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Maryette Charlton papers

Creator:: Charlton, Maryette Search this

Names:: American University of Beirut -- Faculty Search this; Art Institute of Chicago -- Faculty Search this; Chicago Public School Art Society Search this; Container Corporation of America Search this; University of Iowa, Museum of Art Search this; Andres, Jo Search this; Bishop, Elizabeth, 1911-1979 Search this; Cage, Xenia Search this; Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976 Search this; Court, Paula Search this; Elliott, Leone Search this; Elliott, Owen Search this; Fujitomi, Yasuo, 1928- Search this; Habachy, Nimet Search this; Hadzi, Dimitri, 1921-2006 Search this; Haskins, Sylvia Shaw Judson, 1897- Search this; Hoff, Margo Search this; Kiesler, Frederick Search this; Kiesler, Lillian, 1910?-2001 Search this; Lubar, Cindy Search this; MacIver, Loren, 1909- Search this; Matisse, Pierre, 1900-1989 Search this; Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-2003 Search this; Nevelson, Louise, 1899-1988 Search this; Purdy, James Search this; Reynal, Jeanne, 1903- Search this; Smith, Kiki, 1954- Search this; Takaezu, Toshiko Search this; Tawney, Lenore Search this; Von Brockdorff, Louise Medbery Search this

Extent:: 80.6 Linear feet; 0.34 Gigabytes

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Gigabytes; Photographs; Diaries; Sketchbooks; Sketches; Interviews; Scrapbooks; Sound recordings; Scripts (documents); Drawings; Mail art; Motion pictures (visual works); Video recordings

Date:: circa 1890-2013

Summary:: The papers of filmmaker, photographer, painter, printmaker, teacher, and arts advocate Maryette Charlton measure 81 linear feet and date from circa 1890 to 2013. This particularly rich collection includes biographical materials, correspondence, writings, 30 diaries, teaching files, professional and project files, major film project files, artist research files, exhibition files, printed material, scrapbooks, artwork, 22 sketchbooks, extensive photographic materials, numerous sound and film recordings, a digitized sound recording, and an unintegrated later addition to the papers containing additional biographical materials, journals, correspondence, subject files, printed materials, and scattered photographs.

Scope and Contents:: The papers of filmmaker, photographer, painter, printmaker, teacher, and arts advocate Maryette Charlton measure 81 linear feet and 0.34 gigabytes and date from circa 1890 to 2013. This particularly rich collection includes biographical materials, correspondence, writings, 30 diaries, teaching files, professional and project files, major film project files, artist research files, exhibition files, printed material, scrapbooks, artwork, 22 sketchbooks, extensive photographic materials, numerous sound and video recordings, motion picture film, a digitized sound recording, and an unintegrated later addition to the papers containing additional biographical materials, journals, correspondence, subject files, printed materials, and scattered photographs.

Biographical materials consist of material on Maryette Charlton and her family. The subseries on Maryette Charlton includes a biographical chronology, passports, records of her marriage to Hall Winslow, information on studio spaces, school transcripts, and other material. Family files include genealogical charts and files of family members containing correspondence, writings, printed material, sound and video recordings, and photographs. The bulk of the family files are for Charlton's parents, Etna and Shannon, and her husband and son, Hall and Kirk Winslow.

Extensive correspondence is with family, friends, artists, and colleagues. Family correspondence is with her husband and son, parents, and extended family. Personal correspondence is with friends and colleagues, many of whom were famous artists. Named correspondence files and chonological correspondence files contain exchanges with Jo Andres, Elizabeth Bishop, Xenia Cage, Paula Court, Yasuo Fujitomi, Dimitri Hadzi, Margo Hoff, Sylvia Shaw Judson, Lillian Kiesler, Cindy Lubar, Loren MacIver, Pierre Matisse, Nimet (Saba Habachy), Henri Seyrig, Robert Wilson, and many others. There is also correspondence with colleges, museums, and universities.

Writings include academic papers and college class notes, titled essays, a notebook with sketches, and miscellaneous notes. Thirty diaries cover the period 1943 - 2001 and document a wide variety of topics, from film projects to travels to the art world in New York City. Some diaries are illustrated, including one illustrated by Alexander Calder at a party with Maryette, Ellsworth Kelly, and actress Delphine Seyrig. Journals from 1978-1979 tell of Charlton's experiences while appearing in films made by avant-garde director Richard Foreman. There is also one diary of Maryette's mother Etna Barr Charlton.

Teaching files document Charlton's career as an instructor at the Art Institute of Chicago and as the founder of and instructor at the American University of Beirut's art department. Files include appointment calendars, schedules, notes, lectures, news releases, printed material, and photographs.

Professional and project files consist of material related to Maryette Charlton's professional work at the University of Iowa Museum of Art, as a lecturer at the Chicago Public School Art Society, color analyst at the Container Corporation of America, executor of the estate of artist Louise Medbery von Brockdorff, fellowships, conferences, organizations, and the filming industry in general. There are files for the screening of Zen in Ryoko-In. The University of Iowa Museum of Art subseries consists of correspondence with fellow co-founders Leone and Owen Elliott, files on art donations, museum administration, annual reports, printed material, photographs, and sound and video recordings.

Artist research files consist of books, articles, and clippings collected by Charlton for research. Notable artists chronicled include Alexander Calder, James Purdy, Louise Nevelson, Kiki Smith, and Toshiko Takaezu.

Major film project files document Maryette Charlton's films about or with artists Frederick Kiesler (Trienniale, The Universal Theater and Kiesler on Kieseler), Lenore Tawney, Dorothy Miller, Loren MacIver, and Jeanne Reynal. The files for Frederick Kiesler also contain materials about his wife Lillian Kiesler, with whom Charlton had a long relationship and collaborated with on film projects. Individual film project files contain a wide variety of research and production documentation, including correspondence, writings, printed material, research files, exhibition catalogs, photographic materials, sound recordings of interviews and lectures, and Charlton's documentation about the creation and producation of each film, such as contracts, scripts, and distribution information. The film project files for Kiesler and Dorothy Miller are particularly rich, containing substantial amounts of primary source materials not found elsewhere. Sound and video recordings are found throughout the series, as well as 4 film reels.

Files documenting Maryette Charlton's group and solo exhibitions include catalogs and announcements, publicity, printed material, mailing lists, art inventory, sales lists, correspondence, and other material.

Printed materials include other exhibition catalogs, books, posters, magazines, and clippings. There are many books on color theory from Maryette Charlton's job as a color analyst and substanial printed material on Frederick Kiesler. Scrapbooks document Maryette Charlton's personal life from high school, college, and summer camp, as well as exhibitions of her own work, and miscellaneous subjects.

Artwork includes sketches and drawings by Maryette Charlton, some drawings by Lillian Kiesler and others, and mail art created by various artists. There are also 22 sketchbooks filled with pencil, ink, and crayon drawings and sketches, with occasional annotations.

Photographic materials include photographs, slides, negatives, and photograph albums. There are photographs of Maryette Charlton, her travels, family, friends, and artists. Photographs are also found throughout other series.

Sound and video recordings which could not be merged with other series were arranged in an audiovisual series. There are recordings of radio programs and performances Maryette Charlton attended or participated in as well as miscellaneous recordings of artists and events.

The 2014 addition to the Maryette Charlton papers consists of biographical materials, journals, correspondence, subject files, printed materials, and a small number of photographs.

Arrangement:: This collection is arranged as 16 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1896-2005 (3.4 linear feet; Boxes 1-4, 80)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1930-2010 (23.3 linear feet; Boxes 4-27, 80)

Series 3: Writings, 1942-1999 (1 linear feet; Boxes 27-28)

Series 4: Diaries, 1943-2001 (2.1 linear feet; Boxes 28-30)

Series 5: Teaching Files, 1946-1997 (3.6 linear feet; Boxes 30-33, 80)

Series 6: Professional and Project Files, 1923-1998 (7.6 linear feet; Boxes 34-41, 81, OV 87)

Series 7: Artist Research Files, 1949-circa 2000 (1.8 linear feet; Boxes 41-43)

Series 8: Major Film Projects, 1904-2007 (18.8 linear feet, 0.34 GB; Boxes 43-61, 81-82, OV 87, FC 88-91, ER01)

Series 9: Exhibition Files, 1950-2000 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 61-62)

Series 10: Printed Material, 1924-2000 (3.2 linear feet; Boxes 62-65, 82, OV 87)

Series 11: Scrapbooks, 1939-2010 (0.8 linear feet; Box 65, 82-83)

Series 12: Artwork, 1950-1998 (0.9 linear feet; Boxes 65-66, 84)

Series 13: Sketchbooks, 1949-1996 (0.5 linear feet; Box 66)

Series 14: Photographic Materials, circa 1890-circa 2010 (7.8 linear feet; Boxes 67-74, 84-86)

Series 15: Sound and Video Recordings, circa 1953-2008 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 74-75, 86)

Series 16: Addition to Maryette Charlton papers, 1951-2013 (3.7 linear feet; Boxes 75-79, 86)

Biographical / Historical:: Maryette Charlton (1924-2013) was a painter, printmaker, photographer, filmmaker and arts advocate based in Chicago, Illinois, and New York, New York.

Maryette Charlton was born in Manchester, Iowa on May 18, 1924. Her parents were Shannon and Etna Charlton and she had 2 siblings. Charlton pursued her undergraduate studies at Monticello College and Northwestern University in Illinois, Antioch College in Ohio, and the University of Colorado before receiving a B.F.A. from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York in 1947. She continued her studies in Chicago, Illinois with Laszlo Moholy-Nagy and Hugo Weber at the Institute of Design and Art Institute of Chicago. From 1948 to 1952, she was a Department of Education lecturer at the Art Institute of Chicago museum galleries and also gave talks at schools for the Chicago Public School Art Society.

Between 1942-1951, Maryette Charlton worked as a color analyst for the Container Corporation of America. In 1952, Charlton founded the Art Department of the American University of Beirut and taught there as an assistant professor until 1956. While in Beirut, Charlton married photographer Hall Winslow in 1953 and their only child Kirk Winslow was born in 1955. Winslow and Charlton later divorced in 1973.

Charlton moved to New York City in 1955. She began a master's program at Columbia University and graduated with a M.F.A in film and printmaking in 1958.

Charlton made numerous documentary films, mostly about American artists including Alexander Calder, e. e. cummings, Jeanne Reynal, Dorothy Miller, Pierre Matisse, Lenore Tawney, and Loren MacIver. She also worked tirelessly to promote the work of sculptor, architect, and set designer Frederick Kiesler. She was the camera woman for Kiesler's Kiesler's Universal Theater which aired on CBS in 1962. She became close friends with Kiesler's widow, Lillian, and they collaborated on the film Kiesler on Kiesler and numerous other film and art projects, supporting the work of young artists. Charlton also worked on commissioned films, including The Mosaics of Jeanne Reynal and Zen in Ryoko-in. Charlton befriended many artists in the visual, literary, and film worlds, including Elizabeth Bishop, Dimitri Hadzi, Margo Hoff, James Purdy, and Delphine Seyrig.

A performer in her own right, Charlton appeared in the works of Richard Foreman, Jo Andres, and others. She also played the part of Helen Keller in the film Ghostlight (2003).

An Iowa native, Charlton founded the University of Iowa Museum of Art together with Leone and Owen Elliott. She maintained a close relationship with the Iowa Museum over many years as a donor and chronicler.

Charlton died in New York City on November 25, 2013.

Related Materials:: The Houghton Library at Harvard University and the University of Iowa Museum of Art also hold papers and artwork by Maryette Charlton. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, houses the film Kiesler on Kiesler, created by Maryette Charlton.

The Archives of American Art also has the papers of Frederick and Lillian Kiesler, a portion of which was donated by Charlton.

Provenance:: The Maryette Charlton papers were donated in multiple accretions from 1998-2011 by Maryette Charlton, and in 2013-2014 by the Maryette Charlton estate via Jo Andres, executor.

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.

Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.

Rights:: The Maryette Charlton papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Occupation:: Filmmakers -- Illinois -- Chicago Search this; Photographers -- Illinois -- Chicago Search this; Art teachers -- Illinois -- Chicago Search this

Topic:: Filmmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago Search this; Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Art teachers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Printmakers -- Illinois -- Chicago Search this; Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Museums -- Administration Search this; Color Search this; Art -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Art -- Study and teaching Search this

Genre/Form:: Photographs; Diaries; Sketchbooks; Sketches; Interviews; Scrapbooks; Sound recordings; Scripts (documents); Drawings; Mail art; Motion pictures (visual works); Video recordings

Citation:: Maryette Charlton papers, circa 1890-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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

Identifier:: AAA.charmary

See more items in:: Maryette Charlton papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-charmary

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Otto and Ilse Gerson papers

Creator:: Gerson, Otto Search this; Gerson, Ilse, 1901-1980 Search this

Names:: Fine Arts Associates Search this; Galerie Dina Vierny Search this; Marlborough-Gerson Gallery Search this; Otto Gerson Gallery (New York, N.Y.) Search this; Lipchitz, Jacques, 1891-1973 Search this; Marcks, Gerhard Search this; Smith, David, 1906-1965 Search this; Turner, J. M. W. (Joseph Mallord William), 1775-1851 Search this; Valentin, Curt, 1902-1954 Search this; Wotruba, Fritz, 1907-1975 Search this

Extent:: 3 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Photographs

Date:: 1933-1980

Summary:: The papers of New York art dealers and gallery owners Otto and Ilse Gerson measure 3 linear feet and date from 1933 to 1980. This collection includes biographical materials, correspondence, exhibition files, artists' files, collectors' files, business records, inventory and stock records, printed materials, and photographs.

Scope and Contents:: The papers of New York art dealers and gallery owners Otto and Ilse Gerson measure 3 linear feet and date from 1933 to 1980. This collection includes biographical materials, correspondence, exhibition files, artists' files, collectors' files, business records, inventory and stock records, printed materials, and photographs.

Biographical material consists of Otto and Ilse Gerson's naturalization certificates and Ilse Gerson's will.

Correspondence includes a mixture of personal and professional letters. There are a few scattered letters between Otto and Ilse Gerson as well as correspondence with clients, museums, dealers, and artists. Notable correspondents include art dealer Curt Valentin and the artist Gerhard Marcks. There is also correspondence with the Dina Vierny Gallery in Paris, France.

There is a small number of files on the Joseph Mallord William Turner exhibition at Gerson Gallery in 1960 which include correspondence, loan forms, and printed material.

Artists' files contain correspondence, estimates, inventories, sales records, and printed material for art work by five different artists such as Jacques Lipchitz, David Smith, and Fritz Wotruba.

Collectors' files include correspondence, invoices, photographs, and other material related to purchases by various art collectors.

Business records consist of purchase and sales records, audit reports, balance sheets, certificates of authenticity, a sales ledger, and legal documents regarding the business conducted by Fine Arts Associates and Otto Gerson Gallery, and legal agreements and contracts related to the Marlborough-Gerson Gallery merger.

Inventory and stock records include assorted art inventories, a stock book, and stock cards for artists.

Printed material includes a few Gerson Gallery exhibition catalogs and clippings of exhibition reviews.

Photographs consists of a few snapshots of Otto and Ilse Gerson and images of gallery installations.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as 9 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1933-1973 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1937-1980 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 3: Turner Exhibition Files, 1960-1961 (0.1 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 4: Artists' Files, 1950-1966 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)

Series 5: Collectors' Files, 1956-1966 (0.3 linear feet; Box 2)

Series 6: Business Records, circa 1945-1964 (0.3 linear feet; Box 2)

Series 7: Inventory and Stock Records, 1946-1965 (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 2-3)

Series 8: Printed Material, 1951-1962 (0.1 linear feet; Box 3)

Series 9: Photographs, circa 1945-circa 1960 (2 folders; Box 3)

Biographical / Historical:: Otto Gerson was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States, where he met and married Ilse Goehler in 1939. They both became U.S. citizens and together they rose to prominence as art dealers in New York City, circa 1940-1962, bringing works by noted post-war European (and some American) artists to the American market.

The Gersons also owned and operated galleries in New York, including Fine Arts Associates and Gerson Gallery. The Gerson Gallery was located at 41 East 57th Street in New York City and later merged with another gallery to form the Marlborough-Gerson Gallery around 1963, shortly after Otto Gerson's death.

Provenance:: The Otto and Ilse Gerson papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 1984 by Indian Head Bank North on behalf of Otto and Ilse Gerson.

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 Otto and Ilse Gerson papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Topic:: Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Art galleries, Commercial -- France -- Paris Search this; Art -- Collectors and collecting Search this; Gallery owners Search this; Art dealers Search this; Art, Modern -- 20th century Search this

Genre/Form:: Photographs

Citation:: Otto and Ilse Gerson papers, 1933-1980. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:: AAA.gersotto

See more items in:: Otto and Ilse Gerson papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-gersotto

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Peter and Rose Krasnow papers

Creator:: Krasnow, Peter, 1886-1979 Search this

Names:: Peter Krasnow Arts Foundation Search this; United States. Aircraft Warning Service. Ground Observer Corps Search this; Blades, Harriet Search this; Budnick, Dan Search this; Burton, Leslie Search this; Clements, Grace, 1905-1969 Search this; Cocker, Conrad Search this; Danieli, Fidel Search this; DeLuce, Robert Search this; Drake, Alfred S. Search this; Howe, Dudley Search this; Krasnow, Rose, 1885-1984 Search this; Morley, Grace, 1900-1985 Search this; Noer, Philip Search this; Owen, Dale Search this; Owen, Elaine Search this; Price, Aimée Brown, 1939- Search this; Raboff, Ernest Lloyd Search this; Raboff, Ina Search this; Stone, Irving, 1903- Search this; Weston, Edward, 1886-1958 Search this; Weston, Edward, 1886-1958 -- Photographs Search this; Weston, Flora -- Photographs Search this

Extent:: 6.9 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Sketchbooks; Photographs; Sketches; Diaries; Poems; Notes; Essays; Short stories; Prints; Transcripts; Sound recordings

Date:: 1914-1984

Summary:: The papers of painter, printmaker, and sculptor Peter Krasnow (1886-1979) and his wife, writer Rose Krasnow (1885-1984), measures 6.9 linear feet and date from 1914 to 1984. Papers include biographical materials, a sound recording, correspondence, essays, poetry, short stories, notes, transcripts of lectures and radio talks, five diaries of Peter Krasnow, personal business records, exhibition catalogs and announcements, clippings, magazines, five sketchbooks, sketches and drawings in multiple media, prints, and photographs.

Scope and Content Note:: The papers of painter, printmaker, and sculptor Peter Krasnow (1886-1979) and his wife, writer Rose Krasnow (1885-1984), measures 6.9 linear feet and date from 1914 to 1984. Papers include biographical materials, a sound recording, correspondence, essays, poetry, short stories, notes, transcripts of lectures and radio talks, five diaries of Peter Krasnow, personal business records, exhibition catalogs and announcements, clippings, magazines, five sketchbooks, sketches and drawings in multiple media, prints, and photographs.

Biographical materials include documentation of Rose Krasnow's service as a member of the Army Air Forces Ground Observer Corps, programs and other materials from various memorial services, a sound recording with commentary on a Peter Krasnow exhibition, and documentation of a project to publish Rose Krasnow's poetry.

Correspondence consists of Peter and Rose Krasnow's personal and professional correspondence as well as a small amount of third party correspondence. Personal correspondence with friends and family involves health, work, daily events, and other life updates. Professional correspondence with art dealers, curators, gallery and museum directors, collectors, and colleges and universities concerns exhibitions, sales, loans, and donations of artwork. Primary correspondents include Leslie Burton and Harriet Blades, Dan Budnik, Grace Clements, Conrad Crocker, Dudley Howe, Lilly Weil Jaffe, Grace L. McCann Morley, Dale and Elaine Owen, Aimée Brown Price, Ernest and Ina Raboff, Irving Stone, and Edward Weston. There are also numerous scattered letters from artists, writers, curators, critics, museums, arts associations, and Jewish organizations.

Writings and notes are by Peter Krasnow, Rose Krasnow, and others. Writings by Peter Krasnow include a draft autobiography, essays, lectures on wood sculpture, typescripts, notes, and writings on art. Writings by Rose Krasnow include essays, plays, poetry, and short stories. Writings by others consist of essays, lectures, notes, plays, poetry, short stories, and typescripts. Other writers include Grace Clements, Fidel Danieli, Robert DeLuce, Alfred S. Drake, and Philip Noer. There are also five handwritten personal diaries by Peter Krasnow.

Personal business records include Rose Krasnow's bank book from 1980, Peter Krasnow's naturalization certificate and passport, an inventory of paintings on index cards, tax applications for the Peter Krasnow Arts Foundation, materials relating to Peter Krasnow's estate and the purchase of his artwork, and various receipts.

Printed materials include exhibition catalogs and announcements, clippings, bound books, magazines and journals, a Chicago Society of Artists block print calendar, and two printed posters from Peter Krasnow's exhibit at the Galerie Pierre in 1934.

Artwork is mostly by Peter Krasnow, and includes five sketchbooks, sketches and drawings, watercolors, preliminary studies in oil, and prints.

Photographs include personal photographs, photographs of major sculpture projects in progress, and artwork. Personal photographs are of Peter and Rose, family members, and friends, as well as a few scattered images of landscapes and architecture, possibly travel photographs. There are also photographs of Edward and Flora Weston. There are three photograph albums, one contains images of Krasnow's relief sculptures for the Sinai Temple's Kohn Chapel. Two photograph albums were compliled by Susan Ehrlich for Peter and Rose Krasnow. Also found are photographs of works of art. Some of the photographs in the papers were taken by Dan Budnik.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as 9 series:

Series 1: Biographical Materials, circa 1942-1983 (Boxes 1, 6; 7 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1930-1984 (Box 1; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 3: Writings and Notes, circa 1916-1980 (Boxes 1-2; 1.3 linear feet)

Series 4: Diaries, circa 1955-1968 (Box 2-3; 5 folders)

Series 5: Personal Business Records, circa 1914-1982 (Box 3; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 6: Printed Materials, circa 1922-1981 (Boxes 3-4 and OV 9; 1.1 linear feet)

Series 7: Artwork, circa 1918-1980 (Boxes 4-6 and OV 7-8, 10; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 8: Sketchbooks, circa 1918-1973 (Box 5; 5 folders)

Series 9: Photographs, circa 1914-1981 (Boxes 5-6; 0.6 linear feet)

Biographical Note:: Peter Krasnow (1886-1979) was a painter, sculptor, and printmaker who lived and worked primarily in Southern California. His wife, Rose Krasnow (1885-1984), was a prolific writer of poems, short stories, and plays.

Peter Krasnow was born on August 20, 1886 in the Ukraine, Russia to Jewish parents. His father's work as an interior designer inspired Krasnow's interest in art.

In 1907, Krasnow emigrated to the United States, first living in Boston. He moved to Chicago in 1908 to attend the Art Institute of Chicago, where he met his future wife, Rose Bloom. To support himself during his studies, Krasnow worked as a security officer and performed other manual jobs. He graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1916 and married Rose that same year.

The Krasnows moved to New York in 1919. In New York, Krasnow experienced some artistic success, participating in group and solo exhibitions at the Whitney Studio Club. During this time period, Krasnow often painted city scenes using a dark color palette.

In 1922, the Krasnows moved to Los Angeles, California. Krasnow built a studio near Glendale in 1923, on land purchased from photographer and friend Edward Weston. The studio also served as the Krasnows' main residence for the rest of their lives. In 1923 in Los Angeles, Krasnow exhibited with the Group of Independent Artists, which included Stanton Macdonald-Wright, Boris Deutsch, Nick Brigante, Ben Berlin, and other noteworthy artists. During his first years in California, Krasnow mostly created watercolor paintings, including a series of landscapes, using a lighter color palette than his earlier works. In the 1920s, Krasnow also accepted commissions for carved wood reliefs at the Temple Emmanu-El in San Francisco and the Sinai Temple in Los Angeles.

Krasnow received a grant in 1931, and he and Rose temporarily relocated to the Dordogne region of France, where they lived until 1934. During this time, Krasnow painted a series of watercolors and paintings of the French landscape. Before returning to the United States, Krasnow exhibited these landscapes at the Galerie Pierre.

After returning to California, Krasnow began creating carved wood sculptures, which he named 'demountables,' often using wood from trees on his property. Krasnow created these sculptures to celebrate the organic shapes inherent in wood.

In 1934, Krasnow returned to painting, this time creating bright, colorful, geometric designs which often incorporated symbolism from his Jewish heritage. Krasnow focused on these paintings through the remaining years of his life. In 1977, Krasnow received a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Peter Krasnow died on October 30, 1979 in Los Angeles. Rose Krasnow died five years later, in 1984.

Provenance:: The Peter and Rose Krasnow papers were donated in several increments between 1976 and 1998 by Peter Krasnow, the Estate of Peter Krasnow, and the Peter and Rose Krasnow Foundation.

Restrictions:: Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.

Rights:: The Peter and Rose Krasnow papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Occupation:: Painters -- California -- Los Angeles Search this

Topic:: Wood sculpture Search this; Jewish artists Search this; Printmakers -- California -- Los Angeles Search this; Sculptors -- California -- Los Angeles Search this

Genre/Form:: Sketchbooks; Photographs; Sketches; Diaries; Poems; Notes; Essays; Short stories; Prints; Transcripts; Sound recordings

Citation:: Peter and Rose Krasnow papers, 1914-1984. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:: AAA.kraspete

See more items in:: Peter and Rose Krasnow papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-kraspete

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Howard W. and Jean Lipman papers

Creator:: Lipman, Howard, 1905-1992 Search this

Names:: Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976 Search this; Gaylor, Wood, 1883-1957 Search this; Huge, Jurgan Frederick, 1809-1878 Search this; Lipman, Jean, 1909-1998 Search this; Porter, Rufus, 1792-1884 Search this; Smith, David, 1906-1965 Search this

Extent:: 46.6 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials

Date:: 1848, 1916-2000

Summary:: The Howard W. and Jean Lipman papers measure 46.6 linear feet and span the years 1916 to 2000, with one brochure maintained in a research file dating to 1848. The bulk dates for the collection are 1932 to 1992. The papers primarily concern the art collecting activities and interests of the Lipmans which included modern American sculpture, American folk art, and other contemporary American paintings. Found within the papers are correspondence files, notes and printed material that served as research and reference material, along with financial material. The collection also contains writings, notes, and editorial material used by Jean Lipman in her dual roles as an editor for Art in America magazine and as a respected art critic and author.

Scope and Content Note:: The Howard W. and Jean Lipman papers measure 46.6 linear feet and span the years 1916 to 2000. A copy of an 1848 brochure, retained by Jean Lipman in her research and writings files accounts for the early span date listed in the title of the collection. The bulk dates for the collection are 1932 to 1992. The records include correspondence, notes and printed material that served as research and reference material, along with some financial material that documents the art collecting activities and interests of the Lipmans. The collection also contains writing and editorial material used by Jean Lipman in her dual roles as an editor for Art in America magazine and as a respected author.

The Personal Files describe the social activities and associations of the Lipmans and include biographical information, personal and family correspondence, gift giving activities, the art career of Jean Lipman, and relationships maintained by the Lipmans with various art organizations.

The Howard and Jean Lipman Art Collection Files describe the art collecting activities and interests of the Lipmans throughout their lifetime. The General Files section consists of reference files on art organizations and galleries with whom the Lipmans maintained relationships. Also included are particular topics or exhibitions of interest to the Lipmans. The Sculptors and Painters of Interest section served as reference files about the activities of artists in whom the Lipmans were interested and whose works they owned, or considered owning. The Folk Art Collection section documents the collecting and purchasing activities of the Lipmans as they amassed and then subsequently sold their two significant folk art collections.

The Artists Files document the friendship and projects that developed between the Lipmans and three major American artists: Alexander Calder, Louise Nevelson, and David Smith. Of special interest to researchers will be some original Calder artwork mixed into the correspondence between the Lipmans and Calder, as well as drawings, sketches, prints, and posters found in the associated oversize folder. Also found in the Calder subseries are some proofs from Calder's Circus, edited by Jean Lipman.

The Research and Writing Files is divided into five sections dealing with research and writing projects undertaken by Jean Lipman. The first three sections deal with biographical projects that resulted in books or articles about three significant American primitive artists: Jurgan Frederick Huge, Rufus Porter, and Samuel Wood Gaylor. The fourth section deals with writing projects that resulted in the publication of several generalized books on the topic of American folk art. The final section consists of materials associated with the published articles and other authored works of Jean Lipman on a variety of American art topics.

The Art in America Editorial Files consists of editorial material maintained by Jean Lipman during her tenure (1941-1971) as editor of Art in America. The Financial Files reflect the early financial activities of the magazine during the brief period when the Lipmans owned it.

During the period that Jean Lipman served as editor, a variety of distinguished art historians, artists, architects, novelists, and poets contributed articles, columns, or artwork to the magazine. A sampling of correspondents that can be found in the general correspondence of this series include: Joseph Albers, Marcel DuChamp, John Dos Passos, Nelson Rockefeller, Charles Sheeler, and Andrew Wyeth. The General Correspondence Files also document the two subsequent changes of ownership and the growth of subscribers that occurred during the period of Lipman's editorship.

Editorial material related to individual magazine issues is found within this series, as well as information pertaining to the innovative advertising and special projects undertaken by the magazine as it sought to expand its readership and prestige. The Art in America series also chronicles the changes at the magazine that led to Lipman's resignation as editor in 1971.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as five series. Arrangement is generally alphabetical by subject heading or type of material. Items within folders are arranged chronologically by year.

Series 1: Personal Files (Boxes 1-3; 3 linear ft.)

Series 2: Howard and Jean Lipman Art Collection (Boxes 3-15; 12 linear ft.)

Series 3: Artists Files (Boxes 15-18, 46-47, OV 50-52; 3.6 linear ft.)

Series 4: Research and Writings Files (Boxes 18-28, 48; OV 50, 53; 10.3 linear ft.)

Series 5: -- Art in America -- Editorial Files (Boxes 28-45; 49, OV 50; 17.3 linear ft.)

Biographical Note:: Howard W. and Jean Lipman shared a lifetime sponsorship of art. The Lipmans' personal art collection, acquired throughout their marriage, was eventually divided into three separate parts: The Howard W. Lipman Foundation collection that was donated and merged into the modern sculpture holdings of the Whitney Museum of American Art; an American folk art collection that was later sold through two separate auctions in 1950 and 1981 and is now part of the holdings of the New York Historical Association and the Museum of American Folk Art; and a personal collection that was retained and displayed in the Lipmans' various residences in Connecticut, New York, and Arizona.

Married in 1933, the Lipmans began jointly collecting American folk art at a time when few art museums or institutions recognized the historical and artistic value of early primitive, self-taught artists. By the late 1940s, the Lipmans had amassed a large, significant collection that was highly regarded for its quality and scope.

During the early 1950s, the Lipmans also began actively collecting sculpture, focusing upon American contemporary sculptors. In the late 1950s they created the Howard W. Lipman Foundation, with an initial inventory of forty sculptures and three paintings by contemporary American artists. The purpose of the foundation was to acquire significant works by emerging American sculptors and to make them available through loans or donations to various art institutions.

In 1965 the Howard W. Lipman Foundation approached the Whitney Museum of American Art with a proposal to coordinate the foundation's efforts and goals with the museum's contemporary sculpture program. The foundation offered a majority of its growing collection of sculpture and acquisition funds towards the development of the evolving permanent collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art. Thereafter, the Howard W. Lipman Foundation served in an advisory role to the museum's acquisitions, and the foundation supplied the necessary funds to acquire works of sculpture desired by the Whitney for its permanent collection.

In addition to their folk art and foundation collections, the Lipmans also acquired important works by Alexander Calder, Louise Nevelson, and David Smith, through their lifelong association and friendship with these artists. Many of these pieces were retained in the Lipmans' personal collection throughout their lives.

Individually the Lipmans also expressed their interest in art through various means. Jean Lipman served as editor of Art in America magazine from 1940 to 1970, which provided her with continuous exposure to emerging artists and trends in American art. Jean Lipman's abiding interest in folk and contemporary art was also expressed through her voluminous writings. Throughout her life she wrote and edited highly acclaimed books and articles about major themes and artists in American art, and she was a recognized folk art authority and connoisseur. Some of her best known works include: The Flowering of American Folk Art; Rufus Porter, Yankee Wall Painter; and Calder's Universe.

Jean Lipman, born in 1909, was also an amateur artist in her later years, creating paintings and assemblages that often dealt with the theme of "art about art." She was represented by a gallery in New York City, as well as one in Arizona, and she had several solo exhibitions.

Howard W. Lipman, born in 1905, showed an early interest in art. By the mid 1920s he had gone to Paris to study painting, but Lipman found himself more attracted to sculpture and he began studying with a German wood carver. In the late 1930s, after returning to the New York City area, Lipman began stone carving with the Clay Club on Eighth Street, adjacent to the Whitney Museum of American Art. He was represented by a New York City gallery and participated in local exhibitions.

Deciding that his sculptural talent was not sufficient for professional pursuit, Lipman began his business career as a stockbroker in Neuberger and Berman, a prominent New York investment management firm that he helped to establish in 1939. Lipman subsequently channeled his artistic endeavors toward collecting and supporting the work of established and emerging American sculptors. He also served on the boards of both the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Archives of American Art.

Howard and Jean Lipman maintained long and close relationships with three prominent American artists: Alexander Calder, Louise Nevelson, and David Smith. Jean Lipman, in particular, was involved in promoting and documenting Calder and his works through numerous articles, books, and exhibitions that she helped produce as editor of the magazine Art in America and publications director for the Whitney Museum of American Art. Calder's Universe, which she edited to accompany a major Whitney Museum of American Art retrospective exhibition of his works in 1976, was considered by Calder to be his "official" biography. The book went to fourteen printings, one of the largest ever, in the history of art books.

The Lipmans were also great admirers of Louise Nevelson and her work. They purchased her artwork for their own collection, as well as donating pieces to various art museums and institutions. Jean Lipman wrote articles about Nevelson and edited the book, Nevelson's World.

David Smith and the Lipmans established a friendship in the late 1950s that lasted until Smith's untimely death in May 1965. The Lipmans purchased several Smith sculptures, which they placed on the grounds of their Wilton, Connecticut, home. They also purchased Smith works for donation to public institutions, such as the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

The Lipmans retired to Carefree, Arizona, a private residential community renowned for its sensitivity to ecologically-based, architectural design. Howard Lipman died in 1992. Jean Lipman remained active in art and community affairs until her death in 1998.

Provenance:: The papers of Howard and Jean Lipman were initially donated to the Archives of American Art by Howard and Jean Lipman from 1965-1989. Subsequent additions to the original gift were made by Jean Lipman in 1998 and by Peter and Beverly Lipman in 2001. Several small portions of these early accessions were microfilmed.

An associated gift that was originally accessioned as the Art in America Magazine Records was made by Howard and Jean Lipman from 1970-1973. This group, which largely consisted of Jean Lipman's editorial files from her years as editor of the magazine, was subsequently merged with the Howard W. and Jean Lipman records in 2004.

Restrictions:: The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment.

Rights:: The Howard W. and Jean Lipman papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Topic:: Art -- Collectors and collecting -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Art, Primitive Search this; Art -- Collectors and collecting Search this; Folk art -- United States Search this; Sculptors Search this; Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century -- United States Search this

Citation:: Howard W. and Jean Lipman papers, 1848, 1916-2000. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:: AAA.lipmhowa

See more items in:: Howard W. and Jean Lipman papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-lipmhowa

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Beverly Buchanan papers

Creator:: Buchanan, Beverly, 1940- Search this

Names:: Bernice Steinbaum Gallery (New York, N.Y.) Search this; Steinbaum Krauss Gallery (New York, N.Y.) Search this; Lippard, Lucy R. Search this; Scott, Arden Search this; Sims, Lowery Stokes Search this

Extent:: 18.3 Linear feet; 1.07 Gigabytes

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Gigabytes; Scrapbooks; Sketchbooks; Photograph albums; Motion picture film

Date:: 1912-2017; bulk 1970s-1990s

Summary:: The papers of African American sculptor, painter, and land artist Beverly Buchanan measure 18.3 linear feet and 1.07 gigabytes, and date from 1912 to 2017 with the bulk of the material dating from the 1970s to the 1990s. The collection contains biographical material; correspondence; writings; and exhibition and project files, including audiovisual documentation from Bernice Steinbaum Gallery/Steinbaum Krauss Gallery. Material related to professional activities; personal business records; printed material; scrapbooks; photographic material, including photograph albums; and artwork are also found in the collection.

Scope and Contents:: The papers of African American sculptor, painter, and land artist Beverly Buchanan measure 18.3 linear feet and 1.07 gigabytes, and date from 1912 to 2017 with the bulk of the material dating from the 1970s to the 1990s. The collection contains biographical material; correspondence; writings; and exhibition and project files, including audiovisual documentation from Bernice Steinbaum Gallery/Steinbaum Krauss Gallery. Material related to professional activities; personal business records; printed material; scrapbooks; photographic material, including photograph albums; and artwork are also found in the collection.

The Beverly Buchanan papers contain biographical material including address books, calendars, awards and education certificates, identification documents, family history research material, and a recorded interview with Marcia Yerman for Women in Art; correspondence with friends and colleagues including Lucy Lippard and Lowery Stokes Sims, and with galleries and museums such as Bernice Steinbaum Gallery/Steinbaum Krauss Gallery, the Georgia Museum of Art, and the High Museum of Art. Also included are writings such as artist's statements, journals and notebooks, notes, and writings by others about Beverly Buchanan; exhibition and project files including audiovisual documentation from Bernice Steinbaum Gallery and Steinbaum Krauss Gallery of various exhibitions; material related to professional activities including teaching files and grant and fellowship applications; personal business records such as sales and consignment records; printed material including clippings, exhibition and event announcements and catalogs, magazines, posters, a video recording of A World of Art profile, and other published material; and scrapbooks, including one documenting Buchanan's City Walls series, containing primarily photographs and artwork with some printed material. The collection also contains photographic material including photographs, snapshots, negatives, and photograph albums; and artwork including sketchbooks, drawings, folded cardboard artwork, and illustrated cards.

Arrangement:: This collection is arranged as ten series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1917-2015 (Box 1, Boxes 19-20; 0.6 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1919-1954, 1967-2017 (Boxes 1-2; 0.9 linear feet; ER01, 0.017 GB)

Series 3: Writings, 1960-circa 2009 (Boxes 2-3; 0.7 linear feet)

Series 4: Exhibition and Project Files, 1974-2001, 2010-2017 (Boxes 3-4, OV 21, FCs 22-23; 1.9 linear feet; ER02, 0.020 GB)

Series 5: Professional Activities, 1962, 1979-2005 (Box 4, Box 19; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1966-2010 (Box 4; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1912, 1923-2014 (Boxes 4-7, Box 19, OV 21; 3.6 linear feet)

Series 8: Scrapbooks, 1970-circa 1977 (Box 7, Box 20; 0.3 linear feet)

Series 9: Photographic Material, circa 1920s-2013 (Boxes 7-13, Boxes 16-18, Box 20; 8.8 linear feet; ER03, 1.03 GB)

Series 10: Artwork, 1956-2013, undated (Boxes 13-15, Box 20; 0.7 linear feet)

Biographical / Historical:: Beverly Buchanan (1940-2015) was an African American sculptor, painter, and land artist in Macon, Georgia. Born in Fuquay, North Carolina and raised in Orangeburg, South Carolina, Buchanan studied medical technology at Bennett College before going on to earn two master's degrees in parasitology and public health from Columbia University in 1968 and 1969. Her artistic career began in 1971 when she enrolled in a class at the Art Students League in New York City taught by Norman Lewis. She moved to Georgia in 1977.

Buchanan is most well known for her "shack" sculptures and paintings, depictions of houses tied to Southern identity and memory.

Buchanan has been included in exhibitions at institutions such as Cinque Gallery, Truman Gallery, the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Macon, GA, the Chrysler Museum, and a traveling retrospective exhibition organized by the Montclair Art Museum. Her work is included in the permanent collections of institutions such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, High Museum of Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Beverly Buchanan has received a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, the Anonymous Was a Woman Award, and the Women's Caucus for Art lifetime achievement award, among others. She died in 2015 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Provenance:: The Beverly Buchanan papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2018 by Jane Bridges, Buchanan's friend and executor.

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 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 -- Georgia Search this; Painters -- Georgia Search this

Topic:: Environmental art Search this; African American artists Search this; Women artists Search this

Genre/Form:: Scrapbooks; Sketchbooks; Photograph albums; Motion picture film

Citation:: Beverly Buchanan papers, 1912-2017. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:: Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.

Identifier:: AAA.buchbeve

See more items in:: Beverly Buchanan papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-buchbeve

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Stanton L. Catlin papers

Creator:: Catlin, Stanton L. , 1915-1997 Search this

Names:: Columbia Records, Inc. Search this; Hunter College -- Faculty Search this; Syracuse University -- Faculty Search this; Universidad de Chile -- Faculty Search this; Ades, Dawn Search this; Ashton, Dore Search this; Boulton, Alfredo Search this; Motherwell, Robert Search this; Obregón, Alejandro, 1920- Search this; Paternosto, César, 1931- Search this; Paz, Octavio, 1914- Search this; Rasmussen, Waldo Search this; Rockefeller, David, 1915- Search this; Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979 Search this; Sandoval, Judith Hancock de Search this; Sebastián, Santiago Search this; Torruella Leval, Susana Search this; Williams, Amancio Search this

Extent:: 56.4 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Photographs; Interviews; Transcripts; Diaries

Place:: Czech Republic -- Description and Travel

Date:: 1911-1998; bulk 1930-1994

Summary:: The papers of curator, gallery director, educator, and Latin American art historian Stanton L. Catlin (1915-1997) measure 56.4 linear feet and date from 1911 to 1998 with the bulk of the material dating from 1930 to 1994. The papers are comprised of biographical material, correspondence, writings and notes, teaching and project files, professional files, research files, exhibition and subject files, printed material, and photographs.

Scope and Contents:: The papers of curator, gallery director, educator, and Latin American art historian Stanton L. Catlin (1915-1997) measure 56.4 linear feet and date from 1911 to 1998 with the bulk of the material dating from 1930 to 1994. The papers are comprised of biographical material, correspondence, writings and notes, teaching and project files, professional files, research files, exhibition and subject files, printed material, and photographs.

Biographical material includes six address books, two annotated calendars, four day books, curriculum vitae, interview transcripts, records of Catlin's personal book collection, and his work as a student. Correspondence is with Catlin's family and prominent artists and colleagues, such as Dawn Ades, Dore Ashton, Alfredo Boulton, Robert Motherwell, Alejandro Obregon, César Paternosto, Octavio Paz, Waldo Rasmussen, David and Nelson Rockefeller, Susana Torruella Leval, Judith Sandoval, Santiago Sebastian, and Amancio Williams. Correspondence with Columbia Records concerns Catlin's Grammy Award for best album.

There are writings and notes by Catlin and others on Latin American art, and three journals kept by Catlin during his time in the Czech Republic and Minnesota.

Teaching files document some of Catlin's work as an art history professor at Hunter College, Syracuse University, and the University of Chile. The project files document his work as a consultant or contributor on various projects abd the professional files include records of Catlin's positions as art gallery curator and director, professional memberships, conference participation, and other professional activities. Research and subject files consist of annotated material related to Latin American art, European art, and various artforms and artists.

Exhibition files are found for Art of Latin America Since Independence (1966) and other exhibitions of Latin American art. Printed materials include books with an inscription, clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, magazines, and publications. There are photographs of Catlin, family and friends, colleagues, and artwork.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as 10 series.

Series 1: Biographical material , 1933-1989 (1 linear foot; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1914-1994 (4.5 linear feet; Box 2-6)

Series 3: Writings and Notes, 1930-1993 (4.5 linear feet; Box 6-10, OV 57)

Series 4: Teaching Files, 1941-1991 (1.5 linear feet; Box 10-12)

Series 5: Project Files, 1940-1993 (3.5 linear feet; Box 12-16)

Series 6: Professional Files, 1939-1994 (13.1 linear feet; Box 16-28, OV 58, 60)

Series 7: Research and Subject Files, 1938-1998 (8.0 linear feet; Box 28-36)

Series 8: Exhibition Files, 1941-1993 (15.6 linear feet; Box 37-51, OV 58-60)

Series 9: Printed Material, 1944-1993 (4.2 linear feet; Box 52-56)

Series 10: Photographs, 1911-1991 (0.5 linear feet; Box 56)

Biographical / Historical:: Stanton L. Catlin (1915-1997) was a curator, gallery director, educator, art historian, and expert on Latin American Art.

Catlin studied art history at Oberlin College and graduated in 1937. After graduation, he studied painting and art history at the Academy of Arts in Prague, Czech Republic for two years. Catlin received a Fogg Museum Fellowship in Modern Art at Harvard University to survey collections of art in Europe. However, the project was canceled because of World War II.

During the war, Catlin served as a Cultural Relations Representative for the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs where he assisted with exhibition arrangements throughout Latin America. In 1942, he also began teaching the history of art in the United States at the University of Chile. After the war, Catlin served in the Field Operations Division of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration, working in the Displaced Persons Operation from 1945-1946.

From 1947 to 1950, Catlin served as the executive director of the American Institute of Graphic Arts. He received his graduate degree in art history from New York University in 1952, and shortly thereafter became editor and curator of American art at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. From 1958 to 1967, Catlin was the assistant director of the Yale University Art Gallery. While there, he curated the landmark exhibition Art of Latin America Since Independence in 1966, the first exhibition to include only Latin American art and the accompanying catalog remains a standard reference source. That same year, Catlin won a Grammy Award for best album notes for an essay on Mexican mural painting.

In 1967, Catlin left Yale to take a position as director of the Art Gallery at the Center for Inter-American Relations before joining the faculty of Syracuse University in 1971 and becoming director of the university's Art Gallery. He remained at Syracuse for the rest of his career.

Catlin was a consultant on the major retrospective exhibition of the work of Diego Rivera at the Detroit Institute of Arts in 1986. He also worked on a project to document Mexican murals in the United States. Catlin died in Fayetteville, New York in 1997.

Related Materials:: Also found at the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview conducted by Francis V. O'Connor with Stanton L. Catlin from July 1 to September 14, 1989.

The University of Texas at Austin holds a significant collection of Stanton Loomis Catlin's papers, some of which are duplicates of the papers held by the Archives of American Art.

Provenance:: The collection was donated from 1992 to 1995 to by Stanton L. Catlin.

Restrictions:: Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. Research Center.

Rights:: The Stanton L. Catlin papers are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Occupation:: Art historians -- New York Search this; Minnesota -- Description and travel Search this; Gallery directors -- New York (State) Search this; Curators -- New York (State) Search this

Topic:: Art, European Search this; Hispanic American artists Search this; Educators -- New York (State) Search this; Art, Latin American Search this; Art -- History -- Study and teaching Search this

Genre/Form:: Photographs; Interviews; Transcripts; Diaries

Citation:: Stanton L. Catlin papers, 1911-1998, bulk 1930-1994. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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

Identifier:: AAA.catlstan

See more items in:: Stanton L. Catlin papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-catlstan

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Architectural League of New York records

Creator:: Architectural League of New York Search this

Names:: American Institute of Architects Search this; National Sculpture Society (U.S.) Search this; Gilbert, Cass, 1859-1934 Search this

Extent:: 114.9 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Scrapbooks; Annual reports; Photographs; Minutes; Lantern slides

Date:: 1880s-1974

Summary:: The records of the Architectural League of New York measure 114.9 linear feet and date from 1880s-1974 (bulk 1927-1968). The League's mission "to advance the art of architecture" is documented through administrative and business records, committee records and officers' files, exhibition files, records of functions and events, correspondence, publicity files, photographs, lantern slides, and 16 scrapbooks.

Scope and Content Note:: The records of the Architectural League of New York measure 114.9 linear feet and date from 1880s-1974 (bulk 1927-1968). The League's mission "to advance the art of architecture" is documented through administrative and business records, committee records and officers' files, exhibition files, records of functions and events, correspondence, publicity files, photographs, lantern slides, and scrapbooks.

League records prior to 1927 are limited in the collection and are mostly found among Administrative Files. The administrative files include a nearly complete collection of annual reports from 1889-1932 and various meetings minutes from 1889 through the mid-20th century. Also found is a history of the League written by founding member Cass Gilbert, documentation of the changes of the League Constitution and By-Laws during the first half of the 20th century, and other administrative records.

Over a third of the collection are records from committees, including voluminous records of the Executive Committee, Current Work Committee, House Committee, Finance Committee, Membership Committee, and Scholarships and Special Awards Committee. In addition, there are scattered records for minor committees. Materials include correspondence, meeting minutes, election ballots, financial records, membership records, documents related to awarding scholarships and awards, and other administrative and organizational committee records. Found is the original 1889 agreement between the Architectural League, the Art Students League, and the Society of American Artists to build the American Fine Arts Society building. Throughout the collection, but especially in the Membership Committee subseries, the records provide a glimpse into the struggles the League faced during the Depression through World War II to maintain dues-paying members.

Officers' Files includes collated records of the League Executive Secretary and Secretary, as well as correspondence of the League President and Treasurer. Materials found here are not comprehensive; similar materials can be found throughout the collection.

Financial records such as bank statements, correspondence, and ledgers; insurance correspondence and policies; and legal correspondence, are found in the Business Records series. This series does not include records prior to 1926.

Exhibition files provide detailed documentation of the exhibitions sponsored by, or held at, the League primarily from the 1930s to the early 1970s. Records related to the League Annual Exhibition, the National Gold Medal Exhibitions, and the 1939 World's Fair in New York are found here, as well as exhibition files arranged chronologically by exhibition date and miscellaneous administrative files. Materials include administrative files, applications, correspondence, printed materials, publicity files, and other records related to organizing and managing exhibitions. The files of the Exhibition Committee are also found here.

Other series which document activities held by, or held at, the League include Functions and Events series and Publicity Files series. Found is correspondence, printed materials, press releases, schedules, and other administrative documents created in organizing events such as dinners, lectures, receptions, balls, and outings. The Records of Other Organizations includes records relating to organizations that had business with the League, often regarding events, meetings, and exhibitions held at the League. Represented here are some records of the American Institute of Architects (A.I.A.) and the National Sculpture Society (N.S.S.).

Correspondence includes miscellaneous correspondence arranged alphabetically by subject or name, and collated correspondence arranged chronologically. Most of the chronological correspondence appears to be Secretaries' files. The materials in the Miscellaneous series seem to have been separated from their original files, or were never filed properly. Therefore, materials and contents are similar to those found in other series, such as correspondence, administrative records, some financial records, and handwritten notes.

Black and white photographs, a handful of colored photographs, nearly 350 lantern slides, and negatives of exhibitions, buildings, events, and portraits are found in the Photographic Materials series.

Sixteen scrapbooks include eight scrapbooks of clippings from 1880s-1960s, and seven scrapbooks of notices and printed materials from 1925-1930. Also found is a scrapbook of signatures of event attendees, a clippings scrapbook compiled by Hamilton M. Wright, and a scrapbook of the Archeological Institute of America.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as 12 series:

Series 1: Administrative Files, 1889-1969 (Boxes 1-10, OV 116; 9.7 linear feet)

Series 2: Committee Records, 1887-1974 (Boxes 10-54, 110, 114, OV 116; 44.7 linear feet)

Series 3: Officers' Files, 1900, 1923-1970 (Boxes 54-58; 3.9 linear feet)

Series 4: Business Records, circa 1926-1972 (Boxes 58-62, BVs 129-144; 7.35 linear feet)

Series 5: Exhibitions, 1887-1972, bulk 1930s-1960s (Boxes 62-83, 111, OVs 117-119; 21.85 linear feet)

Series 6: Functions and Events, 1909, 1931-1973 (Boxes 84-93, OV 120; 9.35 linear feet)

Series 7: Publicity Files, 1922-1972 (Boxes 93-95, 111; 2.5 linear feet)

Series 8: Records Relating to Organizations, 1908-1968, bulk 1930s-1960s (Boxes 95-101; 6.1 linear feet)

Series 9: Correspondence, 1929-1970 (Boxes 101-103, OV 120; 1.85 linear feet)

Series 10: Miscellaneous, circa 1936-1968 (Boxes 103-104; 1.3 linear feet)

Series 11: Photographic Materials, 1896-1960s (Boxes 105-108, 112, OVs 121-128; 4.3 linear feet)

Series 12: Scrapbooks, 1880s-1960s (Boxes 108-109, 113-115, BVs 145-148; 2.2 linear feet)

There are frequently similar and related materials in multiple series, as is indicated in the series' descriptions. The records may originally have been arranged by file owner (committees, secretary, etc.), then by League season (roughly May - April). Most series include a handful of folders in which the original folder title indicates the file owner and League season (i.e. Secretary 1938-1939).

Historical Note:: Modeling the organization's name after the Art Students League of New York, the Architectural League of New York was founded in New York City in 1881 by a group of architects who wished to gather and discuss architecture and its relationship to the arts. The group elected D.W. Willard as the first President of the League and they began gathering regularly to discuss and critique each other's sketches and hold competitions. The organization grew quickly and soon the League rented a room in a building on 14th Street between University Place and Fifth Avenue.

However, by the mid-1880s the founders and more active League members left New York, and membership began to falter. The League was reorganized in 1886, expanding membership beyond professional architects, and incorporated in 1888 with 166 members. In 1889, the League joined with the Art Students League of New York and the Society of American Artists to form the American Fine Arts Society. Thus, in 1892 the three organizations were able to erect a building at 215 West 57th Street where the League remained until 1927 when it moved to 115 East 40th Street.

The League was run by the Executive Committee and its officers, elected every two years. The beginning of each League season kicked off with an annual dinner in the spring. The League also formed numerous committees to organize activities and manage administrative tasks. Noteworthy committees include the Current Work Committee, House Committee, Finance Committee, Exhibition Committee, Membership Committee, and Scholarships and Special Awards Committee.

The League's interdisciplinary approach to architecture and the arts was expressed through sponsored forums and discussions with architects and artists. From the League's beginning, the Current Work Committee was established to organize educational forums for members. Recognition of achievement was awarded by an Annual Exhibition from the late 1880s until 1938. In 1950, the League began awarding the annual National Gold Medal Exhibition in various fields, including landscape architecture, engineering, and sculpture. Additionally, the League awarded numerous other scholarships each year. Architects, artists, and arts-related organizations could also rent space in the League building to hold meetings, discussions, and exhibitions.

The League admitted its first female member in 1934. Notable members of the League included Arnold W. Brunner (President, 1903-1905), Cass Gilbert (President, 1913-1915), Philip Johnson, Robert A.M. Stern, and Russell Sturgis (President, 1889-1893).

The Architectural League of New York continues to provide educational opportunities and scholarships to students and professionals.

Background information was gathered from a written history of the League by Cass Gilbert found in this collection and the Architectural League of New York website (http://archleague.org/category/archive/history-archive/).

Related Material:: Among the holdings of the Archives of American Art are several collections that contain Architectural League of New York records. The American Federation of Arts records, 1895-1993, include a significant amount of League records related to national awards programs and lantern slides from the "New Horizons in America" lecture series.

Provenance:: The Architectural League of New York records were donated in several installments from 1967-1980 by the Architectural League of New York.

Restrictions:: Use of original papers requires an appointment.

Rights:: The Architectural League of New York records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Topic:: Architecture Search this; Associations, institutions, etc. Search this

Genre/Form:: Scrapbooks; Annual reports; Photographs; Minutes; Lantern slides

Citation:: Architectural League of New York records, 1880s-1974, bulk 1927-1968. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Sponsor:: Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund

Identifier:: AAA.archleag

See more items in:: Architectural League of New York records

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-archleag

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Ankrum Gallery records

Creator:: Ankrum Gallery Search this

Names:: Art Dealers Association of America Search this; Black Arts Council (Washington, D.C.) Search this; California Arts Council Search this; Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Search this; Krannert Art Museum Search this; Laguna Art Museum (Laguna Beach, Calif.) Search this; Paramount Pictures Search this; San Diego Museum of Art Search this; Staempfli Gallery (New York, N.Y.) Search this; Storm King Art Center Search this; Almaraz, Carlos Search this; Andrews, Benny, 1930-2006 Search this; Ankrum, Joan Search this; Bauer, Richard, 1944- Search this; Block, Irving Search this; Broderson, Morris, 1928-2011 Search this; Caryl, Naomi Search this; Casey, Bernie Search this; Duveneck, Frank, 1848-1919 Search this; Feitelson, Lorser, 1898-1978 Search this; Groth, Bruno Search this; Halpert, Edith Gregor, 1900-1970 Search this; Herschler, David Search this; Hirsch, Joseph, 1910-1981 Search this; Hirshhorn, Olga Search this; Homer, Jessie Search this; Jackson, Suzanne, 1944- Search this; Johnson, Buffie Search this; Lundeberg, Helen, 1908-1999 Search this; Mesches, Arnold, 1923- Search this; Miller, Henry, 1891- Search this; Palm Springs Desert Museum Search this; Schuler, Melvin Search this; Secunda, Arthur Search this; Shores, Kenneth, 1928- Search this; Varda, Jean Search this; Zev Search this

Extent:: 41.5 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Scrapbooks; Photographs

Date:: circa 1900-circa 1990s; bulk 1960-1990

Summary:: The Ankrum Gallery records measure 41.5 linear feet and date from circa 1900 to circa 1990s, with the bulk of the records dating from 1960 to 1990. The papers include over 395 artists files, general gallery correspondence, project files, administrative records, exhibition files, collector and client files, financial material, printed material, 1 unbound scrapbook, and photographs. Also included are personal papers of gallery founder Joan Ankrum and her nephew, artist Morris Broderson.

Scope and Contents:: The Ankrum Gallery records measure 41.5 linear feet and date from circa 1900 to circa 1990s, with the bulk of the records dating from 1960 to 1990. The papers include over 395 artists files, general gallery correspondence, project files, administrative records, exhibition files, collector and client files, financial material, printed material, 1 unbound scrapbook, and photographs. Also included are personal papers of gallery founder Joan Ankrum and her nephew, artist Morris Broderson.

General correspondence is with artists, museums, collectors, and clients, and generally concerns sales, exhibitions, and consignments. Correspondents include Irving Block, Morris Broderson, Naomi Caryl, Suzanne Jackson, Joseph and Olga Hirshhorn, among many others. Correspondence is also found in the artists files and the collector/client files.

Project files document various events, benefits, and projects undertaken by the gallery, including a UNICEF benefit, "Up Against Hunger," the Exceptional Children's foundation, and the Young Art Patrons.

Administrative files document many activities of the gallery, such as the gallery's and Joan Ankrum's membership in the Black Arts Council, the California Arts Council, and the Art Dealers Association of California of which Joan Ankrum was a primary organizer. Also found are publicity files, a file on the history of the gallery, leases, floor plans, insurance documents, lists of graphics for sale, and other miscellany.

Exhbition files appear to be incomplete, but do include files for Huichol Indian's art, "The Art of African Peoples" (1973), "Five Contemporary Mexican Painters" (1977), Ethiopian Folk Painting (1978), San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild All Media Exhibition (1982), "25th Anniversary Exhibition" (1985), among several others.

Extensive artists' files include correspondence, price lists, photographs and slides,resumes and biographical material, and sales invoices. Files are found for Benny Andrews, Carlos Almaraz, Richard Bauer, Irving Block, Naomi Caryl, Bernie Casey, Frank Duveneck, Lorser Feitelson, Bruno Groth, David Herschler, Jessie Homer, Suzanne Jackson, Buffie Johnson, Samella Lewis, Helen Lundeberg, Arnold Mesches, Henry Miller, Melvin Schuler, Arthur Secunda, Ken Shores, Jean Varda, and Zev, among many others. The Pat Alexander and Andy Nelson files also contain motion picture film.

Collector and client files document the gallery's relationship with over 115 collectors, museums, and art centers. Files may include correspondence and sales records and are found for Edith Halpert, Olga and Joseph Hirshhorn and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Krannert Art Museum, Laguna Art Museum, Palm Spring Desert Museum, Paramount Pictures, San Diego Museum of Art, Staempfli Gallery, and Storm King Art Center, among many others.

Financial material documents sales through numbered invoices, consignments, loans, and insurance valuations. Printed material consists of exhibition catalogs and announcements, bulletins, periodicals, and newspaper clippings. One unbound scrapbook contains clippings and exhibition materials.

Photographs are of artwork, artists, and gallery openings. Additional photographs are found in the artists' files.

Joan Wheeler Ankrum personal papers document her personal and professional relationship with family, artists, and collectors. They include correspondence, personal writings, personal financial materials, printed material and loose scrapbook materials, family photographs and photographs of her as an actress, and artwork from various artists.

The papers of artist Morris Broderson, nephew of Joan Ankrum, document his professional relationship with the gallery as his primary dealer. Included are biographical materials, correspondence, publicity files, travel files, projects, exhibitions, collector/client files, financial material, printed material, photographs, and artwork.

Arrangement:: This collection is arranged as 12 series.

Series 1: Correspondence, 1961-1994 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Project Files, 1965-1987 (0.25 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 3: Administrative Records, 1961- circa 1990s (1 linear foot; Boxes 1-2)

Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1961-1991 (1 linear foot; Boxes 2-3)

Series 5: Artists' Files, 1957-1994 (22.5 linear feet; Boxes 3-25, 41-42, FC 43-45)

Series 6: Collector and Client Files, 1960-1994 (3.2 linear feet; Boxes 25-28)

Series 7: Financial Material, 1962-1990 (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 28-30)

Series 8: Printed Material, 1957-1994 (2 linear feet; Boxes 30-32, 41)

Series 9: Scrapbook, 1960-1988 (3 folders; Box 32)

Series 10: Photographs, circa 1960s-circa 1990s (0.35 linear feet; Boxes 32, 42)

Series 11: Joan Ankrum Personal Papers, circa 1900-1993 (2 linear feet; Boxes 32-34, 41)

Series 12: Morris Broderson Papers, 1941-1989 (7.2 linear feet; Boxes 34-42)

Biographical / Historical:: The Ankrum Gallery was established 1960 in Los Angeles by American film actress Joan Wheeler Ankrum and William Chalee. The gallery closed in 1989.

Joan Wheeler Ankrum and William Challee opened Ankrum Gallery on La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles in 1960 with a one-man show of Ankrum's nephew Morris Broderson. With a focus on contemporary California artists, Ankrum Gallery represented over 395 artists during its 30 years in operation, including Benny Andrews, Carlos Almaraz, Richard Bauer, Irving Block, Naomi Caryl, Bernie Casey, Frank Duveneck, Lorser Feitelson, Bruno Groth, David Herschler, Jessie Homer, Suzanne Jackson, Buffie Johnson, Samella Lewis, Helen Lundeberg, Arnold Mesches, Henry Miller, Melvin Schuler, Arthur Secunda, Ken Shores, Jean Varda, and Zev. In addition, the gallery was among the earliest to exhibit the work of black artists. The gallery also held exhibitions of world artists, which included "Art of African Peoples" (1973), "Yarn Paintings of the Huichol Indians" (1973), "Five Contemporary Mexican Painters" (1977), and "Ethiopian Folk Painting" (1978). Ankrum Gallery closed in 1989.

Art dealer and gallery owner, Joan Wheeler Ankrum was an actress before establishing the Ankrum Gallery primarily to showcase the work of her deaf nephew, Morris Broderson. Born in 1913 in Palo Alto, California, she began acting at the Pasadena Playhouse where she met her first husband Morris Ankrum with whom she had two sons, David and Cary Ankrum. She married gallery co-owner and partner William Challee in 1984. She helped organize the Los Angeles Art Dealers Association and the Monday Night Art Walks on La Cienega Boulevard. She was a member of the relatively short-lived Black Arts Council. Joan Wheeler Ankrum died in 2001 at the age of 88.

Morris Broderson (1928-2011) was a deaf painter. His first one-man show was at the Stanford Museum in 1957, followed by the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. By 1959 he'd won two awards from the Los Angeles County Museum, and appeared in the Whitney Museum's "Young America" show in 1960. His travels influenced his work, including the hand gestures of Kabuki art in Japan. His work is in the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, among others. Following Joan Ankrum's death in 2001, Broderson was represented by her son David Ankrum.

Related Materials:: Also found in the Archives of American Art are two oral history interviews with Joan Ankrum, one conducted by Betty Hoag, April 28, 1964, and a second by Paul Karlstrom, November 5, 1997-February 4, 1998. Additionally, there is an oral history interview with Morris Broderson conducted by Paul Karlstrom, March 11-13, 1998.

Provenance:: The Ankrum Gallery records were donated to the Archives of American Art by Joan Ankrum in 1995.

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 Ankrum Gallery records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Topic:: Art galleries, Commercial -- California -- Los Angeles Search this; Artists -- California -- Los Angeles Search this

Genre/Form:: Scrapbooks; Photographs

Citation:: Ankrum Gallery records, circa 1900-circa 1990s, bulk 1960-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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

Identifier:: AAA.ankrgall

See more items in:: Ankrum Gallery records

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-ankrgall

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American Art Association Records

Creator:: American Art Association Search this

Names:: American Watercolor Society Search this; Blakeslee Galleries (New York, N.Y.) Search this; Carnegie, Andrew, 1835-1919 Search this; Crocker, William H. Search this; Kirby, Thomas Ellis, 1846-1924 Search this; Millet, Francis Davis, 1846-1912 Search this; Parsons, Alfred, 1847-1920 Search this

Extent:: 27.8 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Sales records; Photographs; Drawings; Prints; Sketches

Date:: circa 1853-1929; bulk 1885-1922

Summary:: The American Art Association records measure 27.8 linear feet and date from circa 1853-1929, with the bulk of the material dating from circa 1885-1922. The records include auction and sales files, general financial and legal files, inventory and stock records, client files, printed materials, photographic materials, artwork, and the personal papers of founder Thomas Ellis Kirby.

Scope and Contents:: The American Art Association records measure 27.8 linear feet and date from circa 1853-1929, with the bulk of the material dating from circa 1885-1922. The records include auction and sales files, general financial and legal files, inventory and stock records, client files, printed materials, photographic materials, artwork, and the scattered personal papers of founder Thomas Ellis Kirby.

Auction files contain a wide variety of materials regarding auction schedules, auctions, gallery sales, and estate sales. The files primarily contain correspondence, sales statements and ledgers, estate inventories and appraisals, and photographs. Of interest is a handwritten letter from Andrew Carnegie concerning the Second Prize Fund Exhibition.

Records of sales are documented in named files, sales ledgers, client account books, and Blakeslee Gallery sales ledgers. Files are found for specific art collections and estates. Sales ledgers list sales transactions of the Association by collection, department, genre, or named auction and provide the most detailed sales information, often noting title or subject, size, owner, lot number, date, purchaser, and price, and sometimes an index of artists. Other ledgers document consignment and exhibition sales, as well as sales conducted by other galleries or auction houses, both in the United States and in Europe. Exhibition sales documented include those of Alfred Parsons and Frank Millet in 1903, the American Watercolor Society in 1902, and the American Painters and Illustrators in 1905, and others. Client account books provide itemized costs accrued by individuals or estates over the course of a sale or purchase. Many of the ledgers contain name indexes.

General financial and legal files primarily consist of cash and expense ledgers documenting daily, monthly, and yearly costs and expenses related to the production of auction and sales catalogs, costs associated with leasing spaces and equipment, shipping and crating, employee sales commissions, art department expenses, book department expenses, and other costs. Legal files contain scattered forms and contractual documents, as well as correspondence and documents related to two lawsuits.

Inventory and stock records document the Association's inventory through a series of stock books and inventory cards that include sales and provenance information.

Client files consist of cards divided into clients interested in art and clients interested in books. They also include some information on specific client sales and purchases. Also found are numerous client address books. Printed materials include auction catalogs, clippings, and newspapers.

Photographs depict works of art and materials sold and collected. Of interest is a collection of cabinet photographs of French artists collected when the American Art Association was actively involved in the auction sales of thousands of paintings by French artists. Also found are four photo albums depicting auction items for a 1907 auction, prepared for the American Art Association by William H. Crocker. Several unsigned prints, sketches, and drawings are found in the artwork series.

Thomas Ellis Kirby's scattered personal papers include an address book, scattered family and biographical materials, correspondence with clients and associates, writings and speeches, legal material, auction records, and photographs.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as 9 series. Folder titles have been retained from the original records, and occasionally devised for clarity.

Series 1: Auctions, circa 1885-1922 (1.9 linear feet; Boxes 1-2, BV23-24)

Series 2: Sales, circa 1884-1923 (8.1 linear feet; Boxes 2-6, 20-21, BV25-39)

Series 3: General Financial and Legal Files, circa 1883-1923 (9.3 linear feet; Boxes 6-11, BV40-62)

Series 4: Inventory and Stock Records, circa 1887-circa 1922 (0.8 linear feet; Box 11, BV63-65)

Series 5: Client Files, circa 1895-circa 1922 (2.1 linear feet; Boxes 11-13)

Series 6: Printed Materials, circa 1853-1923 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 13-14, 21)

Series 7: Photographic Material, circa 1885-circa 1922 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 14-15, 21-22)

Series 8: Artwork, circa 1888-circa 1900 (0.1 linear feet; Boxes 15, 22)

Series 9: Thomas Ellis Kirby Personal Papers, circa 1861-1929 (3.6 linear feet; Boxes 15-19)

Biographical / Historical:: The American Art Association was an art gallery and auction house based in New York City, New York, formed in 1883 by James F. Sutton, R. Austin Robertson, and Thomas E. Kirby. It was the first auction house in the United States.

The Association was founded to promote American art and exhibit the work of American artists in its American Art Galleries in New York City. In its first year of operation, the Association exhibited Thomas B. Clarke's collection of American paintings as a benefit for the National Academy of Design. After the successful management of the public sale of the George I. Seney art collection in 1885, with Thomas E. Kirby as auctioneer, the Association continued conducting auctions and managing estate sales. Austin Robertson died in 1892 and Sutton became a special partner in 1895. In 1912 Kirby's son, Gustavus T. Kirby, joined the Association as a general partner and later also acquired Sutton's interest and became a full partner. The Association was sold in 1923 to Cortlandt Field Bishop, and merged with the Anderson Auction Company to form the American Art Association-Anderson Galleries, Inc, in 1929. The firm was taken over by Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., in 1938.

Provenance:: A portion of the American Art Association records were donated in 1968 by Thomas Ellis Kirby's daughter, Mrs. Thomas B. Waller. The remaining records were donated by the American Antiquarian Society in 1978 and 1993.

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 American Art Association records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Occupation:: Auctioneers Search this

Topic:: Art -- Economic aspects Search this; Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Art galleries, Commercial -- Economic aspects Search this; Art, French Search this; Art dealers Search this; Art auctions Search this; Art, American Search this; Auctions Search this; Artists -- France -- Photographs Search this; Art -- Societies, etc. -- New York (State) -- New York Search this; Artists -- United States Search this

Genre/Form:: Sales records; Photographs; Drawings; Prints; Sketches

Citation:: American Art Association Records, circa 1853-1929, bulk circa 1885-1922. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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

Identifier:: AAA.amerarta

See more items in:: American Art Association Records

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-amerarta

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Vanderbilt Mansion Contents Sale (October 1921)

Collection Creator:: American Art Association Search this

Container:: Box 3, Folder 26

Type:: Archival materials

Date:: 1921

Collection 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.

Collection Rights:: The American Art Association records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Collection Citation:: American Art Association Records, circa 1853-1929, bulk circa 1885-1922. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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

See more items in:: American Art Association Records; American Art Association Records / Series 2: Sales / 2.1: Collection and Estate Sales Files

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_component:sova-aaa-amerarta-ref270

Lilly Martin Spencer papers

Creator:: Spencer, Lilly Martin, 1822-1902 Search this

Names:: Sorosis (New York, N.Y.) Search this; Avery, Samuel Putnam, 1822-1904 Search this; Ingersoll, Robert Green, 1833-1899 Search this; Sartain, John, 1808-1897 Search this; Stanton, Elizabeth Cady, 1815-1902 Search this

Extent:: 0.9 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials

Date:: 1828-1966

Summary:: The papers of portrait and genre painter Lilly Martin Spencer, measure 0.9 linear feet and date from 1828-1966. The collection includes biographical material, scattered lists, notes, receipts, and legal documents relating to Spencer's life and work, Spencer's business and family correspondence, printed material, a lithograph, photographs of Spencer and others, and photographs of Spencer's artwork.

Scope and Contents:: The papers of portrait and genre painter Lilly Martin Spencer, measure 0.9 linear feet and date from 1828-1966. The collection includes biographical material, scattered lists, notes, receipts, and legal documents relating to Spencer's life and work, Spencer's business and family correspondence, printed material, a lithograph, photographs of Spencer and others, and photos of Spencer's artwork.

The collection documents Spencer's popularity and success as a painter, her involvement with art associations and civic organizations such as Sorosis, and her personal life as a wife, mother, and breadwinner through correspondence with family, artists including John Sartain and Benjamin John Lossing, dealers including Samuel Putnam Avery, writers and editors such as Robert Green Ingersoll and Fannie Raymond Bitter, and social activists such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

Arrangement:: The collection is arranged as four series:

Series 1: Biographical Material and Other Papers, 1853-1959 (0.3 linear feet; Box 1, OV 3)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1828-1966 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)

Series 3: Printed Material, 1857-1961 (0.2 linear feet; Box 2, OV 3)

Series 4: Photographs, circa 1890-circa 1950 (0.1 linear feet; Box 2)

Biographical / Historical:: New York and Ohio painter Lilly Martin Spencer (1822-1902) was known for her popular portrait paintings and humorous domestic genre scenes.

Spencer was born Angelique Marie Martin in England to French parents, Giles and Angelique Martin, who were followers of the French social critic Charles Fournier. The family came to New York in 1830, moved to Marietta, Ohio, in 1833 and, in 1845, co-founded the communal settlement, Trumbull Phalanx, near Braceville, Ohio. In 1848, after her marriage to Benjamin Spencer at the age of 22, Spencer returned to New York. She achieved much success as a painter and was the main breadwinner for her family while giving birth to thirteen children, seven of whom survived to adulthood. The family moved several times, to Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio; Newark, New Jersey; and Highlands and Poughkeepsie, New York.

Related Materials:: The Archives of American Art also has microfilm (reel 132) of the Martin family papers and Campus Martius Museum records regarding Lilly Martin Spencer. Originals are located at the Campus Martius Museum, Ohio Historical Society.

Separated Materials:: The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming on reel 131 including family history; biographical material; circa 50 photographs of Spencer and her paintings; M.A. thesis, "Lilly Martin Spencer: American Painter of the Nineteenth Century," by Ann Byrd Schumer; articles about Spencer's life and work, 1959; and a list of paintings owned by her granddaughter, Lillian Spencer Gates. Loaned materials were returned to the donor and are not described in the collection container inventory.

Provenance:: The collection was donated to the Archives of American Art in 1971 by Lillian Spencer Gates, Spencer's granddaughter.

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:: Portrait painters -- New York (State) Search this; Genre painters -- New York (State) Search this; Genre painters -- Ohio Search this; Portrait painters -- Ohio Search this

Topic:: Women painters Search this

Citation:: Lilly Martin Spencer papers, 1828-1966. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:: AAA.spenlill

See more items in:: Lilly Martin Spencer papers

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-spenlill

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American Academy in Rome records

Creator:: American Academy in Rome Search this

Names:: American Academy in Rome Search this; American School of Architecture in Rome Search this; American School of Classical Studies in Rome Search this; Aldrich, Chester Holmes, 1871-1940 Search this; Boring, William, 1859-1937 Search this; Breck, George, 1863-1920 Search this; Dinsmoor, William B. Search this; Egbert, J. C. (James Chidester), 1859-1948 Search this; Ely, Theo. N. Search this; Faulkner, Barry, 1881-1966 Search this; Guernsey, Roscoe Search this; Hewlett, James Monroe Search this; Kendall, William M. Search this; La Farge, C. Grant (Christopher Grant), 1862-1938 Search this; Marquand, Allan, 1853-1924 Search this; McKim, Charles Follen, 1847-1909 Search this; Mead, William Rutherford, 1846-1928 Search this; Millet, Francis Davis, 1846-1912 Search this; Morey, Charles Rufus, 1877-1955 Search this; Mowbray, H. Siddons (Harry Siddons), 1858-1928 Search this; Platt, Charles A. (Charles Adams), 1861-1933 Search this; Pope, John Russell, 1874-1937 Search this; Roberts, Laurance P. Search this; Smith, James Kellum, 1893-1963 Search this; Stevens, Gorham Phillips, 1876- Search this; Vedder, Elihu, 1836-1923 Search this; Vitale, Ferrucio, 1875-1933 Search this; Ward, John Quincy Adams, 1830-1910 Search this

Extent:: 65.9 Linear feet

Type:: Collection descriptions; Archival materials; Photographs

Date:: 1855-2012

Summary:: The records of the American Academy in Rome measure 65.9 linear feet and date from 1855 to 2012. The collection documents the history of the institution from its inception in 1894 as the American School of Architecture in Rome, through the end of World War II, and chronicles the contributions the academy has made to America's cultural and intellectual development. Nearly one-half of the collection consists of an unprocessed addition received in 2014 containing records that mostly post-date World War II and include correspondence and subject files of officers and executives based in the New York office of American Academy in Rome.

Scope and Content Note:: The records of the American Academy in Rome measure 65.9 linear feet and date from 1855 to 2012. The collection documents the history of the institution from its inception in 1894 as the American School of Architecture in Rome, through the end of World War II, and chronicles the contributions the academy has made to America's cultural and intellectual development. Nearly one-half of the collection consists of an unprocessed addition received in 2014 containing records that mostly post-date World War II and include correspondence and subject files of officers and executives based in the New York office of American Academy in Rome.

Items predating the 1894 founding of the American School of Architecture in Rome are personal papers and memorabilia of individuals associated with the institution.

Series 1: Predecessor Institutions, is composed of the records of the American School of Architecture in Rome, 1894-1898, and the American School of Classical Studies in Rome, 1895-1913. Records of the American School of Architecture in Rome include records of its Managing Committee, correspondence, financial records, and printed matter. Among the Managing Committee's records are notes and correspondence relative to the founding of the institution, minute books and reports; also, legal documents including records concerning its dissolution prior to being reorganized as the American Academy in Rome. Correspondence is mostly that of Vice President Charles F. McKim who handled administrative matters. Financial records include capital stock certificates, invoices and receipts. Printed matter consists of scholarship competition announcements.

Records of the American School of Classical Studies in Rome include records of its Managing Committee, Committee on Fellowships, publications, printed matter, and treasurers' records. The Managing Committee's records consist of the proposed resolution concerning its merger with the American Academy in Rome. Committee on Fellowship records are comprised of correspondence, reports, and fellowship applications. Publications records include correspondence and invoices. Printed matter includes general information, annual reports of the Managing Committee and Director, annual reports of the Committee on Medieval and Renaissance Studies, fellowship applications and examination questions, and the proposed consolidation agreement. Treasurers' records include the files of Alex. Bell and Willard V. King. Bell's sparse records consist of a budget, receipts for salary payments, an invoice, canceled checks, and correspondence. King's files, while more substantial than those that survive from Bell's tenure, are quite incomplete. They include correspondence, banking records, budgets and financial statements, investment records, invoices, and receipts for salaries and expenses.

Series 2: Board of Trustees Records, is comprised of legal documents, minutes, and reports; records of Trustee committees; records of officers; and records of individual Trustees. Legal documents, 1897-1926 and undated, consist of by-laws and amendments, certificate of incorporation, and constitution and amendments. Minutes and reports of the Board of Trustees, 1897-1947 and 1957, including those of its annual meetings, are carbon copies rather than the official minute books, and are incomplete. Reports of officers are incomplete, as well. Also included are reports of Officers'/Trustees' visits to Rome, and reports of the Director and Secretary in Rome submitted to the Board of Trustees.

Records of Trustee committees, 1905-1946 and undated, consist of reports and/or minutes arranged alphabetically by committee; these, too are incomplete, with many committees represented by a single report. Committees represented are: Building Committee, Carter Memorial Committee, Endowment Committee, Executive Committee, Finance Committee, Library Committee, McKim Memorial Committee, Nominating Committee, Committee on Publications. Committee on the School of Classical Studies records consist of its own minutes and reports, reports of its Advisory Council and the Jury on Classical Fellowships. Committee on the School of Classical Studies also include reports of officers and staff of the School of Classical Studies to the Committee on the School of Classical Studies as follows: Director, Professor in Charge, Annual Professor, Director of the Summer Session, Professor of Archaeology, Curator of the Museum, Editor, Librarian, and Committee on the Welfare of Women Students. Committee on the School of Fine Arts records consist of its own minutes and reports, reports of its Special Committee on the Plan and Expense of a Department of Music in the School of Fine Arts, and report of Fine Arts Program, Triptych Project with the Citizens Committee for the Army and Navy, Inc.; also, reports of officers and staff of the School of Fine Arts to the Committee on the School of Fine Arts as follows: Director, Professor in Charge, Associate in Charge, Annual Professor, Professor in Charge of the Department of Musical Composition. In addition, there are minutes and/or reports of the Committee of Twelve and Subcommittee of Five and the Special Committee on Villa Aurelia.

Records of Officers. 1898-1957 and undated, consist mainly of correspondence files and reports, with large numbers of transcriptions and carbon copies. Included are records of: Presidents Charles F. McKim, William R. Mead, Charles A. Platt, John Russell Pope, and James Kellum Smith; Vice Presidents Theodore N. Ely, George B. McClellan, and Henry James; Secretaries H. Siddons Mowbray (Secretary/Treasurer), Frank D. Millet, C. Grant La Farge, William B. Dinsmoor, and H. Richardson Pratt; and Treasurers William R. Mead, William A. Boring, Leon Fraser, and Lindsay Bradford Office files of President Mead, Secretaries Millet and La Farge, and Treasurer Boring are the most complete; files of other individuals, the Vice Presidents in particular, are often quite sparse.

Records of individual Trustees, 1902-1946 and undated, consist of material relating to official Academy business that was created or maintained by each in his capacity as trustee. (Note: many of these individuals also served as officers or staff of the Academy, and their records documenting those functions will be found in the appropriate series.) Included in this subseries are the records of: Chester H. Aldrich, Gilmore D. Clarke, James C. Egbert, Barry Faulkner, Allan C. Johnson, William M. Kendall, C. Grant La Farge, Edward P. Mellon, Charles Dyer Norton, Charles A. Platt, John Russell Pope, Edward K. Rand, John C. Rolfe, James Kellum Smith, S. Breck Trowbridge, Ferruccio Vitale, John Quincy Adams Ward, Andrew F. West, and William L. Westerman. These records tend to be sparse; files maintained by James C. Egbert, Barry Faulkner, Allan C. Johnson, and Ferruccio Vitale are notable exceptions.

Series 3: New York Office Records, consists of records of staff, rosters, printed matter, photographs, personal papers, Association of Alumni of the American Academy in Rome, and miscellaneous records.

Records of staff, 1919-1950 and undated, include the office files of Executive Secretaries Roscoe Guersney, Meriwether Stuart, and Mary T. Williams; Librarian George K. Boyce; and Endowment Fund Campaign Secretaries Phillilps B. Robinson and Edgar I. Williams.

The rosters, 1895-1939 and undated, are printed forms completed by fellows and students, with occasional attachments (usually correspondence or photographs). Included are the rosters of the School of Fine Arts, School of Classical Studies, and School of Classical Studies Summer Sessions.

Printed matter, 1905-[1981?] and undated, has been classified as Academy produced and produced by others. Items produced by the Academy, 1905-[1981?], include general information including act of incorporation and by-laws, fundraising brochure, constitution, Directory of Fellows and Residents, histories of the institution, newsletter of the Director, and printed items relating to special events. Printed matter specifically relating to the School of Classical Studies includes annual announcements, the consolidation agreement, a directory, fellowship announcements and applications, lecture announcements, newsletters, and brochures about summer sessions. School of Fine Arts printed matter includes annual announcements, concert programs, exhibition checklists and catalogs, fellowship announcements and application forms, history, and newsletters.

Printed matter produced by others, 1905-1940 and undated, consists of three scrapbooks of news clippings and photographs compiled by the American Academy in Rome, extensive clipping files, and articles from miscellaneous publications. All of these items are about the American Academy in Rome, or by or about individuals associated with the institution. Also included is a poster for Leave Courses offered at the Academy for U. S. servicemen.

Photographs, 1891-1941 and undated, are organized into the categories of works of art, people, buildings, places, events, and miscellaneous. Works of art are by visiting students and fellows, Frank D. Millet, collaborative problems, Rome Prize Competitions in Architecture, Rome Prize Competitions in Landscape Architecture, and Prix de Rome Competition exhibitions. Photographs of people are both of individuals and groups; among the groups are summer school students and fellowship winners.

Buildings depicted are American Academy properties. Among them are the "New Building," including interior and exterior construction views; studios; and Villas Aurelia, Mirafiore, and Richardson. Also included is a group of photographs of Academy architecture students measuring buildings in Rome and Florence. Places pictured are views of the Academy property and surrounding areas.

Photographs of events include cricket games, Thanksgiving and Fourth of July dinners, Architectural League exhibition, and inauguration of the Manship Fountain. Miscellaneous photographs are of an architectural drawing for a proposed building.

Personal Papers, Memorabilia, and Ephemera, 1855-1923 an undated, were donated to the American Academy in Rome or otherwise left on its premises. None are official records generated by the institution. Included are: Ernest Lewis' photograph album/scrapbook; Allan Marquand's papers; Charles F. McKim's memorabilia, photographs, printed matter, and artifacts; Charles R. Morey's correspondence; and Elihu Vedder's Bible.

Records of the Association of the Alumni of the American Academy in Rome, 1913-1945 and undated), consist of a small number of scattered records including correspondence, fellows' war/government service information (compiled by Sidney Waugh), membership lists, and a newsletter.

Miscellaneous records, 1899-1926 and undated, are writings and architectural records. Writings consist of published and unpublished manuscript material about the American Academy in Rome and its history, and article by H. Siddons Mowbray advising on ornamentation, and text and illustrations for the Art and Archaeology issue on the Academy. Also included are fragments of unidentified letters. Architectural records [oversize] include property and floor plans of Villas Aurora, Chiaraviglio, Ferrari, and Ludovisi.

Series 4: Rome Office Records, consist of records of staff and personal papers. Records of staff, 1903-1947 and undated, include the office files of Directors H. Siddons Mowbray, George Breck, Jesse Benedict Carter, Gorham Phillips Stevens, James Monroe Hewlett, Chester H. Aldrich, Amey Aldrich [Acting Director, very briefly, perhaps unofficially], Charles R. Morey, and Laurance P. Roberts; and records of two members of the School of Fine Arts faculty, Frank P. Fairbanks, Professor of Fine Arts, and Felix Lamond, Professor of Music. Records of Carter, Stevens, Hewlett, and Aldrich appear to be fairly complete; records of early directors are sparse; those of Morey and Roberts appear to be missing significant portions; and those of Professors Fairbanks and Lamond consist of a few scattered items.

Also surviving are the personal papers of Director Gorham Phillips Stevens, 1912-1931 and undated), consisting of correspondence, financial records, and documentation of professional and charitable activities.

Series 5: Unprocessed Addition to the American Academy in Rome Records was received in 2014 and consists of 31.6 linear feet of the New York office's records for officers, directors, and executives.

Arrangement:: It was obvious that before they came to the Archives of American Art the records had been rearranged more than once, and in such a way that materials from many different departments had been intermingled. In keeping with archival theory and practice, the records were organized to reflect the structure and operation of the institution that created the records, making them more understandable and accessible to a wide variety of researchers.

In general, the records of each officer and staff member are arranged alphabetically, with general correspondence preceding the alphabetical sequence; arrangement within each file is chronological, unless noted otherwise.

Records of the American Academy in Rome are organized into five major series. Each series, except series 5, is divided into several subseries, with the arrangement described in detail in the series descriptions.

Series 1: Predecessor Institutions, 1894-1913 (box 1; 0.88 linear ft.; Reels 5749-5750)

Series 2: Board of Trustees Records, 1897-1957, undated (boxes 1-17, 35, 37; 15.25 linear ft.; Reels 5750-5777)

Series 3: New York Office, 1855-circa 1981, undated (boxes 17-32, 36; 15 linear ft.; 5777-5795)

Series 4: Rome Office, 1903-1943, undated (boxes 32-34; 3 linear ft.; 5795-5800)

Series 5: Unprocessed Addition to the American Academy in Rome Records, 1933-2002 (boxes 35-103; 31.6 linear ft.)

Historical Note:: While in Chicago to advise and work on the fine arts section of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, architects Charles F. McKim, Daniel Burnham, and Richard Howland Hunt, painters John La Farge and Frank Millet, and sculptors Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and Daniel Chester French, among others, met regularly. From their collaborative experience and discussions came the idea for an American school for artists in Europe. Charles F. McKim was especially enthusiastic. He strongly believed that collaborative experience should be available to future American artists, and perceived a real need for an American school in Europe--preferably in Rome, the very best place to study art, in his opinion.

By March of the following year, McKim was busy devising plans for the school and persuading like-minded architects and artists to assist. He proposed to finance the school by convincing institutions with traveling scholarships in the arts to send those students to Rome. Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, and the Rotch Scholarship fund readily agreed to the scheme, and in ensuing years many others followed suit. In October, 1894, the American School of Architecture in Rome opened temporary quarters in the Palazzo Torlonia. The school consisted of its Director, Austin Lord, three fellows, and a visiting student; its "library" contained but one volume.

A move to the larger, more suitable Villa Aurora occurred in July 1895. Rent from two subtenants (the newly established American School of Classical Studies in Rome and the British and American Archaeological Society Library in Rome), along with a personal contribution from McKim, made this financially feasible.

The American School of Architecture in Rome was incorporated in the State of New York, 1895, and 10 shares of capital stock were issued. Despite substantial fundraising efforts in Chicago, New York, and Boston, severe financial problems continued. The American School of Classical Studies in Rome vacated the Villa Aurora in 1896--and with it went a sizeable portion of the School of Architecture's income. McKim frequently made up the deficit from his own pocket.

Eventually, it was decided that the American School of Architecture in Rome must be reorganized along the lines of the French Academy and that national sponsorship needed to be obtained through an act of Congress. In June of 1897, the American School of Architecture in Rome voted to dissolve itself and create the American Academy in Rome. The new institution would assume all assets and obligations, fellowships in painting and architecture were to be added to the program, and its Board of Trustees would include architects and artists. The Academy is not a school. Its fellows and visiting students, already professionally trained, go to Rome for further development and for collaboration and association with others. In the words of Director Gorham Phillips Stevens: "The object of the American Academy in Rome is not to afford opportunities for a few individuals to perfect themselves for the practice of their chosen professions. The ideal is to create an atmosphere in which a limited number of carefully selected artists and scholars may develop that synthesis of intellectual culture which will make them worthy to preserve and continue the great traditions of the past in order that the standard of art and literature may be handed on from year to year, constantly strengthened and improved."

Beginning in 1901, bills to make the American Academy in Rome a "national institution" were introduced in Congress on several occasions. A hearing was finally scheduled in 1905, and a revised bill that prohibited government funding and specified that U.S. officials may not be Trustees was signed into law. Serious efforts to create an Endowment Fund and secure better quarters were associated with the movement to obtain status as a national institution. The Academy was successful in meeting all of these objectives. In 1904, the Academy moved to the Villa Mirafiore (also known as Villa Mirafiori), which it soon purchased and renovated. The Endowment Fund raised well over a million dollars. Donors of $100,000 to the Endowment Fund, designated "Founders" of the American Academy in Rome, were: The Carnegie Foundation, Henry C. Frick, Harvard College, Charles F. McKim, J. P. Morgan, Sr., J. P. Morgan, Jr., The Rockefeller Foundation, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., William K. Vanderbilt, and Henry Walters. Other categories of donors were "Incorporators" (a new Act of Incorporation was required at the time the American Academy in Rome was chartered as a national institution) and "Life Members."

The American School of Classical Studies in Rome, which had been established by the Archaeological Society in 1895 and during its first year shared the Villa Aurora with the American School of Architecture in Rome, entered into a consolidation agreement with the American Academy in Rome in 1911. Their merger went into effect on the last day of 1912, and ever since, the American Academy in Rome has consisted of the School of Fine Arts and the School of Classical Studies, administered by a common director. The School of Classical Studies is composed of fellows and visiting scholars who are graduate students, secondary teachers, or professors engaged in research in the areas of archaeology, ancient art, philology, and humanistic studies. Women were a part of the School of Classical Studies from its beginning, but were not permitted to participate in the School of Fine Arts until well after World War II. Beginning in 1923, the School of Classical Studies instituted Summer Sessions which appealed to secondary teachers, and attracted an enrollment that was largely female.

Originally, the School of Fine Arts offered fellowships in architecture, painting, and sculpture. Fellowships in landscape architecture were added in 1915; in 1920, a Department of Music was established, and along with it fellowships in musical composition. Fellowships in art history were established in 1947. Unmarried men under age 30 were eligible to compete for the fine arts fellowships awarded annually (except for landscape architecture, awarded every third year); the duration of fellowships ranged from one to three years at various points in the institution's history. In residence along with fellows of the American Academy in Rome, might be holders of various traveling scholarships: the McKim Fellowship, the Columbia Traveling Scholarship, the Perkins Scholarship, the Robinson Traveling Scholarship (Harvard), the Rotch Scholarship, the Julia Appleton Scholarship, the Traveling Scholarship and Stewardson Memorial Scholarship (University of Pennsylvania), the Cresson Scholarship (Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts), the Drexel Institute Traveling Scholarship, the Lazarus Scholarship (Metropolitan Museum of Art), the Lowell Scholarship (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), and the Rinehart Scholarship (Peabody Institute, Baltimore). Visiting students, who remained for a much briefer period than fellows or recipients of various traveling scholarships, were admitted to all lectures and granted use the library, but resided elsewhere. The Academy opened an Atelier in downtown Rome for visiting students in 1927, which operated until financial considerations forced its discontinuation seven years later.

As the merger was being planned, J. P. Morgan, Sr., who was interested in both the American Academy in Rome and the American School of Classical Studies in Rome, began buying properties on the Janiculum, adjacent to Villa Aureilia. Villa Aurelia, built on the summit of the Janiculum in 1650, had been bequeathed to the American Academy in Rome in 1909 by Clara Jessup Heyland. Complications surrounding the gift of Villa Aurelia--including the will being contested by Mrs. Heyland's brother, and problems with unsettled tax assessments--were overcome in the interest of acquiring the outstanding building and its extensive grounds. Not long before his death in 1913, Morgan donated his neighboring land, and the American Academy in Rome continued to expand its Janiculum holdings through purchases and gifts from others. Morgan also agreed to provide a loan for construction of a new building. This building, designed by McKim, Mead, and White and known as the Main Building or Academy Building, opened in 1915; it served as the fellows' residence and work area, and included room for the library, offices, and space for exhibitions and other public events.

During World War I, the American Academy in Rome managed to remain open, although no new fellows arrived during the war years and the number of resident fellows and staff dwindled considerably. Most who remained were involved in some type of civilian war work, often with the Red Cross. In fact, Villa Aurelia was rented by the Red Cross in Italy for office space, and the Main Building was offered as a convalescent hospital, but the war ended before it could be put to that use.

After Italy declared war on the United States in 1941, the American Academy in Rome closed for the remainder of World War II. Those who had been awarded fellowships in classics just prior to the Academy's closing were given the option of using their stipends for study at home or waiting until conditions permitted travel to Rome. A very reduced staff stayed to care for the property and continue library cataloguing, coping with often severe wartime shortages of food and fuel. In addition, there were financial hardships. When bank accounts of enemy aliens were frozen and it was no longer possible to transfer funds from the United States, the Swiss Legation and Vatican arranged for loans to keep the Academy and its staff afloat. Funds that would have been awarded to new fellows during this period were put to use in other ways. In 1943, the American Academy in Rome made a grant to the Citizen's Committee for the Army and Navy, Inc. for competitions to award commissions to artists and art students throughout the country, funding more than 100 triptychs for chapels, as well as murals, medals, and sculpture. Seniors in American colleges and universities were eligible to compete for several scholarships for graduate work in classical studies awarded by the American Academy in Rome.

In 1945, the Academy was the site of Leave Courses on various aspects of Italian culture offered to servicemen. From the end of the war until the Academy reopened at the start of the 1946/47 academic year, G.I. Fellowships were offered to discharged soldiers wishing to study at the Academy, making the institution eligible to receive surplus equipment and rations. During this time intensive planning was underway for administrative changes and new programs.

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1893 -- While in Chicago to collaborate on the fine arts section for the World's Columbian Exposition, architects Charles F. McKim, Daniel Burnham, Richard Howland Hunt, painters John La Farge, and Sculptors Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and Daniel Chester French, among others, met regularly and from their collaborative experience and discussions came the idea for an American school in Europe.

1894 -- American School of Architecture in Rome opened in temporary quarters at the Palazzo Torlonia with Austin Lord, Director, three fellows, and a visiting student.

1895 -- Villa Aurora leased with 2 subtenants, the American School of Classical Studies and the British and American Archaeological Society Library in Rome American School of Architecture incorporated and 10 shares of capital stock issued (2 each to McKim and Hunt, and 1 to Burnham, Kendall, Schermerhorn, Boring, Garland, and Dill) McKim visits Rome.

1896 -- Metropolitan Museum of Art, administrator of Jacob H. Lazarus Scholarship for the study of mural painting, agrees to send the winner to Rome American School of Classical Studies in Rome vacates Villa Aurora.

1897 -- American School of Architecture in Rome dissolved and reorganized as the American Academy in Rome; the assets (including the lease on Villa Aurora) of the American School of Architecture in Rome were transferred and its program expanded to include fellowships in painting and sculpture Samuel A. B. Abbott appointed first Director Rome Prize discontinued (for 9 years) due to lack of funds.

1898 -- Incorporated in New York State; trustees begin to focus on raising an endowment.

1904 -- Move to Villa Mirafiore (also known as Villa Mirafiori); occupied until 1914.

1905 -- Chartered by the Congress of the United States; a bill signed by President Roosevelt made the American Academy in Rome a national institution (receiving no government funding and barring U.S. officials from acting as Trustees).

1906 -- Purchase of Villa Mirafiore finalized; renovations begun.

1909 -- Villa Aurelia bequeathed to the Academy by Clara Jessup Heyland (used until 1932); there were protracted problems surrounding the acquisition of the property including a brother who contested the will and unsettled taxes.

1911 -- School of Classical Studies in Rome (established by the Archaeological Institute of America in 1895) and the American Academy in Rome announce their consolidation [the merger became effective on the final day of 1912].

1912 -- Lands on the Janiculum adjacent to Villa Aurelia, recently acquired by J. Pierpont Morgan, Sr., transferred to the American Academy in Rome.

1913 -- American Academy in Rome now consists of the School of Fine Arts and the School of Classical Studies. New York office moves to the Architect's Building, 101 Park Ave., remaining at this location until 1973. By this date, largely through the generosity of J. Pierpont Morgan, Sr., nearly all of the land bounded by Via Angelo Masina, Via Giacomo Medici, Via Pietro Riselli, and the Aurelian Wall on the Janiculum had been purchased and many improvements made to the properties near the Villa Aurelia. Construction begins on the new Academy building designed by McKim, Mead, and White and situated on the grounds of Villa Aurelia; financed through a loan from J. Pierpont Morgan, Sr. (after Morgan Sr.'s death, his son offered to cancel the loan at an amount equal to funds raised by the Academy for the purpose).

1915 -- First Fellowship in Landscape Architecture established; opening of new Academy building housing the fellows' residential quarters, work areas, library, offices, and spaces for public programs.

1917 -- Villa Aurelia rented to the Red Cross for office space, and the new Main building was slated to become a convalescent hospital, but the war ended before it could be put to use.

1919 -- New York office reorganized by Roscoe Guernsey, executive secretary; sale of Villa Mirafiore; Academic Council established in Rome.

1920 -- Department of Music and Fellowship in Musical Composition established.

1923 -- School of Classical Studies establishes summer sessions, largely attended by teachers.

1926 -- Second Fellowship in Landscape Architecture funded by Garden Club of America (later permanently endowed).

1927 -- Academy opens an Atelier in downtown Rome, providing studios for visiting students (operated until 1934).

1929 -- First Thomas Spencer Jerome lecturer appointed.

1941 -- Academy closes for duration of World War II; a skeletal staff remain behind to care for the property and continue library cataloguing; Italy declares war on the United States.

1942 -- After transfer of funds from the U.S. proved impossible and enemy aliens were prohibited from withdrawing their own funds from Italian banks, the Swiss Legation and Vatican offered assistance to the Academy by providing loans.

1943 -- Academy grant to Citizen's Committee for the Army and Navy, Inc., funded hundreds of triptychs; murals, medals, and sculptures also commissioned Academy awards scholarships in classical studies at American colleges and universities.

1945 -- "Leave courses," held at the Academy, consisting mainly of lectures by distinguished scholars still in Rome, instituted for U.S. servicemen.

1946 -- Regular program resumes at the start of the academic year.

1947 -- Fellowship in the History of Art established.

1965 -- Loan of printed matter for microfilming by the Archives of American Art (reels ITRO 2-3 and 11-13).

1973 -- New York office moves to American Federation of Arts building, 41 East 65th St. (until 1993).

1982 -- Gift of New York office records to the Archives of American Art.

1990 -- Gift of Rome office records to the Archives of American Art.

1993 -- New York office moves to Metropolitan Club, 7 East 60th St.

Related Material:: Papers of a number of former fellows, trustees, and other individuals associated with the American Academy in Rome are among the holdings of the Archives of American Art.

Chaloner Prize Foundation records, 1915-1974 (microfilm reels 5664-5669) were received with the American Academy in Rome records. They have been arranged and described as a separate collection.

Valentine, Lucia and Alan Valentine. The American Academy in Rome, 1894-1969. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1973.

Separated Material:: The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reels ITRO 2-3, and ITRO 11-13) including annual reports, exhibition catalogues, a history of the American Academy in Rome, the American Academy in Rome at the World's Fair, and the Golden Gate Exposition and newsletter. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and can be found at the American Academy in Rome, Italy. This material is not described in the collection container inventory.

Provenance:: The material on reels ITRO 2-3 and ITRO 11-13 were lent to the Archives of American Art for microfilming by the American Academy in Rome in 1965. Records of predecessor institutions, the Board of Trustees, and the New York office, including photographs and personal papers, were donated in 1982 by the Academy president, Calvin G. Rand. In 1990, Rand also gifted the Rome office records and the personal documents of Gorham Phillips Stevens. An addition of New York office records was donated in 2014 by the Academy director, Adele Chatfield-Taylor.

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 American Academy in Rome records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Topic:: Architecture -- Study and teaching Search this; Architecture, Classical -- Study and teaching Search this; Art -- Study and teaching Search this; Art schools -- Italy -- Rome Search this

Genre/Form:: Photographs

Citation:: American Academy in Rome records, 1855-2012. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:: AAA.ameracar

See more items in:: American Academy in Rome records

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_collection:sova-aaa-ameracar

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No Image Available

New York Office

Collection Creator:: American Academy in Rome Search this

Extent:: 15 Linear feet (Boxes 17-32, 36; 5777-5795)

Type:: Archival materials

Date:: 1855-circa 1981, undated

Scope and Contents note:: Since its founding the American Academy in Rome has maintained offices in New York. This office supports the work of the board of trustees and its many committees, and is responsible for administration of fellowship competitions, fundraising, and record keeping.

Arrangement note:: The series is organized into seven subseries.

3.1: Records of Staff, 1919-1950, undated

3.2: Rosters, 1895-1939, undated

3.3: Printed Matter, 1905-circa 1981

3.4: Photographs, 1891-1941, undated

3.5: Personal Papers, Memorabilia and Ephemera, 1855-1923, undated

3.6: Association of the Alumni of the American Academy in Rome, 1913-1945, undated

3.7: Miscellaneous Records, 1899-1926, undated

Collection 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.

Collection Rights:: The American Academy in Rome records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary 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.

Collection Citation:: American Academy in Rome records, 1855-2012. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Identifier:: AAA.ameracar, Series 3

See more items in:: American Academy in Rome records

Archival Repository:: Archives of American Art

EDAN-URL:: ead_component:sova-aaa-ameracar-ref916

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Chronograph

Maker:: Fauth & Co. Search this

Object Name:: Chronograph, Astronomical; chronograph, Fauth

Place made:: United States: District of Columbia, Washington

Date made:: around 1890

Subject:: Science & Scientific Instruments Search this

ID Number:: PH.315243

Accession number:: 217937

Catalog number:: 315243

See more items in:: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences

Data Source:: National Museum of American History

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746aa-4096-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:nmah_1183915

reflection polariscope

Maker:: Ballauf, Daniel Search this

Measurements:: overall: 13 13/16 in x 6 15/16 in x 8 5/8 in; 35.08375 cm x 17.62125 cm x 21.9075 cm

Object Name:: Polariscope, Reflecting; reflection polariscope

Place made:: United States: District of Columbia, Washington

ID Number:: PH.315166

Catalog number:: 315166

Accession number:: 219145

See more items in:: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences

Data Source:: National Museum of American History

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746aa-3d87-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:nmah_1184270

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Fauth Heliotrope (Steinheil)

Maker:: Fauth & Co. Search this

Measurements:: overall in case: 1 3/4 in x 8 in x 2 5/8 in; 4.445 cm x 20.32 cm x 6.6675 cm

Object Name:: heliotrope (steinheil)

Place made:: United States: District of Columbia, Washington

Related Publication:: Fauth & Co.. Catalogue of Astronomical and Surveying Instruments, 1883

ID Number:: PH.309655

Accession number:: 106954

Catalog number:: 309655

See more items in:: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences; Measuring & Mapping; Surveying and Geodesy

Data Source:: National Museum of American History

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a5-ea2c-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:nmah_764374

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Heliotrope (telescopic)

Maker:: Fauth & Co. Search this

Measurements:: overall: heliotrope: 9 1/4 in x 20 1/8 in x 1 3/4 in; 23.495 cm x 51.1175 cm x 4.445 cm; overall: mirrors, each: 4 1/8 in x 4 1/4 in; 10.4775 cm x 10.795 cm

Object Name:: Heliotrope (telescopic); heliotrope (telescopic)

Place made:: United States: District of Columbia, Washington

Related Publication:: Fauth & Co.. Catalogue of Astronomical and Surveying Instruments, 1877

ID Number:: PH.247922

Catalog number:: 247922

Accession number:: 47736

See more items in:: Medicine and Science: Physical Sciences; Measuring & Mapping; Surveying and Geodesy

Data Source:: National Museum of American History

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a5-ea29-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:nmah_764373

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Water jar with design of maple leaves

Artist:: Ogata Kenzan (1663-1743) Search this; Edo-Iriya Workshop Search this

Medium:: Buff clay with white slip and iron pigment under transparent glaze, and enamels over glaze; lacquer additions to lost enamels; lacquered wooden lid

Dimensions:: H x Diam: 14.2 × 15.9 cm (5 9/16 × 6 1/4 in)

Type:: Ceramic; Vessel

Origin:: Iriya district, Tokyo, Japan

Date:: ca. 1731-1743

Period:: Edo period

Topic:: Edo period (1615 - 1868) Search this; water Search this; tea Search this; Japan Search this; Japanese Art Search this

Credit Line:: Gift of Charles Lang Freer

Accession Number:: F1904.358a-b

Restrictions & Rights:: Usage conditions apply

Related Online Resources:: Google Cultural Institute

See more items in:: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Data Source:: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye35fbc1f6e-6dac-4257-9a9a-3dc80d182f89

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:fsg_F1904.358a-b

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Water jar or incense burner with design of maple leaves

Artist:: Ogata Kenzan (1663-1743) Search this; Edo-Iriya Workshop Search this

Medium:: Buff clay with white slip and iron pigment under transparent glaze, and enamels over glaze; bronze cover

Dimensions:: H x Diam: 13.9 × 16.1 cm (5 1/2 × 6 5/16 in)

Type:: Ceramic; Vessel

Origin:: Iriya district, Tokyo, Japan

Date:: ca.1731-1743

Period:: Edo period

Topic:: Edo period (1615 - 1868) Search this; water Search this; tea Search this; Japan Search this; Japanese Art Search this

Credit Line:: Gift of Charles Lang Freer

Accession Number:: F1905.24a-b

Restrictions & Rights:: Usage conditions apply

Related Online Resources:: Google Cultural Institute

See more items in:: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Data Source:: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye3b728a729-7c40-4eec-ad62-1e0b7a082830

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:fsg_F1905.24a-b

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Bottle

Medium:: Stoneware with slip glaze and ash speckles

Dimensions:: H x Diam: 14.9 × 10.7 cm (5 7/8 × 4 3/16 in)

Style:: Bizen ware, Imbe type

Type:: Ceramic; Vessel

Origin:: Imbe, Okayama prefecture, Japan

Date:: 18th-19th century

Period:: Edo period

Topic:: Bizen ware Search this; Bizen ware, Imbe type Search this; Edo period (1615 - 1868) Search this; Japan Search this; stoneware Search this; Japanese Art Search this

Credit Line:: Gift of Charles Lang Freer

Accession Number:: F1905.31

Restrictions & Rights:: Usage conditions apply

Related Online Resources:: Google Cultural Institute; The Story of the Beautiful

See more items in:: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Data Source:: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

GUID:: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye3ae32bc2b-f3b0-4d7c-a397-292b7d67a210

EDAN-URL:: edanmdm:fsg_F1905.31

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reflection polariscope

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Water jar with design of maple leaves

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Water jar or incense burner with design of maple leaves

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