, drafts, photographs, administrative files and reviews regarding the reissue of The Artist's Voice: Talks with Seventeen Modern Artists by Katharine Kuh, De Capo press, 2002, and additional published writings by Kuh. Material dates from 1948-2002.
Scope and Content Note:
The Avis Berman research material on art dealer and curator Katharine Kuh measures 3.6 linear feet and dates from 1939 to 2006. The materials were compiled by art historian Avis Berman in preparing Katharine Kuh's memoir, which was published posthumously as My Love Affair with Modern Art: Behind the Scenes with a Legendary Curator. The collection includes Katharine Kuh's files; Kuh's drafts, manuscripts and interviews for her memoir; and Avis Berman's files relating to the book's publication. Also included is memorabilia.
The Katharine Kuh files contain correspondence; exhibition files; writings and notes; and Kuh's interview with Lily Harmon on J. B. Neumann. Correspondents include Walter Arensberg, Marcel Duchamp, and Edgar Kaufmann. Also included is the scattered correspondence of Daniel Catton Rich with Walter Arensberg, Chester Dale, Katharine Kuh, Samuel Marx, and others. Exhibition files pertain to exhibitions curated by Katharine Kuh for the Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection and one-man shows for Rico Lebrun and Mark Tobey, respectively.
Sorting Out and Summing Up: Episodes in An Art Odyssey contains Katharine Kuh's draft versions of book chapters; her manuscripts and interviews; and drafts of chapters that were not incorporated in the published memoir. Also included are manuscripts for the memoir and an annotated version of Avis Berman's interview with Kuh.
The Avis Berman files include correspondence, writings, printed material, clippings, press releases, and miscellaneous printed material. Files document Berman's activities concerning the publication of the memoir.
Memorabilia consists of a monograph and a memorial booklet.
There is a 0.6 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2021 that includes research material consisting of correspondence, drafts, photographs, administrative files and reviews regarding the reissue of The Artist's Voice: Talks with Seventeen Modern Artists by Katharine Kuh, De Capo press, 2002, and additional published writings by Kuh. Material dates from 1948-2002.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 5 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Katharine Kuh Files, 1944-2003 (Box 1; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 2: -- Sorting Out and Summing Up: Episodes in an Art Odyssey -- by Katharine Kuh, 1939-2006 (Boxes 1-3; 2.0 linear feet)
Series 3: Avis Berman Files, 1950s-2006 (Box 3; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 4: Memorabilia, 1976, 1977 (0.1 linear feet)
Series 5: Unprocessed Addition, 1948-2002 (box 4-5, 0.6 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Writer and art historian, Avis Berman lives and works in New York City. Berman was a close friend of Katharine Kuh's and is Kuh's literary executor. Berman compiled Katharine Kuh's research materials for the memoir that she was working on at the time of her death; the book was subsequently published as My Love Affair with Modern Art: Behind the Scenes with a Legendary Curator in 2006.
Katharine Kuh (1904-1994) was a curator and art dealer born in St. Louis, Missouri. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Vassar College in 1925, where she studied art history under Alfred Barr. In 1928, she earned her Master's in Art History at the University of Chicago. As a graduate student, Kuh developed an interest in modern art, particularly the work of European artists.
Kuh married George Kuh, a businessman in 1930. She and Kuh divorced six years later.
At the gallery, Kuh taught classes on an informal basis to individuals interested in modern art. During this period, she spent her summers as a Visiting Professor of Art History at the University School of Fine Arts of San Miguel in Guanajuarto, Mexico (1938-1940). With the onset of America's involvement in World War II, Kuh realized that the war would curtail her contact with many of the European artists whose works she had promoted and in 1942, she decided to close the gallery.
In 1943, Katharine Kuh took a position in the public relations department at the Art Institute of Chicago. The following year, Kuh was asked to take over the Gallery of Art Interpretation at the Art Institute. Later she was appointed the Curator of Painting and Sculpture; in this role, she developed a close collaborative relationship with the Director of the Art Institute, Daniel Catton Rich. From 1946-1953, she served as the Editor of the Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly.
She left the Art Institute in 1959 and settled in New York City. She served as an art editor at the Saturday Review and World Magazine. She was also an art consultant for the First National Bank of Chicago from 1968-1979.
Katharine Kuh traveled extensively and often wrote about the art of the places she visited such as Sicily, Turkey, and the Yucatan. In the 1940s Kuh developed an interest in the wood carvings of the Indian tribes in the Pacific Northwest. The University of Alaska awarderd her an honorary doctorate for her efforts to preserve the indigenous artwork of the region's Native Americans.
The Archives of American Art holds the Katharine Kuh papers, 1908-1994. Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Katharine Kuh conducted by Avis Berman, March 18, 1982-March 23, 1983. Additional Katharine Kuh material is located at the Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
Provenance:
The Avis Berman Research Material, 1939-2006 was donated to the Archives of American Art by Avis Berman, an art historian and literary executor of Katharine Kuh's estate in 2007 and in 2021.
Restrictions:
This collection is temporarily closed to researchers due to archival processing. 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.
The donor has retained all intellectual property rights, including copyright, that they may own in the following material: all writings by Avis Berman
Occupation:
Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art critics -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of sculptor Nancy Coonsman Hahn measure 0.9 linear feet and date from 1900 to 1966. The collection includes artworks, scattered biographical material and correspondence, photographs of Hahn, her work, and Adele Schulenberg Gleason, printed material, two mixed media scrapbooks, and writings.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of sculptor Nancy Coonsman Hahn measure 0.9 linear feet and date from 1900 to 1966. The collection includes artworks, scattered biographical material and correspondence, photographs of Hahn, her work, and Adele Schulenberg Gleason, printed material, two mixed media scrapbooks, and writings.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Nancy Coonsman Hahn (1887-1976) was a sculptor active in St. Louis, Missouri. She erected a memorial to Missouri soldiers killed during World War I in Cheppy, France entitled Victory.
Nancy Coonsman Hahn was born in St. Louis, Missouri and studied at the St. Louis School of Fine Arts under George Julian Zolnay. She established a studio with fellow sculptor Adele Schulenberg Gleason. She was awarded many commissions such as the Margaret R. Kincaid Fountain and two World War I memorials. Later in life, Hahn focused on small busts.
She married Emanual Hahn in 1918 and they had one son, Charless Hahn. Nancy Coonsman Hahn died in Winnetka, Illinois in 1976.
Provenance:
Donated 1986 by Charless Hahn, Nancy Coonsman Hahn's son.
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.
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Walker Hancock, 1977 July 22-August 15. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Sculptors -- Massachusetts -- Gloucester -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Walker Hancock conducted 1977 July 22-August 25, by Robert Brown, for the Archives of American Art.
Hancock discusses his early education and studying with Charles Grafly at the American Academy in Rome; studying at the Pennsylvania Academy and later teaching there; early work with Lorado Taft; fellow sculptors; and sculptural commissions vs. freelance work.
Biographical / Historical:
Walker Kirtland Hancock (1901-1998) was a sculptor from Gloucester, Massachusettes. Hancock was born in 1901 in St. Louis, Missouri. He studied at Washington University for one year before moving on to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he studied under Charles Grafly. He taught at PAFA from 1929 to 1967.
General:
Originally recorded 3 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr., 5 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.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Sculptors -- Massachusetts -- Gloucester -- Interviews Search this
Correspondence with artists including Cecilia Beaux, Timothy Crouse, Carl Paul Jennewein, Henry Kreis, Paul Manship, Booth Tarkington, William Zorach, and others; project and commission files including the Stone Mountain Confederate Memorial in Georgia among others; committee files; personal business records; writings; sketches; photographs and negatives of Hancock, works of art, and political figures taken in preparation of portrait busts; printed material; and an interview transcript relating to Hancock's career as a sculptor.
Biographical / Historical:
Walker Hancock (1901-1998) was a sculptor from Gloucester, Massachusetts. Hancock was born in 1901 in St. Louis, Missouri. He studied at Washington University for one year before moving on to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he studied under Charles Grafly. He taught at PAFA from 1929 to 1967. During his career, he produced hundreds of realistic works, ranging from a 39 foot bronze angel in the 30th St. Station in Philadelphia, to a bust of former President Geroge H.W. Bush in the Capitol, to a monumental statue of James Madison in the Library of Congress, to a Christ figure in the central altar in the National Cathedral in Washington. Hancock first visited Gloucester in 1921, built a studio there, and later moved there permanently. He died at home at age 97.
Provenance:
Donated 1974-1996 by Walker Hancock and in 2017 by Deane French Hancock, Hancock's daughter and executor.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- Massachusetts -- Gloucester Search this
Topic:
Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- United States Search this
