Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Access of diaries and appointment books required written permission.
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:
André Emmerich Gallery records and André Emmerich papers, circa 1929-2009. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Leon Levy Foundation.
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Access of diaries and appointment books required written permission.
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:
André Emmerich Gallery records and André Emmerich papers, circa 1929-2009. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Leon Levy Foundation.
The records of New York's Guild Art Gallery measure 1.0 linear feet and date from circa 1933-1937. Records document the operation of the gallery for the duration of its existence from August 1935-1937, through correspondence, including some with artists, exhibition files, business and financial records, printed material, a scrapbook, a sketch by Anna Walinska, and photographs of artwork and the gallery.
Scope and Contents:
The records of New York's Guild Art Gallery measure 1.0 linear feet and date from circa 1933-1937. Records document the operation of the gallery for the duration of its existence from August 1935-1937, through correspondence, including some with artists, exhibition files, business and financial records, printed material, a scrapbook, a sketch by Anna Walinska, and photographs of artwork and the gallery.
Correspondence is with artists, business associates, and museums, and in particular records the gallery's efforts to build a client base, establish financial security, and foster the market for modern art. Of note is more detailed documentation of the gallery's representation of painter Lloyd Ney, and records documenting Walinska's attempt to promote the work of Sigmund Menkes which are indicative of the extent to which the gallery was concerned with the development and promotion of art by Jewish artists.
Exhibition files including announcements, catalogs, and price lists, printed material including press clippings, and a dismantled scrapbook of printed material, primarily document the exhibition history of the gallery and provide details of its focus on modern art and the extent of the publicity the gallery received.
Business and financial records provide a variety of ways to examine the gallery's day-to-day operations and accounts. In addition to artist account ledgers and agreements, this series records balances, charges, deposits, and receipts and includes two notebooks with handwritten accounts of activities at the gallery for 1937.
Additionally, there is a pen and ink sketch by Anna Walinska, black and white copy prints of artwork by gallery artists, and a few original photos of the gallery's interior and exhibitions.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 7 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Correspondence, 1935-1937 (10 folders; Box 1)
Series 2: Exhibition Files, 1935-1937 (5 folders; Box 1)
Series 3: Business and Financial Records, 1935-1937 (13 folders; Box 1)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1935-1937 (7 folders, Box 1)
Series 5: Scrapbook, 1935-1937 (4 folders; Box 1)
Series 6: Sketch and Photographs, circa 1933-1937 (4 folders; Box 1)
Biographical / Historical:
Founded by painter Anna Walinska (1906-1997) and painter and illustrator Margaret Lefranc (1907-1998), the Guild Art Gallery opened in August 1935 at 37 West 57th Street in New York. Walinska and Lefranc were known for their promotion of modern art and their gallery was the venue for Arshile Gorky's first solo exhibition in the city. The gallery was also committed to promoting Jewish artists during a time of growing antisemitism at home and abroad.
In 1935 Walinska and Lefranc were quoted in Art Digest as stating that their plans for the new gallery were to "exhibit, without charge, the work of contemporary artists, whether known or unknown; to develop, through a receptive audience, a better understanding of the creative expression and the problems of creative expression and the problems of contemporary society; and to illustrate the relationship of painting with the other arts." The gallery's opening exhibition featured work by both Walinska and Lefranc, as well as by Boris Aronson, Don Forbes, Henry Major, Rosa Newman, Philip Reisman, Ben-Shmuel, Ary Stillman, and, notably, Arshile Gorky. Gorky's first solo exhibition in New York was subsequently held at the gallery in December 1935.
Walinska's interest in promoting Jewish artists is evidenced in records of a 1936 letter writing campaign to seek prospective Jewish clients for the work of School of Paris painter Sigmund Menkes and, in particular, his painting The Torah. Walinska wrote in her letters "It seems to me in view of the fact that a renewed interest in Jewish culture has been awakened by recent world events, that effort should be made towards a development and conservation of Jewish Art." Jewish artists were represented in three-quarters of the gallery's inaugural exhibition season, and consistently thereafter.
Walinska and Lefranc initially sponsored lectures on modern art to generate income but outgoing 1936 letters indicate the gallery was struggling financially and Walinska and Lefranc sought support from prominent and wealthy figures in the art and business worlds such as Winslow Ames, George Gershwin, Juliana Force, A. Conger Goodyear, William Randolph Hearst, Albert C. Barnes, and Alfred H. Barr.
After almost two years in operation, the Guild Art Gallery closed in 1937.
Related Materials:
Also found among the holdings of the Archives of American Art are the Anna Walinska papers, 1927-2002.
Provenance:
Margaret Lefranc, co-founder of the Guild Art Gallery, donated the records to the Archives of American Art in 1981.
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.
Guild Art Gallery records, circa 1933-1937. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund. Funding for the digitization of the collection was provided in part by Rosina Rubin and the Walton Family Foundation.
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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:
Nell Blaine papers, 1879, 1940-1985. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Processing of this collection received Federal support from the Collections Care Initiative Fund, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative and the National Collections Program. Funding for the digitization of this collection was provided in part by the Terra Foundation for American Art and The Walton Family Foundation.
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:
Carnegie Institute, Museum of Art records, 1883-1962, bulk 1885-1940. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Brown Foundation. Funding for the digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
