Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Kathleen Curry relating to John Steuart Curry, 1990 and 1992. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Correspondence, photographs, clippings, magazines and statements by 20th century artists on their works bought for the Roland P. Murdock Collection of the Wichita Art Museum, Wichita, Kansas, by Navas.
Artists represented include: Peggy Bacon, Louis Bouche, William Brice, Charles E. Burchfield, Paul Burlin, Kenneth Callahan, John S. Copley, Russell Cowles, John S. Curry, Stuart Davis, Jose de Creeft, Adolf Dehn, Walt Dehner, Charles Demuth, Arthur Dove, Guy Pène du Bois, Thomas Eakins, William Glackens, Raphael Gleitsmann, George Grosz, John E. Heliker, Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper, Alexander R. James, Jonah Kinigstein, Frederick D. Kirsch, Walt Kuhn, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Gaston Lachaise, James Lechay, John Marin, Reginald Marsh, Henry E. Mattson, Carl Morris, George L. K. Morris, Roy Moyer, Charles Oscar, James Penney, Anne Poor, Henry V. Poor, Albert Pinkham Ryder, Henry E. Schnakenberg, Ben Shahn, Charles Sheeler, John Sloan, Houghton C. Smith, Elizabeth Sparhawk-Jones, Franklin C. Watkins, Max Weber, Clara M. Williamson, Karl Zerbe, and William Zorach.
Biographical / Historical:
Elizabeth S. Navas (1885-1979) was an art collector and patron in New York City. Navas was designated to assemble the Roland P. Murdock Collection of the Wichita Art Museum under the terms of the will of her friend, Louise Caldwell Murdock (1858-1915), widow of Roland P. Murdock.
Provenance:
Donated 1963 by Elizabeth S. Navas.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
The records of New York City's Maynard Walker Gallery measure 6.3 linear feet and date from 1923 to 1975. The collection comprises personal and professional correspondence; artist's files for Thomas Hart Benton, John Chumley, John Steuart Curry, Lily Cushing, Madeline Hewes, Walt Kuhn, Wayne Williams, Grant Wood, and others; exhibition and gallery files consisting of printed materials, exhibition scrapbooks, a file on Spanish painting, and files for the exhibition Other Worlds (1945); financial and sales records containing files for artist accounts, non-artist accounts, bills of sale, and inventory; and photographic materials for exhibitions, works of art, and the writer Henry James.
Scope and Contents:
The records of New York City's Maynard Walker Gallery measure 6.3 linear feet and date from 1923 to 1975. The collection comprises personal and professional correspondence; artist's files for Thomas Hart Benton, John Chumley, John Steuart Curry, Lily Cushing, Madeline Hewes, Walt Kuhn, Wayne Williams, Grant Wood, and others; exhibition and gallery files consisting of printed materials, exhibition scrapbooks, a file on Spanish painting, and files for the exhibition Other Worlds (1945); financial and sales records containing files for artist accounts, non-artist accounts, bills of sale, and inventory; and photographic materials for exhibitions, works of art, and the writer Henry James.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as five series.
Series 1: Correspondence, 1929-1975 (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
Series 2: Artist's Files, 1927-1972 (2.8 linear feet; Boxes 2-5, 7)
Series 3: Exhibition and Gallery Files, 1928-1970 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 5, 7)
Series 4: Financial and Sales Records, 1923-1967 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 5-6)
Series 5: Photographic Materials, circa 1950s-1960s (0.5 linear feet; Box 6)
Biographical / Historical:
The Maynard Walker Gallery was an art gallery in New York, New York, founded by Maynard Walker in 1935. Walker previously worked for the Ferargil Gallery in New York where he began his professional relationship with the artists John Steuart Curry, Thomas Hart Benton, and Grant Wood. In 1938, Walker opened another gallery in Hollywood, California. Walker was a primary promoter of the Regionalists during the 1930s and 1940s. Walker retired in 1967 and died in 1985.
Provenance:
The Maynard Walker Gallery records were donated from 1974 to 1980 by Maynard Walker and in 1973 by the Frick Library on behalf of Maynard Walker. A portion of the collection was lent for microfilming and subsequently donated in 1976 by Maynard Walker.
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.
REELS N591-N597: Photographs of the Museum, Juliana Force, Herman Moore; scrapbooks on the Whitney Studio Club, Whitney Studio Galleries and the Museum, 1927-1965.
REELS N599-N604: Notebooks of Edwin W. Dickinson; photographs and provenance information for works by Philip Evergood; a catalog of information and some photographs of Chinese ink drawings and other works by Reginald Marsh; and photographs and information on Bernard Reder, Jack Tworkov, Max Weber (portions also microfilmed on reel NY59-8 (fr. 497-658), reel NY59-9 (fr. 1-51), and William Zorach.
REELS N604-N609: Exhibition catalogs, 1946-1966, for artists and groups shows at the Museum, including Robert Feke, William Rimmer, Ralph Blakelock, Albert Maurer, Albert Pinkham Ryder, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Thomas Cole, Max Weber, Arshile Gorky, Mark Tobey, John Sloan, Loren MacIver, I. Rice Pereira, George Grosz, Reginald Marsh, Charles Burchfield, Morris Graves, Theodore Roszak, John Marin, Hans Hofmann, Bradley Tomlin, Stuart Davis, Milton Avery, Lee Gatch, Jose De Creeft, Maurice Prendergast, Edward Hopper, Hyman Bloom, Robert E. Jones, Balcomb Greene, Karl Zerbe, Arthur G. Dove, William Zorach, Philip Evergood, Bernard Reder, Herbert Feber, Oliver O'Connor Barrett,Arthur B. Davies, Jose De Rivera, Paul Burlin, Joseph Stella, Jack Tworkov, Ivan Albright, Stuart Davis, Edwin Dickinson, John Quidor, and Niles Spencer.
REELS N646-N694: Artists' files on: Oliver O'Connor Barrett,William Baziotes, George Bellows, Thomas Hart Benton, Peter Blume, James Brooks, Patrick Henry Bruce, Charles Burchfield, Paul Burlin, David Burliuk, Paul Cadmus, Mary Cassatt, Thomas Cole, Glenn Coleman, Jon Corbino, John Steuart Curry, Jo Davidson, Arthur B. Davies, Jose DeCreeft, Charles Demuth, Jose De Rivera, Arthur Dove, Guy Pène du Bois, Stuart Davis, Frank Duveneck, Ralph Earl, Eastman Johnson, The Eight, Philip Evergood, Robert Feke, Lyonel Feininger, Ernest Fiene, George Fuller, Lee Gatch, William Glackens, Arshile Gorky, Balcomb Greene, Chaim Gross, George Grosz, William Harnett, Marsden Hartley, Childe Hassam, John Heliker, Robert Henri, Hans Hofmann, George Inness, Leon Kelly, Franz Kline, Karl Knaths, Leon Kroll, Walt Kuhn, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Gaston Lachaise, Robert Laurent, Ernest Lawson, Jack Levine, Seymour Lipton, George B. Luks,
Stanton Macdonald-Wright, Loren MacIver, John Marin, Reginald Marsh, Alfred Maurer, K. H. Miller, Robert Motherwell, William Mount, Jerome Myers, Louise Nevelson, Georgia O'Keeffe (portions also microfilmed on reels NY59-13 (fr. 98-115, 406-424, 586-685), reel NY59-14 (entire), and reel NY59-15 (fr. 1-140, 145-153), I. Rice Pereira, Bernard Perlin, Joseph Pollett, Jackson Pollock, Reginald Pollack, Henry V. Poor, Richard Pousette-Dart, Maurice Prendergast, Abraham Rattner, Bernard Reder, Ad Reinhardt, William Rimmer, Larry Rivers, Hugo Robus, Theodore Roszak, Mark Rothko, Concetta Scarvaglione, Henry Schnakenberg, Ben Shahn, John Sloan, David Smith, Eugene Speicher, Theodoros Stamos, Joseph Stella, Maurice Sterne, Mark Tobey, Bradley Tomlin,Trajan, Allen Tucker, John Twachtman, Jack Tworkov, Abraham Walkowitz (also on reel NY/59-15) , Max Weber, James M. Whistler, Gertrude Whitney, Grant Wood, Alexander Wyant, Mahonri Young, and William Zorach.
REELS NWH 1-NWH 7: Artist files on Charles Sheeler, Bernard Karfiol, Louis Eilshemius; scatterred records of the Whitney Studio Club and Museum, 1914-1945, including minutes, Oct. 15, 1930, and Whitney Studio ledgers, 1928-1931; catalogs of one-man shows, 1932-1945; catalogs of annual painting exhibitions, 1932-1940, sculpture, watercolor and drawing exhibitions, 1933-1945, and group exhibitions, 1932-1945; and clippings, Oct. 1935-1936.
REELS NY59/8 (fr. 256-end)-NY59/10: Files on Max Weber, including biographical material, lists of work, and miscellany. Also found (NY59/8 frames 354-383) are ca.20 letters from Weber to Abraham Walkowitz, 1907-1924.
Biographical / Historical:
Whitney Museum of American Art is an American art museum in New York, New York. Founded by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney and formally opened in 1931. Previous to its opening as a museum it was known as the Whitney Studio Club (1914-28) and Whitney Studio Galleries (1928-30).
Provenance:
The Weber files on reels NY59/8-10 were lent for microfilming 1959 by the Whitney Museum of American Art; the remainder was lent 1964-1967; additional material from the Museum was lent at the same time, and subsequently donated, including the papers of Lloyd Goodrich, Juliana Force, Thomas B. Clarke, the American Art Research Council, and Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney; these have each been cataloged separately. Portions of Weber, and O'Keeffe material that was microfilmed in 1959 were refilmed in 1967.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States Search this
Artists -- Exhibitions -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
(for a sketch of the site of this mural, see Artwork)
Collection Restrictions:
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
An interview of Albert Christ-Janer conducted by Dorothy Seckler 1964 March 21 for the Archives of American Art.
Christ-Janer speaks of the regionalist movement in painting in the 1930s, of Thomas Hart Benton, John Steuart Curry and Grant Wood; teaching at the Cranbrook Academy of Design; and he recalls Jackson Pollock.
Biographical / Historical:
Albert Christ-Janer (1910-1973) was a painter, printmaker, museum director, educator, and writer in Athens, Georgia.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 21 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Painters -- Georgia -- Athens -- Interviews Search this
0.2 Linear feet (ca. 237 items (on 2 partial microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1918-1973
Scope and Contents:
Letters, printed material, photographs, writings, and two etchings.
REEL 3683: Letters, annotated by Wickey, from John Taylor Arms, John Steuart Curry, Adolph Dehn, Rockwell Kent, Reginald Marsh, Kenneth Hayes Miller, Walter Pach, the Society of American Etchers, and other art organizations discussing art theory, exhibitions, and personal matters; 3 exhibition catalogs, ca. 1931-1973; a notice of a Guggenheim Fellowship award; and two landscape etchings by Wickey.
REEL 1079: A typescript of Wickey's autobiography, THUS FAR, (published by the American Artists Group, 1941); letters from Wickey to Ethel and Virginia Myers about Jerome Myers, and to Mr. and Mrs. Frank Street sent from France during World War I; letters from Syracuse University about the Wickey Collection, and from George Grosz; a list of letters given to Syracuse University; and photographs of Wickey and Grosz.
Biographical / Historical:
Etcher, lithographer, teacher; Cornwall Landing, New York.
Related Materials:
Harry Wickey papers also at Syracuse University.
Provenance:
Material on reel 1079 donated by Mrs. May Wickey, wife of Harry Wickey, 1976. Material on reel 3683 lent for microfilming by Ralph Sandler, the son of Wickey's friend and patron Marc Sandler, 1986.
Restrictions:
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.
The microfilmed Norman Bassett papers consist of files on Thomas Hart Benton, John Steuart Curry, Rockwell Kent and Reginald Marsh containing correspondence and drafts of articles for special issues of Demcourier.
Biographical / Historical:
Norman Bassett (1891-1980) studied literature and art at the University of Wisconsin, receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1914. In 1931 he bought the Democrat Printing Company and incorporated it as Demco Library Supplies, Inc. In 1932 Demco began publishing Demcourier, primarily an advertising journal, but one which also published a variety of articles, including a special series "American Authors as Printers." In 1935 Demcourier featured a Mark Twain centennial edition which proved popular, prompting Bassett to run regular issues featuring notable Americans. The first of these (1937) featured Rockwell Kent. Demcourier was discontinued in 1943. Bassett retired from Demco in 1972, and the company was sold to George Banta Company of Menasha, Wisconsin. Bassett became a director of Banta at that time.
Bassett retired from Demco in 1972, and the company was sold to George Banta Company of Menasha, Wisconsin. Bassett became a director of Banta at that time.
Related Materials:
The Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections holds the Norman Bassett Papers, 1932-1956.
Provenance:
The Norman Bassett papers were presented to the State Historical Society of Wisconsin by him in 1954 and 1974. Only a small portion of the papers were microfilmed by the Archives of American Art in 1985. A complete bound set of DEMCOURIER can be found in the Memorial Library, University of Wisconsin.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Rights:
Authorization to quote or reproduce for the purposes of publication requires written permission from State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Eleven letters from Thomas Hart Benton, Adolph Dehn, Reginald Marsh, and Grant Wood; two illustrated letters from John Steuart Curry; brief writings by Reginald Marsh about himself, Benton and Wood; and a fourteen-page, handwritten response by Benton in answer to a questionnaire sent by Engle.
Biographical / Historical:
Editor; Madison, Wisconsin and Stockton, California. As a staff writer and editor of a small, World War II era periodical, Ms. Engle contacted several prominent contemporary artists as subjects for articles.
Provenance:
Donated 1981 by Margaret D. Engle.
Restrictions:
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.
Five photographs by M. E. Diemer show John Steuart Curry painting at the University of Wisconsin when he was artist-in-residence during the 1930s.
Provenance:
Copy prints made in 1990 from negatives donated by the Detroit Institute of Arts Library. The DIA probably received them from the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.
Restrictions:
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.
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
(Eugene Loring, Winthrop B. Palmer; concerning decorations for a ballet of Carl Sandburg's "The Prairie")
Collection Restrictions:
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
The bulk of the collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Access to undigitized portions requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
John Steuart Curry and Curry family papers, 1900-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art
