Personal and professional records including correspondence, writings, notes, printed material, subject files, photograph album, and diaries relating to Zigrosser's work as an authority on prints and printmaking and his personal relationships with artists.
Included are: correspondence with family and with over 900 printmakers, painters, sculptors, acquaintances, friends, associates, organizations, museums, publishers, and magazines; general correspondence, notes, clippings, and manuscripts pertaining to The Modern School Magazine; files of correspondence from Zigrosser's work at: the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1932-1971; John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation; Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Museum, 1946-1971, including correspondence with Frank Lloyd Wright concerning the Guggenheim Memorial Museum; Print Council of America, 1954-1971, regarding exhibitions, council meetings and other matters; and the Tamarind Workshop, 1960-1971.
Of particular interest is material relating to the 1913 Armory Show, including Zigrosser's annotated catalog, notes and sketches. Also included are speeches and notes, 1930-1968; manuscripts for lectures and unpublished materials; memorabilia; a photo album of sculpture by John B. Flannagan; art work, including prints and drawings by Karig Nalbandian, prints by Rockwell Kent, and oversized works of art on paper by Mabel Dwight, Wanda Gag and Kent; family photograph album; journals and pamphlets (covers only); and diaries, 1916-1971, discussing personal and professional events such as art openings, conversations and activities with Rockwell Kent, Alfred Stieglitz, and Georgia O'Keeffe, among others.
Among the correspondents are: the American Artists Group, John Taylor Arms, Art in America magazine, Art Institute of Chicago, Alfred Barr, E. Boyd, Charles Burchfield, Alexander Calder, Fitz Roy Carrington, Federico Castellon, Ed Colker, Howard N. Cook, Crown Publishers, Adolf Dehn, Caroline Durieux, John Bernard Flannagan, Andre Girard, Stanley William Hayter, Edward Hopper, Victoria Hutson Huntley, Independent Citizens Committee for the Arts, Sciences and Professions, R. Sturgis Ingersoll, Frederick Keppel, Rockwell Kent, Fiske Kimball, Misch Kohn, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Julius Lankes, Mauricico Lasansky, Merritt Mauzey, Kneeland McNulty, James A. Michener, Marian Mitchell,
Museum of Non-Objective Painting (Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum), Karnig Nalbandian, Dorothy Norman, Georgia O'Keeffe, Walter Pach, Harold Paris, Print Club (Philadelphia), Diego Rivera, Ruth Starr Rose, Arnold Ronnebeck, Lessing J. Rosenwald, Andre Ruellan, Carl Oscar Schniewind, Roderick Seidenberg, William Spratling, Benton Spruance, Alfred Stieglitz, Harry Sternberg, Tamarind Lithography Workshop, Kuei Teng, U.S. Office of War Information, Curt Valentin, Heinz Warneke, Edward Weston, Weyhe Gallery, Whitney Museum of American Art, Harry Wickey, and Adja Yunkers.
Biographical / Historical:
Print curator; Philadelphia, Pa.; d. 1975. Graduated Columbia University in literature. Worked with prints in New York City at Keppel and Co. and Weyhe Gallery; print curator at Philadelphia Museum of Art 1940-1963; author of books on prints and art works.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming, 1991, by the University of Pennsylvania Special Collections Department, Van Pelt Library. Zigrosser donated the papers to the University in 1972. Portions of the papers not microfilmed include research files, manuscript materials for published work, family records, and journals.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Rights:
Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce must be obtained from: Attn: Nancy Shawcross, Curator of Manuscripts, Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Pennsylvania, 3420 Walnut St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19104-6206; phone: 215-898-2065; e-mail: shawcros@pobox.upenn.edu.
This collection contains over 37,000 35mm slides, 3,000 glass lantern slides and garden files that may include descriptive information, photocopied articles (from journals, newspapers, or books), planting lists, correspondence, brochures, landscape plans and drawings. Garden files were compiled by Garden Club of America (GCA) members for most of the gardens included in the collection. Some gardens have been photographed over the course of several decades; others only have images from a single point in time. In addition to images of American gardens, there are glass lantern slides of the New York Flower Show (1941-1951) and trips that GCA members took to other countries, including Mexico (1937), Italy, Spain, Japan (1935), France (1936), England (1929), and Scotland.
A number of the slides are copies of historic images from outside repositories including horticultural and historical societies or from horticultural books and publications. The GCA made a concerted effort in the mid-1980s to acquire these images in order to increase its documentation of American garden history. Because of copyright considerations, use of these particular images may be restricted.
Biographical/Historical note:
The Garden Club of America was established in 1913 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when the Garden Club of Philadelphia and eleven other garden clubs met to create a national garden club. Its purpose is to foster the knowledge and love of gardening and to restore and protect the quality of the environment through educational programs and gardening and conservation efforts. The GCA was incorporated in Delaware in 1923, with its headquarters established in New York City. Today, local clubs are organized under twelve regional zones. The GCA continues its tradition of hosting flower shows and publishing material related to gardening in the United States.
The GCA's glass lantern slides were used by The GCA for presentations and lectures about notable gardens throughout the United States dating back to colonial times. An effort was made in the late 1980s, in preparation of the 75th anniversary of the Garden Club of America's founding, to collect the disbursed slides. These slides were to eventually form the Slide Library of Notable American Parks and Gardens. The informational value of this collection is extensive since a number of images of the more than 4,500 gardens represented show garden designs that have changed over time or no longer exist. While the majority of images document a range of designed upper and upper-middle class gardens throughout the U.S., the scope of the collection is expanding as volunteers photograph and document contemporary gardens including community and vernacular gardens.
The gardens illustrate the design work of dozens of landscape architects including Marian Coffin, Beatrix Farrand, Lawrence Halprin, Hare & Hare, Umberto Innocenti, Gertrude Jekyll, Jens Jensen, Warren Manning, the Olmsted Brothers, Charles Platt, Ellen Biddle Shipman, and Fletcher Steele. Because of their proximity to the gardens, works of notable architects and sculptors may also be featured in the images.
Restrictions:
Access to original images 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.
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.
An interview of Boris Bally conducted 2009 May 26-27, by Mija Riedel, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at Bally's home and studio, in Providence, Rhode Island.
The artists speaks of his current studio in Providence, Rhode Island; working without a studio assistant; the benefits of working with studio assistants without an art-school background; apprenticing with Swiss metalsmith Alexander Schaffner when Bally was 19; his own de facto apprenticeship program with his studio assistants; his parents as role models; his vision at age 19 for his career plan; his early interest in CAD; growing up with Swiss-born parents, both with art/design backgrounds; visiting Switzerland as a child; his father's studies with Buckminster Fuller in the late 1950s; his mother's class with L. Brent Kington, whom Bally later studied with; growing up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; his first home metal shop at nine years old; his first formal metal class at about 14 years old; making and selling jewelry throughout his teens; informal apprenticeship with Jeff Whisner; his father's design firm, launched in his last year of high school; summer studying at the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts; year-long apprenticeship in Switzerland; watching Schaffner make and sell a wide variety of objects, which later informed Bally's own perspective; his continuing relationship with Schaffner; undergraduate studies at Tyler School of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; studying with Daniella Kerner and Vickie Sedman at Tyler; transferring to Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to study with Carol Kumata; making a "happiness machine"; transition from jewelry to larger sculptures; using found and scavenged materials; meeting Rosemary Gialamas (Roy) and their eventual elopement; moving to the Boston area; work as an industrial design model-maker; the New York art scene of the 1980s; representation with Archetype Gallery, New York, New York; slow but steady artistic recognition and commercial success of his functional objects; Sliding Perfections, flatware; teaching Gialamas metalsmithing and collaborative works by the two; early teaching experience in adult education classes in Cambridge, Massachusetts, then at Massachusetts College of Art, Boston; return to Pittsburgh in 1989, where Bally took a teaching position at Carnegie Mellon in the design department; studio on Bigelow Boulevard; difficulties in his marriage; a commission from the Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston, Massachusetts, and the beginnings of his traffic sign pieces in a collaborative piece with Gialamas; starting his platters series; the dissolution of his marriage to Gialamas in 1993; meeting Lynn, whom he later married; his love of teaching and his teaching philosophy; teaching at Penland School of Crafts, Penland, North Carolina; move to Providence, Rhode Island, to devote his time to studio work; the pros and cons of craft and arts schools versus university settings; the intersection of art, design, and industry: his Humanufactured line of products; functional work in the late '80s, and the influence of a trip to Haiti in the 1980s; bottle cork pieces; Trirod vessels; "More than One: Contemporary Studio Production" exhibition, American Craft Museum, New York, New York, 1992-94; philosophy of making; working in series form; truss pieces; perforation pieces and Vessel with a Silver Heart (1993); armform series; "Jewelries, Epiphanies" exhibition, Artists Foundation Gallery at Cityplace, Boston, Massachusetts, 1990; inclusion in One of a Kind: American Art Jewelry Today, by Susan Grant Lewin. (New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, 1994); series Dig Wear and Eat Wear bracelets; Calimbo vessel and the Fortunoff prize; gold Tread Wear brooches in the mid-1990s; creating his first chair; moving from hand-made solo work to furniture and a design and production focus; starting to patent his designs in the mid-1990s; further exploration of design and technique in his chairs; "GlassWear: Glass in Contemporary Jewelry," Museum of Arts and Design, New York, New York, 2009; Pistol Chalice and work with the Pittsburgh gun buyback program; traveling exhibition for the project; Gun Totem; Brave necklace; BroadWay armchair; Subway chair; new techniques for graphics on the furniture; his relationship with former scrapyard Paul Warhola, brother to Andy Warhol; commission work, and the importance of commerce in his career and worldview; commission for Comedy Central television network; the changing craft market and the boom times of the 1980s; work with galleries, including: Patina, Santa Fe, New Mexico; Velvet da Vinci, San Francisco, California; Snyderman-Works, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Nancy Sachs Gallery, St. Louis, Missouri; the Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston, Massachusetts; seeing one of his pieces used on a set for a daytime television soap opera and in the movie Sex and the City ; the recent "green" (environmentally conscious) trend; blurring boundaries of design and art and craft; growing acceptance of artist-made and -designed multiples; pros and cons of computer technology in art and craft; the pros and cons of the DIY (do-it-yourself) craft movement; influential writers, including Rosanne Raab, Marjorie Simon, Steven Skov Holt and Mara Holt Skov, Bruce Metcalf, Toni Greenbaum, Matthew Kangas, Gail Brown; his involvement in the Society of North American Goldsmiths; making metal benches for his children. He also recalls Heather Guidero, Julian Jetten, Pam Moloughney, Dennis Kowal, Ursula Ilse-Neuman, Bob Ebendorf, Jason Spencer, Rob Brandegee and Ava DeMarco, Stefan Gougherty, Flo Delgado, L. Brent Kington, Curtis Aric, Ralph Düby, Steve Korpa, Joe Wood, Joe Ballay, Yves Thomann, Andy Caderas, James Thurman, Nicholas (Nico) Bally, Elena Gialamas, James Gialamas, Elvira Peake, Ronald McNeish, Johanna Dahm, Jerry Bennet, Kathleen Mulcahy, Nelson Maniscalco, Tom Mann, Otto Künzli, Stanley Lechtzin, Christopher Shellhammer, David Tisdale, Dean Powell, Daniel Carner, Donald Brecker, Robert Schroeder Phil Carrizzi, Lucy Stewart, Elisabeth Agro, Rachel Layton, Sarah Nichols, Peter Nassoit, Dan Niebels, Mary Carothers, Ward Wallau, Ivan Barnett and Alison Buchsbaum, Jonathan Bonner, Raymond and Patsy Nasher, Beth Gerstein, George Summers Jr., Pavel Opocensky, Buddy Cianci, David Cicilline.
Biographical / Historical:
Boris Bally (1961- ) is a metalsmith and designer who lives and works in Providence, Rhode Island. Bally was educated at Carnegie Mellon University and Tyler School of Art.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 11 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hr., 56 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.
An interview of Charles Searles conducted 1991 June 13, by Cynthia Veloric, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Searles discusses his early life in Philadelphia; military service; discovering African sculpture; attending the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts; being included in the 1969 exhibit "New Black Artists"; traveling to Europe and Africa on a Cresson Fellowship from the PAFA; his experiences in Nigeria; exhibiting and teaching in Philadelphia, moving to New York City; his work in various media; subject matter; interest in dance and music; participating in Recherché; and being represented by the Sande Webster Gallery in Philadelphia.
Biographical / Historical:
Charles Robert Searles (1937-2004) was a sculptor, painter and muralist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 52 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.
Topic:
African American artists -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
African American artists -- New York (State) -- N.Y. -- Interviews Search this
African American art -- African influences Search this
An interview of Samuel C. Maitin conducted 1991 July 24, by Anne Schuster Hunter, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Maitin discusses his Russian Jewish family background; his early life in Philadelphia; art studies at the Philadelphia Museum school of Industrial Art and the University of Pennsylvania; exhibitions of his work at the Print Club of Philadelphia; printmaking techniques, typography, advertising work and posters he designed; his Guggenheim fellowship and working with Ronald Goodman; commissions including a mural for the Children's Hospital, Philadelphia; and the Philadelphia art scene. He recalls collector Luther Brady and print curator Kneeland (Ding) McNulty.
Biographical / Historical:
Samuel C. Maitin (1928-2004) was a printmaker, painter, and sculptor) from Philadelphia, Pa.
General:
Originally recorded on 5 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 9 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hrs., 38 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.
An interview of Joseph J. Greenberg, Jr. conducted 1991 Mar. 19, by Cynthia Haveson Veloric, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Greenberg discusses his family and early education; attending the Tyler School of Art; instructors including Boris Blai, Raphael Sabatini, Franklin Watkins, Earl Horter, Ferman Fink, and Alexander Abels; fellow students; Army service in WWII; his early career and years in Italy.
Biographical / Historical:
Joseph J. Greenberg, Jr. (1915-1991) was a sculptor and wood-carver from Philadelphia, Pa.
Provenance:
This interview is 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: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Topic:
Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Wood-carving -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Art teachers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Wood-carvers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Function:
Art Schools -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
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.
An interview of Sidney Goodman conducted 1990 November 1, by Marina Pacini, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project. Goodman discusses his family and early life in Philadelphia; his studies at the Philadelphia College of Art with Morris Berd, Jacob Landau, and Larry Day; military service; traveling to Europe and the art collections he visited; teaching at the PCA and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and his students; his 30 year relationship with the Terry Dintenfass Gallery; sales and exhibitions; and a lengthy discussion of his paintings, drawings and sculpture, including the importance of photography, the stylistic changes in his art, subject matter including his interest in portraiture, nudes and landscapes, and his most recent work.
Biographical / Historical:
Sidney Goodman (1936-2013) is a painter and sculptor from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Provenance:
These interviews are 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 others.
Topic:
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Function:
Art galleries, Commercial -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia
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.
An interview of Martha Mayer Erlebacher conducted 1990 December 7-1991 January 12, by Anne Schuster Hunter, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Erlebacher discusses her family background and education including her studies at Pratt Institute in Industrial Design, meeting future husband Walter Erlebacher; working for the design firm Arthur Wagner Associates; receiving her advanced degree from Pratt; her early optical paintings and the gradual introduction of the figure; studying and teaching herself anatomy along with Walter Erlebacher in the mid 1960s; a 1966 Yaddo fellowship; moving to Philadelphia and her first one person show there in 1966; showing with Robert Schoelkopf; the development of themes and use of mythology in her art; interest in Renaissance painters; Camille Paglia's "Sexual Personae"; and portrait commissions and models.
Biographical / Historical:
Martha Mayer Erlebacher (1937- ) is a painter from Philadelphia, Pensylvania. Wife of sculptor Walter Erlebacher.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound tape cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 41 min.
Provenance:
This interview is 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: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Topic:
Women painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Figurative painting -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
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.
An interview of Walter Erlebacher conducted 1991 Jan. 19, by Anne Hunter, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Erlebacher discusses his early years in Frankfurt, immigrating with his family to New York City in 1940; his education and early visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art; issues such as the Vietnam War and the resulting changes, multiculturalism; his interest in philosophy, Plato, mathematics and the golden section; his studies at Pratt, Alexander Kostellow and Ivan Rigby and the program they developed at Pratt; military service in Europe; returning to Pratt, his fellow students, and issues of representational art;
Eva Hesse; his shift to representational sculpture; his interest in anatomy which he taught himself and others in a private class; his friendship with other representational artists such as Philip Pearlstein, Alfred Leslie and Jack Beal; his use of mythology; Marcel Duchamp; exhibitions and his dislike of them; and a few major commissions including the Jesus in Philadelphia, the ARA commission, and the Jefferson Hospital commission he lost; Philadelphia as an art community and such controversies as the "Rocky" sculpture.
Biographical / Historical:
Walter Erlebacher (1933-1991) was a sculptor and instructor from Philadelphia, Pa.
Provenance:
These interviews are 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 others.
Restrictions:
Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Topic:
Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Figurative art -- 20th century -- United States Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews 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.
An interview of Walter Clemmons conducted 1990 July 26, by Jack Lindsey for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Clemmons speaks about the development of his wire art beginning with his work as a child; individual pieces created throughout his career including subjects and their sources; technical issues such as materials and methods; and his exhibition history.
Biographical / Historical:
Walter Clemmons (1956- ) is a sculptor from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 27 min.
Provenance:
This interview is 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: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Topic:
African American artists -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Thomas Chimes conducted 1990 June 14, by Cynthia Veloric, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project. Chimes speaks about his Greek background, his childhood in Philadelphia and in several southern states, studies at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Art Students League, New York in the 1940's including a comparison of the two institutions and a discussion of the New York City art scene; teaching at Drexel Institute, Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts), and Moore College of Art in Philadelphia; the development of his painting and sculpture including the religious paintings of the 1960's, the metal boxes, and the transition to the portraits of the 1970's and 1980's based on his readings and interest in Alfred Jarry and Marcel Duchamp; and "Sleeping Woman" commissioned by the Fairmount Park Art Association.
Biographical / Historical:
Thomas Chimes (1921-2009) was a painter, sculptor, and educator from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 27 min.
Provenance:
This interview is 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.
Topic:
Painting, Abstract -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Art -- Study and teaching -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Art -- Study and teaching -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Portrait painting -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews 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.
An interview of Ruth and Mansfield Bascom concerning artist Wharton Esherick, conducted 1990 July 13, by Richard Polsky, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Wharton Esherick was the father of Ruth Bascom. The Bascoms discuss Esherick's childhood sketching; studies at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts; professional life including painting, printmaking, frame carving, sculpture and furniture making; stylistic development, working methods, clients, materials, and exhibitions; his stays in Fairhope, Alabama; his "organic" life style; and the establishment of the Wharton Esherick Museum.
Biographical / Historical:
Mansfield Bascom married Ruth Esherick and is the son-in-law of Wharton Esherick (1887-1970), who was a sculptor, painter, printmaker, wood-carver and furniture maker from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 15 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 of artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Printmakers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Cabinetmakers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Wood-carvers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews 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.
An interview of Ruth Esherick Bascom and Mansfield Bascom regarding Wharton Esherick, conducted 1991 March 26, by Marina Pacini, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Ruth Esherick Bascom and Mansfield Bascom speak about Wharton Esherick's family, his education, his "organic" life in Paoli, Pennsylvania, and his efforts to support himself through the sale of his paintings, furniture and sculpture. They discuss Esherick's work, its stylistic development, and changes in his prints and furniture, materials; clients such as the Hedgrow Theater, The Fischer family, Marjorie Content, Curtis Bok; Esherick's studio and his workshop; Esherick's relationship with Miriam Phillips and some of the clients she brought him; and contacts in New York City.
Biographical / Historical:
Ruth Esherick Bascom from Paoli, Pennsylvania, is the daughter of Wharton Esherick (1887-1970), who was a sculptor, painter, printmaker, and furniture maker from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Bascom is married to Mansfield Bascom.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 40 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are 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 anda others.
Restrictions:
Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Printmakers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Cabinetmakers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Interviews Search this
The papers of sculptor and site-specific installation artist Elyn Zimmerman measure 28.5 linear feet and 0.223 gigabytes, and date from 1969-2017. The collection documents the artist's life and work through correspondence, writings, project and commission files, exhibition files, teaching files, and printed material. Project and commission files comprise the majority of the collection at 18.2 linear feet and comprehensively document dozens of Zimmerman's site-specific sculptural projects and proposals for public and private sites across the United States and internationally. Items include correspondence, contracts, photographs, models, blueprints, and original sketches and drawings. The papers include a small number of born digital records, including digital images of projects, construction sites, and floorplans, as well as PowerPoint presentations.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of sculptor and site-specific installation artist Elyn Zimmerman measure 28.5 linear feet and 0.223 gigabytes, and date from 1969-2017. The collection documents the artist's life and work through correspondence, writings, project and commission files, exhibition files, teaching files, and printed material.
Correspondence is comprised predominately of received letters and fewer drafts and copies of outgoing letters. Notable correspondents include Zimmerman's late husband, curator Kirk Varnedoe, arts advocate Agnes Gund, and artists Ruth Dicker, Richard Diebenkorn, Kady Hoffman, and Masami Teraoka.
Writings include drafts of journal articles, a book mock-up, project notes, and statements. Agendas and address books are filed with writings.
Project and commission files comprise the bulk of the collection and comprehensively document dozens of Zimmerman's site-specific sculptural projects and proposals for public and private sites across the United States and internationally. Items include correspondence, contracts, photographs, models, blueprints, and original sketches and drawings. The files include a small number of born digital records, including digital images of projects, construction sites, and floorplans, as well as PowerPoint presentations.
Exhibition files document Zimmerman's site-specific installations and exhibitions in a gallery and museum context. Files include correspondence, photographs, slides, statements, press releases, shipping information, and price lists.
Teaching files document the many courses Zimmerman taught in painting, drawing, design, architecture, and landscape architecture. Items include syllabi, assignments, lecture notes, reading lists, and articles.
Printed material primarily consists of items cataloging Zimmerman's career including exhibition announcements, catalogs, and press clippings. Subject files were saved and collected by Zimmerman and are arranged at the end of the series.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as six series.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1978-2011 (3.7 linear feet; Box 1-4)
Series 2: Writings, Agendas, and Address Books, 1970-2003 (0.5 linear feet; Box 4-5)
Series 3: Project and Commission Files, 1970-2016 (18.2 linear feet, Box 5-15, 21-22, OV 23-85, RD 97-98; 0.223 gigabytes, ER01-04)
Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1969-2015 (3.5 linear feet; Box 15-16, 20-21, OV 86-96, RD 99)
Series 5: Teaching Files, 1970-1994 (0.4 linear feet; Box 16)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1970-2017 (2.2 linear feet; Box 16-19)
Biographical / Historical:
Elyn Zimmerman (1945-) is a New York City and Los Angeles based sculptor best known for her large scale site-specific outdoor installations incorporating granite, water features, and landscape architecture.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Zimmerman moved to California for college, earning both her BFA and MFA from University of California, Los Angeles. While at UCLA, she studied with Richard Diebenkorn and Robert Irwin, and worked in photography, drawing, and site-specific installation. In 1978 she created Monarch's Trough for Artpark in Lewiston, New York, her first site-specific work using granite. For the next several decades Zimmerman would complete dozens of site-specific installations in public and private spaces across the United States, and submit proposals for dozens more. Working frequently with stone and granite, she developed a decades long relationship with a granite quarry in Cold Spring, Minnesota, which fabricated many of her designs. Zimmerman's clients have included the National Geographic Society, the Birmingham Art Museum, and the New York City Parks Department.
In addition to her site-specific work, Zimmerman has had an extensive exhibition history, and has shown for many years with Gagosian Gallery. In 2016, Zimmerman was the recipient of the Isamu Noguchi Award. She has taught at Mills College, California Institute of the Arts, Harvard University, New York University, and the University of Pennsylvania.
Zimmerman was married to the late curator Kirk Varnedoe from 1978-2002.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives of American Art in 2015 and 2017 by Elyn Zimmerman.
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.
Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References 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:
Sculptors -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Installation artists -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
Installation artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Correspondence, mostly from Nelli Bar Wieghardt to Francis Bosworth relating to the Wieghardt's years as refugees and their attempt to settle in the United States; notebooks on art history and class materials compiled by Paul Wieghardt; biographical records; clippings which include early reviews from German and French papers; photographs of Paul Wieghardt teaching, installation views and of Paul and Nelli Bar Wieghardt's art work.
Biographical / Historical:
Paul Wieghardt (1897-1969) was a painter and sculptor in Chicago, Ill. and Philadelphia, Pa. Paul was a painter and his wife Nelli Bar was a sculptor. They taught at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Evanston Art Center.
Provenance:
Microfilmed in 1987 as part of AAA's Philadelphia Arts Documentation Project. Lent for microfilming by Nelli Bar Wieghardt.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Barnes, Albert C. (Albert Coombs), 1872-1951 Search this
Extent:
105 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1987 July 9-1989 April 29
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Nelli Bar Wieghardt conducted 1987 July 9-1989 April 29, by Marina Pacini, for the Archives of American Art.
Wieghardt discusses her and her husband Paul Wieghardt's art training in Germany; their move to Paris in 1931; their emigration to the United States in 1940 and their involvement with Quaker refugee programs; their move to a hostel in Cummington, Massachusetts and subsequent employment at the Cummington School in the Hills and the Berkshire Museum; their move in 1943 to Philadelphia to set up and run an art department for the Friends Neighborhood Guild; exhibitions at the Carlen Galleries and their relationship with Albert Barnes; the move in 1946 to Chicago and their teaching careers and methods at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois Institute of Technology; the University of Chicago, and the Evanston Art Center; their exhibition history; and the Wieghardt galleries at the State Museum, Ludensheid.
Biographical / Historical:
Nelli Bar Wieghardt (1904-2001) was a sculptor and instructor of Gwynedd, Pennsylvania and Chicago, Illinois.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 2 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.
Topic:
Art teachers -- Pennsylvania -- Interviews Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Interviews 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.
Biographical material, financial material, correspondence, notes, writings, art work, photographs, printed material, and project files document the career of sculptor and educator, Heinz Warneke. Also included are some writings, art work, photographs, and printed material related to his wife, Jessie Warneke.
Biographical materials include autobiographical and biographical sketches about Warneke, and certificates, including his membership card to the Kunstler-Bund-Bremen, 1922-1923; personal financial materials, ca. 1931-1937, include household records for his East Haddam, Connecticut home, "The Mowings."
Correspondence, 1930-1987, with his wife, Jessie, friends, colleagues, clients, gallery owners, museum and art school administrators, various art guilds and societies, and foundries. Among the correspondents are Edmund (Ned) Archer, William Hunt Diederich, Walker Hancock, Dick and Julia Helms, Inslee A. Hopper, Rena T. Magee, Jessalee Sickman, Henry Vam Wolf, and Carl Zigrosser. The correspondence discusses exhibitions and sales of Warneke's sculptures, the Corcoran School of Art, and invitations to various White House and Embassy functions in Washington, D.C. Also included are illustrated letters from Henry Kriess and Jessie Warneke.
Notes are by Heinz Warneke, ca. 1928-1979, and others and include 5 address books, 2 notebooks, one regarding the Warneke School of Sculpture, ca. 1935-1937, scattered notes regarding Warneke's sculpture classes at the Corcoran School of Art, ca. 1950-1963, his formulas and processes for sculpting, and price lists for his art works. Notes by ohters include a guest book from the exhibition, "Heinz Warneke Looks Back," 1967 and research notes by Mary Mullen Cunningham, undated. Writings, ca. 1923-1977, by Heinz Warneke and others, include lectures, forewords to exhibition catalogs, and a statement of "Opinion regarding the Philosophy of the Corcoran School of Art and the Direction it should take."
Art works, ca. 1929-1932, include 2 sketchbooks, studies of figures, animals, and plant life, watercolors, several chalk sketches for a work possibly depiction life at "The Mowings," by Warneke, several sketches by Jessie Warneke, an etching, and three engravings by others. Photographs, ca. 1918-1983, are of Heinz, family and friends including Edmund Archer, Inslee Hopper, Roderick Seidenberg, Carl Zigrosser, his pet dogs, his homes and studios in Connecticut, New York, and Washington, D.C., students, travels, art works by Heinz and Jessie, exhibition installations, and source material.
Printed material include exhibition announcements and catalogs and clippings, and other materials for Heinz, Jessie, and others, ca. 1923-1981. There is a file regarding Warneke's participation on the jury for the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Committee, 1939-1940, and circa 136 project files for completed and proposed sculpture works for public and private commissions which include various works for the National Cathedral, Washington, D.C., an African cow elephant and calf for the Philadelphia Zoo, the Nittany Lion for Pennsylvania State University, and several Works Project Authority (WPA), and other federal projects, ca., 1911-1971.
Biographical / Historical:
Heinz Warneke (1895-1983) was a sculptor, animal sculptor and educator in East Haddam, Connecticut. Born and trained in Germany, Warneke worked on sculpture projects for WPA and was the head of the sculpture department at the Corcoran School of Art from the early 1940's to 1970.
Related Materials:
Heinz Warneke papers also at Syracuse University.
Provenance:
Donated 1977 by Warneke, and in 1983-1984, and 1994 by his stepdaughter and executrix of his estate, Priscilla Norton. The 1994 installment had been used by Micky Cunningham in her book, "Heinz Warneke, 1895-1983: A Sculptor First and Last" (University of Delaware Press, 1994). Additional photograph of Warneke by his stepson Edward Hall transferred 2013 from SAAM via George Gurney, Curator. Gurney received the photograph from Priscilla Norton.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Animal sculptors -- Connecticut -- East Haddam Search this
Sculptors -- Connecticut -- East Haddam Search this
The papers of New York, Rome, and Paris painter Allen Townsend Terrell painter measure 4.5 linear feet and date from 1908-1982. Included are biographical materials; detailed letters from Terrell to his parents; fourteen diaries describing European travels; scattered financial records; three sketchbooks and miscellaneous sketches; printed material; and photographs of Terrell, his colleagues, his home and studios, artwork, and exhibition installations.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of New York, Rome, and Paris painter Allen Townsend Terrell painter measure 4.5 linear feet and date from 1908-1982. Included are biographical materials; detailed letters from Terrell to his parents; fourteen diaries describing European travels; scattered financial records; three sketchbooks and miscellaneous sketches; printed material; and photographs of Terrell, his colleagues, his home and studios, artwork, and exhibition installations.
Biographical material includes a passport, membership cards for miscellaneous organizations, brief biographical accounts, and a guestbook containing signatures from several exhibition openings. There are almost daily letters written by Terrell to his parents describing his travels and education in the arts while in Europe. Scattered letters are from friends and colleagues, including one from Albert Laessle.
Fourteen diaries describe daily events in Terell's European travels. Scattered financial material includes banking records and miscellaneous receipts.
Three sketchbooks contain several block prints and miscellaneous sketches by Terrell. Printed material includes clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs for Terrell and for others, as well as programs, and miscellaneous brochures. Photographs are of Terrell, and of his colleagues, studio, and artwork, in addition to albums containing photographs of his apartment, the Riverhead studio, commissioned projects, and exhibition installations.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized as 7 series; each series is arranged chronologically.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1924-1978 (Boxes 1, 6; 3 folders)
Series 2: Letters, 1908-1978 (Boxes 1-3; 2.8 linear feet)
Series 3: Diaries, 1965-1978 (Boxes 3-4; 12 folders)
Series 4: Financial Material, 1925-1933 (Box 4; 7 folders)
Series 5: Artwork, 1925-1982 (Boxes 4, 6; 7 folders)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1911-1976 (Box 4; 15 folders)
Series 7: Photographs, 1925-1972 (Box 5; 15 folders)
Biographical Note:
Allen Townsend Terrell (1897-1986) was a painter and sculptor who worked in Paris, Rome, and New York. Terrell was born in Riverhead, New York and graduated from the Columbia University School of Architecture in 1921. He also studied painting and sculpture at the Art Students League with Edward McCartan and at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts with Albert Laessle. In 1924, he studied in France at the Conservatoire Américain de Fontainebleau with sculptor Charles Despiau, and at the Académie Julian in Paris.
Between 1924 and 1926, Terrell established a studio in Paris, later moving to Rome between 1928 and 1931. From 1934 to 1935, he taught watercolor and still life painting at the Parsons School of Design.
Among other exhibitions in Paris, New York, and Philadelphia, Terrell had a solo exhibition at the National Arts Club in 1975. He was a member of the American Watercolor Society and president of the Alumni of the American School at Fontainebleau.
Allen Townsend Terrell died on July 8, 1986.
Provenance:
Allen Townsend Terrell donated his papers in 7 installments between 1975 and 1981.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Allen Townsend Terrell papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary rights as possessed by the donor have been dedicated to public use for research, study, and scholarship. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
Two black and white mounted photographs of Missouri sculptor Joseph Horchert with works of art. One image depicts Horchert with a rabbit sculpture and the other depicts him with 16 foot model of a William Penn sculpture in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Horchert is pictured on scaffolding (right) with another unidentified man (left). The model appears to be a small scale version of the William Penn bronze cast by Alexander Milne Calder which sits atop Philadelphia City Hall.
Biographical / Historical:
Victor Porter Smith (1921-2012) was a collector in St. Louis, Missouri.
Provenance:
Donated 2016 by Victor Porter Smith estate via Lynn Springer Roberts, executor. Smith received the photographs as a gift from friends.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
The papers of African American sculptor and painter Charles Searles measure 3.9 linear feet and date from 1953 to 2010. The collection documents his career through scattered biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, printed material, artwork, photographs, and a scrapbook.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of sculptor and painter Charles Searles measure 3.9 linear feet and date from 1953 to 2010. The collection documents his career through scattered biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, printed material, artwork, photographs, and a scrapbook.
Scattered biographical material includes legal papers, address books, transcripts, and awards. Correspondence includes correspondence with galleries, museums, and organizations. Personal business records consist of Searles' files on commissions, exhibitions, workshops and programs, and employment contracts. Printed material includes exhibition announcements, exhibition catalogs, as well as printed material of interest to Searles, but not directly documenting his career. Artwork consists of sketches, designs, flyers, a portrait of Kathleen Spicer by Russell Gordon, and a portrait of Searles by K. Spicer. Photographs depict Searles, Searles' artwork, and artist Walt Edmonds. Scrapbooks consist of news clippings and loose material that was originally inserted in between the pages in no particular order.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 7 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1963-2004 (0.5 linear ft.; Boxes 1, 6)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1956-2004 (5 folders; Box 1)
Series 3: Personal Business Records, 1969-2007 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-2,6)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1953-2010 (1.4 linear feet; Boxes 3-4, 6)
Series 5: Artwork, circa 1980s-2000 (9 folders; Box 5)
Series 6: Photographs, circa 1964-2000 (3 folders; Box 5)
Series 7: Scrapbooks, circa 1970s-2005 (0.3 linear ft.; Box 6)
Biographical / Historical:
Charles Robert Searles (1937-2004) was an African American sculptor, painter and muralist in Philadelphia, Pa. and New York, N.Y. Searles attended the University of Pennsylvania and graduated from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1972. He was influenced by African art after traveling to Nigeria on the Ware Memorial Traveling Scholarship during his studies at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. During his career he participated in over 100 exhibitions in Denmark, Nigeria, and throughout the United States.
Searles taught art at several institutions including the Pratt Institute, the University of the Arts (Philadelphia College of Art), and the Philadephia Museum of Art. He also completed commission work for Newark Station, PATCO (Port Authority Transit Corporation), and MTA (Metropolitan Transportation Authority).
Searles moved to New York, NY in 1978 where he spent most of his career. He was married to artist Kathleen Spicer until his death on November 27, 2004.
Related Materials:
Also at the Archives of American Art is an interview with Charles Searles conducted on June 13, 1991, by Cynthia Veloric, for the Archives of American Art Philadelphia Project.
Provenance:
Donated in 2012 by Kathleen Spicer Searles, Charles Searles' widow.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Charles Searles papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary rights as possessed by the donor have been dedicated to public use for research, study, and scholarship. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
Occupation:
Muralists -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
