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Catalog Data

Creator:
Sheeler, Charles, 1883-1965  Search this
Subject:
Bacon, Peggy  Search this
White, Minor  Search this
Weston, Edward  Search this
Williams, William Carlos  Search this
Arensberg, Louise S. (Louise Stevenson)  Search this
Sheeler, Musya  Search this
Waters, George  Search this
Halpert, Edith Gregor  Search this
Eidlitz, Dorothy  Search this
Rourke, Constance  Search this
Newhall, Nancy Wynne.  Search this
Newhall, Beaumont  Search this
Lane, William H.  Search this
Arensberg, Walter  Search this
Adams, Ansel  Search this
Archives of American Art  Search this
Downtown Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Type:
Artifacts
Awards
Photographs
Journals (accounts)
Scrapbooks
Writings
Place of publication, production, or execution:
United States
Physical Description:
4.9 Linear feet
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into seven series. Materials are arranged by material type and chronologically or alphabetically thereafter: Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1875, 1928-1965 (Boxes 1, 5, OV10; 0.6 linear feet) Series 2: Correspondence, 1937-1966 (Box 1; 0.5 linear feet) Series 3: Writings, circa 1930s-1965 (Boxes 1-2 ; 0.4 linear feet) Series 4: Scrapbooks, 1930s-1960s (Boxes 2, 6; 0.4 linear feet) Series 5: Printed Material, 1923-1966 (Boxes 2-4, 7; 1.5 linear feet) Series 6: Photographs, circa 1840s-1963 (Box 4, OV11; 0.4 linear feet) Series 7: Artwork, circa 1930s-1960s (Boxes 4-5, 8-9, OV12-OV14; 1.1 linear feet)
Access Note / Rights:
The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment.
Summary:
The papers of painter, photographer, lithographer and industrial designer Charles Sheeler measure 4.9 linear feet and date from circa 1840s to 1966, with the bulk of the material dating from 1923-1965. The collection documents Sheeler's family, personal life and career through financial and medical records, awards, correspondence, writings, an autobiography, journal and notebooks, scrapbooks, exhibition catalogs and announcements, printed materials, photographs, funeral records and artwork by Sheeler and others. The collection is particularly rich in Sheeler's writings, and also includes Sheeler's industrial designs and manufactured artwork. Notable photographs include Sheeler with Edward Weston, Edward Steichen, and John Marin.
Citation:
Charles Sheeler papers, circa 1840s-1966, bulk 1923-1965. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
Portions of the collection and material lent for microfilming are available on 35 mm microfilm reels NSH-1-NSH3, 1811-1812 and D10 at Archives of American Art offices, and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of the collection as described in this finding aid does not reflect the order of the collection on microfilm.
Funding:
Funding for processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
Use Note:
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.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art holds several collections that are related to Charles Sheeler.
There are two oral history interviews with Sheeler conducted by Mary Bartlett Cowdrey in December 1958, and by Martin Friedman in June 1959. The Archives also has the records of the Macbeth Gallery, which include a substantial amount of correspondence with Sheeler from 1907-1921, and the Downtown Gallery records, which also include correspondence with Sheeler, photographs of Sheeler and his artwork, exhibition publications, clippings, press releases, and audio visual materials dating from 1904-1972.
Also found in the the Archives is a loan of Charles Sheeler letters filmed on reel NY/59-5 containing letters written by Sheeler to his psychologist and art collector, Dr. Helen Boigon, art student George Craven, and friend William Carlos Williams, all dating from 1939-1958. There is a collection of six letters of Sheeler letters addressed to Doris Royce, possibly an art critic, dating from 1949-1957. Miscellaneous manuscript collections include one letter written by Sheeler to E.P. Richardson in 1958, and another letter written to Frank Crowninshield in September, 1939. Portions of Sheeler's papers that were originally loaned for microfilming were not included in the later gifts and are available only on microfilm reel NSH-1. A watercolor study microfilmed on reel 1811 was later transferred to the Smithsonian American Art Museum. These materials are not described in the container list of this finding aid.
Biography Note:
Painter, photographer, lithographer and designer, Charles Rettew Sheeler Jr. was born on July 16, 1883 to Mary Cunningham Sheeler and Charles Rettew Sheeler in Philadelphia. He attended the School of Industrial Art in Philadelphia from 1900-1903 and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he studied under William Merritt Chase. He found early success as a painter and exhibited at the Macbeth Gallery in 1908.
Language Note:
English .
Provenance:
Charles Sheeler's wife Musya initially loaned the papers to the Archives of American Art for microfilming in 1958, 1965, and 1966. In June, 1966, she donated most of the earlier loaned materials. In 1964, Sheeler's friend Howard Lipman donated three photographs of Sheeler with Edward Steichen and John Marin. The third accrual was transferred to the Archives by the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery Library in June 1979.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
Topic:
Works of art  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Lithographers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Industrial designers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Theme:
Diaries  Search this
Photography  Search this
Architecture & Design  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)9401
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)211598
AAA_collcode_sheechar
Theme:
Diaries
Photography
Architecture & Design
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_211598