Search Results

Creator:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Citation:

Lecture at Somerset Club [videorecording], undated. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Theme:

Research and writing about art  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)7422

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209580

AAA_collcode_voserobe

Theme:

Research and writing about art

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209580

Interviewee:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Subject:

Karolik, Maxim  Search this

Vose Galleries of Boston  Search this

Type:

Sound recordings

Citation:

Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Robert C. Vose lecture, 1987 May 14. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)11980

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)212499

AAA_collcode_vose87

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_212499

Creator:

Vose Galleries of Boston  Search this

Names:

Arthur U. Newton Galleries  Search this

Centennial Exhibition (1876 : Philadelphia, Pa.)  Search this

Ehrich Galleries (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Howard Young Galleries (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Jill Newhouse (Gallery)  Search this

M. Knoedler & Co.  Search this

Macbeth Gallery  Search this

Milch Galleries  Search this

Norton Gallery and School of Art  Search this

R.C. & N.M. Vose (Firm)  Search this

Robert C. Vose Galleries  Search this

Hassam, Childe, 1859-1935  Search this

Hoffman, Malvina, 1887-1966  Search this

Jonniaux, Alfred, b. 1882  Search this

Ladd, Anna Coleman, 1878-1939 (sculptor)  Search this

Norton, William E., 1843-1916  Search this

Sargent, John Singer, 1856-1925  Search this

Thayer, Abbott Handerson, 1849-1921  Search this

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Vose, Robert Churchill, 1873-  Search this

Extent:

26.6 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Video recordings

Manuscript

Date:

circa 1876-1996

bulk 1920-1940

Summary:

The records of Vose Galleries of Boston measure 26.6 linear feet and date from circa 1876, 1890s-1996 with the bulk of materials dating from 1920s-1930s. Nearly 90 percent of the collection documents the gallery's handling of American paintings and portraits through incoming and outgoing business correspondence with artists, clients, galleries, and museums, including considerable correspondence with portrait artist Alfred Jonniaux and clients regarding commissioned portraits. Other materials include client files; artists' biographies; records of sales, consignments, framing, restoration, and banking, mostly from the 1940s-1960s; and scattered exhibition catalogs, newspaper clippings, and postcards. Also found is a handwritten manuscript regarding the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, PA and a 1991 videotape about the Vose Galleries and its founding family.

Scope and Contents note:

The records of Vose Galleries of Boston measure 26.6 linear feet and date from circa 1876, 1890s-1996 with the bulk of materials dating from 1920s-1930s. Nearly 90 percent of the collection documents the gallery's handling of American paintings and portraits through incoming and outgoing business correspondence with artists, clients, galleries, and museums, including considerable correspondence with portrait artist Alfred Jonniaux and clients regarding commissioned portraits. Other materials include client files; artists' biographies; records of sales, consignments, framing, restoration, and banking, mostly from the 1940s-1960s; and scattered exhibition catalogs, newspaper clippings, and postcards. Also found is a handwritten manuscript regarding the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, PA and a 1991 videotape about the Vose Galleries and its founding family.

Correspondence of note is with artists Childe Hassam, Malvina Hoffman, Alfred Jonniaux, and John Singer Sargent; galleries Ehrich Galleries, Clapp & Graham Co., M. Knoedler & Co., Macbeth Galleries, Milch Galleries, Newhouse Galleries, Arthur U. Newton Galleries, Norton Galleries, and Howard Young Galleries; the estates of Anna Coleman Ladd and William E. Norton; and the family of Abbott H. Thayer.

Researchers should note that the records do not comprehensively span the gallery's history or operations. The bulk of the collection is correspondence from Robert C. Vose's era running the Robert C. Vose Galleries in the 1920s-1930s and, lesser so, under Robert C. Vose, Jr.'s direction in the 1970s. There is little material in the collection which dates before the 1910s or the 1950s-1960s, other than correspondence regarding Alfred Jonniaux and some financial records. There is a handful of correspondence which covers the period of R.C. & N.M. Vose Gallery. Records loaned for microfilming should be consulted for materials outside of the bulk dates of this collection, especially for materials from the late 1800s-early 1900s.

Arrangement note:

The collection is arranged as 5 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Correspondence, 1895-1996 (Boxes 1-23, 28; 22.6 linear feet)

Series 2: Customer Files, 1912-1946 (Boxes 23-24; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 3: Art-Related Files, circa 1876, 1890s-1947 (Box 24, 28; 1 linear feet)

Series 4: Financial Records, 1911-1962, 1991 (Boxes 24-25; 1.8 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Materials, circa 1904-1990 (Boxes 25-27; 0.4 linear feet)

Biographical/Historical note:

Vose Galleries is a long time family run art gallery based in the Boston, Mass. area.

In 1841, Joseph Vose purchased Westminster Art Gallery, a small Providence, Rhode Island art gallery founded by Ransom Hicks. At the age of 19 in 1850, Joseph's son Seth Morton Vose joined the gallery and five years later became director. The gallery's primary business until the late 1860s was frame making, gilding and art supplies. Seth Morton Vose had a passion for art, especially the French painters of the Barbizon School and he slowly began buying and exhibiting artwork. By 1882, the gallery regularly exhibited in Boston.

Seth's son Robert C. Vose joined the business in 1896, and managed the gallery's Boston office from 1897. Robert broadened the gallery's horizons by showing his fine stock of Barbizon, Dutch, English and American artists throughout America, while his younger brother, Nathaniel, and his cousin, Charles Thompson, handled the Boston gallery. During the next sixty-seven years, Robert C. Vose moved the gallery into a position of national prominence.

In 1924, Nathaniel left the gallery and established his own gallery in Providence. The Boston gallery's name changed to Robert C. Vose Galleries, and around the same time, took over the Carrig-Rohane framing company. In 1931-1932, Robert's three sons, Robert C. Vose, Jr., Seth Morton Vose II, and Herbert Vose, joined the firm. The gallery continued to show exhibitions in Boston, and the sons took turns joining their father on the road. The gallery's name was changed to Vose Galleries of Boston, Inc. in 1952. In 1963, Vose Galleries moved to their current location at 238 Newbury Street in Boston. Robert C. Vose passed away in 1964.

Robert C. Vose, Jr.'s sons, Abbot W. Vose and Robert C. Vose III, joined the gallery in 1968 and 1970, respectively. Robert C. Vose, Jr. passed away in 1998. The Vose Galleries of Boston continues to operate at Newbury Street under the direction of the sixth generation of the Vose family.

Related Archival Materials note:

The Archives of American Art holds several separately cataloged collections related to Vose Galleries of Boston, including the Carrig-Rohane Shop records (1903-1962); oral history interviews with Seth Morton Vose (July 24, 1986 - April 28, 1987) and Robert C. Vose, Jr. (June 27 - July 23, 1986); a sound recording and videotape of a Robert C. Vose, Jr. lecture at the Somerset Club (May 14, 1987); a sound recording of an interview with Robert C. Vose (March 1961); the Miscellaneous Art Exhibition Catalog collection containing Vose Galleries exhibition catalogs, circa 1900-1941; and, Robert C. Vose, Jr. typescripts and clippings, 1961, on microfilm reels 3480 and 4314.

Separated Materials note:

The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming.

Reel B1 contains a scrapbook compiled by Seth Vose and annotated by Robert Vose that contains clippings, 1886-1900, and an 1889 letter from author and critic Alfred Trumble; and a scrapbook compiled and annotated by Robert C. Vose spanning the years 1920-1940, 1897, and 1905, containing clippings and handwritten lists.

Reel 2380 includes numerous photographs, circa 1890-1964, of Seth Morton Vose, Robert C. Vose, Sr., artists, collectors, and dealers associated with Vose Galleries; a Macbeth Gallery "smoker" in honor of Emil Carlsen; a drawing of Charles Emil Heil by George F. Wing, and a charcoal drawing after Monticelli by Albion Harris Bicknell. Many of the photographs are annotated by Robert C. Vose.

Reels 3936-3940 are comprised of account books, 1871-1887; a journal, 1889-1903, a ledger, 1889-1901; invoice books, 1896-circa 1954, inventories of paintings and drawings in stock, 1884, 1892 and 1906; exhibition records, 1911-1982?; traveling exhibition records, 1915-1949; and a record of paintings sold, 1876-1894. Written permission is required to access these reels.

Reels 4593-4594 contain clippings, undated and 1891-1989, chiefly about purchases, sales and exhibitions, but also pertaining to art dealers, museums, artists, and art events.

Reel 4909 contains a scrapbook of clippings, announcements, programs, and other printed materials, 1882-1993.

Lent materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.

Provenance:

From 1965-1994, Vose Galleries of Boston loaned materials to the Archives of American Art for microfilming. Robert C. Vose, Jr. also donated records in several installments from 1974 to 1997.

Restrictions:

Use of original papers requires an appointment.

Rights:

Reels 3936-3940: Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from an officer of the Vose Galleries. 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

Picture frame industry -- Massachusetts -- Boston  Search this

Picture frames and framing  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Massachusetts -- Boston  Search this

Art, Modern -- 19th century -- Massachusetts -- Boston  Search this

Function:

Art galleries, Commercial -- Massachusetts

Art galleries, Commercial -- Rhode Island

Genre/Form:

Video recordings

Manuscript

Citation:

Vose Galleries of Boston records, circa 1876-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Smithsonian Institution Collection Care Preservation Fund

Identifier:

AAA.vosegall

See more items in:

Vose Galleries of Boston records

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9b560897e-b32f-45cc-9f36-548879006396

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-vosegall

Creator:

Richardson, Edgar Preston, 1902-1985  Search this

Richardson, Constance, 1905-  Search this

Names:

Castano Galleries (Boston, Mass.)  Search this

Detroit Institute of Arts  Search this

Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum  Search this

Historical Society of Pennsylvania  Search this

Macbeth Gallery  Search this

National Collection of Fine Arts (U.S.)  Search this

National Portrait Gallery (Smithsonian Institution)  Search this

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts  Search this

Philadelphia Museum of Art  Search this

White House (Washington, D.C.)  Search this

Peale family  Search this

Allen, Joseph  Search this

Allston, Washington, 1779-1843  Search this

Andrews, Wayne  Search this

Aram, Siegfried F.  Search this

Bishop, Isabel, 1902-1988  Search this

Bostick, William A.  Search this

Bouché, Louis, 1896-1969  Search this

Boyd, Julian P. (Julian Parks), 1903-  Search this

Castano, Giovanni, 1896-1978  Search this

Cohn, Harold  Search this

Copeland, Lammot du Pont  Search this

Culver, Charles B. (Charles Beach), 1908-1967  Search this

Fleischman, Lawrence A. (Lawrence Arthur), 1925-1997  Search this

Flexner, James Thomas, 1908-2003  Search this

Frankenstein, Alfred V. (Alfred Victor), 1906-1981  Search this

Fredericks, Marshall M., 1908-1998  Search this

Freeman, Michael W.  Search this

Garrison, Eve Josephson, 1903-2003  Search this

Groce, George C., 1899-  Search this

Hardy, Jeremiah Pearson, 1800-1889  Search this

Heil, Walter, 1890-1973  Search this

Hopper, Edward, 1882-1967  Search this

Jungwirth, Irene G. (Irene Gayas), 1913-  Search this

Krentzin, Earl, 1929-  Search this

Kuniyoshi, Yasuo, 1889-1953  Search this

Lee-Smith, Hughie  Search this

Lewis, W. S. (Wilmarth Sheldon), 1895-1979  Search this

Lynes, Russell, 1910-1991  Search this

Marsh, Reginald, 1898-1954  Search this

Mast, Gerald, 1908-1971  Search this

McDermott, John Francis, 1902-  Search this

Middeldorf, Ulrich Alexander, 1901-  Search this

Morse, John D., 1906-  Search this

Moser, Liselotte, 1906-1983  Search this

O'Keeffe, Georgia, 1887-1986  Search this

Oliver, Andrew, 1906-  Search this

Peale, Charles Willson, 1741-1827  Search this

Pleasants, J. Hall (Jacob Hall), 1873-1957  Search this

Ripley, S. Dillon (Sidney Dillon), 1913-2001  Search this

Rockefeller, John D., 1906-  Search this

Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979  Search this

Rutledge, Anna Wells  Search this

Sellers, Charles Coleman, 1903-  Search this

Sheeler, Charles, 1883-1965  Search this

Simper, Fred, 1914-  Search this

Simpson, Corelli C. W.  Search this

Soria, Regina, 1911-  Search this

Spark, Victor D. (Victor David), 1898-1991  Search this

Speck, Walter, 1895-  Search this

Stevens, William B.  Search this

Valentiner, Wilhelm Reinhold, 1880-1958  Search this

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Watkins, Franklin Chenault, 1894-1972  Search this

Wedda, John  Search this

Woolfenden, William E. (William Edward), 1918-1995  Search this

Wyeth, Andrew, 1917-2009  Search this

Extent:

28.7 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Manuscripts

Interviews

Diaries

Transcripts

Sketches

Lectures

Place:

Detroit (Mich.)

Date:

1814-1996

bulk 1921-1996

Summary:

The papers of art historian E. P. Richardson measure 28.7 linear feet and date from 1814-1996, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1921-1996. Within the papers are scattered biographical materials; acquisition files for Richardson's personal art collection; professional and personal correspondence with colleagues, art historians and critics, artists, museums, galleries, and dealers; numerous writings, including manuscripts and research files for his published books, articles, and lectures; general research notebooks and files compiled by Richardson on a wide variety of art-related topics and artists; professional and committee files; as well as a smaller amount of Constance C. Richardson's papers.

Scope and Contents:

The papers of art historian E. P. Richardson measure 28.7 linear feet and date from 1814-1996, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1921-1996. Within the papers are scattered biographical materials; acquisition files for Richardson's personal art collection; professional and personal correspondence with colleagues, art historians and critics, artists, museums, galleries, and dealers; numerous writings, including manuscripts and research files for his published books, articles, and lectures; general research notebooks and files compiled by Richardson on a wide variety of art-related topics and artists; professional and committee files; as well as a smaller amount of Constance C. Richardson's papers.

Biographical materials include certificates, awards, and honorary degrees, membership information, personal and family photographs, a few sketches, and a transcript of an oral history Interview with E.P. Richardson conducted by the National Endowment for the Humanities in 1982.

There are acquisitions files for the Richardsons' personal art collection that invoices, photographs, correspondence with galleries and collectors, appraisals, price lists, and artwork examination forms.

Correspondence is with colleagues, art dealers, collectors, museums and museum curators, foreign scholars, organizations, galleries, artists, art historians and critics, publishers, editors, librarians, friends, and family. Topics regard purchasing art for various collections, consultations about art and collecting including authentications and attributions, publishing, general art history, lectures, and personal matters, among other topics. There is correspondence with the Archives of American Art, Castano Galleries, Lawrence Fleischman, James Thomas Flexner, Alfred V. Frankenstein, George Croce, Walter Heil, Earl Krentzin, Wilmarth Lewis, Russel Lynes, John Francis McDermott, Philadelphia Museum of Art, J. Hall Pleasants, Anna Rutledge, Charles Sellers, Smithsonian Institution, Regina Soria, Victor Spark, William Stevens, Robert Vose, William Woolfenden, and many others. Scattered correspondence with artists is with Isabel Bishop, Louis Bouche, William Bostick, Eve Garrison, Edward Hopper, Irene Jungwirth, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Hughie Lee-Smith, Reginald Marsh, Gerald Mast, Georgia O'Keefe, Charles Sheeler, Walt Speck, and John Wedda, among many others. The greatest extent of correspondence is with Andrew Wyeth, Harold Cohn, and Frederick Simper. There is also personal correspondence with family and friends, and between E.P. and Constance Richardson.

E.P. Richardson's prominence as an art historian, writer, and expert on collecting is well documented through his prolific writings. Materials include drafts, notes, typescripts, and outlines for articles, exhibition catalog essays, and lectures. Also found are research files and publishing documentation for Richardson's books, including Washington Allston: A Study of the Romantic Artist in America (1948), Painting in America (1956), Charles Willson Peale and his World (1983), and American Romantic Painting (1944). There are also miscellaneous notes and four diaries. Two of the diaries comment on the social and cultural life of Detroit; the authenticity of paintings; Richardson's reflections on contemporary American painting, thoughts about museums, dealers, artists, and art historians (especially Wilhelm R. Valentiner); and travel.

Notebooks compiled by Richardson on a wide variety art-related topics cover nearly six decades. There are also numerous research files organized Richardson about individual artists and art history. And, the art collector files contain reference materials about art collectors and their collections including Lamont du Pont Copeland, Michael W. Freeman, Nelson Rockefeller, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Allen, and the Marquis de Somerlous. There are three index card file boxes containing bibliographic data on published books and articles.

Professional and committee files document Richardson's professional and consulting work for the Art Quarterly, Detroit Institute of Arts, National Collection of Fine Arts, the National Portrait Gallery, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, the John D. Rockefeller III collection, Winterthur Museum, the White House, and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

Constance C. Richardson's papers include business and professional correspondence with various institutions, most extensively with the Macbeth Gallery. In addition, there is a smaller amount of personal correspondence, photographs and slides of her artworks, printed materials, two illustrated notebooks on her work, and miscellaneous notes. Also included is Constance's artist palette.

Biographical / Historical:

Art historian, museum director, and writer E. P. (Edgar Preston) Richardson (1902-1985) served as director of the Detroit Institute of Arts (1945-1962) and Winterthur Museum (1963-1966). He was also a board member of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts from 1966-1977 and, in 1954, co-founded the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

E. P. Richardson was born in 1902 in Glens Falls, New York and died in Philadelphia in 1985. He graduated from Williams College in Massachusetts in 1925 and studied painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts for the three years following graduation. In 1930 he became educational secretary at the Detroit Institute of Arts, was quickly named assistant director in 1933, and served as director from 1945 to 1962. He left Detroit to take the position of director of the Winterthur Museum, where he remained until 1966. Richardson married Constance Coleman in 1931. Born in Berlin, Germany in 1905, Constance Coleman Richardson was an award-winning and widely exhibited realist style painter of American landscapes. She gave up painting in the 1960s and died in 2002.

While at the Detroit Institute of Arts, E. P. Richardson co-founded the Archives of American Art with Lawrence Fleischman, and served as the Archives' first director. Richardson was also art advisor to John D. Rockefeller III for over ten years, editor of Art Quarterly from 1938 to 1967, and a member of various boards, including the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the Smithsonian Arts Commission, and the National Portrait Gallery. He authored numerous books including ones on artists Washington Allston and Charles Willson Peale, and The Way of Western Art: American Romantic Painting (1939), Painting in America: The Story of Four Hundred and Fifty Years (1956), A Short History of Painting in America (1963), and American Art, an Exhibition of the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, 3d (1976).

Related Materials:

Related collections among the holdings of the Archives of American Art include an interview with E.P. Richardson dated February 6, 1978 conducted by Linda Downs; and several miscellaneous manuscripts that include an E.P. Richardson Letter to Rockwell Kent, June 15 1959; E.P. Richardson letters to Lawrence Arthur Fleischman, May 13, 1962 and August 22 1954; and a Yasuo Kunioshi letter to E.P. Richardson, July 25 1948.

Additional E.P. Richardson papers are found at the Detroit Institute of Arts and in the archives of the Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum.

Separated Materials:

The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming (reel D46) including E.P. Richardson's research material on Jeremiah P. Hardy. These materials are housed at the Smithsonian American Art Museum Library and are not described in the collection container inventory.

Provenance:

Edith Wilkinson first donated a letter to E. P. Richardson from herself in 1957. E.P. Richardson donated papers to the Archives of American Art in 1958 and 1960 and lent materials for microfilming in 1961. Addition material was donated by Constance Richardson in 1985, and by Martha Fleischman in 2003.

Restrictions:

Use of original material requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. 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:

Authors -- Michigan -- Detroit  Search this

Art historians -- United States  Search this

Topic:

Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this

Painting, American  Search this

Art, American  Search this

Romanticism  Search this

Art -- History -- Study and teaching  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs

Manuscripts

Interviews

Diaries

Transcripts

Sketches

Lectures

Citation:

Edgar P. Richardson papers, 1814-1996, bulk 1921-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:

Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Smithsonian Institution Collections Care and Preservation Fund.

Identifier:

AAA.richedga

See more items in:

E.P. (Edgar Preston) and Constance Richardson papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f0a154af-52ef-402b-b06d-60a290eec749

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-richedga

Creator:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Subject:

Fisher, Alvan  Search this

Low, Sanford B. D. (Sanford Ballard Dole)  Search this

Citation:

Robert C. Vose typescripts and clippings, 1961. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Theme:

Art Market  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)5761

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)208600

AAA_collcode_voserobt

Theme:

Art Market

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_208600

Interviewee:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Interviewer:

Brown, Robert F  Search this

Citation:

Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Robert C. Vose, 1986 June 27-July 23. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Topic:

Art dealers -- Massachusetts -- Boston -- Interviews  Search this

Record number:

(DSI-AAA_CollID)9948

(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)212500

AAA_collcode_vose86

Data Source:

Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:

edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_212500

Creator:

Britton, James, 1878-1936  Search this

Names:

Arlington Galleries (New York, N.Y.)  Search this

Kelly, Andrew J.  Search this

Kent, Duncan Scott  Search this

Mitchell, Edwin Valentine, 1890-1960  Search this

Vonnoh, Robert William, 1858-1933  Search this

Blackfield  Search this

Fiske, Gertrude, 1878-1961  Search this

Higgins, Eugene, 1874-1958  Search this

Inukai, Kyohei, 1913-  Search this

Phillips, Duncan, 1886-1966  Search this

Prendergast, Maurice Brazil, 1858-1924  Search this

Stieglitz, Alfred, 1864-1946  Search this

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Extent:

4.5 Linear feet

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Illustrations

Notebooks

Diaries

Prints

Sketches

Drafts

Date:

circa 1905-1984

bulk 1905-1935

Summary:

The papers of painter and writer James Britton measure 4.5 linear feet and date from circa 1905-1984, with the bulk of the material dating from circa 1905-1935. The bulk of the papers consist of 49 diaries dating from 1918-1935, plus notebooks of diary excerpts, that chronicle Britton's daily activities and include lists, illustrations, and drafts of correspondence. Additional papers include biographical information compiled by the Britton family; scattered business and financial records; correspondence, including copies of Britton's letters to the editors of the Hartford Courant and the Hartford Times; additional writings and notes that include drafts and manuscripts of an autobiography, drafts of articles for his publication Art Opus, and other writings; sketches and a woodcut print; printed materials, including clippings of his published writings for Art Review International, Book Notes, and Opus; and one photograph of Britton and of works of art.

Scope and Content Note:

The papers of painter and writer James Britton measure 4.5 linear feet and date from circa 1905-1984, with the bulk of the material dating from circa 1905-1935. The bulk of the papers consist of 49 diaries dating from 1918-1935, plus notebooks of diary excerpts, that chronicle Britton's daily activities and include lists, illustrations, and drafts of correspondence. Additional papers include biographical information compiled by the Britton family; scattered business and financial records; correspondence, including copies of Britton's letters to the editors of the Hartford Courant and the Hartford Times; additional writings and notes that include drafts and manuscripts of an autobiography, drafts of articles for his publication Art Opus, and other writings; sketches and a woodcut print; printed materials, including clippings of his published writings for Art Review International, Book Notes, and Opus; and one photograph of Britton and of works of art.

Biographical information consists of a file of photocopied materials prepared by the Britton Family. Scattered business and financial records include papers relating to Britton's auto accident, indexes of letters, illustrated indexes and lists of works of art, miscellaneous invoices and receipts, and file relating to Arlington Gallery.

Nine folders of correspondence include letters written to and by Britton along with posthumus materials to his widow, Caroline Britton. Correspondents include artists and friends Gertrude Fiske, Eugene Higgins, Kyonei Inukai, Andrew Kelly, Dewitt McClellan Lockman, Edwin Valentine Mitchell, Maurice Prendergast, Duncan Phillips, Alfred Stieglitz, Robert Vonnoh, and Robert C. Vose.

The bulk of the Britton papers consist of his extensive diaries - 49 volumes, plus notebooks of excerpts and detailed indexes. The diaries date from 1918-1935 and details Britton's daily activities and observations about art figures active in New York and Connecticut, classical music, the Great Depression, Prohibition, the Catholic Church, and politics. In addition, Britton talks of his relationships with his wife and children. The diaries served as a place for Britton to make lists of works of art, portrait subjects, potential clients, etc. Britton also created "Notebooks of Diary Excerpts" and a detailed index of many of the diaries.

Additional writings and notes include a handwritten and incomplete typescript of an autobiography, writings for Britton's publication Opus, and miscellaneous writings about art, music and plays. Writings by others include works by Duncan Scott Kent and Blackfield.

Artwork includes a print and sketches by Britton, and children's drawings.

Printed materials include issues of Britton's Art Review International, Opus, and other publications for which he wrote articles or provided illustration, clippings, exhibition catalogs, and programs.

Photographs include one photo of the artist with a painting and photos of works of art.

There is a 1.6 linear foot unprocessed addition to this collection donated 2020 and 2022 that includes correspondence, writings by Britton about art, printed material (some annotated), lists of works of art by Britton and others, sketches by Britton, Britton's original letterhead printed from woodcut plate, and transcriptions of composer Joseph Haydn's symphonies for piano and string quarter, exhibition checklists, and notes.Material date sfrom circa 1920-1934.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged as 9 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Information, 1970-1984 (Box 1; 1 folder)

Series 2: Business and Financial records, 1919-1933 (Box 1; 7 folders)

Series 3: Correspondence, 1913-1945 (Box 1; 9 folders)

Series 4: Diaries, 1918-1935 (Box 1-2; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 5: Writings and Notes, circa 1910s-1931 (Box 2-3; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 6: Artwork, circa 1920-1929 (Box 3; 5 folders)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1910-1982 (Box 4; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 8: Photographs, circa 1905-1930s (Box 4, OV 5; 3 folders)

Series 9: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1920-1934 (Boxes 6-8; 1.6 linear feet)

Biographical Note:

James Britton (1878-1936) was a portrait painter and writer active in Connecticut and New York. Britton wrote extensively about American art and artists and was the editor of his own publications Art Review International and Opus. Also, he was a member of the group of New York painters and sculptors known as The Eclectics.

Born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1878, James Britton began his career as an apprentice working under August Jaccaci at Scribner's Magazine in 1895. He studied under George de Forest Brush at the Art Students' League and under Walter Griffin and Charles Noel Flagg in Hartford. He exhibited and worked with many of the American artists associated with the Ash Can school and The Eclectics, a group of New York artists that included Theresa Bernstein, Guy Pene du Bois, Walter Griffin, Philip L. Hale, Eugene Higgins, George Luks, Jane Peterson, Maurice Prendergast, and Mahonri Young. Mainly, Britton worked as a portrait painter but produced many landscapes of Sag Harbor, Long Island, and of his homes in Connecticut. He was a founding member of the New Society of American Artists and the Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts. He exhibited at numerous New York City galleries including Ainslie Galleries, Arlington Galleries, Babcock Galleries, Dudensing Galleries, Folsom Galleries, and at the studio of sculptor Marie Apel.

A prolific writer on American art and artists, as well as an illustrator, Britton worked as staff artist for the Hartford Times and as an art critic for American Art News and the Hartford Courant. He also founded and edited Art Review International and Opus. Two of his published books include Copley, Painter of the Revolution and Artists of America. Britton was also interested in classical music and wrote on composers Haydn and Beethoven. Britton's extensive diaries found within his papers chronicle his daily life and commentary.

In 1914, Britton married Caroline Korner and settled mostly in Connecticut. They had three children, Jerome, Teresa, and Ruth. In 1928, a car struck Britton and left him disabled. Although he continued to paint, he suffered from ill-health as a result of the accident. He died in 1936.

James Britton's works are represented at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Mark Twain Memorial, Manchester Public Library and at St. Joseph's College.

Provenance:

Donated 1985 and 2020 by Barbara and Ursula Roberts Britton, granddaughters of James Britton. Additional material donated in 2022 by Barbara Britton.

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.

Occupation:

Art critics  Search this

Topic:

Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Painters -- New York (State) -- New York -- Diaries  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this

Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Connecticut  Search this

Genre/Form:

Photographs

Illustrations

Notebooks

Diaries

Prints

Sketches

Drafts

Citation:

James Britton papers, circa 1905-1984, bulk circa 1905-1935. 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

Identifier:

AAA.britjame

See more items in:

James Britton papers

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f420ee3e-6226-48ce-abe9-f7a901729070

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-britjame

Creator:

New Britain Museum of American Art  Search this

New Britain Institute. Art Museum  Search this

Names:

Arms, John Taylor, 1887-1953  Search this

Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this

Baskin, Leonard, 1922-2000  Search this

Benton, Thomas Hart, 1889-1975  Search this

Boghosian, Varujan  Search this

Burchfield, Charles Ephraim, 1893-1967  Search this

Dehn, Adolf, 1895-1968  Search this

Kappel, Philip  Search this

LeWitt, Sol, 1928-2007  Search this

Low, Sanford B. D. (Sanford Ballard Dole), 1905-1964  Search this

Meyer, Herbert W. (Herbert William), 1882-1960  Search this

Pleissner, Ogden M.  Search this

Schnakenberg, H. E. (Henry Ernest), 1892-1970  Search this

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Extent:

0.4 Linear feet ((on 1 microfilm reel))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1907-1978

Scope and Contents:

Letters from artists, art dealers, and art collectors, mostly addressed to Sanford Low, Director of the Museum, 1940-1964. Some letters contain price lists of works of art, photographs and printed matter. Correspondents include John Taylor Arms, Milton Avery, Thomas Hart Benton, Leonard Baskin, Varujan Boghosian, Charles Burchfield, Adolf Dehn, Philip Kappel, Sol LeWitt, Herbert Meyer, Ogden Pleissner, Henry Schnakenberg, Robert Vose and others. Also included are writings by Low and others about the Musuem.

Biographical / Historical:

Known as the Art Museum of the New Britain Institute prior to 1961.

Provenance:

Donated 1979 by the New Britain Museum of American Art.

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:

Museum directors -- Connecticut -- New Britain  Search this

Function:

Art museums -- Connecticut -- New Britain

Identifier:

AAA.newbrit

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9fa27b32e-8eab-4aef-8e7a-55cd24ab3bab

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-newbrit

Creator:

King, Bruce Anthony, 1934-  Search this

Names:

Baskin, Leonard, 1922-2000  Search this

Castano, Giovanni, 1896-1978  Search this

Hallam, Beverly, 1923-2013  Search this

Hugo, Harold  Search this

Janowitz, Joel, 1945-  Search this

Laurent, John, 1947-  Search this

McKee, Todd  Search this

Mirski, Boris, 1898-1974  Search this

Morgan, Maud, 1903-1999  Search this

Plamondon, Peter M.  Search this

Smart, Mary, 1915-  Search this

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Extent:

0.3 Linear feet ((on 2 microfilm reels))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1974-1986

Scope and Contents:

Photographs of artists (1974-1976) and miscellaneous printed material concerning King's photographs (1976-1986).

REEL 906: One hundred three photographs by King are of Leonard Baskin, his family, his studio, and his home.

REEL 1817: Six photographs of Harold Hugo, and 2 photographs of Boris Mirski (1974); previously microfilmed under Photos of Artists II and subsequently scanned.

Unfilmed: Photographs of artists (1976-1977) include Giovanni (John) Castano, Beverly Hallam and Mary-Leigh Smart, John Laurent, Judy and Todd McKee and their children, Peter Plamondon and his studio, and Robert C. Vose. Printed material includes photocopies of King's photographs of Joel Janowitz and Maud Morgan. Printed material containing photographs by King includes a book VISION AND REVISION (1979), a magazine SPECTRUM (Spring/Summer 1985), and a calendar NEW ENGLAND IMAGES (1986).

Biographical / Historical:

Photographer, born 1934.

Provenance:

Donated by Bruce Anthony King, 1975 and 1985.

Occupation:

Photographers  Search this

Topic:

Portrait photography -- Photographs  Search this

Artists -- United States -- Photographs  Search this

Identifier:

AAA.kingbruc

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw99cbaf4f5-ad64-40bd-b6cf-3612bd97ef3c

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-kingbruc

Creator:

Low, Sanford B. D. (Sanford Ballard Dole), 1905-1964  Search this

Names:

New Britain Museum of American Art  Search this

Benton, Thomas Hart, 1889-1975  Search this

Marsh, Reginald, 1898-1954  Search this

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Vose, Robert Churchill, 1873-  Search this

Extent:

0.2 Linear feet ((186 items on 1 microfilm reel))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1931-1975

Scope and Contents:

Biographical data; personal and business correspondence, including letters from Thomas Hart Benton, Reginald Marsh, Robert Vose and Robert Vose, Jr. of Vose Galleries of Boston, Inc., and others; writings; exhibition catalogs; printed materials regarding the Sanford Low Memorial Collection of American Illustration; 3 sketches by Low, clippings on Low and the activities of the New Britain Museum of American Art; photographs of Low, of Low with Benton, Thomas Craven and Denys Wortman, and photographs of the installation of a Low retrospective exhibition, 1963.

Biographical / Historical:

Painter, illustrator, block printer, decorator, designer, educator, museum director, New Britain, Conn. and Martha's Vineyard, Mass. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii. Was instrumental in organizing and founding the New Britain Museum of American Art, and was its director for a number of years.

Provenance:

The donor, Virginia Low, is the widow of Sanford Low.

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:

Designers  Search this

Educators  Search this

Illustrators  Search this

Museum directors  Search this

Painters  Search this

Printmakers  Search this

Topic:

Painting, American  Search this

Function:

Art museums -- Connecticut -- New Britain

Identifier:

AAA.lowsanbd

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9a784d449-4f3f-46da-ad81-a56e27586dd3

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-lowsanbd

Creator:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Extent:

1 Item (videocassette (8 mm) (120 min), sd; ?, 8 mm.)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

undated

Scope and Contents:

A two hour videotaped lecture by Robert C. Vose, Jr., at the Somerset Club, Boston, Massachusetts, May 14, 1987.

Provenance:

Donated 1987 by Janice Miller.

Identifier:

AAA.voserobe

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9ab5561b6-d08e-4a92-9046-45d02f88126d

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-voserobe

Interviewee:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Names:

Vose Galleries of Boston  Search this

Karolik, Maxim  Search this

Extent:

1 Sound cassette (Sound recording)

13 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Sound cassettes

Pages

Sound recordings

Date:

1987 May 14

Scope and Contents:

A lecture delivered 1987 May 14, by Robert C. Vose, at the Somerset Club, Boston, Massachusetts.

Vose recalls some of the major American paintings sold by the Vose Galleries. He speaks of the thirty to forty year cycles in popularity and prices of American paintings, and of leading collectors, particularly Maxim Karolik.

Biographical / Historical:

Robert C. Vose (1911-1998) was an art dealer from Boston, Massachusetts.

General:

Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 50 min..

Provenance:

The lecture was given at the Somerset Club for members of the Archives of American Art. Vose agreed to its being recorded and included in the Archives' collection.

Occupation:

Art dealers -- Massachusetts -- Boston  Search this

Genre/Form:

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.

Identifier:

AAA.vose87

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw927fec74a-0dfd-4ce6-81e7-61a7434c0ba1

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-vose87

Creator:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Names:

Fisher, Alvan, 1792-1863  Search this

Low, Sanford B. D. (Sanford Ballard Dole), 1905-1964  Search this

Extent:

5 Items ((on 2 partial microfilm reels))

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Date:

1961

Scope and Contents:

Writings and printed material.

REEL 3480: A 5-page typescript "Sanford Ballard Dole Low" contains Vose's recollections of Low, a painter and dealer in New Britain, Connecticut. Included are photocopies of 3 clippings (1961), regarding Low's "Man of the Year" award from the New Britain Press Club.

REEL 4314: Undated typescript, 36 p., for Vose's "Alvan Fisher," a biographical account of a genre and landscape painter.

Biographical / Historical:

Art dealer; Boston, Mass.

Provenance:

Donated by Robert Vose, Jr. The photocopied typescript on reel 4314 was discarded after microfilming.

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:

Art dealers  Search this

Identifier:

AAA.voserobt

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw944f01f43-e141-45cf-b0fd-02da1aeefa32

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-voserobt

Interviewee:

Vose, Robert C. (Robert Churchill), 1911-1998  Search this

Interviewer:

Brown, Robert F.  Search this

Extent:

172 Pages (Transcript)

Type:

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Pages

Date:

1986 June 27-July 23

Scope and Contents:

An interview of Robert C. Vose conducted 1986 June 27-1986 July 23, by Robert F. Brown, for the Archives of American Art.

Biographical / Historical:

Robert C. Vose (1911-1998) was an art dealer, Vose Galleries of Boston.

General:

Originally recorded 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 25 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.

Topic:

Art dealers -- Massachusetts -- Boston -- Interviews  Search this

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.

Identifier:

AAA.vose86

Archival Repository:

Archives of American Art

GUID:

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw946e5c257-dcc3-466c-894f-dbca0cee4d2c

EDAN-URL:

ead_collection:sova-aaa-vose86