Art dealer Leroy Ireland's research material on George Inness measures 2.0 linear feet and dates from 1916 to 2007, with the bulk of the material dating from 1960 to 1971. The collection documents Ireland's research for his book The Works of George Inness: An Illustrated Catalogue Raisonne through correspondence, research files, and photographs of artwork.
Scope and Content Note:
Art dealer Leroy Ireland's research material on George Inness measures 2.0 linear feet and dates from 1916 to 2007, with the bulk of the material dating from 1960 to 1971. The collection documents Ireland's research for his book The Works of George Inness: An Illustrated Catalogue Raisonne through correspondence, research files, and photographs of artwork.
Leroy Ireland's correspondence is with museums, galleries, private collectors, universities, and others regarding paintings by George Inness and works attributed to him. The bulk of the correspondence dates from 1960 to 1969 during the period that Ireland was working on the catalogue raisonne. Scattered research files include a notebook, notes, and lists of works; photographs, letters, and documents regarding Inness which were received by Mrs. Ireland after Leroy Ireland's death; exhibition catalogs and other printed material. Also found are two copies of letters written by Inness. Photographs depict paintings by George Inness, paintings attributed to Inness but determined to be fakes, and paintings by other artists.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 3 series:
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1916-2007 (Box 1-2; 1.5 linear feet)
Series 2: Research Files Regarding George Inness, 1925-1973 (Box 2; 7 folders)
Series 3: Photographs, circa 1919-1972 (Box 2; 0.3 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Leroy Ireland (1889-1970) was an art dealer and painter in New York and Philadelphia. Ireland is best know for his research on the works of landscape painter George Inness (1825-1894), culminating in a catalogue raisonne of his work.
Ireland began his career as a painter, studying with Thomas Eakins at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and exhibiting in many shows during the 1920s. He moved to New York and became an art dealer and appraiser. During that time he also studied and became an expert in the work of George Inness, specializing in the authentication of works held by galleries, museums, and private collectors. After nearly 30 years of research, his book The Works of George Inness: An Illustrated Catalogue Raisonne was published by the University of Texas Press in 1965.
Separated Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming. Reels 992-996 contain an extensive photograph file of Inness paintings, correspondence, notes on and descriptions of art, sales records of Inness's works, ownership records of paintings, information about questionable attributions, exhibition catalogs and, miscellany. These materials were returned to the Chapellier Galleries in New York City. Reels 2824-2825 include twelve scrapbooks compiled by Ireland and contain circa 3,000 photographs of Inness paintings. The scrapbooks can now be found in the Fine Arts Library, University of Texas at Austin. Lent materials on microfilm are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
Leroy Ireland research material on George Inness were given to the Archives of American Art in several different accessions. First, Leroy Ireland donated two letters and photographs of artwork in 1963-1964. In 1975, Chapellier Galleries in New York City, who had acquired papers from Ireland's estate, lent additional Leroy Ireland research material regarding George Inness for microfilming. In 1983, twelve scrapbooks compiled by Ireland were lent by Archer Huntington Art Gallery of the University of Texas at Austin for microfilming. Mrs. Leroy Ireland donated the remainder of the papers in 1993 via executor Irene Chapellier Little and in 2010 by the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania who received the collection from John Frisk, a friend of Ireland.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
