Brumbaugh, Thomas B. (Thomas Brendle), 1921- Search this
Extent:
14 Items (Letters, written in ink, ball point, graphite, typewritter)
Type:
Archival materials
Lithographs
Correspondence
Place:
New York (N.Y.)
Date:
1779-1981
Scope and Contents:
This folder is an amalgamation of letters written and recieved by prominent figures in 19th and 20th century American art. Included in the folder are letters by Ambrose Andrews, Edward Bates, Gifford Beal, Aaron Bohrod, Carroll Clear, Samuel Colman, Josephine Daskam, Daniel Denison Rogers, William Elliot, George de Forest Brush, and Chester Harding. The letters' subjects cover a wide range of topics, including the buying and selling of art, invitations to dinner, and general correspondence.
Arrangement:
Organized alphabetically by author.
Biographical / Historical:
Ambrose Andrews was a portrait, miniature, and landscape portrait who worked throughout New England and the United States. He was born in Stockbridge, Massachusetts in 1801 and studied at the National Academy of Design. He exhibited paintings at many different institutions, including his portraits of Henry Clay and Sam Houston. Andrews's work is now in the New York Historical Society.
Edward Bates was a representative for Missouri in the mid-1800s. He served in the War of 1812 as a sergeant in a volunteer brigade, studied and practiced law, attended the state constitutional convention, was district attorney from 1821 to 1826, and was a member of the state senate. He declined to serve as Secretary of War for President Fillmore, but was appointed Attorney General of the United States by President Lincoln, and served from March 5, 1861 to September 1864. Bates died on March 25, 1869.
Admiral Charles Henry Davis was born on January 16, 1807, and served as Chief of the Bureau of Navigation between 1862 and 1865. He then served as Superintendent of the Naval Observatory. He had three ships named after him.
Forbes Watson was an art critic, lecturer, and administrator in New York City in the early 20th century. He served as art critic for the New York Evening Post. In 1933 he was appointed Technical Director of the first New Deal art program, the Public Works of Art Project, which provided work for artists in the decoration of non-federal buildings. He later worked at the Treasury Department of Painting and Sculpture, which administered funding for decorating federal buildings. Watson finally served in the Treasury Department's War Finance Division, where he organized exhibitions and posters by combat artists to promote the sale of war bonds. Forbes Watson's papers are held in the Archives of American Art.
Gifford Beal was an American artist who worked with many organizations for the advancements of the arts, finding inspiration from a wide variety of sources, including holiday scenes, every-day life, and landscapes. Beal loved spontaneity and was influenced by French Impressionists. He was commissioned by the government to paint two murals: one on the post office in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and one in the Main Interior Building in Washington, D.C. Beal's papers are held in the Archives of American Art.
Aaron Bohrod was born in Chicago, Illinois on November 21, 1907, where he studied art at the Art Institute of Chicago. He worked for a while in the advertising art department at the Fair Department Store in Chicago, but eventually moved to New York City, where he joined the Art Students League. He died on April 3, 1992. During World War II, Bohrod worked as an artist for the United States Army Corps of Engineer and Life magazine in Europe.
Carroll Cloar was an American realist and surrealist who lived from 1913 to 1993. He grew up in Arkansas, but later moved to Tennessee, travelled Europe, and joined the Art Students League in New York City. During World War II, he joined the U.S. Army Air Corps, and although he did complete some artwork during this period, none of it survives. Cloar then settled in Memphis. One of his paintings was chosen to commemorate President Clinton's inauguration in 1993. Cloar died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on April 10, 1993, after a long battle with cancer.
Samuel Colman was an American painter who belonged to the Hudson River School, and is most well-remembered for his landscapes. He was born in Portland, Maine, in 1832, and began exhibiting at the young age of 18. At 27 he was elected an associate of the National Academy, and later studied abroad in Paris and Spain. He was made a full Academician upon his return to the United States, and both founded and served as the first president of the American Water-color Society. He continued to both study in Europe and exhibit artwork, moving from New York to Rhode Island. Colman is represented in the metropolitan Museum, Chicago Art Institute, and many other collections. He died in New York City in 1920.
Josephine Daskam Bacon was an American writer known for writing about "women's issues" and using female protagonists. She wrote a series of juvenile mysteries and helped pioneer the Girl Scouts movement, writing a guidebook for the organization.
Daniel Denison Rogers is perhaps most widely remembered for the painting that John Singleton Copley completed of his wife, Abigail Bromfield.
Ithiel Town was an American architect and civil engineer who lived from October 3, 1784 to June 13, 1844. He worked in the Federal and revivalist Greek and Gothic styles, and was widely copied. He was born in Connecticut, and built both Center Church and Trinity Church in New Haven. Town patented a wooden lattice truss bridge, which made him quite wealthy. He formed a professional architecture firm with Alexander Jackson Davis. One of Town's most amazing feats was the construction of the Potomac Aqueduct in Washington, D.C., which allowed fully loaded canal boats to cross the Potomac River.
William Parker Elliot designed the old U.S. Patent Office, a very important Greek Revival building, with Ithiel Town.
George de Forest Brush was an American painter who grew up in Connecticut and is typified by his paintings and drawings of Native Americans. Even after moving from Wyoming, where he met the Native Americans, back to the East, Brush still occasionally enjoyed living in a teepee. Brush's artistic style later developed into Renaissance-inspired portraits. He was friends with Abbott H. Thayer, and along with Brush's wife, Mary, and son, Gerome, they all contributed to early camouflage designs. Brush died in New Hampshire in 1941.
Chester Harding was an American portrait painter born in Massachusetts in 1792. He worked in many different professions, finally becoming a self-taught itinerant portrait painter. Harding settled in Beacon Hill, Boston, Massachusetts, in a building that now houses the Boston Bar Association (the Chester Harding House, a Historic National Landmark). He studied at the Philadelphia School of Design, later setting up a studio in London, where he befriended and painted for royalty and nobility. Harding finally returned to Boston, where he died in 1866.
Local Numbers:
FSA A2009.06 4
Other Archival Materials:
Thomas B. Brumbaugh research material on Abbott Handerson Thayer and other artists, 1876-1994 (bulk 1960s-1994); Also located at Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
New York N.Y. -- Buildings, structures, etc., Photographs
Date:
1840-1967
bulk 1900-1960
Summary:
The papers of New York City art critic, writer, and lecturer Forbes Watson date from 1840-1967 with the bulk of materials dating from 1900-1960 and measure 13.92 linear feet. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, business records relating to the Arts Publishing Corporation, records documenting Watson's work for the Public Works of Art Project and the Section of Painting and Sculpture, reference files, an exhibition file from the Pepsi-Cola Company's Third Annual Exhibition, writings and notes, ten scrapbooks and loose pages, printed materials, and photographs.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of New York City art critic, writer, and lecturer Forbes Watson date from 1840-1967 with the bulk of materials dating from 1900-1960 and measure 13.92 linear feet. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, business records relating to the Arts Publishing Corporation, records documenting Watson's work for the Public Works of Art Project and the Section of Painting and Sculpture, reference files, an exhibition file from the Pepsi-Cola Company's Third Annual Exhibition, writings and notes, ten scrapbooks and loose pages, printed materials, and photographs.
Biographical material includes Watson's Harvard diploma, documents concerning his service with the Red Cross in World War II, biographical accounts, and obituaries.
Correspondence is primarily with colleagues and includes scattered letters from Alfred H. Barr, Jr., Ira Glackens, Allen Tucker, and Max Weber. Other letters are from artists, art historians, and museum curators. A notebook contains shorthand drafts of letters from Watson.
Business records include personal business records consisting of various tax and stock records. The Arts Publishing Corporation records concern Watson's tenure as editor of The Arts magazine and contains a contract, correspondence, financial records, stockholders reports, press releases, a scrapbook, and issues of The Arts. Also included are business records pertaining to the Art in Federal Buildings, Inc..
The U.S. Treasury Department file is the largest series and documents Watson's federal employment as technical director, chief advisor, and consultant for Treasury Department's public art programs - the Public Works of Art Project and the Section of Painting and Sculpture. The files contain correspondence, financial reports, prospectuses, exhibition files, typescripts, clippings, exhibition catalogs, miscellaneous printed material, and photographs, and a scrapbook. The files contain a record of Watson's and other federal administrators' interactions with many artists during the Depression Era. Correspondence is primarily between Watson and Edward Bruce, Olin Dows, Henry and Elinor Morgenthau, and Edward B. Rowan. Found are scattered letters from artists including Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Paul Manship, and William Zorach, among many others. There are exhibition files for "Art for Bonds," "Army at War," and "War Against Japan." There are also photographs of U. S. Treasury Department events including a radio broadcast by John Dewey, Robert La Follette, Jr., and Sumner Welles.
Documents from the Pepsi-Cola Company's Third Annual Exhibition at the National Academy of Design contains a prospectus, an exhibition catalog and artists' statements.
Artist/Patron files contain reference material concerning painters, sculptors, photographers, dancers, composers, authors, art collectors, art dealers, and museum administrators. Files may include writings, notes, artworks, exhibition catalogs and other printed materials. Of particular note are photographs, which include portrait photographs of artists and of artists in their studios. Notable photographers include Ansel Adams, Arnold Genthe, Man Ray, photographs of New York City by Charles Sheeler and a photo of Henri Matisse by A. E. Gallatin. Files for Nan Watson, Symeon Shimin, and Glenn O. Coleman contain artworks. A file for Constantin Brancusi contains legal documents concerning U. S. Customs vs. Brancusi.
Art and Architecture files consist of reference material including photographs and notes concerning miscellaneous unattributed art works, American architecture, and furnishings.
Notes and writings consist of miscellaneous notes and typescripts of lectures and published articles, and notebooks.
Nine scrapbooks and loose scrapbook pages contain clippings of articles written by Watson, lists, and exhibition announcements and catalogs. Additional printed material includes clippings, copies of the Hue and Cry newspaper, exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases, calendars of events, brochures for the Art Students League, book catalogs, published books, and miscellaneous printed material.
Photographs are of Forbes Watson; family members including his wife, painter Nan Watson; and members of the Art Students League including Peggy Bacon, Minna Citron, Stewart Klonis, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, and Reginald Marsh. There are also photographs of juries for the Carnegie Institute International Exhibitions that include colleagues Alfred H. Barr, Jr., Gifford Beal, Guy Pene DuBois, Leon Kroll, Henri Matisse, Homer Saint-Gaudens, and Maurice Sterne.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 11 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1902-1960 (Box 1; 4 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1913-1960 (Box 1; 33 folders)
Series 3: Business Records, 1920-1944 (Box 1-3, 14, 22; 2.0 linear feet)
Series 4: U. S. Treasury Department File, 1926-1945 (Box 3-6, 14, 17, 22, OV 21; 3.4 linear feet)
Series 5: File for Pepsi-Cola Company's Third Annual Exhibition "Paintings of the Year," 1946 (Box 6; 5 folders)
Series 6: Artist/Patron Files, 1840-1967 (Box 6-9, 15, OV 21; 2.8 linear feet)
Series 7: Art and Architecture File, 1929-1930 (Box 9; 35 folders)
Series 8: Notes and Writings, 1875-1950 (Box 9-10, 22; 1.3 linear feet)
Series 9: Scrapbooks, 1904-1951 (Box 9, 11, 14, BV 18, BV 19, BV 20; 1.8 linear feet)
Series 10: Printed Material, 1900-1961 (Box 10, 12-13, 16-17, 22; 1.5 linear feet)
Series 11: Photographs, 1900-1950 (Box 13, 22; .4 linear feet)
All material is arranged chronologically, with the exception of the Artist/Patron Files which are arranged alphabetically.
Biographical Note:
Forbes Watson (1879-1960) worked primarily in New York City and Washington, D.C. as an art critic, writer, lecturer, and consultant to the U. S. Treasury Department's Public Works of Art Project and Section of Painting and Sculpture (Section of Fine Arts).
Forbes Watson was born on November 27, 1879 in Boston, the son of stockbroker John Watson and his wife Mary. Watson grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, attending the Phillips Academy in Andover, and graduating from Harvard University in 1902. After a brief period of freelance writing, he was hired by The New York Evening Post as an art critic in 1911 and worked there until 1917. In 1910, he married Agnes, professionally known as painter Nan Watson.
During World War I, Watson served with an American volunteer ambulance unit with the French army, later working with the American Red Cross in Paris. After the war, he moved back to New York City and worked as art critic for The World, from the early 1920s until 1931 and as editor of The Arts magazine from 1923-1933. Watson also lectured at the Art Students League, and at various universities and arts organizations.
In 1933, Watson moved to Washington, D.C. to serve as technical director of the U. S. Treasury Department's short-lived Public Works of Art Project. In October 1934, Watson was employed as Chief Adviser to the Treasury Department's Section of Painting and Sculpture (later renamed the Section of Fine Arts) and later as Consultant to the Secretary's Office of the Treasury. During World War II, he organized various traveling exhibitions including "Art for Bonds" that promoted the sale of war bonds. Watson retired in 1946 and lived in Gaylordsville, Connecticut.
Watson was the author of numerous essays and reviews, and several books including American Painting Today and Winslow Homer, a biography of the noted American artist. With Edward Bruce, he produced a pictorial volume Art in Federal Buildings, Vol. I: Mural Designs. At his death he was working on his autobiography.
Forbes Watson died on May 31, 1960 in New Milford, Connecticut.
Provenance:
The Forbes Watson papers were donated by Watson's widow, Nan Watson, in 1961. An additional folder of material was donated in 2018 by the Museum of Modern Art via Michelle Elligott, Chief of Archives, Library and Research.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Art critics -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Printed material consists of clippings, including copies of the Hue and Cry newspaper, exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases, calendars of events, brochures for the Art Students League, book catalogs, books The Art Spirit by Robert Henri, and Art Treasures and Intrigue by James Henry Duveen, and miscellaneous printed material.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Found are correspondence, a typescript for a radio talk, writings and lectures, reports, printed materials, and photographs. Photographs include those of Henry Morgenthau, Forbes Watson and Eleanor Roosevelt at exhibitions as well as exhibition photographs from New York City, Buffalo, Detroit, Chicago, Minneapolis, Portland, Los Angeles, and Denver.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Forbes Watson papers, 1840-1967, bulk 1900-1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
