The papers of Claudia DeMonte and Ed McGowin measure 7.2 linear feet and date between 1960 and 2018. The papers primarily document Claudia DeMonte's career as a painter, and to a lesser extent her husband's career, through correspondence with family, friends, colleagues, and art institutions; notebooks, poetry, and other writings; scrapbooks; curriculum vitas, awards and certificates, commissions, and other professional activity; exhibition announcements and catalogs, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, and other printed material; sketchbooks and other artwork; personal photographs, portraits, of artwork, and other photographic material.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Claudia DeMonte and Ed McGowin measure 7.2 linear feet and date between 1960 and 2018. The papers primarily document Claudia DeMonte's career as a painter, and to a lesser extent her husband's career, through correspondence with family, friends, colleagues, and art institutions; notebooks, poetry, and other writings; scrapbooks; curriculum vitas, awards and certificates, commissions, and other professional activity; exhibition announcements and catalogs, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, and other printed material; sketchbooks and other artwork; personal photographs, portraits, of artwork, and other photographic material.
Correspondence includes letters and postcards to and from family, friends, colleagues, and art institutions.
Writings includes a file of poetry written by DeMonte, manuscripts of books written by DeMonte, and a series of notebooks. Some of the notebooks are a combination of notes and sketches.
Scrapbooks consist of eight scrapbooks consisting of mixed material such as notes, photographs, sketches, and printed material.
Professional material consists of awards and certificates, a large number of calendars, commision work including an art project for the University of Northern Iowa completed by both DeMonte and McGowin, and a number of VHS and Betamax cassettes documenting DeMonte's career and interviews in connection with her Women of the World exhibition.
Printed material consists of newspaper clippings, magazine articles, exhibition announcements and catalogs, exhibition posters, and newsletters.
Artwork consists of a file of drawings and some sketchbooks.
Photographic material consists of photographs and slides of DeMonte, her artwork, and some of her exhibitions. There is also a file of photographs of DeMonte and McGowin at the White House with First Lady Laura Bush, and there are personal photographs of DeMonte and McGowin traveling and with family and friends.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into seven series.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1967-2013 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 2: Writings, 1975-2013 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 2-3)
Series 3: Scrapbooks, 1967-2009 (1.0 linear feet; Box 3, 9-10)
Series 4: Professional Activity Files, 1964-2013 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 3-5, 9)
Series 5: Printed Material, 1960-2018 (1.9 linear feet; Boxes 5-7)
Series 6: Artwork, circa 1973 (0.1 linear feet; Box 7)
Series 7: Photographic Material, circa 1977-2010 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 7-8)
Biographical / Historical:
Claudia DeMonte (1947- ) was born and raised in Astoria, New York City. She has more than 100 one-person shows and 600 group exhibitions nationally and internationally, including exhibitions at the Corcoran Museum, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Mississippi Museum, Tucson Museum, Flint Institute of Art, Museum of the Southwest, etc.
Her work is in numerous museum permanent collections, including the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Stamford Museum, Boca Raton Museum, and in major corporate collections such as those of Hyatt Regency Hotels, Exxon, Citibank and Siemens. Her public commissions have come from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Brooklyn Library System, Queens Supreme Court, Prudential Life Insurance, the State of New Mexico, and New York City School Construction Authority.
DeMonte is also the curator of "Women of the World: A Global Collection of Art." This traveling exhibition, with accompanying books, includes works of women from 177 countries dealing with the images of women.
DeMonte's work is heavily influenced by her travels to over 80 countries, her interest in the roles of women in contemporary society and Outsider Art, a collection compiled with her husband, artist Ed McGowin.
For 33 years, DeMonte has served on the faculty of the University of Maryland, where she was named Distinguished Scholar Teacher and Professor Emerita. In 2006, She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the College of Santa Fe.
DeMonte presently lives with her husband in New York City and Kent, Connecticut.
Ed McGowin (1938- ) was born in 1938 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi and grew up in Mississippi and Alabama, receiving the M.A. from the University of Alabama. He has had one-person exhibitions at the Corcoran Gallery in Washington, D.C.; the Baltimore Museum; and the Museum of Modern Art of the City of Paris, France. Since 1979, McGowin has executed major outdoor commissions for numerous public and private organizations, often collaborating with his wife, Claudia DeMonte.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Claudia DeMonte conducted by Liza Kirwin between February 13 and April 24, 1991; and the Ed McGowin papers, 1962-1998.
Provenance:
The Claudia DeMonte and Ed McGowin papers were donated in 1994 by Claudia DeMonte and in 2020 by Claudia DeMonte and Ed McGowin.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Mixed-media artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Claudia DeMonte and Ed McGowin papers, 1960-2018. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.
An interview of Claudia DeMonte conducted 1991 February 13-1991 April 24, by Liza Kirwin, for the Archives of American Art.
DeMonte recalls her childhood and growing up in Astoria, New York; her Italian heritage and Catholic education; her early work including the "trade pieces"; the calendar she produced for the Corcoran Gallery show "Five Plus One" in 1976; her marriage to artist Ed McGowin; moving from Washington, D.C. to New York; the making and meaning of her "Claudia dolls"; exhibiting at the Gracie Mansion Gallery; the art community in the East Village in the early 1980s; the dealer Gracie Mansion; gallery representation outside of New York; critical acceptance of her art; collecting the work of Southern self-taught artists and the influence of Sister Gertrude Morgan and James Son Ford Thomas; work methods and techniques; autobiographical and feminist themes; teaching at the university of Maryland from 1972 to the present; and new directions in her art.
Biographical / Historical:
Claudia DeMonte (1947- ) is a painter, mixed-media artist, and instructor of College Park, Maryland and New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 22 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.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Mixed-media artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of Mary Beth Edelson conducted 2009 February 1 and 16, by Judith Olch Richards, for the Archives of American Art, at Edelson's studio in New York, New York.
Biographical / Historical:
Mary Beth Edelson (1933-2021) was a feminist artist who lived and worked in New York, New York.
Judith Olch Richards (1947- ) is former Executive director of iCI in New York, New York. Edelson is considered a pioneer in the Feminist Art movement.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 40 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:
This interview is open for research. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its Oral History Program interviews available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. Quotation, reproduction and publication of the recording is governed by restrictions. If an interview has been transcribed, researchers must quote from the transcript. If an interview has not been transcribed, researchers must quote from the recording. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Performance artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Collagists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of Marisol conducted 1968 Feb. 8, by Colette Roberts, for the Archives of American Art.
In the interview Marisol speaks of her childhood spent both in Chile and France; the encouragement of her parents and teachers to draw freely; her progression from painting, to drawing, to collage and reliefs; the influence of Europeans, Matisse and Picasso, and American, Rauschenberg; her time spent in museums as a child and the subsequent exposure to DaVinci and Rembrandt; her art education, predominantly in New York at the Art Students League and briefly in Paris at the Ecole des Beaux Art; her association with the Abstract Expressionists at the Club; the contrast of her work to the dream-based Surrealists; her first show for Castelli in 1957; her shows at the '62 and '64 annual exhibitions at the Stable; her more recent exhibitions for the Carnegie and Sidney Janis Gallery of The Beach and The Party; the origins of her wood drawings as a discovery while drawing lines to be sculpted upon wood; her experience working for the Daily Telegraph and completing portraits of historical figures such as Charles DeGalle; the literary influence of Dostoeveski, and more specifically Crime and Punishment; her recent apathy for visual entertainments and diversions (like the Ballet). Both in the interview and afterwards in a supplemental biographical addition Roberts and Marisol allude to her resistence to sit for interviews. The artist feels that she doesn't "have much to say."
Biographical / Historical:
Marisol (1930- ) is a sculptor in New York, N.Y. She was born in Paris to a Venezuelan family.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav file. Duration is 1 hr., 15 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics, and administrators.
Restrictions:
Use requires an appointment.
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
Collagists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The scattered papers of sculptor Joyce Cutler Shaw measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1974 to 1977. The papers include a proposal for her work The Lady and the Bird Odyssey, general printed material, and printed copies of letters, photographs, and newsletters relating to Shaw's attempt to erect her ice sculpture We the People in Washington, D.C. on the Capitol grounds.
Scope and Contents:
The scattered papers of sculptor Joyce Cutler Shaw measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1974 to 1977. The papers include a proposal for her work The Lady and the Bird Odyssey, general printed material, and printed copies of letters, photographs, and newsletters relating to Shaw's attempt to erect her ice sculpture We the People in Washington, D.C. on the Capitol grounds.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Joyce Cutler Shaw (1935-2018) was a sculptor active in San Diego and La Jolla, California, who carved many of her notable works in ice.
Originally from New York, Cutler Shaw received a bachelor's degree from New York University and a master's degree from the University of California, San Diego in visual arts. Her work explored the natural world, human nature, and the built environment within nature.
Provenance:
Donated 1977 by Joyce Cutler Shaw.
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.
The Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney papers measure approximately 36.1 linear feet and date from 1851 to 1975, with the bulk of the material dating from 1888 to 1942. The collection documents the life and work of the art patron and sculptor, especially her promotion of American art and artists, her philanthropy and war relief work, her commissions for memorial sculpture, and her creative writing. Papers include correspondence, journals, writings, project files, scrapbooks, photographs, artwork, printed material, two sound recordings, and miscellaneous personal papers.
Scope and Content Note:
The Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney papers measure approximately 36.1 linear feet and date from 1851 to 1975, with the bulk of the material dating from 1888 to 1942. The collection documents the life and work of the art patron and sculptor, especially her promotion of American art and artists, her philanthropy and war relief work, her commissions for memorial sculpture, and her creative writing. Papers include correspondence, journals, writings, project files, scrapbooks, photographs, artwork, printed material, two sound recordings, and miscellaneous personal papers.
Material relating to more personal aspects of Whitney's life include school papers, a paper doll book dating from her childhood, financial material, interviews, awards and honorary degrees, address and telephone books, committee files, and other items. Correspondence consists of incoming and outgoing letters concerning both personal and professional matters, including her patronage of the arts and sponsorship of artists, her sculpture commissions and exhibitions, and her war relief work and other philantrophic activities. Also found are family correspondence and correspondence received by the Flora Whitney Miller and the Whitney Museum of American Art after Whitney's death. Journals include personal ones that she kept periodically from the time she was a child to near the end of her life, in which she recorded her travels, her impressions of people, her experiences with friends, and her thoughts on art, among other topics; and social ones, in which she recorded dinners and dances attended, and people invited to different social gatherings, and in which she collected invitations received and accepted.
Scattered files can be found that relate to the Whitney Studio Club and the Whitney Museum of American Art, consisting of notebooks, catalogs, a financial report, and other material. Files relating to Whitney's own sculpture projects are more extensive and consist of correspondence, contracts, printed material, notes, financial material for proposed and completed commissions for fountains, memorials, and monuments. The Whitney Museum of American Art, rather than Whitney herself, seems to have kept these files. Files relating to Whitney's philanthropic activities span from the time just before to just after the First World War and consist of correspondence, minutes, reports, and printed material stemming from her contributions to charities and war relief organizations, her sponsorship of the war hospital in Juilly, France, and her support of the Greenwich House Social Settlement.
Whitney's writings include extensive drafts, and handwritten and typed manuscripts and copies of novels, plays, and stories, as well as some autobiographical and early writings, notes and writings on art, and clippings of published writings, documenting her principle means of creative expression towards the end of her life. Also found are some writings by others. Scrapbooks consist of clippings, photographs, letters and other material, compiled by Whitney, Flora Whitney Miller, and possibly others, documenting Whitney's public life, her sculpture commissions and exhibitions, exhibitions at the Whitney Studio, the war hospital in Juilly, France, the death of Harry Payne Whitney in 1930, and the sickness and death of Whitney in 1942.
Photographs include ones of the Whitney and Vanderbilt families, ones of Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (including portraits taken by Baron Adolf de Meyer and Count Jean de Strelecki), ones of various Vanderbilt and Whitney residences and of Whitney's studios, ones of Whitney's sculpture exhibitions as well as exhibitions at her studio, and ones of her sculptures, as well as some miscellaneous and unidentified ones. Artwork consists of sketchbooks and sketches by Whitney (including sketches for sculptures) and artwork by others (including a sketchbook of Howard Cushing's containing a sketch of her and albums of World War I lithographs) collected by Whitney. Also found amongst the collection are printed material (clippings, exhibition catalogs, programs, and publications) and blueprints (including drawings for Whitney's studio on MacDougal Alley and various of her sculptures).
Arrangement:
The Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney papers are arranged into twelve series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Miscellaneous Personal Papers, 1888-1947, 1975 (Boxes 1-3, 33-34, OV 42; 2.5 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1889-1949, 1959 (Boxes 3-9; 6 linear feet)
Series 3: Journals, circa 1886-1939 (Boxes 9-12, 33; 2.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Whitney Studio Club and Whitney Museum of American Art Files, 1921-1943 (Box 12; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Sculpture Files, 1900-1960 (bulk 1909-1942) (Boxes 12-15; 3 linear feet)
Series 6: Philanthropy Files, 1902-1923 (bulk 1915-1920) (Boxes 15-17; 2 linear feet)
Series 7: Writings, 1889-1942, 1974 (Boxes 17-26; 10 linear feet)
Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1893-1942 (Boxes 26-27, 33, 35; 1.5 linear feet)
Series 9: Printed Material, 1859-1942 (Boxes 27-28, 36; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 10: Photographs, 1862-1942 (Boxes 28-32, 36-41, OV 43-51; 6.4 linear feet)
Series 11: Artwork, 1871-1930s (Boxes 32, 41, OV 52-54; 0.8 linear feet)
Series 12: Blueprints, 1913-1945 (OV 55; 0.1 linear feet)
Biographical/Historical note:
New York art patron and sculptor, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875-1942), was the eldest daughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt II and Alice Gwynne Vanderbilt, and founder of the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Whitney was born January 9, 1875 in New York City, the. She was educated by private tutors and attended Brearley School in New York. From the time she was a young girl, she kept journals of her travels and impressions of the people she met, and engaged in creative pursuits such as sketching and writing stories. In 1896, she was married to Harry Payne Whitney. They had three children, Flora, Cornelius, and Barbara.
In 1900, Whitney began to study sculpture under Hendrik Christian Anderson, and then under James Fraser. Later, she studied with Andrew O'Connor in Paris. From the time she started studying sculpture, her interest in art grew, as did her particular concern for American art and artists. In 1907, she organized an art exhibition at the Colony Club, which included several contemporary American paintings. She also opened a studio on MacDougal Alley, which became known as the Whitney Studio and was a place where shows and prize competitions were held. (She also had other studios in Westbury, Long Island and Paris, France.) Over the years, her patronage of art included buying work, commissioning it, sponsoring it, exhibiting it, and financially supporting artists in America and abroad. From 1911 on, she was aided in her work by Juliana Force, who started out as Whitney's secretary, was responsible for art exhibitions at the Whitney Studio, and became the first director of the Whitney Museum of American Art.
The first recognition Whitney received for her sculpture came in 1908 when a project on which she had collaborated (with Grosvenor Atterbury and Hugo Ballin) won a prize for best design from the Architectural League of New York. The following year she received a commission to do a fountain sculpture for the Pan-American Building in Washington, D. C. She went on to do numerous other commissioned works over the next several decades, including: a fountain for the New Arlington Hotel in Washington D.C. (the design of which was reproduced in various sizes and materials, one cast being submitted to the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition where it won a bronze medal and a later cast being installed on the campus of McGill University, Montreal, Canada in 1930); the Titanic Memorial (designed in 1913 and erected in 1930); the Buffalo Bill Memorial (1924) in Cody, Wyoming; the Columbus Memorial (1929) in Port of Palos, Spain; the Peter Stuyvesant statue in Stuyvesant Square (1939); and The Spirit of Flight (1939) for the New York World's Fair. In 1916, she had her first one-man show at the Whitney Studio, another at the Newport Art Association, and a retrospective at the San Francisco Art Association Palace of Fine Arts. A traveling exhibition in the Midwest followed in 1918.
During the First World War, Whitney was involved with numerous war relief activities, most notably establishing and supporting a hospital in Juilly, France. She made several trips to France during the war, keeping a journal and eventually publishing a piece on the hospital in several newspapers. Her sculpture during this period was largely focused on war themes. In 1919, she exhibited some of these works at the Whitney Studio in a show called "Impressions of War." In the years after the war, she was also commissioned to do several war memorials, including the Washington Heights War Memorial (1922) and the St. Nazaire Memorial (1926) commemmorating the landing of the American Expeditionary Force in France in 1917.
In 1918, Whitney opened the Whitney Studio Club, which served as pioneering organization for American art, putting on exhibition programs and offering social space and recreational amenities to its members (one point numbering over four hundred artists living in New York). She planned an "Overseas Exhibition" of American art, which traveled to Paris and other European cities in 1920-1921, and had her own shows in Paris and London in 1921. In 1928, the Whitney Studio Club was transformed into an art gallery, known as the Whitney Studio Galleries and directed by Juliana Force, which eventually became the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1931.
Whitney pursued creative writing throughout her life, but beginning in the 1930s writing became her principle means of creative expression. Over the years, she produced numerous manuscripts for stories, novels, and play. One novel, Walking the Dusk, was published in 1932 under the pseudonym L. J. Webb. Beginning in 1940, Whitney took a "Professional Writing" course at Columbia University with Helen Hull, which resulted in the production of numerous short stories. In 1941, she collaborated with Ronald Bodley to adapt one of her stories as a play and attempted to get it produced, although unsuccessfully.
In 1934, Whitney was involved in a custody battle for her niece, Gloria Vanderbilt (daughter of her late brother, Reginald Vanderbilt and his wife, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt). In an agreement reached by the court, custody was awarded to Whitney and visitation rights to Gloria's mother. Litigation continued in the ensuing years.
In 1935, Whitney established the World's Fair Five Organization, with Juliana Force and four architects, to work on preparing a plan for the site of the 1939 New York World's Fair at Flushing Meadow, although the fair's own Board of Design ended up coming up with its own plan.
Whitney continued her work in sculpture, writing, art patronage, and philanthropy throughout the remaining years of her life. She died on April 18, 1942.
Related Archival Materials note:
Related material found in the Archives includes Research Material on Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney compiled by Flora Miller Irving and the Whitney Museum of American Art artists' files and records, available on microfilm only (originals are located in the Whitney Museum of American Art). Also found in the Archives of American Art's Miscellaneous Exhibition Catalog Collection are a bundle of Whitney Studio Club and Mrs. H. P. Whitney's Studio catalogs and announcements.
Provenance:
The Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney papers were donated in 1981 and 1991 by Whitney's granddaughter, Flora Miller Irving.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Philanthropists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Topic:
Art patrons -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The Zorach family papers measure 4.4 linear feet and consist of materials relating to the lives and careers of sculptor and painter William Zorach, his wife painter and weaver Marguerite, and their children, painter and multi-media artist Dahlov Ipcar and collector and art dealer Tessim Zorach. The bulk of the papers consists of letters to Tessim regarding his parent's artwork. Additional materials include scattered letters to William Zorach; writings and notes by William, Marguerite, and Tessim; a sketchbook and drawings by William; prints by Marguerite; Marguerite's scrapbook; printed materials; and photographs of the Zorach family and of William Zorach in his studio and at work.
Scope and Content Note:
The Zorach family papers measure 4.4 linear feet and consist of materials relating to the lives and careers of sculptor and painter William Zorach, his wife painter and weaver Marguerite, and their children, painter and multi-media artist Dahlov Ipcar and collector and art dealer Tessim Zorach. The bulk of the papers consists of letters to Tessim regarding his parent's artwork. Additional materials include scattered letters to William Zorach; writings and notes by William, Marguerite, and Tessim; a sketchbook and drawings by William; prints by Marguerite; Marguerite's scrapbook; printed materials; and photographs of the Zorach family and of William Zorach in his studio and at work.
The majority of correspondence is between Tessim Zorach and various museums and galleries concerning exhibitions and donations of his parents' works of art. There are scattered letters to William Zorach among the correspondence. Business records consist of materials relating to the Collection of the Zorach Children, including lists of works of art by the Zorach's, a file relating to an exhibition of Zorach artwork at the Brooklyn Museum, and photographs of works of art considered for donation.
Writings and Notes include a typescript of an article written by Marguerite Zorach, writings by William Zorach, a typescript of Young Poems by William and Marguerite, as well as articles written by others about the Zorachs. Artwork by Marguerite Zorach includes two prints and a tracing. Also found is one sketchbook, and additional drawings by William Zorach. There is one unsigned lithograph.
The majority of exhibition announcements, catalogs, and clippings concern William and Marguerite Zorach although there are two announcements for Dahlov Ipcar. There is one scrapbook of clippings about Marguerite.
The papers include photographs of Marguerite and William Zorach, their parents, baby photos of Tessim and Dahlov, family pictures of the Zorachs, and of Marguerite and William in their studios. There are several folders of William Zorach working in his studios and additional photos of him carving a relief sculpture and a sculpture for the Southwest Bank. Most of these photographs contain detailed annotations written by William Zorach about the work. There is one folder of photographs of William in France in 1910-1911, including one of Zorach in Roi Partridge's studio. There is one photograph of Zorach taken by Ansel Adams in Yosemite, a photo of Zorach working by Arnold Newman, and several taken by Imogen Cunnigham.
Other photographs are of works of art, most of which depict William's works.
Artifacts include Marguerite's batik tools and approximately fifty commercially made printing blocks.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 9 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Information, circa 1907-1969 (Box 1, 6; 3 folders)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1922-1982 (Box 1-2; 1.75 linear feet)
Series 3: Business Records, 1967-1971, circa 1960s-1970s (Box 2-3; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 4: Writings and Notes, circa 1930s-1973, 1987 (Box 3; 8 folders)
Series 5: Artworks, 1900-circa 1920s (Box 3, 6; 12 folders)
Series 6: Scrapbooks, 1922-1953 (Box 3; 1 folder)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1912-1982 (Box 3; 0.25 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographs, 1908-1966 (Box 3-5; 1.0 linear feet)
Series 9: Artifacts, circa 1910s, circa 1950s (Box 4; 0.5 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
William Zorach (1887-1966) was a modernist painter and sculptor working primarily in New York city, along with his wife Marguerite (1887-1968) who worked as a fauvist painter, printmaker, and textile artist. Their children were painter Dahlov Ipcar (1917-) and art collector Tessim Zorach (1915-1995.)
Born in Lithuania, William Zorach immigrated to the United States where his family settled in Cleveland, Ohio. An early interest in art led to a printmaking apprenticeship. He then moved to New York City and enrolled in the National Academy of Design where he studied painting and drawing. In 1910, Zorach traveled to Paris to study and where he met his wife Marguerite Thompson at the La Palette art school. Marguerite grew up in Fresno, California and studied art at Stanford University. Both artists were heavily influenced by the fauvist and cubist art movements.
Returning to America, Marguerite and William married and both continued to create and experiment with varied media. Their paintings were featured in the 1913 New York City Armory Show and they are credited with being among the first artists to introduce European modernist styles to American modernism. The Zorachs were very close both as a couple and as working active artists.
In the 1920s, Marguerite began to experiment with textiles and created large, fine art tapestries and hooked rugs. Also, she used batik dying techniques on fabrics. William also expanded his genre by creating direct sculpture in 1918, which would become his primary medium.
In 1915, William and Marguerite started a family with their son, Tessim. Two years later, their daughter Dahlov was born. The Zorachs divided the year and lived in New York City, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. In 1923, the family bought a farm on Georgetown Island, Maine where they lived, worked, and entertained friends.
Dahlov and Tessim were exposed to art from an early age. Dahlov showed artistic promise as a child and her parents supported her creativity by allowing her to express herself without formal training. Dahlov pursued painting and later became an illustrator for children's books. Additionally, she wrote fantasy novels and short stories. Dahlov married Adolf Ipcar in 1936. Like the rest of his family, Tessim Zorach developed an interest of art and along with his wife Peggy, he amassed a large private collection of ancient to modern art.
William and Marguerite continued to sculpt and paint until their deaths in 1966 and 1968, respectively.
Together, Dahlov and Tessim established the Collection of the Zorach Children which coordinated donations of their parents' art to many museums throughout the United States and the world. The artwork of both artists is found in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Brooklyn Museum, Whitney Museum of American Art, Delaware Art Museum, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Farnsworth Art Museum, Portland Museum of Art, National Gallery of Art, National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, The Philips Collection, and educational institutions such as Colby College, University of Vermont, Williams College, Bowdoin College, and the University of Virginia. In addition William has works associated with many public buildings, among them: Radio City Music Hall, New York City Municipal Court, the U.S. Post Office in Washington D.C. as well as Farleigh Dickinson University.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art holds the Dahlov Ipcar papers, 1906-1997. Also found is one oral history interview with William Zorach conducted by by John D. Morse on April 2, 1959 and an oral history interview with Dahlov Ipcar conducted by Robert F. Brown on November 13, 1979.
The bulk of William Zorach's papers are held by the Library of Congress.
Separated Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds material lent for microfilming on reels NY59-1-NY59-4 and NY59-19. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are now held by the Library of Congress, Manuscript Division. This material is not described in the collection container inventory or finding aid.
Provenance:
William Zorach lent papers for microfilming to the Archives of American Art in 1959. Tessim Zorach donated materials between 1976-1987.
Restrictions:
Use of originals 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 dealers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of sculptor, video artist, printmaker, and educator Jacqueline Skiles measure 0.7 linear feet and date from 1963 to 1980. The papers comment on Skiles's feminist activism and career as an educator and exhibiting artist. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, two photographs, printed material, professional files, and writings.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of sculptor, videotape artist, and educator Jacqueline Skiles measure 0.7 linear feet and date from 1963 to 1980. The papers comment on Skiles's feminist activism and career as an educator and exhibiting artist. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, two photographs, printed material, professional files, and writings.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Jacqueline Skiles (1937- ) is a sculptor, printmaker, video artist, educator, and writer in New York City, New York. She has been active in New York feminist arts organizations and co-founded the Women's Interart Center.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds an oral history interview of Jacqueline Skiles conducted by Doloris Holmes in 1971 for the Archives of American Art "Art World in Turmoil" oral history project, and the Women's Interart Center records, 1970-1981.
Provenance:
Donated 1979 by Jacqueline Skiles.
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:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Video artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The scattered papers of painter, sculptor, educator, and video artist Doris Totten Chase measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1954 to 1994. Found are biographical material, photographs and slides, and printed material concerning Chase's career.
Scope and Contents:
The scattered papers of painter, sculptor, educator, and video artist Doris Totten Chase measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1954 to 1994. Found are biographical material, photographs and slides, and printed material concerning Chase's career.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Doris Totten Chase (1923-2008) was a painter, sculptor, educator, and video artist, active in Washington State and New York City. Born in Seattle, Chase spent her early life in the Pacific Northwest where she was a member of the Women Painters of Washington. Chase was primarily a painter until the early 1970s when she began to focus on sculpture. In 1972, Chase moved to New York City where she began to create video art. She was one of the first video artists to lecture and show her work abroad under the auspices of the United States Information Agency.
Provenance:
Donated 1980 and 1997 by Doris Chase.
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:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Video artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Art teachers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
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.
An interview of Mary Lucier conducted 2011 Sept. 27-30, by Judith Olch Richards, for the Archives of American Art, at Lucier's home, in New York, N.Y.
Biographical / Historical:
Mary Lucier (1944- ) is a video artist in New York, N.Y. Judith Olch Richards (1947- ) is an independent scholar and curator in New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded as on Edirol R-09HR as 6 sound files. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 5 hrs., 40 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:
This transcript is open for research. Access to the entire recording is restricted. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Video artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Correspondence; photographs of Nolan, her family and her works of art; sketches; scrapbooks; notes; a typescript of an article "The House That Stayed On"; and exhibition catalogs. Included is material relating to Experiment in Arts and Technology (E.A.T.), Videotape Process, The Women's Interart Center, and other projects and exhibitions.
Biographical / Historical:
Sculptor and video artist; New York City.
Provenance:
Donated 1977 by Leah Nolan.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
The papers of sculptor and educator Anne Arnold measure 8.5 linear feet and date from circa 1925 to 2015. The papers document Arnold's career in New York City and Montville, Maine, where she had a house and barn with her husband the painter Ernest Briggs. The collection includes biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, artists, schools and galleries; writings by Anne Arnold and others; financial records in the form of the sales of artwork and records relating to income and expenses; teaching files, mostly for Brooklyn College where she taught; printed materials including scrapbooks, clippings, and magazines; audiovisual material in the form of videocassettes or various artist panels and talks; and photographs of Anne Arnold and her work, friends and family, and reference photographs of animals.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of sculptor and educator Anne Arnold measure 8.5 linear feet and date from circa 1925 to 2015. The papers document Arnold's career in New York City and Monteville, Maine, where she had a house and barn with her husband the painter Ernest Briggs. The collection includes biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, artists, schools and galleries; writings by Anne Arnold and others; financial records in the form of the sales of artwork and records relating to income and expenses; teaching files, mostly for Brooklyn College where she taught; printed materials including scrapbooks, clippings, and magazines; audiovisual material in the form of videocassettes or various artist panels and talks; and photographs of Anne Arnold and her work, friends and family, and reference photographs of animals.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 7 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1925-2014 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 1, 10)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1902, 1937-2014 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 3: Writings, circa 1964-2010 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 4: Financial Records, 1967-2006 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 5: Teaching Files, circa 1970-2009 (0.4 linear feet; Box 3)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1958-2015 (3.9 linear feet; Boxes 3-7, 10)
Series 7: Photographs, circa 1930-circa 2014 (1.6 linear feet; Boxes 7-10)
Biographical / Historical:
Anne Arnold (1925-2014) was a sculptor and educator in New York, N.Y. and Montville, Maine. Arnold was born and raised in Massachusetts, attended the University of New Hampshire for college, received her master's degree from Ohio State University, then studied art at the Art Students League in New York City from 1949 to 1953. Arnold married the painter Ernest Briggs in 1960 and the two bought a house in Montville, Maine the following year.
Arnold taught sculpture at Brooklyn College from 1971 to roughly 1991 and was a member of the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture's Board of Governors for twenty years or so starting in 1981. She also taught at Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, and Geneseo College.
While Arnold created some paintings and drawings, the bulk of her work consists of sculptures of animals. She made sculptures of people, as well as domesticated creatures such as cats, dogs, pigs, and cows, often using her pets as models. She also included more exotic members of the animal kingdom such as elephants, rhinos, giraffes, various birds, and even a cheetah. Arnold's knack for capturing the personalities of the animals she portrayed led to expressive and eye-catching sculptures for which she became renowned and exhibited widely. She passed away in her New York City studio in 2014.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art are the papers of Ernest Briggs.
Provenance:
The Anne Arnold papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2015 by the Anne Arnold Estate, via the executors, Robert Brooks and Janice Kasper.
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 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:
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005, measure 9.2 linear feet. Papers include biographical material, alphabetical files, writings, artwork, audio/visual records, artifacts, printed material, and photographs. Extensive alphabetical files contain personal and professional correspondence as well as subject files relating to projects and interests. Especially well-documented are: Gray's involvement with the Vietnam protest movement; and Threnody, his best-known work composed of fourteen large panels lamenting the dead of both sides sides in Vietnam, commissioned by the Neuberger Museum of Art.
Scope and Content Note:
The Cleve Gray papers, 1933-2005, measure 9.2 linear feet. Papers include biographical material, alphabetical files, writings, artwork, audio/visual records, artifacts, printed material, and photographs. Extensive alphabetical files contain personal and professional correspondence as well as subject files relating to projects and interests. Especially well-documented are: Gray's involvement with the Vietnam movement; and Threnody, his best-known work composed of fourteen large panels lamenting the dead of both sides sides in Vietnam, commissioned by the Neuberger Museum of Art.
Among the biographical material are award and membership certificates, biographical notes, and personal documentation.
The alphabetical files contain Cleve Gray's personal and professional correspondence, as well as subject files relating to projects and interests. Correspondence is with friends and family, colleagues, publishers, museum curators and directors, art dealers, collectors, and fans. Among the correspondents of note are: Jacques Barzun, James E. Davis, Naum Gabo, Louise N. Grace, Hans and Fridel Richter, and Jacques and Gaby Villon. Other substantial correspondence includes: Berry-Hill Galleries, Betty Parsons Gallery, Connecticut Commission on the Arts, Jacques Seligmann and Co., Neuberger Museum of Art, Pratt Institute, Princeton University, and Rhode Island School of Design. Subject files mostly consist of correspondence, but include printed material and some photographs. Among the subject files are: Art Collection of Cleve and Francine Gray, Artist-Dealer Consignments and Visual Artists' Rights Act of 1989, Artists' Tax Equity Act of 1979, Promised Gifts to Museums, Threnody, Vestments, and Vietnam Protest. Of particular interest are files relating to the Estate of Hans Richter (Cleve Gray, executor), and Gray's research correspondence and illustrations for his Cosmopolitan article "Women-Leaders of Modern Art."
Writings are manuscripts and drafts, research materials, notes, and miscellaneous writings by Cleve Gray and other authors. Those by Gray include articles and catalog introductions on a wide range of art-related topics, as well as book and exhibition reviews. Also found are a book proposal, texts and notes for lectures and talks, miscellaneous notes, poems, political statements, and student papers. Of particular interest are autobiographical notes in the form of a chronology that his biographer, Nicholas Fox Weber, cited as an "autochronology."
Among the writings by other authors are pieces about Cleve Gray including Nicholas Fox Weber's manuscript Cleve Gray. A significant amount of material relates to three books edited by Gray: David Smith by David Smith: Sculpture and Writings, Hans Richter, and John Marin. Research material survives for an unpublished volume, Naum Gabo. Also included are notes relating to his translation of A l'Infinitif by Marcel Duchamp. Jane Daggett Dillenberger is represented by a lecture, "The Resurrection in Art." The remaining items by other authors are unsigned; of particular interest is a small notebook of reminiscences and notes about Jackson Pollock.
Artwork by Cleve Gray consists mostly drawings and sketches, and a small number of paintings, prints, and watercolors. Works by other artists consist are an unsigned mobile of paper cut-outs, possibly by Alexander Calder, and a pencil drawing signed Dick (probably Richard Avedon).
Audio recordings are a radio broadcast featuring Cleve Gray, several lectures by Gray on John Marin, and a lecture titled "Meaning in the Visual Arts." Other recordings are of Hans Richter and an interview with Jimmy Ernst conducted by Francine du Plessix Gray. Also found is a videocassette of "Glenville School Students at SUNY (Lincoln Center Activity)."
Artifacts are a Chinese scroll representative of those that hung in Cleve Gray's studio, two of his paintbrushes, Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association blue ribbon, and Neuberger Museum of Art Lifetime Achievement Award.
The vast majority of printed material - articles, clippings, exhibition catalogs and announcements, reproductions of art work, etc. - are about or by Cleve Gray. Miscellaneous items and publications mentioning Gray consist of annual reports, brochures, calendars, newsletters, programs, etc. Clippings about Vietnam and Vietnam protest memorabilia reflect his passionate involvement in the anti-war movement; a small number of these items mention Gray or were written by him.
Photographs are of artwork, events, people, places, and miscellaneous subjects. Most of the art work appearing in the photographs is by Cleve Gray and includes images of destroyed paintings. Also found is an original print of Photo Abstraction by Gray, circa 1934. Of particular note are photographs of Threnody, among them preparatory drawings and views of the work in progress. Photographs of artwork by other artists include Louise N. Grace, Jacques Lipchitz, John Marin, Hans Richter, and Jacques Villon.
Photographs of people are mainly portraits of Gray, and views of him with his wife and sons. Other individuals appearing in photographs are Hans Richter and some of Richter's descendants. Pictures of places consist of Gray's studio.
Events are an unidentified exhibition opening. Miscellaneous subjects are mostly exhibition installations. Illustrations consist of photographs published in David Smith by David Smith: Sculpture and Writings. Also found are small number of negatives and color transparencies.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into 8 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1943-circa 2001 (Box 1; 0.1 linear ft.)
Series 2: Alphabetical Files, 1936-2005 (Boxes 1-5, 9; 4.3 linear ft.)
Series 3: Writings, 1935-2000 (Boxes 5-6; 0.85 linear ft.)
Series 4: Artwork, circa 1933-1987 (Boxes 6, 9, OV 12; 0.45 linear ft.)
Series 5: Audio/Visual Records, 1971-1989 (Box 6; 0.25 linear ft.)
Series 6: Artifacts, 1957-1999 (Box 6, RD 11; 0.45 linear ft.)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1933-2005 (Boxes 7-8; 1.25 linear ft.)
Series 8: Photographs, circa 1934-2002 (Boxes 8-10; 1.15 linear ft.)
Biographical Note:
Abstract Expressionist painter, sculptor, and writer Cleve Gray (1918-2004) lived and worked in Connecticut where he was politically active in the Vietnam protest movement and other liberal causes.
Born Cleve Ginsberg in New York City (the family changed its name to Gray in 1936), he attended the Ethical Culture School and at a young age developed a fascination with color and paint. At the urging of friends, Cleve's parents allowed him to accompany a school friend for lessons with George Bellows' student Antonia Nell. She encouraged and inspired the young artist, and a still life he painted in her class was shown at the National Academy of Design's 1932 annual exhibition. Miss Nell also introduced him to Louise N. Grace, an artist who became a good friend and had a lasting influence on him. While a student at Phillips Academy, Cleve studied painting with Bartlett Hayes and aspired to paint in France. Upon his graduation in 1936, he was awarded the Samuel F. B. Morse Prize for most promising art student.
Gray's mother was always supportive of his career choice. His businessman father, who didn't understand his son's desire to be an artist, insisted on a college education. Cleve chose Princeton, where he majored in art and archaeology, and studied painting with James E. Davis. His senior thesis was on Chinese landscape painting; both Eastern philosophy and art were long-term influences on Gray's work and outlook. He graduated summa cum laude in 1940, and then spent several months painting while living at the farm of a family friend in Mendham, New Jersey.
When a doctor suggeted that a dry climate might relieve sinus and asthma problems, Gray moved to Tucson, Arizona. Once settled in the desert, he contacted Louise N. Grace, whom he had met as a young teenager through his art instructor. Miss Grace, an artist and daughter of the founder of W. R. Grace and Co., was a highly cultured and independent woman older than his parents. The summer before Gray entered Phillips Academy, she had hired him to brush ground color onto canvases for murals she was painting for "Eleven Arches," her home in Tuscon then under construction. Miss Grace invited Gray to visit "Eleven Arches" to see the completed murals, and despite the substantial age difference, their friendship deepened; Gray found in her intellectual and spiritual guidance that was lacking in his own family. He remained in Tucson until enlisting in the U. S. Army in 1942, and they corresponded frequently during the the war. When a stroke in 1948 prevented Miss Grace from participating in the extensive tour of Europe she was arranging for a small group of friends, including Gray, she provided sufficient funds and insisted he make the trip on his own. Another stroke, suffered while Gray was traveling, left her in a coma; he was not permitted to see her again. Upon her death in 1954, Gray inherited "Eleven Arches."
He returned to New York City in 1946. In the tight post-war rental market Gray managed to find a small room upstairs from a grocery store on East 106th Street for use as a studio. He commenced painting the London Ruins series based on drawings he had made during the war, and began thinking about exhibiting in New York. Gray secured introductions to Pierre Matisse, Curt Valentin, and Dorothy Miller. They encouraged him, but no opportunities came his way until Germain Seligmann, whose gallery was expanding its scope to include contemporary art, followed the advice of Curt Valentin and looked at Gray's work. Gary's first solo exhibition, held at Jacques Seligmann and Co., included selections from the London Ruins series, paintings done in Maine and Arizona, and a few portraits. The New York Times called it "an auspicious first," and one of the London Ruins series was selected by Edward Alden Jewell for the "Critic's Exhibition" at Grand Central Gallery.
Gray found New York City too frenetic. In 1949 he bought a large, old house in Warren, Connecticut, and lived and worked at "Graystones" for the remainder of his life. Half of a 6-car garage was converted to a studio; many years later, his studio moved to a barn, its renovation and design planned by sculptor and architect Tony Smith.
The paintings and drawings of Cleve Gray - first consisting of figures and portraits, and then abstract compositions - were often produced in series. The earliest series, London Ruins, grew from the colored pencil drawings made while stationed in London during World War II. Travels to France, Italy, Greece, Morocco, Hawaii, Spain, Egypt, Japan, and Czechoslovakia, inspired many series, among them: Etruscan, Augury, Ceres, Demeter Landscape, Hera, Morocco, Hawaii, Ramses, Perne, Hatshepsut, Roman Walls, Zen, and Prague. His hometown, the Holocaust, and musicians inspired other series: Warren, Sleepers Awake!, Bela Bartok, and Four Heads of Anton Bruckner. Some series were works on paper, others were collage canvases, and a few series later spawned prints. Gray began using acrylics in the 1940s. Although the medium offered many benefits, he did not always like its appearance and frequently returned to oils. Around 1966 Gray was painting almost exclusively with acrylic, and eventually developed a technique of thinning the paint and applying successive layers of color (sometimes by pouring or with a sponge) on cotton duck rather than traditional canvas.
Gray's best known work is Threnody, a lament for the dead of both sides in Vietnam. In 1972, Gray received a commission to fill a very large gallery of the soon-to-open Neuberger Museum of Art (State University of New York, College at Purchase) designed by Philip Johnson. Friends of the Neuberger Museum paid his expenses and Gray, who was enormously excited about the project he considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, donated his time. Developing plans for the execution of Threnody consumed most of his time during 1972 and 1973. Composed of a series of fourteen panels, each approximately twenty feet square, the piece presented a number of technical challenges. It was constructed and painted in situ during the summer and early fall of 1973. Since then, Threnody has been reinstalled at the Neuberger Museum of Art on several occasions.
Gray was commissioned to design liturgical vestments for two Episcopal churches in Connecticut in the 1970s. A chasuble, stoles, and a mitre were commissioned by the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut in 1984.
He won the "Outdoor Art at the Station Competition," for Union Station, Hartford, Connecticut. His very large porcelain enamel tile mural, Movement in Space, was installed on the façade of the transportation center in 1988.
Gray began writing occasional articles and exhibition reviews in the late 1940s. His concern with rational structure in art led him to question Abstract Expressionism and write "Narcissus in Chaos." This article, published in 1959 by The American Scholar, drew considerable attention. In 1960, Cosmopolitan published "Women - Leaders of Modern Art" that featured Nell Blaine, Joan Brown, Elaine de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Sonia Gretchoff, Grace Hartigan, Ethel Magafan, Louise Nevelson, and Georgia O'Keeffe. Between 1960 and 1970, Gray was a contributing editor of Art In America, producing numerous articles (a few co-authored with Francine) and reviews for the periodical. He edited three books, David Smith by David Smith: Scupture and Writings, Hans Richter, and John Marin, all published by Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, and translated Marcel Duchamp's A l'Infinitif.
During the early 1960s, Gray became intensely focused on the situation in Vietnam. His first artistic response came in 1963 with Reverend Quan Duc, painted to commemorate a Buddhist monk who had immolated himself. Francine, too, felt strongly about the issue and over time the couple became increasingly active in the anti-war movement. They joined a number of organizations and helped to found a local chapter of Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam. The years 1968 and 1969 were an especially intense and active period for the Grays. They protested, wrote and spoke out against the war, raised funds to support anti-war political candidates, and on a few occasions were arrested and jailed. Writing for Art in America, editing the book series, and anti-war activities left little time for his art. In 1970 Gray refocused his attention on painting.
Beginning in 1947, Gray was always represented by a New York Gallery: Jacques Seligmann and Co. (1947-1959), Staempfli Gallery (1960-1965), Saidenberg Gallery (1965-1968), Betty Parsons Gallery (1968-1983), Armstrong Gallery (1984-1987), and Berry-Hill Galleries (1988-2003). He was represented by galleries in other cities, as well, but not as consistently or for such long periods.
He exhibited extensively in group and solo exhibitions throughout the United States and internationally. In addition to numerous solo exhibitions presented by the dealers who represented Gray, there were retrospective exhibitions at: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Brooklyn Museum, Columbus Museum of Art, Krannert Art Museum (University of Illinois, Champaign), Princeton University Art Museum, Rhode Island School of Design, and Wadsworth Atheneum.
Many museums' permanent collections include the work of Cleve Gray, among them: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Butler Institute of American Art, Columbus Museum of Art, Neuberger Museum of Art (SUNY, College at Purchase), the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Newark Museum, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Phillips Collection, Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery (University of Nebraska, Lincoln), Smithsonian Institution, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Whitney Museum of American Art, and Yale University Art Gallery.
Cleve Gray served as artist-in-residence at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in 1963 and at the Honolulu Academy of Arts in 1970, both sponsored by Ford Foundation programs. In 1980, he was appointed an artist-in-residence at the American Academy in Rome, where Francine concurrently served as a writer-in-residence; they returned for shorter periods during each of the subsequent seven years. Cleve Gray was presented the Connecticut Arts Award in 1987, and the Neuberger Museum of Art Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999. He was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Hartford in 1992, and was elected a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1998. In addition, he was a trustee of the Neuberger Museum of Art, New York Studio School, Rhode Island School of Design, and Wadsworth Atheneum.
Cleve Gray hit his head and suffered a massive subdural hematoma after falling on ice outside of his home. He died the following day, December 8, 2004.
Separated Material:
Exhibition catalogs and announcements and two scrapbooks donated to the Archives in 1967 and 1968 were microfilmed on reels D314-D315. Items on reel D315, transferred to the Smithsonian American Art Museum Library in 1975, are not described in this finding aid.
Provenance:
The Cleve Gray papers were donated to the Archives of American Art by Mr. Gray in 1967 and 1968. The bulk of the collection was given by his widow, Francine du Plessix Gray, in 2007 and 2008.
Restrictions:
Use of original material requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordigs 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.
An interview of Helen Frankenthaler conducted 1968, by Barbara Rose, for the Archives of American Art.
Frankenthaler speaks of studying art at Bennington College with Paul Feeley; the influence of Picasso and Kandinsky on her work; Clement Greenberg and his relationship with Frankenthaler and other artists; studying with Hans Hofmann and Rufino Tamayo; her childhood; meeting Robert Motherwell; the New York School; and Jackson Pollock, his paintings, technique, and influence on her. She also describes her technique, painting on the floor, titles, and color versus drawing. Frankenthaler recalls Grace Hartigan, Friedel Dzubas, Willem de Kooning, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Helen Frankenthaler (1928- 2011) was a painter 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:
Sound quality is very poor.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
This small collection of the papers of sculptor Marion Walton measures 0.8 linear feet and dates from 1915-1976. Fifteen folders of letters written to Marion and her mother Blanche Wetherill Walton include many from artists and photographers, writers, musicians and composers, and political figures. Also found are printed materials, photographs, and a file concerning a reception for author Jonathan Daniels.
Scope and Content Note:
The collection measures 0.8 linear feet, dates from 1915-1976, and documents the career of sculptor Marion Walton. Found within the papers are letters, printed material, photographs, and a file concerning a reception for author Jonathan Daniels.
Printed material primarily consists of clippings and exhibition catalogs, and photographs are of Walton, her family, colleagues, and artwork. Of special interest is an early photograph of Alberto Giacometti with Rodin's model Carmen, and a photograph of Pablo Picasso autographed on the reverse.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 4 series. All series are arranged chronologically.
Missing Title
Series 1: Letters, 1922-1976 (Box 1; 15 folders)
Series 2: File Concerning a Reception for Jonathan Daniels, 1946 (Box 1; 14 folders)
Series 3: Printed Material, 1924-1976 (Boxes 1-2; 17 folders)
Series 4: Photographs, 1915-1972 (Box 2; 18 folders)
In 1933, Walton had a solo exhibition at the Weyhe Gallery and later participated in numerous group exhibitions primarily in New York City and in Paris, France. Her work is represented in private collections in the United States and abroad, and in the museum of the University of Nebraska.
Walton taught students in her studio in New York City and at Sarah Lawrence College. She was also a member of Artists Equity and a charter member of the Sculptors Guild.
Walton was married to James Putnam, assistant to the President of the publishing house, MacMillan Company.
Marion Walton died in 1996.
Provenance:
The Marion Walton papers were donated in 1976 by Marion Walton.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use 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.
Correspondence, invoices, nursery and seed catalogs, estimates, planting plans, photocopies of blueprints, photographs, negatives, autochromes, and drawings relating to the gardens of The Chimneys, the home of Emma and Gardiner Martin Lane and their daughter Katharine Lane Weems in Manchester, Massachusetts. Also included are four garden journals (1903-1928), garden-related medals awarded to Emma Lane, index files of plant materials, photocopies of garden related library cards belonging to Gardiner M. Lane, a diascope and nursery and seed catalogs. The collection also includes architectural plans, invoices and specifications from, and a framed photograph of, Raleigh C. Gildersleeve, architect of The Chimneys and brother of Emma Lane.
Scope and Contents Note:
The Chimneys Collection includes extensive documentation relating to the gardens and grounds of "The Chimneys" estate in Manchester, Massachusetts, the home of Katharine Lane Weems and her parents in Manchester, Massachusetts. There is also some documentation on the residence designed by Raleigh Gildersleeve. The collection includes photographs, negatives, autochromes, a stereograph viewer, plant lists and index files of plant materials, garden journals, correspondence, nursery and seed catalogs, estimates, invoices, design specifications and plans and drawings. There are also three horticultural medals. The images focus primarily on the gardens at The Chimneys, though there are also numerous images showing the beachfront adjoining the property and images of family, friends, Weems' studio, the vicinity around Manchester, Massachusetts, and interiors of Beverwyck Manor in Rensselaer, New York. A copy of Katharine Lane Weems' autobiography, Odds Were Against Me, is also included in the collection.
Arrangement Note:
The collection is arranged into 6 series:
1) Design and Planting Records
2) Photographic images
3) Correspondence
4) Garden Journals
5) Printed Matter
6) Artifacts
Biographical/Historical note:
The property on which this estate in Manchester, Massachusetts sits was originally owned by the father of Richard Henry Dana, Jr., the author of Two Years Before the Mast. The estate was subdivided after the elder Dana's death in 1879. Gardiner Martin Lane purchased the land and had his brother-in-law, Raleigh Gildersleeve, design a large Georgian Colonial Revival summer house for him known as "The Chimneys." The Olmsted Brothers landscape architecture firm was hired in 1902 to help with the overall siting of the house and to plan a number of garden areas. During the next ten years, the Olmsted firm designed a number of areas including an approach road, formal terraced gardens, a water garden, and a variety of outdoor structures such as an arbor, tea house, and greenhouse.
Katharine Lane Weems (1899-1989), the daughter of Emma and Gardiner M. Lane, spent her childhood summers at "The Chimneys." She later attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and went on to specialize in sculpting animals. "The Chimneys" served as her principal studio after the stable was remodeled in 1930; later it became her primary residence. She married F. Carrington Weems in 1947 and published an autobiography, Odds Were Against Me, in 1985. She died at her family estate in 1989.
Related Archival Materials Note:
Records related to this site can be found at the Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site, Olmsted Job Number 00273 Gardiner M. Lane / Richard H. Dana Estate.
The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America at Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Massachusetts has the Papers of Katharine Lane Weems (MC406) which include various files and images relating to The Chimneys.
The Smithsonian Institution's Archives of American Art in Washington, D.C. has the Katharine Lane Weems Papers, 1865-1989 which include images of The Chimneys.
Restrictions:
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Topic:
Gardens -- Massachusetts -- Manchester Search this
