An interview of Ida Kohlmeyer conducted 1989 May 17-20, by Avis Berman, for the Archives of American Art.
Kohlmeyer discusses how she became an artist, her training, her marriage, the New Orleans art scene, her teaching and students, her work in sculpture, and the "Clusters and Circus" series. She recalls Pat Trivigno, Mark Rothko, Hans Hofmann, Clyfford Still, James Johnson Sweeney, Luba Glade, and Ruth White.
Biographical / Historical:
Ida Kohlmeyer (1912-1997) was a painter from New Orleans, La.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr.
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. Funding for this interview provided by the Lannan Foundation.
Restrictions:
For information on how to access this interview contact Reference Services.
An interview of H. Harvard Arnason conducted 1970 March 3-9, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. Arnason speaks of his family and educational background; the influence of the WPA Federal Art Project on museums; lecturing at the Frick Collection and Hunter College; his work as U.S. representative of UNESCO; his teaching positions and his roles as director of the Walker Art Center and trustee and vice president of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. He comments on Frank Lloyd Wright's design for the Guggenheim Museum building; competition among New York museums; conceptual art and museums; and the museum as a research center. He recalls Holger Cahill, Thomas M. Messer, Hilla Rebay, James Johnson Sweeney and others. Arnason also describes his writing projects, including his "History of Modern Art."
Biographical / Historical:
H. Harvard Arnason (1909-1986) was an historian, writer, and a former director of the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 30 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:
Museum architecture -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Museum directors -- Minnesota -- Minneapolis -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Arthur Cort Holden conducted 1971 Jan. 20, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. Holden speaks of Frank Lloyd Wright and his work in conjunction with Wright on the Guggenheim Museum, and difficulties in the construction of the museum. He recalls James Johnson Sweeney.
Biographical / Historical:
Arthur Cort Holden (1890-1993) was an architect from New York, N.Y.
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 available on the Archives of American Art website.
Topic:
Museum architecture -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Architects -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
An interview of Isabel Bishop conducted 1987 November 12-December 11, by Cynthia Nadelman, for the Archives of American Art.
Bishop discusses her family background; moving to New York; her studio in Union Square; "Reality" magazine; and her figurative sculpture and portraiture. She recalls Reginald Marsh, Kenneth Hayes Miller, Raphael Soyer, Alan Gruskin, Guy Pène du Bois, James Johnson Sweeney, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Isabel Bishop (1902-1988) was a painter from New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 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.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Book illustrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Walker, Hudson D. (Hudson Dean), 1907-1976 -- Photographs Search this
Walkowitz, Abraham, 1880-1965 -- Photographs Search this
Zorach, William, 1887-1966 -- Photographs Search this
Extent:
68 Items ((partially microfilmed on 2 reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1953-1980
Scope and Contents:
REEL 1817: Photographs of: Will Barnet, Jose de Creeft (2), Sonia Delaunay, Walker Evans, Joseph Floch, Suzi Gablik (2), Adolph Gottlieb (also filmed on reel 1886, fr. 33-34), Lorrie Goulet, Minna Harkavy, William Hayter (2), Paul Jenkins, Lee Krasner (2), Lilliane Lijn, Jerry Sheerin (2), and Darthea Speyer (2). Also included is a group photo of Jose de Creeft, Jacques Lipchitz, George Biddle, Thomas Benton, and Ben Shahn at the American Academy of Arts & Letters Ceremonial, May 20, 1964.
REEL 1886: Photographs of: Barbara Adrian, Alexander Archipenko, Milton Avery, Will Barnet, Isabel Bishop, Louis Bosa, Henry C. Botkin, Byron Browne, John Carroll, George Constant, Julio de Diego, Edwin Dickinson, Marcel Duchamp, Joseph Floch, Lloyd Goodrich, Adolph Gottlieb, Lorrie Goulet, George Grosz, David Hare, Minna Harkavy, Hans Hofmann, Edward Hopper, Josephine Hopper, Morris Kantor, Leon Kroll, Jacob Lawrence, Julian Levi, Jack Levine, Reginald Marsh, A. Hyatt Mayor, Sigmund Menkes, Robert Motherwell, Edwin Root, James Rorimer (a cropped version erroneously microfilmed as Sidney Waintrob appears on reel 1817, fr. 1193), Moses Soyer, Raphael Soyer, Eugene Speicher, Saul Steinberg, James Johnson Sweeney, Hudson Walker, Abraham Walker, and William Zorach.
UNMICROFILMED Two photographs: Ellen K. Levy and McNeil Lowry.
Arrangement:
REEL 1817: Microfilmed with AAA's Photographs of Artists Collection II, and appear on microfilm in alphabetical order under artist with other unrelated photographs.
Biographical / Historical:
Photographic studio; New York, N.Y. Sidney J. and his brother A. L. (Bud) Waintrob specialized in photographing artists, curators and other art world personalities. They worked under the name Budd [Studio] before using Waintrob-Budd.
Provenance:
Photographs on reel 1817 and unmicrofilmed photos donated 1974-1987 by Sidney J. Waintrob; photographs on reel 1886 donated 1979-1980 by Samuel I. Hoffberg, whose relationship to Waintrob-Budd is unclear.
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.
Rights:
Authorization to publish quote, or reproduce requires written permission from David Stekert. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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:
Artists -- United States -- Photographs Search this
Panel discussions "American Painting and Sculpture" and "American Contemporary Architecture" sponsored by the International Association of Art Critics at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Panel members are Aleksa Celebonovic, Stuart Davis, Lloyd Goodrich, Adolph Gottlieb, Jacques Guiton, Philip Cortelyou Johnson, William Henry Jordy, Isamu Noguchi, Theodore Roszak, Gert Schiff, and James Johnson Sweeney.
An interview of V. V. Rankine conducted 1990 Mar. 2-22, by Liza Kirwin, for the Archives of American Art.
Rankine discusses the evolution of her nickname, V.V.; discovering her dyslexia; growing up in Boston; auditioning for a part in, "The Philadelphia Story"; her art studies with Amedee Ozenfant from 1944 to 1946; her studies at Black Mountain College with Josef Albers and Willem De Kooning in 1947; her friendship with Morris Louis and watching him work; living with her brother-in-law Arshile Gorky, in New York City; her first one-woman show at the David Herbert Gallery in New York in 1962; exhibiting at the Betty Parsons Gallery in New York and at the Jefferson Place Gallery in Washington, D.C.; Robert Richman and the Institute of Contemporary Arts; the relationship between her painting and her sculpture; favorite shapes and materials; and her summer home in East Hampton and artist friends there. Rankine also recalls Robert Rauschenberg, Jack Youngerman, Manoucher Yektai, Betty Parsons, Ibram Lassaw, Buckminster Fuller, Elaine De Kooning, Arthur Penn, Richard Leopold, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Ken Noland, Morris Louis, Ray Johnson, Kenneth Snelson, David Hare, Frederick Kiesler, Raphael Soyer, Moses Soyer, Jean Renault, Agnes Gorky, Esther Magruder, James Johnson Sweeney, Jim Brooks, John Graham, Phillip Guston, Duncan Phillips, Theresa Helburn, Augustine Duncan, Tom Downing, Gene Davis, Alice Denney, Nesta Dorrance, Kevin Merrill, Sam Gilliam, Dylan Thomas, Kay Halle, Kit Kennedy, Naum Gabo, President Lyndon B. Johnson, Anne Truitt, Wretha Nelson, Franz Bader, Louise Nevelson, Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, Bonnie Newman, Alexander Russo, Walt Sheridan, Gilbert Kinney, Saul Sherman, Steve Pace, Lee Krasner, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
V.V. Rankine (1920-2004) was a painter and sculptor from Washington, D.C. Variable forms of the artist's name are notably E. R. (Elvine Richard) Rankine, Vivian Scott Rankine, and her married name, Mrs. Paul Scott.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hrs., 53 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 and others.
Typescripts of speeches by Paul Burlin, Stuart Davis, Adolph Gottlieb, George L. K. Morris, and James Johnson Sweeney, delivered at a forum, "The Modern Artist Speaks," held at the Museum of Modern Art on May 5, 1948. In addition to a typescript of all five speeches, preliminary drafts with handwritten corrections are included of Burlin, Davis and Morris's speeches. Burlin comments on the artist as cultural critic, Morris discusses the failure of art criticism and Davis interprets contemporary attacks on abstract art as an attempt to control the artist's attitudes toward society.
Provenance:
Provenance unknown.
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.
Zorach, William, 1887-1966 -- Photographs Search this
Extent:
28.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Sound recordings
Video recordings
Diaries
Interviews
Scrapbooks
Sketches
Date:
1871-2004, bulk 1910s-1980s
bulk 1910-1990
Summary:
The papers of Spanish-born sculptor and educator José de Creeft measure 28.1 linear feet and date from 1871 to 2004 with the bulk of the material dating from the 1910s to the 1980s. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, fifty diaries, writings, subject files, personal business records, printed materials, twenty-seven photo albums and other photographs, scrapbooks, and scattered sketches.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Spanish-born sculptor and educator José de Creeft measure 28.1 linear feet and date from 1871 to 2004 with the bulk of the material dating from the 1910s to the 1980s. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, fifty diaries, writings, subject files, personal business records, printed materials, twenty-seven photo albums and other photographs, scrapbooks, and scattered sketches.
Biographical materials include address books, awards, recorded interviews with and about de Creeft, membership materials, naturalization records, resumes, and travel documents.
Correspondence is primarily professional in nature and concerns exhibitions, de Creeft's involvement in arts organizations, and awards. There are also scattered personal letters from family and friends. Correspondents include Alexander Calder, Nina, Alice, Barbara and William de Creeft, Hunt Diederich, Joseph Escudar, and Gil Gomez, Jacques Lipchitz, Edwin Dickinson, James Johnson Sweeney, Costantino Nivola, Abraham Rattner, and Lamar Dodd, among others.
De Creeft's fifty diaries are nearly complete for the period dating from 1926 to 1981. Some are bound volumes and others are loose pages. The bulk of the diaries are in Spanish and many include sketches. Additional writings, called "escritos varios" by José de Creeft, are mostly in Spanish and consist of typed manuscripts and essays, including "Roosty Was My Friend, 1957, notebooks, an artist's statement, and writings by others, including drafts for The Sculpture of de Creeft by Jules Campos, and a video recording entitled José de Creeft by Bob Hanson. There is one sound recording of Lorrie Goulet reading poetry.
Subject files are varied and include files on de Creeft's teaching positions at the New School for Social Research, Black Mountain College, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and the Art Students League. There are files for some of his sculpture projects, inlcuding Alice in Wonderland, Poet, and a proposed model for the Stone Mountain Confederate Memorial in Georgia, as well as compiled information about various art related topics of interest.
De Creeft's business records include appraisals, contracts, leases, price lists, and scattered receipts. Also found are art inventories in the form of three sets of index cards, some of which include photographs.
Printed materials include books, clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, exhibition labels, postcards, and posters.
There are loose photographs and twenty-seven photograph albums depicting de Creeft, his family, friends, and works of art. There are photos of Alexander Calder; de Creeft and Goulet with Raphael Soyer, posing with Soyer's portrait of them; Gertrude Lawrence; art juries, which also include images of Chaim Gross, Jacques Lipchitz, Theodore Roszak, and William Zorach; students, friends, and faculties of Black Mountain College, the Art Students League, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and the Norton School of Art, which also includes images of Joseph Albers, Alexander Calder, Julio De Diego, Walter Gropius, J. B. Neumann, and Abraham Rattner.
Seven mixed media scrapbooks document de Creeft's career from 1929 to 1982. Also found are scattered pen and pencil sketches and one sketchbook dating from the 1920s.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 10 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1914-1979 (Boxes 1, 27; 0.9 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1910s-1980s (Boxes 1-6; 4.2 linear feet)
Series 3: Diaries, 1926-1981 (Boxes 6-11; 5.4 linear feet)
Series 4: Writings, 1871-1977 (Boxes 11-13, 28; 2.5 linear feet)
Series 5: Subject Files, 1924-1980 (Boxes 13-16, 27; 2.4 linear feet)
Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1909-1980s (Boxes 16-17, 27; 1.0 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1921-1980s (Boxes 17-21, 27, 33; 4.7 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographs, 1900-2004 (Boxes 21-25, 29, 31; 5.1 linear feet)
Series 9: Scrapbooks, 1929-1982 (Box 26, 30, 32; 1.8 linear feet)
Series 10: Artwork, 1920s-1930s (Box 26; 2 folders)
Biographical / Historical:
José de Creeft (1908-1982) was a Spanish-born sculptor active in New York City, New York.
José de Creeft was born in Guadalajara, Spain and raised in Barcelona. In 1900, he apprenticed to sculptor Don Augustine Querol and studied drawing with Idalgo de Caviedas. De Creeft moved to Paris in 1905 and began formal art training at the Académie Julianand. He also took a studio in the Batteau Lavoir in Montmartre, where he interacted with Pablo Picasso, Juan Gris, Manolo, and Pablo Gargallo, all of whom also had studios there. During this period, de Creeft became friends with the artist Mateo Hernandez.
In 1915, de Creeft rejected the traditional technique of reproducing sculpture in stone from clay and plaster models and turned to direct carving in wood and stone. He was also one of the first sculptors who practiced assemblage and incorporated found objects into his work. His notable assemblage sculpture El Picador, a large figure on horseback, received worldwide press coverage and was exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Independents in 1926. Between 1919 and 1928, his work was exhibited in various Paris salons. In the late 1920s, he created 200 stone carvings for Roberto Ramonje's Forteleza (fortress) in Mallorca. It was around this time frame when de Creeft met Alexander Calder, who became his student in direct carving. De Creeft encouraged Calder to display his mechanical toys and Calder put his Circus together for the first time in de Creeft's studio.
De Creeft emigrated to the United States in 1929, right after marrying fellow sculptor Alice Robertson Carr. They divorced nine years later.
While in New York, de Creeft began sculpting with lead sheets beaten into three-dimensional forms and established a studio at 1 Washington Square. His first solo exhibition was at the Ferargil Galleries in New York City and included The Portrait of Cesar Vallejo in chased lead and The Silver Fox of found materials.
In 1932, de Creeft accepted a teaching position in sculpture at the New School for Social Research. He also taught courses at Black Mountain College, where he met his second wife, sculptor Lorrie Goulet, the Art Students League, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and the Norton Gallery and School of Art. In 1946, de Creeft and Goulet purchased a hundred-acre farm in Hoosick Falls, NY where they established a studio and part-time residence.
Perhaps De Creeft's most well-known monumental scuplture is Alice in Wonderland in Central Park, New York City. The 12' x 16' bronze was dedicated during a public event in 1959 and gave de Creeft worldwide recognition. In 1995 a short film about the making of the sculpture was produced by J. D'Alba and narrated by Lorrie Goulet.
De Creeft was as founding member of the American Artist's Congress, the Sculptors Guild, and the Artist's Equity Association. De Creeft was represented by the Georgette Passedoit Gallery from 1936 to 1949. Later, he joined The Contemporaries (gallery) and exhibited there until 1966. Kennedy Galleries represented de Creeft from 1970 until his death in 1982.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds an interview of José De Creeft conducted October 1-8, 1968 by Forrest Selvig and the papers of de Creeft's wife Lorrie Goulet.
Separated Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reels D150 and 375-378). While most of the items were included in subsequent gifts, material not donated to the Archives remain with the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
The José de Creeft papers were first lent for microfilming by the artist in 1963 and 1972. Lorrie Goulet, José de Creeft's widow, donated most of this material along with additional items in 1985 and 2009.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
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.
Riccio, Peter M. (Peter Michael), 1898-1990 Search this
Type:
Correspondence
Date:
1957 December 17
Citation:
James Johnson Sweeney. Letter from James Johnson Sweeney, Director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, to Peter M. Riccio at Columbia University, 1957 December 17. American Federation of Arts records, 1895-1993. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
James Johnson Sweeney. James Johnson Sweeney, New York, N.Y. letter to Philip Pearlstein, 1954 May 19. Philip Pearlstein papers, circa 1940-2008. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago Search this
Type:
Correspondence
Date:
11 June 1934
Citation:
James Johnson Sweeney. James Johnson Sweeney, Chicago, Ill. letter to Eva Watson-Schütze, New York, N.Y., 11 June 1934. The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago records, 1917-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
James Johnson Sweeney. James Johnson Sweeney telegram to Mrs. Martin Schutze, 1934 April 21. The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago records, 1917-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Fernand Léger. Fernand Léger letter to James Johnson Sweeney, 1935 May 21. The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago records, 1917-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Germain Seligman. Germain Seligman to James Sweeney of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1945 Dec. 12. Jacques Seligmann & Co. records, 1904-1978. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Artists' protest letter to James Johnson Sweeney, New York, N.Y., 1956. Letters and clippings relating to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1956-1958. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The papers of muralist, painter, and teacher Barry Faulkner measure 2.82 linear feet and date from circa 1858-1973. Faulkner's career; his relationships with family, friends, and fellow-artists; and his thoughts on art and artists are documented in biographical materials, correspondence, writings, sketchbooks, five diaries, two photograph albums and photographs, and one scrapbook. Correspondents include family members, Witter Bynner, Ann and Eric Gugler, Leon Kroll, Isabel Manship, James Johnson Sweeney, Maxfield Parrish and others. An unprocessed addition to the collection dating 1942 includes a one page letter mounted on board from Maxfield Parrish to Barry Faulkner.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of muralist, painter, and teacher Barry Faulkner measure 2.82 linear feet and date from circa 1858-1973. Faulkner's career; his relationships with family, friends, and fellow-artists; and his thoughts on art and artists are documented in biographical materials, correspondence, writings, sketchbooks, five diaries, photograph albums and photographs, and one scrapbook. An unprocessed addition to the collection dating 1942 includes a one page letter mounted on board from Maxfield Parrish to Barry Faulkner.
Biographical materials include biographical sketches, awards, and records documenting Faulkner's military service. Also found are a list of medications, a list of Faulkner's writings, party guest lists, an address book, a calendar, and materials related to the posthumous publication of Sketches From an Artist's Life. Of special interest are oversized architectural drawings by Eric Gugler for Faulkner's Keene, New Hampshire house.
Correspondence includes letters from Faulkner's friends, family, fellow artists, and art organizations and institutions. Faulkner's correspondence with his parents document his 1900-1901 trip to Italy with the Thayer family. Of special interest is his correspondence with writer Witter Bynner about Faulkner's daily life in New Hampshire, his travels through Europe, his artistic practice and career, Bynner's writings, his opinions on artistic and literary works, and his service in World War One. Many of the letters to Bynner include sketches by Faulkner of Abbott Handerson Thayer, Rockwell Kent, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Homer Saint-Gaudens, George de Forest Brush, Kahlil Gibran, and Mark Twain. Additional correspondents include sculptor Frances Grimes, architect Eric Gugler, painter Leon Kroll, and museum director James Johnson Sweeney.
Faulkner's writings are about art, artists, and the New Hampshire art community. Found are essays on Gifford Beal, George de Forest Brush, James Earle Fraser, Harriet Hosmer, Paul Manship, Charles Adams Platt, Hiram Powers, Edward Willis Redfield, Joseph Lindon Smith, Mary Lawrence Tonetti, Mark Twain, Lawrence Grant White, and Mahonri Young. Other writings discuss Faulkner's mural commissions, various aspects of New Hampshire history, and the history of the Dublin and Cornish art colonies whose inhabitants included George de Forest Brush, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and Abbott Handerson Thayer. Of special interest is a manuscript for Faulkner's posthumously published memoir Sketches From an Artist's Life, and an unpublished manuscript titled A Neighborhood of Artists about the history and culture of the Connecticut River Valley.
Four sketchbooks by Faulkner contain drawings of landscapes, city scenes, architecture, people, nature, and studies of artwork by others. Also found are two loose sketches.
Five diaries document Faulkner's 1922-1924 trip through Europe, Africa, and Asia including stops in France, Italy, Egypt, and Turkey. Diaries record Faulkner's thoughts on architecture, tourist sites, and travel amenities. Found is one diary from 1956 that discusses social events, the Saint-Gaudens Memorial, the MacDowell Colony of artists, and various artists including Gifford Beal, Maxfield Parrish, Paul Manship, and Eric Gugler.
The bulk of printed material consists of clippings which document published writings by Faulkner, obituaries and published rememberances of Faulkner, local events in Keene, New Hampshire, and reproductions of Faulkner's artwork. Also found are exhibition catalogs of other artists, an announcement of Faulklner's death from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and a publication illustrated with reproductions of Faulkner's murals for the National Archives.
Photographs include formal and informal images of Faulkner throughout his life, and photographs of his family and friends, his studio, and reproductions of his artwork. Also included are two photograph albums, one of which contains photographs of Faulkner during his youth and one that contains photographs primarily from the 1930s of Faulkner's Keene, New Hampshire house, himself, and his friends and family.
The collection also includes a scrapbook prepared for Faulkner's seventieth birthday containing photographs, cards, telegrams, and placecards with hand drawn illustrations which show the "taste and characteristics" of Faulkner.
Series 2: Correspondence, 1900-1973 (Box 1; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, 1912-1966 (Boxes 1-2; 1.0 linear foot)
Series 4: Sketchbooks and Sketches, circa 1910s-1930s (Boxes 2-3; 8 folders)
Series 5: Diaries, 1922-1956 (Box 2; 6 folders)
Series 6: Printed Materials, circa 1858-1966 (Boxes 2-3; 8 folders)
Series 7: Photographs, 1892-1960s (Boxes 2-3; 15 folders)
Series 8: Scrapbook, 1951 (Box 3; 2 folders)
Biographical Note:
Francis Barrett Faulkner was born on July 12, 1881 in Keene, New Hampshire. He attended Phillips Exeter Academy and went on to study at Harvard College. Around this same time, Faulkner began an apprenticeship with his cousin and painter Abbott Handerson Thayer and painter George de Forest Brush. He also met sculptors James Earle Fraser and Augustus Saint-Gaudens, both of whom became Faulkner's lifelong friends.
In 1901, Faulkner traveled to Italy for the first time with Thayer and his family. He returned to New York in 1902 and studied at the Art Students League and Chase School. He also completed illustration work for Century magazine.
In 1907, Faulkner won the Rome Prize Fellowship from the American Academy in Rome. shortly thereafter, he left to study in Italy for three years, studying with George de Forest Brush and befriending sculptor Paul Manship. Upon his return in 1910, he started working on his first mural, commissioned by the wife of railroad executive E.H. Harriman. Having found his niche, Faulkner continued taking mural commissions until his career was interrupted by World War I and his service in the camouflage section of the army. Shortly after the war, he completed a mural for the marine headquarters in Quantico, Virginia.
Between 1923-1924, Faulkner worked in collaboration with Eric Gugler and Paul Manship to create the American Academy in Rome war memorial. Also following the war, Faulkner completed murals for the Eastman School of Music in 1922, the Rockefeller Center in 1932, and the National Archives in 1936. That same year, Faulkner bought and refurbished a house named "The Bounty" in Keene, New Hampshire, and built a studio nearby. In 1930, he was elected as a trustee of the American Academy in Rome.
During the 1940s, Faulkner created murals for numerous public buildings and sites around New Hampshire including the Senate Chambers in Concord, the Elliot Community Hospital, Keene National Bank, and the Cheshire County Savings Bank in Keene. During his final decades, Faulkner wrote an unpublished manuscript on the history of art in the Connecticut River Valley entitled A Neighborhood of Artists, and his posthumously published memoirs, Sketches of an Artist's Life. Faulkner died in 1966, in Keene, New Hampshire.
Related Material:
Found in the Nancy Douglas Bowditch papers at the Archives of American Art is correspondence, photographs, and printed materials related to Barry Faulkner. The Library of Congress, Manuscript Division also holds a small collection of Barry Faulkner's papers. Additional correspondence from Faulkner is found in the papers of Witter Bynner at the University of New Mexico and at Harvard University.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Francis Faulkner, Barry Faulkner's nephew, in 1974. An addition to the collection was donated by Jocelyn Faulkner Bolle in 2014.
Restrictions:
The bulk of this 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.
Gallery of living art, A. E. Gallatin collection, 100 Washington square east, New York. Director, A. E. Gallatin; curators: H. McBride, P. L. Goodwin [etc.]
