Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Summary:
Material relating to the Federal Art Project; and correspondence.
REEL D/NDA/B: Reports; directives; articles; lectures; speeches; clippings; publications; the mock-up of a projected book on the project; and essays written for the book by Stuart Davis and Balcomb Greene. Papers were kept by Benson as consultant to the Federal Art Project and are mostly related to the Community Art Centers and the Index of American Design.
REEL 2384: 482 cards and letters from artists and friends; lecture notes and writings; and a photograph (unidentified). Correspondents include Karl Knaths, Alexander Calder, Gustav Wolff, Alfred Stieglitz, Jacques Lipchitz, George Grosz, Arthur Machen, John Marin, Franklin Watkins, Wassily Kandinsky, and others.
Citation:
Emanuel Benson papers, 1924-1967. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
35mm microfilm reels D/NDA/B & 2384 available for use at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Biography Note:
Educator, writer, and lecturer; Philadelphia, Pa. Was a consultant for the WPA Federal Art Project. Began a book on the project and died before it was finished. Francis V. O'Connor edited and completed the book, ART FOR THE MILLIONS.
Language Note:
English .
Provenance:
Donated 1964-1978 by Benson and his widow, Elaine Benson.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
