The Los Angeles Art Association records measure 12.6 linear feet and date from 1922-1990. Almost a third of the collection consists of artists' files containing a wide variety of materials documenting the association's relationship with numerous California and international artists. Also found are ten scrapbooks documenting exhibitions and events over the course of 50 years, administrative files, correspondence, subject files, exhibition files, financial and legal records, printed material, and photographic material depicting artists, events, and artwork. Scattered files of Executive Director Helen Wurdemann's are also found throughout the collection.
Scope and Contents:
The Los Angeles Art Association records measure 12.6 linear feet and date from 1922-1990. Almost a third of the collection consists of artists' files containing a wide variety of materials documenting the association's relationship with numerous California and international artists. Also found are ten scrapbooks documenting exhibitions and events over the course of 50 years, administrative files, correspondence, subject files, exhibition files, financial and legal records, printed material, and photographic material depicting artists, events, and artwork. Scattered files of Executive Director Helen Wurdemann's are also found throughout the collection.
Administrative records include board of trustees' meeting minutes, membership correspondence, materials relating to publicity, visitor and artist registers, founding documents, and files on the history of the organization. Files about or created by Executive Director Helen Wurdemann are also found.
Correspondence, including greeting cards and notes, documents the LAAA's relationship with artists, other associations, museums, and collectors. Hans Burkhardt, Emil J. Kosa Jr., Roger Kuntz, Stanton MacDonald-Wright, Arnold Menches, and Peter Selz are among the correspondents.
Subject files compiled and maintained by the LAAA document special interests, events, and projects. There are files for various arts organizations, Stendhal Gallery, and the Watts Towers Commission.
Exhibition files are found for "Loan Exhibition of International Art" (1937), "Photographs of the George Eastman House Collection 1840-1915" (1968), "Independent Artists of Los Angeles" (1923), and "Top Flight Artists of Southern California" (1941), among others.
Almost a third of the collection consists of artists' files documenting the LAAA's relationship with many California and international artists over the years. Files are varied but often include artists' biographical information, resumes, photographs, price lists, artist statements, and printed materials. Artists include Hans Burkhardt, Jules Engel, and Jack Zajac, among many others.
Financial and legal records consist of daily and exhibition ledgers, art rental and sales files, audit reports and financial statements, billing receipts, bankruptcy legal papers, a prints price list, and miscellaneous financial notes.
Printed material consists of museum and LAAA bulletins, clippings, art school catalogs and brochures, exhibition announcements and catalogs, bulletins and newsletters from other organizations, periodicals, proofs of the "Loan Exhibition of International Art" (1937) exhibition catalog, and a limited edition copy of the book, Paintings by William Merritt Chase signed to the LAAA by B. M. Newhouse.
Photographs, slides, negatives, and copy prints depict LAAA events and gallery openings, artists and people, Executive Director Helen Wurdemann, and works of art by various artists. There are also photographs for publications and a photograph album of artwork by Douglass Parshall.
Ten scrapbooks document LAAA events and exhibitions through clippings, articles, photographs, notes and annotations, announcements, and printed materials.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 9 series. Records are generally arranged by material type and chronologically thereafter.
Missing Title
Series 1: Administrative Records, 1925-1989 (Box 1; 0.75 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1933-1990 (Boxes 1-2; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 3: Subject Files, 1924-1987 (Box 2; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1923-1982 (Boxes 2-3; 0.45 linear feet)
Series 5: Artists' Files, 1926-1986 (Boxes 3-6; 3.6 linear feet)
Series 6: Financial and Legal Records, 1932-1987 (Boxes 6-8; 1.6 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1922-1987 (Boxes 8-9; 1.5 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographic Materials, 1925-1980 (Boxes 9-10, 13; 0.9 linear feet)
Series 9: Scrapbooks, 1934-1985 (Boxes 10-12, 14; 2.8 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Originally founded as the Museum Patrons Association in 1925, the Los Angeles Art Association (LAAA) supported California artists and played an integral role in developing the Los Angeles art community.
The original intent of the Museum Patrons Association was to purchase works of art for the Los Angeles Museum of History, Science and Art. In 1933, the organization separated from the museum and was renamed the Los Angeles Art Association with a primary goal to connect to the broader Los Angeles art community through exhibitions, limited sales, rentals, events, and education. In 1944, with Helen Wurdemann (1892-1988) as Executive Director, the LAAA began to focus more on contemporary local artists, providing a place for the Southern California "hard-edge" abstractionist movement to flourish. In 1951, California painter Lorser Feitelson curated an exhibition of Hans Burkhardt, the LAAA's first solo exhibition of a local artist. Throughout its existence and continuing today, the LAAA has served as a place for arts education, outreach, and community-from its representation of artists studying under the GI bill between 1953 and 1965, to its participation in Monday night art-walks after its move to "Gallery Row" in 1960.
Provenance:
The Los Angeles Art Association records were donated to the Archives of American in 1990 and 1991 by Richard Campbell of the Los Angeles Art Association.
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.
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.
Topic:
Art -- Exhibitions -- California -- Los Angeles Search this
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
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:
Peter and Rose Krasnow papers, 1914-1984. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Helen Wurdemann at an art opening in Los Angeles, 196-?. Los Angeles Art Association records, 1922-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
This series consists of the business and personal correspondence of Edith Gregor Halpert and the Downtown Gallery. For the most part, this series is general business correspondence concerning routine activities of the Downtown Gallery, including the American Folk Art Gallery and the Daylight Gallery, both operated by the Downtown Gallery on the same premises. Included are correspondence with clients, employees, other galleries, and colleagues concerning sales, loans, purchases, appraisals, and so forth; arrangements for shipping, framing, photography, reproduction permissions, and insurance; and gallery housekeeping and improvements, ordering of supplies, and other administrative concerns.
Also included is personal correspondence of Edith Gregor Halpert. There are letters and greeting cards from nieces, nephews, and other relatives; correspondence with longtime friends, including some who were art collectors, museum curators, or museum directors; and correspondence concerning upkeep and improvement of her Newtown, Connecticut, country home and entertaining there.
See Appendix A for a list of selected correspondents from Series 1
Arrangement note:
Letters (with enclosures) are arranged chronologically, with those of the same date alphabetized by name of correspondent; undated material is arranged alphabetically, followed by unidentified correspondents and letters bearing illegible signatures.
Box numbers provided in the Container Listing are approximate.
Appendix A: List of Selected Correspondents in Series 1:
Names and titles indicated in this list are those that appear on the letters. Where appropriate, terms have been standardized and cross-referencing provided. Because filing is not always consistent, researchers are advised to check both the name of an individual and the institution that he or she represented.
Abate Associates, Inc., 1956
Abbot and Land, 1965
Abbot, B. Vincent, 1944
Abbot, Bernice, 1957
Abbot, John E., 1945, 1948
Abbot Laboratories, 1950, 1952
ABC Employment Agency, 1951
Richard Abel and Co., Inc., 1968
Abendroth, Robert W., 1966-1967
Abercrombie and Fitch Co., 1962
Abilene Museum of Fine Arts, undated, 1949, 1954
Abingdon Square Painters, 1965
Abraham and Straus, 1930, 1960, 1965-1966, 1968
Abraham, Mae C., 1965
Abrahamsen, Mrs. David, 1962
Abramowitz, M., 1958
Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1958-1960, 1965-1966, 1968-1969
"HemisFair '68," 1968 (see also: "International Exposition, HemisFair '68")
Hemmenway, Catherine C., 1961
Hemmingsen, R. V., 1963
Hemmingson, Victoria, 1965
Henderson, Hanford, 1960
Henderson, Priscilla A. B. (Mrs. A. I.), 1934-1955
Henderson, Ray, 1956
Hendrick, Mrs. James Pomeroy, 1961
Heninger, Helen, undated, 1963, 1969
Henquet, Roger, 1948, 1965
Henri, Robert, 1926-1927
Henry, David T., 1964
Henry, Helen (Mrs. Charles), undated, 1949
Henry, James F., 1958
Henry Street Settlement, 1958, 1962-1963
Hentschel, R. A. A., 1951-1954
Hepburn, Katharine, 1952
Herbert, Elmer, 1962
Herbert, James D., 1962
Herider, Ed. L., 1961
Heritage Gallery, 1960, 1964
Herman, Stanley, 1964
Herman, Vic, 1968
Herring, Audrey L., 1964
Herrington, Nell Ray (Mrs. A. W. S.), 1962, 1965
John Herron Art Institute, undated, 1934, 1949, 1951, 1953, 1957-1958, 1962-1964, 1967 (see also: Art Association of Indianapolis; Art School of the John Herron Art Institute)
Hertslet, G. Gordon, 1962, 1966
Hertz, Richard C., 1965
Hertzberg, Stuart E., 1967-1968
Heschel, Mrs. Abraham, 1961
Hess, Elaine Marie, 1965
Hess, Mrs. Thomas B., 1954
Hetzel, Margaret deL. (Mrs. Joseph L.), 1948
Hewitt, Ada M., 1953
Edwin Hewitt Gallery, 1953
Heydenryk, Henry, 1954, 1960, 1964
Heynick, Carla Marian, 1965
Hickok, M., 1958
Hiddens, Mrs. Earl, 1952
Hiersoux, Arne, 1966
Hi Fi/Stereo Review, 1960
High Museum of Art, 1950, 1955, 1961-1962, 1965-1968 (see also: Atlanta Art Association; Atlanta Art Association and High Museum of Art)
Highway Antique Shop, 1954
R. Hill and Son, Ltd., 1960
Hill, Ralph Nading, 1952, 1962
Hille, Elise B., undated
Hille and Curran, 1954
Hilleman, Alex L., 1956
Hiller, Paula, 1962
Hilles, Mrs. Frederick W., 1956
Hillman, Mrs. Joel, II., 1960
Hillside Hospital Clinic, 1949, 1953
Hillstrom, Richard L., 1958, 1962, 1964-1965
Hilltop Theatre, Incorporated, 1952
Hilsenrath, Yakov R., 1965
Hilson, Catherine [Katy] and/or John S., undated, 1958-1959, 1961-1966
Himel, Irving, 1963
Himmelsfarb, Samuel, 1955
Hines, Felrath, 1961
Hinkhouse, Inc., 1960, 1964
Hirsch, B., 1961
Hirsch, E. W., 1954
Hirschberg, J. Cotter, 1956
Hirschl and Adler Galleries, Inc., 1958, 1960, 1963-1965, 1968
Hirschland, Dr. and/or Mrs. F. H., undated, 1959
Hirschland, Paul Michael, 1945
Hirschburg, Mrs. Roy, undated
S. A. Hirsh Manufacturing Co., 1966
Hirshberg, Henrietta, 1961
Hirshhorn, Mrs. Arthur, 1960
Hirshhorn, Joseph H., 1946, 1948, 1951-1954, 1956, 1960, 1963, 1965
Joseph H. Hirshhorn Collection, 1959-1960, 1962-1963, 1965-1966
[incomplete; without signature], undated, 1953, 1961, 1967, 1968
Collection Restrictions:
The microfilm of this collection has been digitized and is available online via the Archives of American Art website.
Collection Rights:
The Downtown Gallery records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Rights as possessed by the donor have been dedicated to public use for research, study, and scholarship. The collection is subject to all copyright laws. Prior to publishing information regarding sales transactions, researchers are responsible for obtaining written permission from both artist and purchaser involved. If it cannot be established after a reasonable search whether an artist or purchaser is living, it can be assumed that the information may be published sixty years after the date of sale.
Collection Citation:
Downtown Gallery records, 1824-1974, bulk 1926-1969. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing, microfilming and digitization of the microfilm of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation. Glass plate negatives in this collection were digitized in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
