Skip to main content Smithsonian Institution

Search Results

Collections Search Center
1,147 documents - page 4 of 58

Milton and Edith Lowenthal papers

Creator:
Lowenthal, Milton  Search this
Lowenthal, Edith  Search this
Names:
Brooklyn Museum  Search this
Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this
Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this
De Creeft, José, 1884-1982  Search this
Gross, Chaim, 1904-1991  Search this
Lawrence, Jacob, 1917-2000  Search this
Miller, Henry, 1891-1980  Search this
O'Keeffe, Georgia, 1887-1986  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Sheeler, Charles, 1883-1965  Search this
Weber, Max, 1881-1961  Search this
Extent:
4.4 Linear feet ((on 5 microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks
Date:
1940-1989
Scope and Contents:
Biographical material; correspondence and greeting cards; writings; business records; printed material about the Lowenthal collection, exhibitions, and artists, photographs; scrapbooks; and sound recordings.
REEL 4904, frames 1-114: Thirty-nine greeting cards from artists, illustrated with original prints, drawings, and off-set reproductions. Included are 20 from Jose de Creeft and Lorrie Goulet, 8 from Abraham and Esther Rattner, 4 each from Chaim Gross and Milton and Sally Avery, 2 from Max Weber, and 1 from Jacob Lawrence.
REELS 4904 (fr. 126-end) - 4908: Biographical material includes a resume and transcripts for Edith Lowenthal, an obituary of Isadore Lowenthal, M.D., Milton's father, and clippings related to the Lowenthals. General correspondence, 1947-1991, is primarily with museums, university galleries, and publishers regarding loans and gifts of art work, contributions, lectures, travel, and permissions to reproduce for publication. In addition, there are a correspondence file, 1963-1990, with the Brooklyn Museum, regarding loans, contributions, and conservation work, and correspondence from artists, including letters, greeting cards, and announcements from Stuart Davis, Jacob Lawrence, Josef Presser, Abraham Rattner, Charles Sheeler, Max Weber, and others.
Writings and notes by Milton Lowenthal are about the role of the art collector, his thoughts on works of art and artists, and drafts of letters. Writings by others include Henry Miller's "The Rattner Portfolio" and Elizabeth McCausland's proposal for a Marsden Hartley catalog raisonne. Material relating specifically to the Lowenthal Collection includes lists, valuations, collection exhibition records, documentation of gifts, financial records, receipts, clippings, catalogs, and a 2 v. index of acquisitions. A file containing memorabilia relating to Stuart Davis includes clippings, an address book, printed materials, and notes.
Printed materials include clippings about artists, collectors, and other art related issues and exhibitions, exhibition announcements, and catalogs. Photographs are of artists and works of art. Files relating to the "Friends of the Whitney", ca. 1956-1961, include correspondence, by-laws, annual and other reports, statements, and catalogs of loan exhibitions. Scrapbooks (4 v.), 1942-1953, contain letters and greeting cards (many illustrated) from friends, artists and associates, clippings, exhibition announcements, and catalogs about artists, museums, and exhibitions.
Unmicrofilmed material consists of negatives, slides, and transparencies of works of art and 3 phonograph albums (78 r.p.m) of a radio interview with art collectors and a recording of a school performance by Stuart Davis' son.
Biographical / Historical:
Art collectors, benefactors of the Brooklyn Museum; New York, N.Y. Mr. Lowenthal was a lawyer whose clients included Stuart Davis.
Provenance:
Donated 1993 by Louis M. Bernstein, Mrs. Lowenthal's nephew, except for illustrated greeting cards on reel 4904, frames 1-114, which were received as a loan for microfilming.
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.
Topic:
Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Greeting cards  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Scrapbooks
Identifier:
AAA.lowemilt
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw93ff6c9a9-440c-40db-a074-e6cb92ca04a8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-lowemilt

R. Sturgis Ingersoll papers relating to Henry McCarter

Creator:
Ingersoll, R. Sturgis (Robert Sturgis), b. 1891  Search this
Names:
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts  Search this
Barnes, Albert C. (Albert Coombs), 1872-1951  Search this
Beaux, Cecilia, 1855-1942  Search this
Biddle, Francis, 1886-1968  Search this
Borie, Adolphe, 1877-1934  Search this
Cortissoz, Royal, 1869-1948  Search this
Crane, Alexander  Search this
Cullen, Charles  Search this
Davis, Bernard  Search this
Garber, Daniel, 1880-  Search this
Hall, William Weeks, 1894-1958  Search this
Herman, Leorna Owsky  Search this
Ingersoll, Anna Warren, 1887-1980  Search this
Kendall, William Sergeant, 1869-1938  Search this
McCarter, Henry, 1866-1942  Search this
Neumann, J. B. (Jsrael Ber)  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Roosevelt, Nicholas Guy, 1883?-1965  Search this
Walsh, Lorna Gill  Search this
Watkins, Franklin Chenault, 1894-1972  Search this
Extent:
0.6 Linear feet ((on 1 microfilm reel))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1896-1944
bulk 1930-1943
Scope and Contents:
Material compiled by R. Sturgis Ingersoll preparatory to his biography of Henry McCarter (never completed), primarily Ingersoll's correspondence with McCarter's friends and associates, and McCarter's correspondence collected by Ingersoll.
Included are Ingersoll's correspondence requesting information and documents relating to McCarter; correspondence and clippings regarding the Henry McCarter Memorial Exhibition held at the J.B. Neumann Gallery, New York, N.Y. and at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1943; and documents regarding McCarter's estate, 1943, 1944. Among the correspondents are Francis and Katherine Biddle, Mrs. Adolphe Borie (Edith), Alexander Crane, Royal Cortissoz, Charles Cullen, Bernard Davis, Daniel Garber, William Weeks Hall, Mrs. William Sergeant Kendall (Christine Herter), Joanna McCarter (McCarter's neice), Abraham Rattner, Lorna Gill Walsh, Franklin C. Watkins, and others.
McCarter's correspondence is with Albert C. Barnes, Cecilia Beaux, Francis and Katherine Biddle, Adolphe and Edith Borie, Bernard Davis, Lenora Owsley Herman, Anna Warren Ingersoll, R. Sturgis Ingersoll, William Sergeant Kendall, Nicholas Roosevelt, and others. Also included are a manuscript fragment by McCarter about individual expression and the "stifling' traditions of academic training, undated; Hannah Rile Weiman's handwritten notes of a lecture by McCarter at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 1920 or 28; sketches by McCarter; 12 photographs of McCarter and others, ca. 1930; and clippings.
Biographical / Historical:
Ingersoll was a lawyer, art collector, and President of the Philadelphia Museum of Art; McCarter a Philadelphia painter.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1994 by Mr. Perry Benson, Ingersoll's grandson.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this
Lawyers -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this
Topic:
Art, American -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this
Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.ingershm
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw98d856d23-7a25-4444-9d2e-af4b28023cd2
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-ingershm

Ralph and Bena Frank Mayer papers

Creator:
Mayer, Ralph, 1895-1979  Search this
Mayer, Bena Frank, 1898-1991  Search this
Names:
Biddle, George, 1885-1973  Search this
Bishop, Isabel, 1902-1988  Search this
Brook, Alexander, 1898-1980  Search this
Burchfield, Charles Ephraim, 1893-1967  Search this
Florsheim, Richard A., 1916-1979  Search this
Hammer, Victor Karl, 1882-  Search this
Hirsch, Stefan, 1899-1964  Search this
Hurd, Peter, 1904-1984  Search this
MacKendrick, Lilian  Search this
Miller, Kenneth Hayes, 1876-1952  Search this
Pach, Walter, 1883-1958  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Sloan, John, 1871-1951  Search this
Smith, David, 1906-1965  Search this
Extent:
4.5 Linear feet ((partially microfilmed on 3 reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
[ca. 1920]-1964
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence, writings, photographs, art work, subject files, scrapbooks, and printed material.
REELS D211-D213: Ralph Mayer's correspondence is with artists, conservators, museum directors, publishers, art organizations, and others. Notebooks contain data on 19th century canvas makers and dealers of artists' materials. Also included are correspondence and a ledger regarding restoration and conservation of paintings, 1929-1963; files on Columbia University, the National Academy of Design, the Newark Museum, The New York State Department of Commerce, the Whitney Museum of Art, subway murals, and other subjects; and correspondence with the U.S. Department of Commerce regarding standards for paints and pigments. Photographs are of Ralph Mayer's paintings. Correspondents include: George Biddle, Isabel Bishop, Alexander Brook, Charles Burchfield, Richard A. Florsheim, Victor Hammer, Stefan Hirsch, Peter Hurd, Lilian MacKendrick, Kenneth H. Miller, Walter Pach, Abraham Rattner, John Sloan, and David Smith.
Bena Frank Mayer's papers consist of biographical material, clippings, correspondence, exhibition catalogs and announcements, and photographs of her paintings. Two scrapbooks contain printed material, letters, and photographs regarding the Mayers' careers.
UNMICROFILMED: Correspondence includes Ralph Mayer's, 1930-1964, mainly concerning the use of artists' materials, Bena Frank correspondence, 1910-1977, and letters concerning Mayer's book, The Painter's Craft, 1948. Among his correspondents are Josef Albers, Thomas Hart Benton, Isabel Bishop, Georgia O'Keeffe, Walter Pach, Paul Sample, John Sloan, and Frederic Taubes. Subject files are on the Artists' Laboratory, the Art Students League, Gustav Berger, Huntington Hartford, the MacDowell Colony, the National Academy of Design, Diego Rivera murals, subway murals, and other subjects. Writings consist of papers on commercial standards of paint, a typescript of The Painter's Craft, and lecture notes from classes Mayer taught at the Art Students League and Columbia University.
Art work consists of sketchbooks and sketches. Photographs are of the Mayers, their studios, family, friends, and paintings. Printed material includes exhibition catalogs and announcements, brochures, clippings, and posters. There are also six scrapbooks, ca. 1930-1940, containing clippings, photographs, letters received, and printed material.
Biographical / Historical:
Ralph Mayer: conservator, restorer, painter. Died 1979. Bena Frank Mayer: painter. They lived in New York. Ralph Mayer was educated as a chemical engineer, and spent several years working in the manufacture of paints and varnishes. He also studied painting at the Art Students League. His work in conservation and artists' materials led him to found the Artists Technical Research Institute in 1959. Author of The Artists Handbook of Materials and Techniques (1940) and The Painter's Craft (1948), and numerous articles. Taught at Columbia University.
Provenance:
Material on reels D211-D213 was lent for microfilming in 1965 by Ralph Mayer. Portions were subsequently donated along with unmicrofilmed material, 1972-1979, by Ralph and Bena Frank Mayer.
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.
Occupation:
Art restorers  Search this
Conservators  Search this
Restorers  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Artists' materials  Search this
Art -- Conservation and restoration  Search this
Art -- Technique  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.mayeralp
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9dd9999e2-6a80-4d08-9531-d0f9c0ecb497
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-mayeralp

Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers

Creator:
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Names:
Downtown Gallery (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Esther Gentle Reproductions  Search this
Kennedy Galleries  Search this
Paul Rosenberg & Co.  Search this
Bedwell, Bettina, 1889-1947  Search this
Biddle, George, 1885-1973  Search this
Boyle, Kay, 1902-  Search this
Burlin, Paul, 1886-1969  Search this
Carton, Norman, 1908-1980  Search this
Coates, Robert M. (Robert Myron), 1897-1973  Search this
Davis, Stuart, 1892-1964  Search this
De Rochemont, Richard  Search this
Dehn, Adolf, 1895-1968  Search this
Dos Passos, John, 1896-1970  Search this
Gentle, Esther, 1900-  Search this
Gonzalez, Xavier, 1898-1993  Search this
Griffin, John Howard, 1920-  Search this
Guthrie, Ramon, 1896-  Search this
Gwathmey, Robert, 1903-1988  Search this
Hall, William Weeks, 1894-1958  Search this
Hayter, Stanley William, 1901-  Search this
Hiler, Hilaire, 1898-1966  Search this
Hirsch, Joseph, 1910-1981  Search this
Hirsch, Stefan, 1899-1964  Search this
Holty, Carl, 1900-1973  Search this
Hélion, Jean, 1904-1987  Search this
Kronberg, Louis, 1872-1965  Search this
Lebrun, Rico, 1900-1964  Search this
Leepa, Allen, 1919-2009  Search this
Lipchitz, Jacques, 1891-1973  Search this
Ludgin, Earle, 1898-1981  Search this
Malcolm, Thalia Westcott, b. 1878  Search this
Miller, Henry, 1891-  Search this
Miró, Joan, 1893-  Search this
Nordfeldt, Bror Julius Olsson, 1878-1955  Search this
Peake, Channing, 1910-  Search this
Poor, Henry Varnum, 1887-1970  Search this
Ruvolo, Feliz  Search this
Stark, Jack Gage, 1882-1950  Search this
Watkins, Franklin Chenault, 1894-1972  Search this
Weller, Allen S. (Allen Stuart), 1907-1997  Search this
Extent:
26.3 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketches
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Interviews
Date:
1891-1986
Summary:
The Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers measure 26.3 linear feet and date from 1891 through the 1980s. The collection documents Rattner's life and career as an artist through interviews, extensive correspondence, gallery files, studio notebooks, writings, notes, date books and diaries, photographs, and works of art.
Scope and Content Note:
Abraham Rattner's papers provide insight into an important time for twentieth century American art and culture. By studying Rattner's papers, the researcher may view the beginnings of Modernism, the cultural change that pushed the boundaries of artistic and literary traditions and provided new ways in which to express ourselves.

The Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers measure 26.3 linear feet and date from 1891 through the 1980s. The collection documents Rattner's life and career as an artist through interviews, extensive correspondence, gallery files, studio notebooks, writings, notes, date books and diaries, photographs, and works of art.

The biographical files contain documents such as Rattner's birth certificate, travel visas, his senior yearbook from 1912 which shows some of his early art work, and some of his awards. His birth certificate is of particular interest since it shows Rattner's birth date to be 1893 instead of the recognized 1895.

The correspondence offers great insight into the thoughts of many American and European artists and writers during the 1930s and 1940s. Rattner, a prolific writer, expressed many of his own thoughts and concerns through his letters, many of which are included in this collection. The vast amount of correspondence include letters from notable figures such as George Biddle, Kay Boyle, Paul Burlin, Norman Carton, Robert Coates, Stuart Davis, Adolph Dehn, Richard de Rochemont, John Dos Passos, Xavier Gonzales, John Howard Griffin, Ramon Guthrie, Robert Gwathmey, Weeks Hall, Stanley W. Hayter, Jean Helion, Hilaire Hiler, Joseph Hirsch, Stefan Hirsch, Carl Holty, Louis Kronberg, Rico Lebrun, Jacques Lipchitz, Earle Ludgin, Thalia Wescott Malcolm, Henry Miller, Joan Miro, Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt, Channing Peake, Henry Varnum Poor, Felix Ruvolo, Waverly Root, Jack Gage Stark, Frank C. Watkins, and Allen Weller, among others.

Rattner was engaged in a wide range of special art projects, and he kept detailed files on these projects. The projects spanned from 1940 through 1973 and included endeavors such as illustrations for Life magazine, stained-glass designs, mosaic and tapestry projects, as well as special paintings such as Victory--Jerusalem the Golden and The Gallows of Baghdad. Rattner's papers also detail the history of a fresco painted by Paul Gauguin entitled Joan d'Arcwhich Rattner purchased in France in 1925.

Rattner's forty year friendship with the writer Henry Miller is chronicled throughout the collection in the forms of correspondence, writings, printed material, phototographs and artwork. Their correspondence ranges from 1938 through 1978 and offers great insight into their relationship. Rattner and Miller's road trip from New York to New Orleans in 1940-1941 is documented in the series entitled Special Projects. Also included in the collection are printed material, such as biographical material on Miller, Miller's writings, literary announcements and reviews; Miller's writings on Rattner; and photographs of Miller.

The gallery files contain correspondence, receipts, and notes regarding the galleries which represented Rattner. Those galleries included the Rosenberg Gallery, the Downtown Gallery, and the Kennedy Gallery. A small series of exhibition files contain material about exhibitions held outside of Rattner's representative galleries.

Rattner's writings proved to be an outlet for his thoughts on painting, his inspirations, frustrations, and sadness. In addition to painting, Rattner was able to express his creativity through writing poetry. Writing also helped him work through his depression over the death of his first wife Bettina Bedwell.

He also kept finely detailed studio notebooks. The original order has been maintained, and they trace the history of almost each painting, drawing, and study attempted by Rattner. The notebooks often provide information regarding whether the work was sent to a gallery or given as a gift. Sometimes they contain correspondence or writings that reveal the inspiration for a work. They have been arranged in chronological order, according to Rattner's own filing system.

Rattner retained receipts for most of his art expenses. Arranged by decade, these receipts show the type of paint, colors, types of paper and brushes that he used.

Rattner also kept many household files and personal financial records. Household files contain insurance records, warranties and rental agreements, while the financial records contain returned checks and bank statements. Some bank statements from Esther Gentle Reproductions are also included. The household files and financial records are not filmed.

The date books and diaries reveal the aspects of daily life and the personal thoughts of Rattner and Esther Gentle. In many cases, Rattner shared his date books and diaries with Gentle. The early diaries are fascinating, especially the 1939 diary that discloses the Rattners' last days in France before escaping Nazism and returning to the United States.

Rettner's scrapbooks span from 1938 to 1952 and contain newspaper and magazine clippings that mention the artist or his work.

The printed material covers a period from 1930s through the 1980s and includes exhibition catalogs, exhibition announcements, clippings, and miscellaneous material such as an autograph book from 1969 and a map of Israel that shows Rattner's travel route. There is a large amount of unfilmed printed material that is listed in the series description.

Writings by others consists of writings on Rattner and other topics.

The collection contains many photographs taken of Rattner and taken by him, as well as photos of family, friends, his studio, travels, and photographs of Rattner's art. Photographs of notable people include Henry Miller, Joan Miro, John Dos Passos, Archibald MacLeish, and Malcolm Cowley, among others.

The amount of Rattner's art work included in the collection is small, but it is significant because it provides examples of his very early work, dating from 1912-1914. Some later studies are also present, as well as a number of random sketches. Color was very important to Rattner, and some of his color studies from the 1940s are also included. Art work by other artists is comprised of some small paintings by Max Weber, a water color by Henry Miller, a painting by Ken Buryd, as well as some work by unknown artists.

In addition to tracing Rattner's life and career, the collection also documents the lives of Rattner's two wives, Bettina Bedwell and Esther Gentle. Both women had profound effects on Rattner's work. Among Bettina Bedwell's papers are her diary, fashion sketches, and correspondence. Esther Gentle's papers include correspondence, writings, as well as papers documenting her business Esther Gentle Reproductions. There are a small amount of papers relating to Allen Leepa, Rattner's stepson with Esther Gentle.

See index for list of correspondents from various series.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into twenty-four series based primarily on type of document or special project. Though concentrated in its own series, additional correspondence is scattered throughout the collection and may be found in special project files, gallery files, exhibition files, studio notebooks, and scrapbooks. The correspondence has been divided into two subseries, one chronological and the other according to Rattner's subject-oriented filing system. Special art projects have been organized by project, and placed in chronological order. The studio notebooks have also been divided into subseries, and all notebook pages maintain Rattner's original order. The first subseries of notebooks reflects Rattner's numbering system, while the second subseries is arranged chronologically. The vast amount of printed material has been divided into subseries, and all of the unfilmed printed material has been organized chronologically at the end of the series.

Within each series, material is arranged either in chronological order, or in some cases, according to Abraham Rattner's own organizational system.

Oversized materials from various series are housed in oversized folders 33-45 and are noted in the Series Description/Container Listing with see also/see references or in the container columns.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Files, 1893-1978, undated (box 1; 0.2 linear ft.)

Series 2: Interviews, 1957-1975, undated (box 1; 7 folders)

Series 3: Correspondence Files, 1933-1978, undated (boxes 1-5; 4.3 linear ft.)

Series 4: Special Projects, 1940-1987, undated (boxes 5-6, ovs 33-35; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 5: -- Joan d'Arc -- Fresco painted by Paul Gaugin, 1925-1963, undated (box 7, ov 36; 12 folders)

Series 6: Gallery Files, 1942-1975 (boxes 7-8; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 7: Exhibition Files, 1963-1978 (boxes 7, 9; 9 folders)

Series 8: Writings, 1940-1972, undated (box 9; 0.9 linear ft.)

Series 9: Studio Notebooks, 1935-1975, undated (boxes 10-11; 1.9 linear ft.)

Series 10: Art Expenses, circa 1940-1970 (boxes 11-13; 0.7 linear ft.)

Series 11: Household Files, 1940-1970, undated (box 13; 0.8 linear ft.)

Series 12: Financial Records, 1933-1963 (boxes 13-14; 0.7 linear ft.)

Series 13: Notes and Lists, 1936-1972, undated (box 14; 0.5 linear ft.)

Series 14: Address Books, 1939-1977, undated (box 15; 1.0 linear ft.)

Series 15: Date Books/Diaries, 1937-1977, undated (boxes 16-17; 1.6 linear ft.)

Series 16: Scrapbooks, 1938-1952 (boxes 18-22; 1.5 linear ft.)

Series 17: Printed Material, 1920s-1980s, undated (boxes 23-26; 3.6 linear ft.)

Series 18: Writings by Others, 1945-circa 1980, undated (box 26; 20 folders)

Series 19: Photographs, 1891-1970s, undated (boxes 27-29; 1.6 linear ft.)

Series 20: Works of Art by Rattner, 1912-1914, 1940-1967, undated (box 30, ovs 37-44; 2.4 linear ft.)

Series 21: Works of Art by Others, undated (box 30, ov 45; 7 folders)

Series 22: Bettina Bedwell Papers, 1932-1947, undated (box 31; 0.4 linear ft.)

Series 23: Esther Gentle Papers, 1921-1984, undated (boxes 31-32; 1.3 linear ft.)

Series 24: Allen Leepa Papers, 1952-1969, undated (box 32; 8 folders)
Biographical Note:
Abraham Rattner was born in Poughkeepsie, New York in 1895. His parents immigrated to the United States to escape antisemitism in Czarist Russia. He was the second of six children, including his eldest brother Louis, younger brothers Manuel (Manny) and Harry, and his younger sisters Rose and Jennie.

Rattner's parents encouraged him to paint at a young age, and as he grew up, painting became a part of his daily life. He graduated from Poughkeepsie High School in 1912 and left to study architecture at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. At night, he took art courses at the Corcoran School of Art. He soon became a full-time art student, and applied for a scholarship to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. He was accepted in 1919 and supported himself by doing illustrations for Philadelphia newspapers.

In 1917, World War I interrupted his studies. Rattner entered the United States Army in France where he became Sergeant of camouflage section, 40th Engineers. Camouflage, reflecting aspects of modern art in its form and pattern, made use of Rattner's artistic skills. During the second battle of the Marne, Rattner injured his back and returned to the States with an ailment that would affect him for the rest of his life.

Rattner returned to the Pennsylvania Academy and was awarded the Cresson scholarship to study art in Europe. He traveled for one year, then settled in Paris for the next twenty years. Those twenty years in Paris became the most formative for Rattner because he was able to study and experiment with Futurism, Cubism, and Expressionism. Post World War I Paris was the center of modern culture for Americans disillusioned by the destruction of the war. Expatriate writers, poets, and artists were searching for a culture that shunned the traditions of the past and exchanged ideas with one another at the lively Paris cafes and salons.

In 1924, Abraham Rattner married Bettina Bedwell, an American art student and fashion illustrator. Bettina became the Paris fashion correspondent for the New York News-Chicago Tribune Syndicate. In 1927, Rattner was a member of the Minotaure group, along with Picasso, Miro, Giacometti, Le Corbusier, Braque, Dali, and Reverdy. He also illustrated an article for Jon Dos Passos in Verve magazine in 1931.

Rattner's first one-man show was in 1935 at the Galerie Bonjean in Paris, which was followed by one-man shows at the Julien Levy Gallery in New York, the Arts Club of Chicago, and the Courvoisier Gallery in San Francisco.

The threat of Hitler and Nazism forced Rattner and his wife to flee Paris in 1939. Arriving in New York in early 1940, Rattner agreed to take a trip by car with the writer Henry Miller. Their route took them from New York to New Iberia, Louisiana via the East coast and Southern states. Their mission was to rediscover America, with Henry Miller writing about their experiences and Rattner sketching the scenery. Rattner's friendship with Henry Miller was an important one that lasted throughout his life.

During the 1940s, Rattner's art was widely exhibited. In 1941, he joined the Rosenberg Gallery in New York, and remained with the gallery for fourteen years. He won awards for his work such as the Temple Gold Medal in 1945 and second prize in the Pepsi-Cola Fourth Annual Art Competition in 1946. In 1947, Bettina Bedwell suddenly died due to a kidney infection, sending Rattner into a spiral of grief and depression. To escape depression, from 1947-1949, he taught at the New School for Social Research in New York.

In 1949, Rattner married Esther Gentle, an artist and business woman who ran an art reproductions business. In 1951, the Rattners moved to Rome where he worked as Artist in Residence at the American Academy. The next year, they moved to Illinois where he was the Artist in Residence at the University of Illinois. Ratter was awarded first prize in 1953 at the 23rd Corcoran Biennial Exhibition and also served as Vice-President of Artists' Equity. In 1956, Rattner was the Distinguished Visiting Professor at Michigan State University, and along with his stepson, Allen Leepa, established an art school on Long Island. In 1957, Rattner left the Rosenberg Gallery to join the Downtown Gallery. He felt he would professionally profit from representation by the well-known Edith Halpert; however, the next twelve years reflected a tumultuous relationship between the artist and the gallery owner.

In 1957, Rattner reached out to other forms of art and design. He experimented with mosaic, tapestry and stained-glass. He designed mosaic columns and tapestries for the Fairmont Temple Anche Chesed in Cleveland and a mosaic for a friary and college in Centerville, Ohio. His stained-glass designs were highly celebrated and respected. His most famous stained-glass piece was the window for the Chicago Loop Synagogue. For this piece, Rattner spent two years traveling to Paris to design and supervise every process involved in the design and installation of the window.

Rattner felt that while his paintings during the 1940s and 1950s were romantic and self-reflective, the 1960s marked a new inspirational period in his work. His painting reflected religious comment, bringing Rattner back in touch with his Jewish heritage, as well as reflecting a sense of social protest. In 1968, Rattner exhibited his painting Victory--Jerusalem the Golden to honor the celebration of Israel's twentieth anniversary of independence. It was also in 1968 that Rattner left the Downtown Gallery for the Kennedy Gallery. In 1969, he painted The Gallows of Baghdad series as a protest to the hanging of nine Jews by Iraqi authorities.

The 1970s marked a time of many exhibitions. In 1976, the National Collection of Fine Arts in Washington, D.C. sponsored an exhibition of his designs for stained-glass entitled "...and let there be light". Also, from 1976 through 1977, "Our America" exhibited Rattner's drawings from his 1940 U.S.A. trip with Henry Miller in England and in the United States. In 1977, Michigan State University bestowed upon him the Honorary Degree for Humanity. On February 14, 1978, Abraham Rattner died due to heart failure.

Missing Title

1893 -- Born June 8th in Poughkeepsie, New York.

1912 -- Graduated from Poughkeepsie High School.

1914-1917 -- Student at George Washington University, Corcoran School of Art and Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

1917 -- Enlisted in the United States Army in France as Sergeant, camouflage section, 40th Engineers. Fought at Seicheprey, second battle of the Marne, and Chateau-Thierry.

1919 -- Returned to Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Awarded Cresson traveling fellowship to Europe.

1920 -- Traveled in France, Spain, England, Belgium and Holland.

1921 -- Art student in Paris at Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Grand Chaumiere, and Academie Ranson.

1922 -- Lived and painted in Giverny, France.

1923 -- Returned to Paris.

1924 -- Married Bettina Bedwell, Paris fashion correspondent for the New York News-Chicago Tribune news syndicate. Exhibited at Salon d'Automne and Salon des Independants.

1927 -- Member of the Minotaure group in Paris.

1931 -- Illustrated article, "Fire," by John Dos Passos for Verve magazine.

1935 -- First one-person show at Galerie Bonjean, Paris. French government purchased Card Party for Museum of Impressionism, The Louvre.

1936 -- One-person show at Julien Levy Gallery, New York (also 1939, 1941); Arts Club of Chicago; Courvoisier Gallery, San Francisco (also 1941).

1940 -- Returned to the United States following Nazi invasion of France. Traveled with Henry Miller from New York to New Iberia, Louisiana.

1941 -- One-person shows: Stendahl Gallery, Los Angeles; Faulkner Memorial Art Gallery, Santa Barbara (also 1943); Paul Rosenberg Gallery, New York (also 1942, 1944, 1946, 1948-1950, 1952, 1956); Studio, New York.

1945 -- Awarded the Temple Gold Medal from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Wrote "An American in Paris" for Magazine of Art.

1946 -- Awarded second prize at the Pepsi-Cola Fourth Annual Art Competition.

1947 -- Death of Bettina Bedwell Rattner.

1948 -- Taught at the New School for Social Research, New York.

1949 -- Married Esther Gentle. Visiting artist at Yale University and at the Brooklyn Museum School. Awarded honorable mention at the Carnegie Institute Exhibition of American Painting.

1950 -- Awarded the Purchase Prize at the University of Illinois Biennial Exhibition.

1951 -- Artist in residence at the American Academy in Rome.

1952 -- Artist in residence at the University of Illinois.

1953 -- Awarded first prize at the 23rd Corcoran Biennial Exhibition. Served as Vice-President of Artists' Equity.

1954 -- Taught at the Art Students League. Panelist at the Design Conference in Aspen, Colorado.

1955 -- Exhibited drawings at the Chicago Art Institute.

1956 -- Distinguished Visiting Professor at Michigan State University. Established an art school in East Hampton and Sag Harbor, Long Island.

1957 -- Designed mosaic columns and tapestries for the Fairmont Temple Anche Chesed in Cleveland. One-person show at Downtown Gallery, New York (also 1958-1967).

1958 -- Designed mosaic wall for St. Leonard's Friary and College in Centerville, Ohio. Designed stained-glass windows for the Flint Institute of Arts, Michigan. Began designs for stained-glass window for the Chicago Loop Synagogue. Exhibited with Alexander Calder at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Elected member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters. Awarded the Butler Memorial Prize at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.

1959 -- Retrospective exhibition circulated by the American Federation of Arts. Exhibited at the Whitney Museum of Art.

1964 -- Exhibited at the Edinburgh International Festival in Scotland.

1968 -- Exhibited painting entitled Victory--Jerusalem the Golden at the celebration of Israel's 20th anniversary of independence.

1969 -- One-person shows: Kennedy Galleries, New York; Galerie Weil, Paris ( Baghdad Hangings), Galerie Belgique, Brussels ( Baghdad Hangings).

1970 -- Film commissioned by ABC-TV entitled "The Long Prayer of Abraham Rattner."

1972 -- Beggar's Opera lithographs exhibited at Circle Gallery, Chicago.

1976 -- Displayed stained-glass on religious themes with the National Collection of Fine Arts in Washington, D.C.

1977 -- "Our America" exhibition in England and the United States. Awarded Honorary Degree for Humanity from Michigan State University.

1978 -- Died on February 14th.
Index: List of Major Correspondents in Various Series:
These correspondents will be found in the following series: Correspondence, Special Projects, Gallery Files, Studio Notebooks, and Scrapbooks: Edward Albee, 1928-

John Anderson, 1904-

Bettina Bedwell, 1889-1947

Carl Beiber

George Belmont

George Biddle, 1885-1973

Kay Boyle, 1902-1992

Brassai, 1899-

Paul Burlin, 1886-1969

McClure Capps "Mac"

Norman Carton, 1908-1980

Jack Chapman

G. Alan Chidsey

Frederick Childs

Robert Coates, "Bob" 1897-1973

Malcolm Cowley, 1898-1989

Salvador Dali 1904-1989

Paul Damaz

Bernard Davis

Stuart Davis, 1894-1964

Adolph Dehn, 1895-1968

Richard de Rochemont

John Dos Passos, 1896-1970

Armand and Suzi D'usseau

Rene Lefebore Foinet

Gisele Freund, 1912-

Emily Genauer, 1911-

Esther Gentle, 1905-1984

Alberto Giacometti, 1901-1966

Xavier Gonzales, 1898-1993

John Howard Griffin

Ramon Guthrie, 1896-1973

Robert Gwathmey 1903-1988

Weeks Hall

Edith Gregor Halpert, 1900-1970

Stanley W. Hayter, 1901-1988

Nathan Hecht

Jean Helion, 1904-1987

William H. Henrick

Henry Herschkvitz

Hilaire Hiler, 1898-1966

Joseph Hirsch "Joe," 1910-1981

Stefan Hirsch, 1889-1964

Carl Holty, 1900-1973

Etienne Hubert

Arno Hummucher

Frederick I. Kann "Fred," 1886-

L.J. Konigsberg "Leib"

Louis Kronberg, 1872-1965

Alexandra Laks

Rico Lebrun (Fredrico), 1900-1964

Allen Leepa, 1919-

Isadore Levy

Julian Levy, 1906-1981

Jacques Lipchitz, 1891-1973

Ward Lockwood, 1894-1963

Jean Louste

Earle Ludgin, 1898-1981

Thalia Wescott Malcolm, 1888-

Reginald Marsh, 1898-1954

Archibald McLeish, 1892-

Henry Miller, 1891-1980

Joan Miro, 1893-1983

Gloria Nardin

Anais Nin, 1903-1977

Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt "B.J.O.," 1878-1955

Hugh O'Neill

Channing Peake, 1910-1989

Gabor Peferdi

Irving Penn

Peter Pollack, 1911-1978

Henry Varnum Poor 1888-1970

Andre Raizorkacs

Robert Rey

Maurice Reynal

Raymond Reynal

Hans Richter, 1888-1976

Edward Roditi

Shelden Rodman, 1909-

Waverly Root, 1903-1982

Felix Emmanuele Ruvolo, 1912-

Frank Sedlak

Paul Shapiro

Jack Gage Stark, 1882-1950

Barrie Stavis

Ike Stoeffle

Benjamin Ellis Tepper

David Turnbull

Alfredo Valente

Siegfried Wang

Frank C. Watkins (Franklin Chenault), 1894-1972

Allen Weller, 1907-
Separated Materials note:
Loaned material, including notebooks, writings, and some correspondence, were returned to Abraham Rattner after microfilming. This material is now part of the Abraham Rattner notes collection at the Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art at St. Petersburg College. Loaned material is available on reels D203-D205, D205A-D205B, and reel 1212, but is not described in this finding aid.
Provenance:
The collection was given to the Archives of American Art in stages by Abraham Rattner 1972-1983, by Esther Gentle 1986-1987, and by Gene Allen in 1992. The donated material that was previously filmed has been integrated and refilmed includes reels D203 and D205C-D205D. The material found on reels D205A-D205B was loaned by Rattner and the material found on reel 1212 was loaned by his sister, Jennie Allen.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use of unmicrofilmed portion 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.
Topic:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Works of art  Search this
Artist couples  Search this
Painters -- France -- Paris  Search this
Art -- Study and teaching -- France -- Paris  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketches
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Interviews
Citation:
Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers, 1891-1986. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.rattabra
See more items in:
Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw98b38e43e-390b-4c78-9a1b-51b9d7ff2357
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-rattabra
Online Media:

Abraham Harriton papers

Creator:
Harriton, Abraham, 1893-1987  Search this
Names:
Syracuse University  Search this
Bishop, Isabel, 1902-1988  Search this
Evergood, Philip, 1901-1973  Search this
Gross, Chaim, 1904-1991  Search this
Hofmann, Hans, 1880-1966  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Soyer, Raphael, 1899-1987  Search this
Extent:
2 Items (linear ft.(partially microfilmed on 1 reel))
0.4 Linear feet (Addition)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Place:
Europe -- description and travel
Date:
1910-1986
Scope and Contents:
REEL 268: Letters, writings, biographical material, catalogs, clippings, and miscellaneous material.
UNMICROFILMED: Curricula vitae and a copy of an award from the Mark Rothko Foundation; correspondence, ca. 1960-1977, with Syracuse University regarding the acquisition of Harriton's papers, with Philip and Julia Evergood, Isabel Bishop, David D. Delafield, Marya and Horace Gregory, Bernard Berenson, and Hans Hofmann concerning his membership to the National Institute of Arts and Letters, and with other institutions and colleagues; Christmas cards, 1967-1972, some with original drawings or graphics by Chaim Gross, Raphael Soyer, Abraham Rattner, Harriton, and others; a journal of his 1963 trip to Europe and other writings; a self-portrait in gouache and crayon; exhibition catalogs and announcements; photocopies of clippings; and photographs of Harriton and photographs and slides of works of art.
ADDITION: Biographical material; journal, 1963; sketchbooks, 26 v., 1948-1977, and undated, and loose sketches; artwork for Christmas cards, 1970s-1980s; photographs of Harriton and his work and a manuscript of "On Underpainting," by Abraham Harriton.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, teacher, etcher, Long Island, New York.
Related Materials:
Abraham Harriton papers also at Syracuse University.
Provenance:
Donated 1972-1977 by Abraham and Estelle Harriton, and in 1990 by their daughter, Maria Harriton.
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.
Occupation:
Etchers  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketchbooks
Identifier:
AAA.harrabra
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw995471e85-08a2-4e79-b731-d06d1bd5ac1e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-harrabra

Rattner, Abraham

Collection Creator:
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture  Search this
Container:
Box 9, Folder 5
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1949
Collection Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
Collection Rights:
Skowhegan Lecture Archives: Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from Skowhegan in addition to the copyright holders. A list of copyright holders is available at the Archives of American Art Washington, D.C. office. Transcripts may not be duplicated. 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.
Collection Citation:
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture records, 1945-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture records
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture records / Series 4: Faculty Files
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw913d9f737-457d-4c4c-a063-9c7ddf4cd657
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-skowscho-ref157

Ward Lockwood papers

Creator:
Lockwood, Ward  Search this
Names:
Federal Art Project  Search this
Dasburg, Andrew, 1887-1979  Search this
Luhan, Mabel Dodge, 1879-1962  Search this
Marin, John, 1870-1953  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Extent:
1.5 Items (linear ft.(on 2 microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1913-1963
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence, 1913-1963, regarding Lockwood's work on murals for government buildings, and letters from Andrew Dasburg, Mabel Dodge Luhan, and Abraham Rattner; a 23 page diary, 1931-1933; an anecdotal reminiscence of John Marin; career resumes; 6 sketchbooks; 6 speech texts; material relating to mural projects in Washington, D.C., in Lexington, Kentucky, and in Wichita, Kansas; photographs of Lockwood, his works, and of mural classes; exhibition catalogs; clippings; and miscellany.
Biographical / Historical:
Mural painter, painter and educator; born in Kansas; attended University of Kansas, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Ransom Academy in Paris. Worked on various government buildings painting murals for the WPA. Taught in the art departments at University of Texas, University of California at Berkeley and elsewhere. Lived in Taos, N.M. for many years.
Provenance:
Donated 1964 by Mrs. Ward Lockwood, widow of Lockwood.
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.
Occupation:
Painters  Search this
Topic:
Mural painting and decoration  Search this
Painting  Search this
Muralists  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.lockward
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw95fdd6143-0490-4ca5-9382-995ece5ca4e5
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-lockward

Joseph Randall Shapiro and Jory Shapiro papers

Creator:
Shapiro, Joseph Randall  Search this
Shapiro, Jory  Search this
Names:
Baj, Enrico, 1924-  Search this
Bohrod, Aaron  Search this
Buehr, George Frederick, 1905-1983  Search this
Chagall, Marc, 1887-1985  Search this
Cuevas, José Luis, 1934-  Search this
Golub, Leon, 1922-2004  Search this
Hoff, Margo  Search this
Ito, Miyoko, 1918-1983  Search this
Janis, Sidney, 1896-1989  Search this
Lanyon, Ellen  Search this
Matisse, Pierre, 1900-1989  Search this
Pattison, Abbott L. (Abbott Lawrence), 1916-1999  Search this
Petlin, Irving, 1934-2018  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Sage, Kay  Search this
Tanguy, Yves, 1900-1955  Search this
Extent:
0.6 Linear feet ((on 1 microfilm reel))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1943-1985
Scope and Contents:
Letters, scrapbooks, and printed material documenting the development of the Shapiro's art collection. Correspondence, primarily from dealers, museums, art organizations and artists, includes letters from Enrico Baj, Aaron Bohrod (recommending Ben Shahn as a muralist), George Buehr, Jose Luis Cuevas, Leon Golub, Margo Hoff, Miyoko Ito, Sidney Janis, Ellen Lanyon, Pierre Matisse, Ida Meyer-Chagall (discussing her father's work), Abbott Pattison, Irving Petlin, Abraham Rattner, and Kay Sage Tanguy (discussing her husband's work). Printed material consists of 11 exhibition announcements and catalogs (1952-1984), and clippings (1965-1985).
Four scrapbooks (1943-1955) contain clippings, some dealing with the "Art to Live With" program, exhibition catalogs, a letter from Richard Daley (1958), a 3-page typescript "Surrealism Then and Now" by Doris Lane Butler (1958), press releases (1959), and a letter from R. J. Nedved of the Illinois Society of Architects (1967).
Biographical / Historical:
Born 1904. Died 1996. Joseph Shapiro began collecting in 1942 and was drawn to works in the Surrealist tradition. While establishing one of the most important art collections in Chicago, Shapiro and his wife Jory enjoyed personal friendships with artists and used their collection to educate and increase public appreciation of modern art in Chicago. Shapiro was a founder of the Museum of Contemporary Art and served on its board as President from 1967 until 1974.
Provenance:
Material on reel 3759 (fr. 1-320) donated 1986; and material on fr. 323-569 lent for microfilming 1986 all by Joseph R. Shapiro.
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.
Occupation:
Art patrons  Search this
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Surrealism -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Art -- Collectors and collecting  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.shapjose
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw983ed8d03-2159-4bce-a3ee-7563f25e9447
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-shapjose

Walter Newton Reinsel letters

Creator:
Reinsel, Walter, 1905-1979  Search this
Names:
Blackburn, Morris, 1902-1979  Search this
Coiner, Charles T., 1897-  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Extent:
0.1 Linear feet ((on partial microfilm reel))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1941-1972
Scope and Contents:
Letters to Reinsel from Morris Blackburn, Charles Coiner, and Abraham Rattner. Letters from Blackburn discuss illustration, photography and his activities. Letters from Coiner discuss his painting, and Rattner's letters describe his work, including a stained glass project for Container Corporation.
Biographical / Historical:
Commercial artist; Philadelphia, Pa.
Provenance:
Microfilmed in 1989 as part of AAA's Philadelphia Arts Documentation Project.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Commercial artists -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this
Topic:
Commercial art -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.reinwalt
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw923b58735-ca26-45b2-b994-fa07844fecd8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-reinwalt

William Bostick letters

Creator:
Bostick, William A.  Search this
Names:
Detroit Institute of Arts  Search this
Culver, Charles B. (Charles Beach), 1908-1967  Search this
Dick, Robert W.  Search this
Jungwirth, Irene G., 1913-  Search this
Kachadoorian, Zubel, 1924-  Search this
McPharlin, Paul, 1903-1948  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Extent:
6 Items ((on 2 partial microfilm reels))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1947-1956
Scope and Contents:
Letters to Bostick as Secretary of the Detroit Institute of Arts.
REEL D8, fr.525: A letter from Charles Culver, November 8, 1955, regarding his gift to the DIA of a Robert Dick painting "Moonlight," and offering biographical information and reminiscences on Dick as well as his own painting.
REEL D9, fr. 637: A letter from Paul McPharlin 1947 Oct. 1, mentioning a book design.
REEL D10: Three letters from Abraham Rattner, October 1955, regarding Rattner's work as a juror for a show at the DIA; a letter from Irene Jungwirth, Dec. 1955, in which she discusses her work and thanks Bostick for his support; and a letter, March 1956, from Zubel Kachadoorian telling Bostick of his "Rome Academy Grant."
Biographical / Historical:
Born 1913. Art museum administrator; Detroit, Michigan. Bostick served as the Secretary of the Detroit Institute of Arts.
Provenance:
Donated 1954-1956 by Bostick.
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.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- Michigan -- Detroit  Search this
Function:
Art museums -- Michigan -- Detroit
Identifier:
AAA.bostwill
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9ba811baa-fbf2-42f6-8b0a-b976e4421085
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-bostwill

Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg papers

Creator:
Feitelson, Lorser, 1898-1978  Search this
Names:
Federal Art Project (Calif.)  Search this
Benjamin, Karl  Search this
Butterfield, Jan  Search this
Hammersley, Frederick, 1919-2009  Search this
Kadish, Reuben, 1913-1992  Search this
Langsner, Jules, 1911-1967  Search this
Longstreet, Stephen, 1907-  Search this
Lundeberg, Helen, 1908-1999  Search this
McCoy, Esther  Search this
McLaughlin, John, 1898-  Search this
Miller, Dorothy Canning, 1904-2003  Search this
Moran, Diane De Gasis  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Seldis, Henry  Search this
Sheets, Millard, 1907-1989  Search this
Extent:
15.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketches
Poetry
Writings
Drawings
Sound recordings
Photographs
Date:
circa 1890s-2002
Summary:
The papers of Los Angeles painters and art instructors Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg measure 15.6 linear feet and date from circa 1890s to 2002. The papers document the careers of the two artists, including their establishment of the Post-surrealism movement in southern California, their work for federal arts programs, and their later abstract artwork. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, personal business records, exhibition files, printed materials, photographs, and one sound recording.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of Los Angeles painters and art instructors Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg measure 15.6 linear feet and date from circa 1890s to 2002. The papers document the careers of the two artists, including their establishment of the Post-surrealism movement in southern California, their work for federal arts programs, and their later abstract artwork. Found are biographical materials, correspondence, personal business records, exhibition files, printed materials, photographs, and one sound recording.

Biographical documentation is found for both artists. Lundeberg's early life is documented by school notebooks, yearbooks, diplomas, calendars, awards, and a "memory book." Feitelson's biographical materials include family certificates and documents compiled by Lundeberg regarding Feitelson's funeral. Also found are curriculum vitae and biographical sketches for both artists.

Correspondence is extensive and includes both personal and professional correspondence for both Feitelson and Lundeberg. Materials consist of letters with critics, museums, artists, and friends, including Karl Benjamin, Frederick Hammersley, Reuben Kadish, John McLauglin, Diane Moran, and Abraham Rattner. Of special interest is Feitelson and Lundeberg's correspondence with Museum of Modern Art curator Dorothy Canning Miller.

A small amount of exhibition materials, mostly loan agreements and checklists, are found in the papers documenting exhibitions and loans of their artwork to exhibitions. Personal business records concern the management of their artwork and personal collections. Found here are lists of artwork, price lists, appraisal reports, sales invoices, purchase receipts, tax documents, and a set of index cards for their artwork. There are a few scattered legal documents as well. In addition to personal business records, there is a series of records of the Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg Foundation, established by Lundeberg in 1978.

Scattered research and teaching files are mostly Feitelson's. They document his personal research, teaching activities, and television programs, particularly the program Feitelson on Art. Writings, however, are found for both artists and include artist statements, writings about art and art styles and movements, writings about each artist, and writings about the Federal Arts Program in southern California. Of interest are numerous writings by other contemporary writers and critics, including Jan Butterfield, Jules Langsner, Stephen Longstreet, Esther McCoy, Diane Moran, Henry Seldis, and Millard Sheets.

A small amount of artwork is found within the collection by Feitelson and Lundeberg, mostly sketches and drawings. There is one print by Hans Burkhardt.

Printed materials include newsclippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, lecture announcements, posters, press releases, and printed reproductions of Feitelson's and Lundeberg's artwork. There are also pamphlets produced by the Works Progress Administration Federal Arts Program and Lundeberg's poetry.

Photographs are extensive and include many of Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg, as well as of family, friends, and students. There are four photo albums and numerous photographs of Feitelson's and Lundeberg's artwork, including some exhibition installations.

There is one circa 1957 reel-to-reel sound recording of an episode of Feitelson on Art, focusing on Paul Gauguin.

An addition of 0.2 linear feet received in 2014 includes Feitelson's art history and teaching notes, writings by Feitelson, and photographs and contact sheets of Feitelson and works of art.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 11 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1922-1995 (Boxes 1-2, 19; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1932-1998 (Boxes 2-4; 2.5 linear feet)

Series 3: Exhibition Records, 1936-1989 (Boxes 4-5; 0.25 linear feet)

Series 4: Personal Business Records, 1943-1998 (Boxes 5-6; 1.0 linear feet)

Series 5: Feitelson and Lundeberg Foundation Records, 1978-1997 (Boxes 6-7, 19; 1.5 linear feet)

Series 6: Research and Teaching Materials, 1940s-1960s (Boxes 7-8; 0.75 linear feet)

Series 7: Writings, 1930-1989 (Boxes 8-9; 1.0 linear feet)

Series 8: Artwork, 1920s-1991 (Boxes 9, 19; 9 folders)

Series 9: Printed Materials, 1923-2002 (Boxes 9-11, 20; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 10: Photographs, circa 1890s-1993 (Boxes 11-14, 16-19, and OV 21-22; 4.3 linear feet)

Series 11: Audio Recording, circa 1957 (Box 15; 1 item)

Series 12: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1919-1978 (Box 23; 0.2 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Art instructor and painter Lorser Feitelson (1898-1978) lived and worked in Los Angeles with his wife Helen Lundeberg (1908-1999), also one of southern California's leading painters. Together, Feitelson and Lundeberg founded the movement known as Subjective Classicism, or Post-surrealism. Their work had a great influence on southern California art and they formed many relationships with artists and critics of the area.

Lorser Feitelson was born in Savannah, Georgia on February 11, 1898, and grew up in New York City. By the age of twelve, he was painting in oils, and three years later he began to paint in earnest after attending the Armory Show. At the age of eighteen, Feitelson had his own studio in New York City. Over the next few years, he met other artists, including Arthur Davies, Walter Pach, and John Sloan. From 1919 to 1926, Feitelson lived in Paris and traveled to New York to exhibit; he also spent some time in Italy. In 1927, Feitelson moved to Los Angeles, the city that would remain his home for the rest of his life. There he met his wife and artist, Helen Lundeberg, and married in 1933.

Feitelson taught at the Chouinard Art Institute and the Stickney Memorial School of Art, became involved in the operations of the Centaur Gallery, and helped to found the Stanley Rose Gallery and the Hollywood Gallery of Modern Art. Beginning with the first Post-surrealist exhibition 1934, Feitelson and Lundeberg's work was exhibited at the San Francisco Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum, and was included in the Museum of Modern Art's Fantastic Art, Dada and Surrealism exhibition of 1937. Feitelson continued to create Post-surrealist paintings until 1942. During this same time, Feitelson also served as the Supervisor of Murals, Painting, and Sculpture for the Southern California Works Progress Administration Federal Arts Project.

In 1944, Feitelson began to paint abstract shapes that he referred to as "magical forms." Feitelson continued working in an abstract manner throughout the fifties, and in 1959 was included by Jules Langsner in the exhibition Four Abstract Classicists along with Karl Benjamin, Frederick Hammersley, and John McLaughlin. From this exhibition emerged the term "hard edge" painting, which referred to the presence of geometric shapes and flat pictorial space in the work of these artists. During the final two decades of his life, Feitelson continued to work regularly, and continued to explore abstraction.

Feitelson taught for many years at the Art Center School and was a visiting professor at the University of Illinois, Urbana. He also hosted the television program Feitelson on Art from 1956-1963, as well as serving as a frequent guest on the program Cavalcade of Books to discuss art publications. Lorser Feitelson died in 1978.

Helen Lundeberg was born in Chicago, Illinois on June 24, 1908. At the age of four, her family moved to Pasadena, where she attended Pasadena High School and Junior College. In the spring of 1930, a family friend sponsored Lundeberg's tuition to attend classes at the Stickney Memorial School of Art. That summer Lundeberg met Lorser Feitelson, who had recently taken over the teaching of her construction and composition class. The following year, Lundeberg's work was included in an exhibition for the first time. By 1933, Lundeberg had a solo exhibition at the Stanley Rose Gallery. Throughout the 1930s, Lundeberg painted in a Post-surrealist manner and created some of her best known works including "Double Portrait of the Artist in Time" (1935). She also began working for the California Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project in 1936. Over the next six years, she designed murals for libraries, high schools, and parks. She and Feitelson married in 1933.

During the next five decades, Lundeberg created a distinctive and diverse body of work that included surreal images of floating mountains and falling skies, austere landscapes and architectural forms, and abstract works with brilliant colors. She remained from the 1930s to the time of her death in 1999 one of the leading and most respected figures in southern California art. Her work has been exhibited in the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and acquired by the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, and the Whitney Museum of American Art.
Related Material:
Found in the Archives of American Art are oral history interviews with Lorser Feitelson conducted by Betty Lochrie Hoag, May 12, 1964; with Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg conducted by Betty Lochrie Hoag, March 17, 1965; and with Helen Lundeberg conducted by Jan Butterfield, July 19 and August 29, 1980. Also found are Lorser Feitelson lectures recorded by Bonnie Trotter, 1973-1974.
Separated Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reel LA 1) including a scrapbook of clippings primarily concerning Lorser Feitelson's activities with the federal Works Progress Administration. Lent materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
In 1964, Feitelson loaned for microfilming a scrapbook of clippings primarily concerning his activities with the federal Works Progress Administration. The scrapbook was microfilmed on Reel LA1 and returned to Feitelson. It is not included in the container inventory in this finding aid.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Occupation:
Painters -- California -- Los Angeles  Search this
Topic:
Art -- Study and teaching  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketches
Poetry
Writings
Drawings
Sound recordings
Photographs
Citation:
Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg papers, circa 1890s-2002. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.feitlors
See more items in:
Lorser Feitelson and Helen Lundeberg papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9b512ba00-6fa2-476e-a0d1-2012bb1179cd
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-feitlors
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Abraham Rattner

Creator:
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Interviewer:
Roberts, Colette, 1910-  Search this
Extent:
1 Sound tape reel (Sound recording, 7 in.)
53 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound tape reels
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1968 May-June
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Abraham Rattner conducted 1968 May-June, by Colette Roberts, for the Archives of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Abraham Rattner (1895-1978) was a painter of New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 34 min.
Provenance:
This interview is 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 administrators.
Topic:
Painters -- New York (State) -- Interviews  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.rattne68
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw97959554a-2eda-48f3-af13-f32cdc949fa8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-rattne68
Online Media:

Artists for Victory, Inc.

Collection Creator:
Gellert, Hugo, 1892-1985  Search this
Container:
Box 3, Folder 38
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1943-1944
Collection Restrictions:
The collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website.
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:
Hugo Gellert papers, 1916-1986. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Hugo Gellert papers
Hugo Gellert papers / Series 4: Organizational Records
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9c705c553-6a25-468f-9a44-5a9f25ca989b
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-gellhugo-ref900
3 Page(s) matching your search term, top most relevant are shown: View entire project in transcription center
  • View Artists for Victory, Inc. digital asset number 1
  • View Artists for Victory, Inc. digital asset number 2
  • View Artists for Victory, Inc. digital asset number 3

Robert Laurent papers

Creator:
Laurent, Robert, 1890-1970  Search this
Names:
Avery, Milton, 1885-1965  Search this
Barnes, Albert C. (Albert Coombs), 1872-1951  Search this
Bellows, George, 1882-1925  Search this
Berenson, Bernard, 1865-1959  Search this
Bluemner, Oscar, 1867-1938  Search this
Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976  Search this
Careas, Jean  Search this
Courtois, Gustave, 1852-1923  Search this
Dasburg, Andrew, 1887-1979  Search this
Davies, Arthur B. (Arthur Bowen), 1862-1928  Search this
Field, Hamilton Easter  Search this
Fiene, Ernest, 1894-  Search this
Goodrich, Lloyd, 1897-1987  Search this
Gross, Chaim, 1904-1991  Search this
Halpert, Edith Gregor, 1900-1970  Search this
Hart, George Overbury, 1868-1933  Search this
Hassam, Childe, 1859-1935  Search this
Henri, Robert, 1865-1929  Search this
Hope, Henry R. (Henry Radford), 1905-  Search this
Kuhn, Walt, 1877-1949  Search this
Kuniyoshi, Yasuo, 1889-1953  Search this
Lachaise, Gaston, 1882-1935  Search this
Laurent, John, 1921-  Search this
Lipchitz, Jacques, 1891-1973  Search this
McBride, Henry, 1867-1962  Search this
McFee, William  Search this
Nadelman, Elie, 1882-1946  Search this
Pascin, Jules, 1885-1930  Search this
Prendergast, Maurice Brazil, 1858-1924  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Ryder, Albert Pinkham, 1847-1917  Search this
Smith, David, 1906-1965  Search this
Soyer, Raphael, 1899-1987  Search this
Speicher, Eugene Edward, 1883-1962  Search this
Stella, Joseph, 1877-1946  Search this
Sterne, Maurice, 1878-1957  Search this
Stieglitz, Alfred, 1864-1946  Search this
Strater, Henry, 1896-  Search this
Zorach, William, 1887-1966  Search this
Extent:
3.7 Linear feet ((on 8 microfilmed reels + 1 photograph not microfilmed))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1869-1973
Scope and Contents:
Correspondence; manuscripts and writings; lists of works of art; photographs; biographical material; gallery and foundry files; notes and speeches; financial material; scrapbook; guest book; magazines; exhibition catalogs; clippings; and printed material.
REEL N68-2: Letters from George Bellows, Bernard Berenson, Elliott Daingerfield, Arthur B. Davies, Roger Fry, John Marin, Joseph Pennell, Man Ray, John Sloan, Max Weber, J. Alden Weir, and others. Two highly detailed letters from Maurice Sterne in 1913 describe that artist's life in Bali. Also included are signatures of American artists from a guest book, and a 1966 catalog of the Hamilton Easter Field Art Foundation Collection.
REEL N68-3 Letters from Childe Hassam, Walt Kuhn, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Gaston Lachaise, Elie Nadelman, David Smith, Alfred Stieglitz, William Zorach, Oscar Bluemner, Albert C. Barnes, Andrew Dasburg, Ernest Fiene, Pop Hart, Robert Henri, Joseph Stella, Maurice Sterne, and others. Also included are manuscripts, lists of works of art, and photographs of Laurent with Hamiltion Easter Field, Bernard Kariol and others.
REEL 2: Personal data sheet, exhibition catalogs and magazines containing articles by or about Laurent, ca. 1920-1965.
REEL 497: John Laurent's collection of 34 letters, 1902-1960, to Robert Laurent and Hamiltion Easter Field. The 6 letters to Field are from Bernhard Berenson, George Bellows, Maurice Prendergast, Pop Hart, Gustov Courtois, and John Carpenter. The 28 letters to Robert Laurent are from Albert P. Ryder, Gaston Lachaise, Raphael Soyer, Walt Kuhn, Robert Henri, Alfred Stieglitz, Arthur B. Davies, Milton Avery, Alexander Calder, Henry McBride, William McFee, Jules Pascin, Jean Careas, and two unidentified artists.
REEL 2063: Photographs, ca. 1930-1962, of Laurent, his studio, exhibitions, and works of art.
REELS 2065-2067: Biographical material; correspondence from Maurice Sterne, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Edith Halpert, Henry Hope, Henry Strater, Lloyd Goodrich, David Smith, Walt Kuhn, William Zorach, Ernest Fiene, and Samuel Wood Gaylor; gallery and foundry files; notes, writings, and speeches; financial material; lists of works of art; blueprints; exhibition and printed material, clippings, and a scrapbook; photos of source material and works of art owned by Laurent; and material concerning Hamilton Easter Field, Laurent's teacher and friend, including correspondence, guest book signatures, financial and legal papers and Field Foundation material.
REEL 2155: Photographs of Laurent's works of art with catalog sheets listing the title, date, medium, size, ownership, and exhibition information for each work, ca. 1920-1967. Also included are photographs of Laurent in his studio and with others, including Gaston Lachaise and David Smith; a photo of Chaim Gross; and photos of the Ogunquit Museum in Maine.
UNMICROFILMED: A black and white photograph of the Field Foundation Dinner Auction-Dinner-Dance, Ogunquit, Maine. Depicted are Lloyd Goodrich, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, William Zorach, Robert Laurent, Emil Ganso and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Painter, sculptor, teacher, etcher, and writer; Brooklyn, New York & Ogunquit, Maine. Laurent studied under Hamilton Easter Field, and both were from Brooklyn, N.Y. and were involved in the summer art colony in Oguniquit, Maine.
Provenance:
Material on reels N68-2-N68-3 was lent for microfilming 1968 by Robert Laurent; he donated material on reel 2 1966; material on reel 497 was lent for microfilming 1973 by John Laurent, son of Robert Laurent; material on reels 2063, 2065-2067 was donated 1978 by John Laurent; He donated additional material on reel 2155 and not filmed with his brother Paul in 1981.
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.
Occupation:
Etchers  Search this
Painters  Search this
Sculptors  Search this
Topic:
Painting, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Etching, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.laurrobe
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw96ee96a38-5fa2-4e34-805b-8a013225135a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-laurrobe

Artists' Equity Association - Printed Material

Collection Creator:
Kuniyoshi, Yasuo, 1889-1953  Search this
Container:
Box 3, Folder 5
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1949-2002
Collection 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. Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
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:
Yasuo Kuniyoshi papers, 1906-2016, bulk 1920-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Yasuo Kuniyoshi papers
Yasuo Kuniyoshi papers / Series 4: Organization Records
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f2238403-8ce5-443e-b1af-0df645f8fb4b
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-kuniyasu-ref1185
1 Page(s) matching your search term, top most relevant are shown: View entire project in transcription center
  • View Artists' Equity Association - Printed Material digital asset number 1

Adolf Dehn papers

Creator:
Dehn, Adolf, 1895-1968  Search this
Names:
American Artists Group  Search this
Associated American Artists  Search this
Atelier Desjobert  Search this
Kennedy Galleries  Search this
University of Missouri Press  Search this
Bohrod, Aaron  Search this
Castellón, Federico, 1914-1971  Search this
Christ-Janer, Albert, 1910-1973  Search this
Dehn, Mura  Search this
Dehn, Virginia E. (Virginia Engleman), 1922-2005  Search this
Eastman, Max, 1883-1969  Search this
Freeman, Joseph  Search this
Gag, Wanda, 1893-1946  Search this
Goetsch, Gustav F. (Gustav Frederick), 1877-1969  Search this
Grosz, George, 1893-1959  Search this
Hayter, Stanley William, 1901-1988  Search this
Kuh, Frederick, 1895-1978  Search this
Lake, Eileen Hall  Search this
Marsh, Reginald, 1898-1954  Search this
Mitchell, Olivia Dehn  Search this
Olds, Elizabeth, 1896-1991  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Robinson, Boardman, 1876-1952  Search this
Shane, Fred, 1906-  Search this
Smith, William Arthur, 1918-1989  Search this
Spruance, Benton, 1904-1967  Search this
Thayer, Scofield, b. 1889  Search this
Zigrosser, Carl, 1891-  Search this
Photographer:
Kertész, André  Search this
Extent:
6.6 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Manuscripts
Sketches
Etchings
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Poems
Date:
1912-1987
Summary:
The papers of printmaker and painter Adolf Dehn measure 6.6 linear feet and date from 1912-1987. The collection contains extensive correspondence, as well as writings, exhibition announcements, catalogs, clippings, invoices, receipts, legal documents, scrapbooks, artwork, and photographs. There is also scattered correspondence of Virginia Dehn, mostly concerning her husband Adolf Dehn.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of printmaker and painter Adolf Dehn measure 6.6 linear feet and date from 1912-1987. The collection contains extensive correspondence, as well as writings, exhibition announcements, catalogs, clippings, invoices, receipts, legal documents, scrapbooks, artwork, and photographs. There is also scattered correspondence of Virginia Dehn, mostly concerning her husband Adolf Dehn.

Found within the biographical materials are several address books, official travel documents, exhibition price lists, and a biographical sketch.

Correspondence, both personal and business, makes up the bulk of this collection. Dehn maintained long friendships with many fellow artists and his correspondence includes letters from Aaron Bohrod, Federico Castellon, Albert Christ-Janer, Wanda Gág, Gustav Goetsch, George Grosz, Reginald Marsh, Elizabeth Olds, Abraham Rattner, Boardman Robinson, Frederick Shane, William Smith, and Benton Spruance. Additional notable correspondents include print dealer and curator Carl Zigrosser; journalists Max Eastman, Joseph Freeman, Frederick Kuh; editor Scofield Thayer, and his former wife, the Russian dancer Mura Dehn (neé Tsiperovitch). Business correspondence includes letters from art schools, associations, museums, and galleries affiliated with Dehn, including the Weyhe Gallery; Associated American Artists, a gallery that promoted American art to the middle classes; and the Kennedy Gallery, which represented the Dehn estate upon the artist's death. There is also correspondence from companies and organizations that commissioned commercial work from Dehn, such as greeting card publisher, American Artists Group . Finally the correspondence of Virginia Dehn includes letters to and from the University of Missouri Press related to the publication of Adolf Dehn Drawings and condolence cards and letters from friends and associates after the Adolf Dehn's death in May 1968.

Writings include manuscripts for Adolf Dehn's manual on painting technique, Watercolor, Gouache, and Casein Painting (Studio Publications, 1955), as well as his entries on technique and watercolor painting for Encyclopedia Britannica. Writings by others includes the catalog Adolf Dehn Drawings, prepared by his wife Virginia Dehn, and published in 1971 by the University of Missouri Press. There is also a journal with handwritten poems attributed to Eileen Hall Lake.

Printed materials consists of exhibition announcements and catalogs from galleries featuring Dehn's work including the Weyhe Gallery and Associated American Artists; art school brochures and newsletters from programs which Dehn attended or taught; and newspaper and magazine clippings including examples of his editorial cartoons, which appeared in The Liberator, The New Yorker, and Vanity Fair, among other publications as well as clippings of news items related to the artist. This series also includes examples of Dehn's commercial work, such as book covers, calendars, and Christmas cards. Additional similar printed materials can be found in the scrapbooks. Artwork consists of only a few sketches attributed to Dehn, others to Eileen Lake Hall, and an etching by S.W. Hayter.

Dehn is well documented through numerous photographs, both alone and with others, including a portrait by the renowned photographer André Kertész. Additional vintage photographs include Dehn with family members, friends, and a series of photographs taken with his wife, Virginia Dehn at Atelier Desjobert, where he had been making lithographs since the 1920s.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 8 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1920-1968 (Box 1; 10 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1919-1982 (Boxes 1-4; 3.75 linear feet)

Series 3: Writings, circa 1920-1971 (Boxes 4-5; 0.25 linear feet)

Series 4: Financial Records, 1936-1965 (Box 5; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 5: Printed Materials, circa 1915-1987 (Boxes 5-6; 1.2 linear feet)

Series 6: Scrapbooks, 1912-1968(Boxes 6-7; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 7: Artwork, circa 1920-1945 (Box 6; 3 folders)

Series 8: Photographs, circa 1912-1961 (Boxes 6 and 8; 7 folders)
Biographical Note:
Adolf Dehn (1895-1968) was well-known for his drawings, lithographs and watercolors which satirically chronicled the social and political milieu of his times, as well as poetic landscapes, many of which depicted the rolling hills and farmlands of his native Midwest. Although he worked mostly in New York, Dehn also spent substantial time traveling and working in Europe, the Middle East, South America, and the American mid-west.

Dehn was born on a farm in Waterville, Minnesota on November 22, 1895, he began his formal art education in 1914 at the Minneapolis School of Art (currently known as the Minneapolis College of Art and Design). As a student, his drawings were featured in the school's humor journal, The Minne-Ha-Ha and by 1917 he had published his first drawing in one of his favorite political journals, The Masses. Later that year he and fellow Minneapolis School of Art student Wanda Gág were among a select group of art students nationwide who won scholarships to the Art Students League of New York. After only eight months in New York, however, Dehn was drafted into the Army to serve in the final months of World War I, but he proclaimed himself as a conscientious objector and was sent to Camp Wadsworth in South Carolina for several months.

Dehn returned to New York, where his friend and mentor Boardman Robinson introduced him to lithography through the master printer George Miller and brought him to the Weyhe Gallery to meet Carl Zigrosser, an avid supporter of American printmakers. However, he soon left New York for Europe in September 1921 where he spent most of the following eight years. There he traveled with his sketchbooks to the cafes and opera houses of Berlin, Paris, and Vienna, as well as on hiking trips in the Alps. He became friends with the poet E.E. Cummings, Scofield Thayer, editor of The Dial, who published many of his drawings, and met the German artist, George Grosz, whose work he so admired. In addition to The Dial, his satirical drawings of jazz-age entertainments and European cafe life also appeared in , The Liberator, Jugend, Vanity Fair, and Simplicissimus. Finally during his stint in Europe, Dehn met and married the Russian dancer Mura Tsiperovitch. They were married in Vienna in 1926, but divorced sometime in the early 1930s.

Unfortunately Dehn's return to the United States coincided with the Great Depression of 1929 and sales of his work were slim. However in the 1930s, The New Yorker and Vogue began to publish his work. He continued to work in lithography and returned to Paris to work at the Atelier Desjobert, the print studio with whom he worked most closely throughout his life. In the late 1930s, Dehn began working in watercolors, mostly rural landscapes, and had a one man show of works in his new medium at Weyhe Gallery in 1938. In 1939 Dehn traveled through the Southwest and Mexico on his first Guggenheim Fellowship (he was awarded his second in 1951).

By the 1940s Dehn was an active member of both the American Artists Group and Associated American Artists; both organizations sought to popularize contemporary American Art, primarily through reproductions of fine art prints and commercial use of artists' designs on greeting card, calendars, and even wall paper. Appreciation for his lithographs and watercolors grew, and along with it his recognition. He also taught art classes a few summers; in the late 1930s at Stephens College, Columbia, Missouri where his friend Albert Janner-Christ was head of the art department and in the early 1940s at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, where friend and mentor Boardman Robinson was the director. In 1955 he published Watercolor, Gouache, and Casein Painting, a manual on technique. Throughout the rest of his life he continued to travel, not only returning to Europe, but also visiting Afganistan, Cuba, Haiti, and a trip to Venuzuala on assignment from Standard Oil to document the oil industry there. On many of his later trips, he was accompanied by his wife, fellow artist, Virginia Engleman Dehn, whom he had married in November 1947.

Near the end of his long career, Dehn was elected in 1961 to the National Academy of Design as a full academician. He was later elected to the National Academy of Arts and Letters. After his death in 1968, his wife Virginia worked with the University of Missouri Press on the catalog Adolf Dehn Drawings (Columbia: University of Missouri, 1971).
Separated Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming. Reel 287 contains printed materials, including exhibition announcements, catalogs, magazines, and newspaper and magazine clippings. After filming, these materials were transferred to the Smithsonian American Art Museum/National Portrait Gallery Library. Reels 2938-2939 include 750 letters from Adolf Dehn to various family members. This material was returned to the lender and is not described in the collection container inventory.
Provenance:
The Adolf Dehn papers were donated in several installments from 1966 to 1985 by Adolf Dehn and his wife Virginia. Dehn's sisters, Viola Dehn Tiala and Olivia Dehn Mitchell, separately donated additional materials in 1971 and 1972. Olivia Dehn Mitchell also loaned the Archives letters from Adolf in 1983 for microfilming. Finally in 1989, Lillian Morrison, a friend and editor, donated a published book of Mura Dehn's poetry and a four page draft of a letter signed by Adolf Dehn.
Restrictions:
Use of originals 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.
Topic:
Painting -- Technique  Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Graphic arts -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Genre/Form:
Manuscripts
Sketches
Etchings
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Poems
Citation:
Adolf Dehn papers, 1912-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.dehnadop
See more items in:
Adolf Dehn papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw92c8a7afd-8bd9-4c4c-935d-90de370a645e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-dehnadop

Rattner, Abraham and Esther

Collection Creator:
Dehn, Adolf, 1895-1968  Search this
Container:
Box 2, Folder 32
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
circa 1965-1967
Collection Restrictions:
Use of originals 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:
Adolf Dehn papers, 1912-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Adolf Dehn papers
Adolf Dehn papers / Series 2: Correspondence / 2.1: General and Personal Correspondence
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9a3e6bfe2-fd3e-41f9-b3dd-b3a6c66b7219
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-dehnadop-ref87

Letters and greeting cards to Jennie Allen from Abraham Rattner

Creator:
Allen, Jennie  Search this
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Extent:
1 Microfilm reel
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Microfilm reels
Date:
1932-1976
Scope and Contents:
The microfilmed letters and greeting cards to Jennie Allen from Abraham Rattner consist of 425 letters from Abraham Rattner to his sister, Jennie R. Allen, mostly about personal and family matters. Letters also include discussion of Rattner's art and philosophy. One letter discusses artists Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Rico Lebrun, and Erle Loran (November 8, 1972).
Biographical / Historical:
Abraham Rattner (1895-1978) was an expressionist artist in New York, New York. He was known for his richly colored paintings, often with religious subject matter. Rattner was the second of six children. Jennie R. Allen was his younger sister.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds the Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers, the Abraham and Esther Rattner letter to Helen Kroll Kramer, and the oral history interview with Abraham Rattner, 1968 May-June.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming 1976 by Jennie Allen.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Identifier:
AAA.allejenn
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw99bd1a246-720d-4fec-83f0-615533217d40
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-allejenn

Rattner, Abraham

Collection Creator:
Carlen Galleries  Search this
Container:
Box 10, Folder 24
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
circa 1937
Collection Restrictions:
Patrons must use microfilm copy.
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:
Carlen Galleries, Inc., records, 1775-1997, bulk 1940-1986. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Carlen Galleries, Inc., records
Carlen Galleries, Inc., records / Series 3: Gift (2002) / 3.4: Selections from Library of Carlen Galleries, Inc.
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9231a83a9-a1c0-427c-8e3d-187cc888e243
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-carlgall-ref292

Church Studio

Collection Creator:
Rattner, Abraham  Search this
Container:
Box 4, Folder 5
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1956
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use of unmicrofilmed portion 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:
Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers, 1891-1986. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
See more items in:
Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers
Abraham Rattner and Esther Gentle papers / Series 3: Correspondence Files
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw91810c412-1c7c-4737-b60d-8ac57453950b
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-aaa-rattabra-ref100

Modify Your Search







or


Narrow By