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Oral history interview with Liliane Lijn

Interviewee:
Lijn, Liliane, 1939-  Search this
Interviewer:
Cummings, Paul  Search this
Extent:
98 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
1972 Oct. 29
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Liliane Lijn conducted 1972 Oct. 29, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. She discusses growing up in New York City; her early education at Hickory Ridge School; living in Switzerland as a teenager; studying at Sorbonne and the École du Louvre; exhibiting work in Paris, New York, and London; sculptural works with plastics and unusual materials; use of light, projections, and reflections in her sculptures; her "Poem Machines," her influences, including physics and Buddhism; her partner Takis (Panayiotis Vassilakis); and sculpture commissions in the United Kingdom.
Biographical / Historical:
Liliane Lijn (1939- ) is an sculptor and painter from New York, New York. She has lived in London, England since 1966.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 58 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
This interview is open for research. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Topic:
Art, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.lijn72
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw94678e72f-08da-4a4e-85d8-12db0f1654e1
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-lijn72

Vera Klement papers, 1950-circa 2016

Creator:
Klement, Vera, 1929-2023  Search this
Subject:
Schulze, Franz  Search this
MacDowell Colony  Search this
Type:
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Interviews
Citation:
Vera Klement papers, 1950-circa 2016. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Theme:
Sketches & Sketchbooks  Search this
Women  Search this
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)7275
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209426
AAA_collcode_klemvera
Theme:
Sketches & Sketchbooks
Women
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209426
Online Media:

Vera Klement papers

Creator:
Klement, Vera, 1929-  Search this
Names:
MacDowell Colony  Search this
Schulze, Franz, 1927-2019  Search this
Extent:
3.3 Linear feet
1.36 Gigabytes
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Interviews
Date:
1950-circa 2016
Summary:
The papers of painter and educator Vera Klement measure 3.3 linear feet and 1.36 GB and date from 1950 to circa 2016. The papers include scattered correspondence with Franz Schulze and others, writings and notes including digital copies of a memoir, an interview, and a film, personal business records, printed and digital material, fourteen sketchbooks and other works of art, and photographs, including a photo of the MacDowell Colony in 1957.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of painter and educator Vera Klement measure 3.3 linear feet and 1.36 GB and date from 1950 to circa 2016. The papers include scattered correspondence with Franz Schulze and others, writings and notes including digital copies of a memoir, an interview, and a film, personal business records, printed and digital material, fourteen sketchbooks and other works of art, and photographs, including a photo of the MacDowell Colony in 1957.

Of note is Blunt Edge, an unpublished memoir by Klement in born-digital format; a born-digital recording of an oral history by Linda Kramer and Sandra Binion (2010); a born-digital copy of a film entitled Vera Klement: Blunt Edge, by Wonjung Bae; a bound volume, Disorder and Early Sorrow: a Meditation on War and Death in Homage to Picasso's Guernica 1937, by Vera Klement; and a poetry project compiled by Klement entitled Born of Silence.
Arrangement:
Due to its small size the collection is arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Vera Klement (1929-) is a painter and educator in Chicago, Illinois. She is a founding member of "The FIVE."

Vera Klement was born in Danzig, Germany (now Gdańsk, Poland). She came to the United States in 1938 to escape the Nazi regime and settled in New York City. Klement studied at the Cooper Union School of Art and Architecture, graduating in 1950. After moving to Chicago in 1965, she taught at the University of Chicago from 1969 to 1995 and is a Professor Emerita. She became a founding member of "The FIVE," a group of artists, who protested what they saw as a regionalist bent in Chicago art during the early 1970s.

Klement continues to live and work in Chicago, Illinois.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art are two oral history interviews with Vera Klement conducted for the Archives of American Art's Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project. The interviews were conducted by Lanny Silverman, 2015 June 12 and 14, and by Jason Stieber, 2016 May 25.
Provenance:
Vera Klement donated her papers to the Archives of American Art in several installments in 1986, 2004, and 2017.
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 born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. 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:
Educators -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- United States  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Interviews
Citation:
Vera Klement papers, 1950-circa 2016. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.klemvera
See more items in:
Vera Klement papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw96e173e2a-4a76-43d3-a2da-234c952b61f8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-klemvera

Oral history interview with Vera Klement

Interviewee:
Klement, Vera, 1929-  Search this
Interviewer:
Silverman, Lanny  Search this
Names:
Artemisia Gallery  Search this
Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project  Search this
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
University of Chicago -- Faculty  Search this
Adrian, Dennis, 1937-  Search this
Ashton, Dore  Search this
Deson, Marianne  Search this
Ippolito, Angelo  Search this
Ito, Miyoko, 1918-1983  Search this
Kind, Phyllis, 1933-2018  Search this
Rosenberg, Harold, 1906-1978  Search this
Shapey, Ralph, 1921-2002  Search this
Stamos, Theodoros, 1922-1997  Search this
Extent:
3 Items (Sound recording: 3 sound files (3 hr., 24 min.), digital, wav)
140 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
2015 June 12 and 14
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Vera Klement conducted 2015 June 12 and 14, by Lanny Silverman, for the Archives of American Art's Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project, at Klement's home and studio in Chicago, Illinois.
Klement speaks of her early childhood in Danzig (now, Gdansk, Poland) on the eve of World War II; her family's immigration to New York; her early experiences with music and art; her decision to become a painter; her interactions within New York's art community of the 1950s; the change in New York's art scene after the emergence of Pop art; her move to Chicago and subsequent difficulties in showing her work; her involvement within the Chicago art community; the founding of the women's artist cooperative, Artemisia; her involvement with the women's movement in the 1970s; teaching at the University of Chicago; her conception of her artwork as representational and apolitical; her literary influences; and her distaste for the contemporary art world. Klement also recalls Dennis Adrian, Dore Ashton, Marianne Deson, Angelo Ippolito, Miyoko Ito, Phyllis Kind, Harold Rosenberg, Ralph Shapey, Theodoros Stamos, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Vera Klement (1929-2023) was an Expressionist painter in Chicago, Illinois.
Lanny Silverman (1947- ) is a curator at the Chicago Cultural Center in Chicago, Illinois.
General:
Originally recorded as 3 sound files. Duration is 3 hr., 24 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.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Art, American -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Art, American -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women's rights  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.klemen15
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw92ebbec79-bfdc-4b94-8f4c-e6782bd05599
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-klemen15
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Vera Klement

Interviewee:
Klement, Vera, 1929-  Search this
Interviewer:
Stieber, Jason, 1973-  Search this
Names:
Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project  Search this
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (digital video file (1 hr., 4 min.) Video, digital, wav)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Video recordings
Interviews
Date:
2016 May 25
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Vera Klement conducted 2016 May 25, by Jason Stieber, for the Archives of American Art's Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project.
Biographical / Historical:
Vera Klement (1929-2023) was an Expressionist painter in Chicago, Ill.
Jason Stieber (1973- ) is the National Collector for the Archives of American Art.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds the papers of Vera Klement.
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.
Restrictions:
For information on how to access this interview contact Reference Services.
Occupation:
Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Women painters  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Genre/Form:
Video recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.klemen16
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9c66a8ed8-4fc3-46d6-a58d-7ba5949ece32
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-klemen16

Oral history interview with Vera Klement, 2015 June 12 and 14

Interviewee:
Klement, Vera, 1929-2023  Search this
Interviewer:
Silverman, Lanny  Search this
Subject:
Adrian, Dennis  Search this
Ashton, Dore  Search this
Deson, Marianne  Search this
Ippolito, Angelo  Search this
Ito, Miyoko  Search this
Kind, Phyllis  Search this
Rosenberg, Harold  Search this
Shapey, Ralph  Search this
Stamos, Theodoros  Search this
Artemisia Gallery  Search this
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project  Search this
University of Chicago  Search this
Type:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Vera Klement, 2015 June 12 and 14. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art, American -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Art, American -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women's rights  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Theme:
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)16266
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)371137
AAA_collcode_klemen15
Theme:
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_371137

Oral history interview with Vera Klement, 2016 May 25

Interviewee:
Klement, Vera, 1929-2023  Search this
Interviewer:
Stieber, Jason, 1973-  Search this
Subject:
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project  Search this
Type:
Video recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Vera Klement, 2016 May 25. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Women painters  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)21698
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)398505
AAA_collcode_klemen16
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_398505

Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin papers

Creator:
Sanford, Marion  Search this
Names:
Chapin, Cornelia, 1893-1972  Search this
Hernández, Mateo, 1884-1949  Search this
Extent:
2.5 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Photographs
Motion pictures (visual works)
Scrapbooks
Video recordings
Interviews
Drawings
Date:
1929-1988
Summary:
The papers of sculptors and close companions Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin measure 2.5 linear feet and date from 1929-1988. The papers include scattered materials created by and about both women, including biographical materials, one folder of correspondence for each woman, a few writings and essays, newsclippings, exhibition catalogs, other printed materials, and four scrapbooks (three about Chapin and one about Sanford). Photographs are of Chapin only and of artwork of both women. There is also one phonograph album transferred onto cassette of a radio interview with Chapin and several motion picture films of Chapin's home movies shot in upstate New York and Paris.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of sculptors Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin measure 2.5 linear feet and date from 1929-1988. Sanford and Chapin were close companions and shared a studio in New York City. The papers include scattered materials created by and about both women, including biographical materials, one folder of correspondence for each woman, a few writings and essays, newsclippings, exhibition catalogs, other printed materials, and four scrapbooks (three about Chapin and one about Sanford). Photographs are of Chapin only and of artwork of both women. There is also one sound recording of a radio interview with Chapin and several motion picture films of Chapin's home movies shot in upstate New York and Paris.

Biographical material consists of scattered items documenting the careers of Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin. Included are a small amount of correspondence of both women, membership certificates, an index card file of Sanford's artwork, Chapin's written description of her sculpting process, and writings by others about Chapin. The sound recording is a radio interview of Chapin after she sculpted a bear for the National Zoo. Films include several home movies of Chapin from 1932-1936, showing Chapin at a summer home in Harpursville, NY, working in her studio, and working in Paris with teacher Mateo Hernandez.

Printed material includes exhibition announcements and catalogs for many group and solo shows of both women, news clippings about Chapin and Sanford, and a few reproductions of their artwork. Source files consist of postcards and clippings of various images that were most probably used as references or inspiration for their artwork.

The collection includes four scrapbooks compiled by Sanford and Chapin documenting their careers through news clippings, a few exhibition materials, and photographs of their artwork. There are three scrapbooks about Chapin, and one about Sanford. Also found are two additional scrapbooks on the subject of bas-relief and sculpture. Photographs include several of Cornelia Chapin in her studio and with her teacher Mateo Hernandez. There are numerous photographs of artwork by Chapin and Sanford. Artwork includes drawings of animals, architectural elements, coins, and people, by either Sanford or Chapin.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 6 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1930-1986 (Box 1, 6, 8; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 2: Printed Material, 1931-1972 (Box 1-2; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 3: Source Files, 1940s-1960s (Box 2-3; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 4: Scrapbooks, 1932-1949 (Box 3-7; 1.0 linear foot)

Series 5: Photographs, circa 1930-1962 (Box 4, 7; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 6: Artwork, 1929-circa 1960s (Box 4; 5 folders)
Biographical Note:
Marion Sanford was born in 1904 in Ontario, Canada and was raised in Warren, Pennsylvania. She studied painting at the Pratt Institute in New York, and worked for a period of time as a stage and costume designer. She developed an interest in sculpture, and studied the direct-carving method briefly at the Art Students League, but was largely self-taught. In 1937 she had her first exhibition of sculptures depicting women performing household chores and everyday tasks. She later created a series called "Women at Work" and her imagery of women would be the subject for which she would become best known, although she also completed bronze portraits and bas-reliefs. In 1941 and 1943 she worked as a Guggenheim Fellow, and became a member of the National Academy of Design, National Sculpture Society, and the National Association of Women Artists. Sanford won many awards and medals for her works and also created sculptures on commission, including a carved altar panel for the First Methodist Church in Warren, Pennsylvania. Marion Sanford died in 1987.

Cornelia Van Auken Chapin was born in 1893 in Waterford, Connecticut. After exploring other interests, including aeronautics, she decided to become a sculptor in the 1920s. She studied with Gail Corbett and in the early 1930s began exhibiting her sculptures of animals. In 1934 she moved to Paris, France and studied with Mateo Hernandez as his only student. Under Hernandez, she learned the technique of direct-carving from life in stone and wood and won the 2nd grand prize at the Paris Exposition in 1937. In 1936, Chapin was the only foreign and woman sculptor elected to the Societaire Salon d'Automne in Paris. The threat of World War II brought her back to the United States in 1939. Chapin won many awards for her sculptures and became a member of the National Academy of Design in 1945 and the National Sculpture Society. She was also one of the founding members of Artists' for Victory, Inc. and a participant in the women's artist group known as "The Philadelphia Ten," a unique and progressive group of women painters and sculptors who often exhibited together in the Philadelphia area.

In the late 1930s Chapin purchased a studio in New York City which had formally belonged to sculptor Gutzon Borglum. She shared the studio with her fellow sculptor Marion Sanford, and often modeled for Sanford's work. Sanford and Chapin remained close companions until Chapin's death in 1972.
Related Material:
Harvard University Library houses the the bulk of Cornelia Van Auken Chapin's papers, 1877-1959.
Provenance:
A portion of the Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin papers were donated by Marion Sanford in 1974. Additional materials were donated by Sanford's caretaker, Brenda Brenwell-Lejeune, in 1999.
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:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Sculpture, Modern -- 20th century  Search this
Sculpture -- Technique  Search this
Bas-relief  Search this
Sculpture, American -- 20th century  Search this
Artists' studios  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Photographs
Motion pictures (visual works)
Scrapbooks
Video recordings
Interviews
Drawings
Citation:
Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin papers, 1929-1988. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.sanfmari
See more items in:
Marion Sanford and Cornelia Chapin papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw93be7e8e5-5614-4fa3-89a8-bc4648207c0c
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-sanfmari
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Lenore Chinn

Interviewee:
Chinn, Lenore (1949-)  Search this
Interviewer:
Gillespie, Benjamin, 1988-  Search this
Names:
Pandemic Oral History Project  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (sound file (22 min.) Audio, digital, m4a)
7 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2020 July 30
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Lenore Chinn conducted 2020 July 30, by Benjamin Gillespie, for the Archives of American Art's Art Pandemic Oral History Project at Chinn's home in San Francisco, California.
Biographical / Historical:
Lenore Chinn (1949- ) is a Chinese American painter, photographer, and queer rights activist based in San Francisco, California. Chinn co-founded the Lesbians in the Visual Arts and Queer Cultural Center and has been an active member of the Asian American Women Artists Association.
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.
Restrictions:
This interview is open for research.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its Oral History Program interviews available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. Quotation, reproduction and publication of the audio is governed by restrictions. If an interview has been transcribed, researchers must quote from the transcript. If an interview has not been transcribed, researchers must quote from the audio recording. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information
Occupation:
Photographers -- California -- San Francisco  Search this
Painters -- California -- San Francisco  Search this
Topic:
Pandemics  Search this
COVID-19 (Disease)  Search this
Racism  Search this
AIDS (Disease)  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Chinese American art  Search this
Chinese American artists  Search this
Asian American painters  Search this
Asian American photographers  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women photographers  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.chinn20
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw976f93c3c-0a65-4f67-b5c8-af5c87f4ca3b
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-chinn20
Online Media:

Claire Falkenstein papers

Creator:
Falkenstein, Claire, 1908-1997  Search this
Names:
Coos Art Museum  Search this
Fresno Art Museum  Search this
Galerie Anderson-Mayer  Search this
Galerie Stadler  Search this
Jack Rutberg Fine Arts (Los Angeles, Calif.)  Search this
John Bolles Gallery (San Francisco, Calif.)  Search this
Los Angeles Museum of Art  Search this
Malvina Miller  Search this
Martha Jackson Gallery  Search this
Merging One Gallery  Search this
Mills College -- Faculty  Search this
Pond Farm Workshop  Search this
San Francisco Museum of Art  Search this
University of California, San Francisco. School of Fine Arts -- Faculty  Search this
Green, Ray, 1908-1997  Search this
Guggenheim, Peggy, 1898-1979  Search this
Kuh, Katharine  Search this
O'Donnell, May, 1906-2004  Search this
Sawyer, Kenneth B.  Search this
Still, Clyfford, 1904-  Search this
Still, Patricia  Search this
Tapie, Michel  Search this
Temko, Allan  Search this
Tobey, Mark  Search this
Wildenhain, Frans, 1905-1980  Search this
Extent:
42.8 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Interviews
Date:
circa 1914-1997
bulk 1940-1990
Summary:
The papers of sculptor, painter, jewelry designer, and teacher Claire Falkenstein measure 42.8 linear feet and date from 1917 to her death in 1997. There is extensive correspondence with fellow artists, collectors, critics, friends, museums, and galleries. The collection also contains biographical materials, much of it collected and organized by Falkenstein, personal and business records, writings, diaries, exhibition files, commission files, teaching files, photographs, original artwork, scrapbooks, and printed materials. There is a short motion picture film of an interview with Falkenstein featuring the windows she designed for St. Basil's Church in Los Angeles.
Scope and Content Note:
The papers of sculptor, painter, jewelry designer, and teacher Claire Falkenstein measure 42.8 linear feet and date from 1917 to her death in 1997. There is extensive correspondence with fellow artists, collectors, critics, friends, museums, and galleries. The collection also contains biographical materials, much of it collected and organized by Falkenstein, personal and business records, writings, diaries, exhibition files, commission files, teaching files, photographs, original artwork, scrapbooks, and printed materials. There is a short motion picture film of an interview with Falkenstein featuring the windows she designed for St. Basil's Church in Los Angeles.

Biographical material includes appointment calendars, awards and honorary degrees, interview transcripts, passports, resumes, wills, and scrapbooks. Scrapbooks were compiled by Falkenstein and focus primarily on her exhibitions at the Galerie Stadler and Gallery Meyer in 1959 and 1960. Also of interest are the "biography files" created and arranged by Falkenstein. These files contain material that she personally felt was the most important in documenting her activities each year. They include correspondence, exhibition catalogs, printed material, and invitations.

Measuring nine linear feet, correspondence is extensive and comprehensively documents Falkenstein's work, social life, relationships, and other business and personal activities. Correspondence dates from 1941 to 1997 and includes business letters and correspondence with friends and family. Her communications with friends, family, clients, gallery owners, collectors, museums, publishers, foundations, and grant agencies reveal many of her ideas and techniques. Individual correspondents include Ray Green, Peggy Guggenheim, Katharine Kuh, May O'Donnell, Ken Sawyer, Clyfford and Pat Still, Michel Tapie, Allan Temko, Mark Tobey, and Frans Wildenhain. Gallery and museum correspondence is with the San Francisco Museum of Art, Coos Art Museum, Los Angeles Museum of Art, Galerie Stadler (Paris), Gallery Mayer (Paris), Malvina Miller (New York), Martha Jackson Gallery (New York), Jack Rutberg Fine Arts (Los Angeles), Galerie Anderson-Mayer (Paris), and Bolles Gallery. Correspondence is also found in the Commission Files and Exhibition Files.

Personal and business records contain a wide variety of material documenting Falkenstein's business, financial, legal, professional, and personal transactions. Files are found for sales and prices, art inventories, smaller jewelry commissions, her work as a juror, her business with galleries, legal affairs and contracts, expenses, records of arts organizations to which she belonged, conferences, grants and fellowships, studio and house renovations, her Paris studio and Paris expenses, travel, donations, loans and consignments, conservation, art shipping, insurance, and taxes. Oversized visitor's logs contain comments from visitors to Falkenstein's studio in Venice, California.

Falkenstein maintained comprehensive documentation of her exhibitions from her first exhibition in the 1930s to the last one at the Merging One Gallery in 1996. Files include both a chronological record and individual record for nearly all of her exhibitions. Found with the files are correspondence, photographs, loan and shipping records, catalogs, announcements, clippings, articles, and other records. Most of the photographs related to exhibitions are found in the Photographs Series. The files for exhibitions at the Fresno Art Museum, Martha Jackson Gallery and Jack Rutberg Fine Art Gallery are particularly rich.

Commission files document nearly all of Falkenstein's public and private large-scale projects and often contain a visual record of the work, as well as correspondence, design notes, contracts, and expense reports. There is documentation of the St. Basils Church windows in Los Angeles; the Peggy Guggenheim gate in Venice, Italy; and the fountain at the California Savings and Loan, in Los Angeles; and many others. There is also a chronological record of her commissions. The bulk of the photographs of commissions are found in the Photograph series. Also, most of Falkenstein's jewelry design commissions are found in the Personal and Business Records series.

Falkenstein's work as a prolific writer, particularly in the 1940s and 1950s, is well-documented here through her numerous published articles in Arts and Architecture magazine, and the New York Herald-Tribune. Her work for Arts and Architecture was primarily written for the "Art Comments from San Francisco" section. She was living in Paris when she contributed an art news column to the New York Herald-Tribune. Also found here are five diaries and one journal dating from circa 1929-1978. The entries are inconsistent and concern mostly travel. The diaries from 1929 and 1934 are more personal. Falkenstein also maintained extensive notes and notebooks about artwork ideas, observations about art, research, and even drafts of letters. There are also many notes about various topics, including art and class notes. Additional writings are eclectic and cover a wide range of topics, including music, poetry, the script for Falkestein's film entitled Touching the Quick, and drafts of her unpublished book on murals. A handful of writings by others are found, most with annotations by Falkenstein.

Teaching files include Falkenstein's numerous lectures given while teaching at Mills College, Pond Farm Workshops, and California School of Fine Arts, and various symposiums and conferences. Also found are lesson plans, contracts, scattered correspondence, and notes. The files on her tenure at the Pond Farm Workshops are particularly interesting, with notes about her fellow teacher Frans Wildenhain and correspondence with workshop owners, Jane and Gordon Herr.

There are extensive photographs of Falkenstein, her family and friends, colleagues, commissions, exhibitions, and works of art. Included are many images of Falkenstein, of Falkenstien with her art, of Falkentstien working, and of Falkenstein's studio. There are numerous photographs of Falkenstein with friends, family, and colleagues in social or work settings. Also found are photographs of exhibition openings, installation views, and works of art exhibited. Additional photographs document Falkenstein's commissions, including images of her at work. Additional images of commissions may also be found in the Commission Series, but the bulk are filed here. There are numerous photographs of Falkenstein's works of art, including drawings, sculpture, jewelry, murals, lamps, and ceramics.

Falkenstein's papers include a large amount of sketches, sketchbooks, and drawings. Many of the sketches and drawings relate to her ideas about commissions and large sculpture, jewelry designs, and general sketches. Sketches are also found in the Commission Files. Also included are drawings by Mark Tobey and Michel Tapie, and others.

Finally, printed materials include general exhibition catalogs, newspapers clippings, and clippings of articles by and about Falkenstein. Also included are books that have been inscribed and signed by the author.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 9 series:

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1934-1997 (Box 1-4, 41; 4.3 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1931-1997 (Box 5-13; 9 linear feet)

Series 3: Personal and Business Records, 1936-1997 (Box 14-17, 41, 46-49; 4.2 linear feet)

Series 4: Exhibitions, 1930-1996 (Box 18-21, 42, OV 50; 3.3 linear feet)

Series 5. Commissions, 1930-1992 (Box 21-22, OV 50-54 ; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 6: Writings, circa 1929-1993 (Box 22-26, 42, 55; 4.6 linear feet)

Series 7: Teaching Files, 1929-1995 (Box 26; .8 linear feet)

Series 8: Photographs, circa 1917-1997 (Box 27-35, 43, 55-56; 9.5 linear feet)

Series 9: Artwork, circa 1937-1995 (Box 36-37, 44, 57; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 10: Printed Materials, circa 1914-1990 (Box 37-40, 45, 58; 3.9 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Claire Falkenstein (1908-1997) spent the majority of her life working as an artist, sculptor, jewelry designer, teacher, and writer in California.

Claire Falkenstein was born in 1908 and grew up in Coos Bay, Oregon. In 1920, Falkenstein and her family moved to Berkeley, California, where she attended high school and then college at the University of California at Berkeley, studying philosophy, anthropology, and art. She graduated in 1930. Falkenstein had her first solo show at the East-West Gallery in San Francisco in 1930, the only member of her class to have an exhibition before graduation.

During the early 1930s, Falkenstein studied at Mills College with modernist sculptor Alexander Archipenko. There she also met Bauhaus artists Laszlo Moholy-Nagy and Gyorgy Kepes. Falkenstein married her high school sweetheart, Richard McCarthy in 1936.

In 1944, Falkenstein had her first New York exhibition at the Bonestall Gallery. At that time, Falkenstein's primary mediums were stone and wood. However, she became increasingly experimental with new materials that included sheet aluminum, Cor-Ten steel, glass, plastics, and welded wire rods while maintaining a connection to organic and natural forms. Her work in jewelry design was an outlet for exploring these new materials, forms, and techniques on a small scale. As her work grew physically larger, so did her recognition and it was her work in sculpture that won her a faculty appointment at the California School of Fine Arts from 1947-1949. It was here that she met Patricia and Clyfford Still, Hassel Smith, and Richard Diebenkorn.

In 1948, Falkenstein was invited to exhibit at the Salon des Realites Nouvelle in Paris, her first European show. She eventually moved to Europe in 1950 and had studios in Paris, Venice, and Rome. While in Europe, Falkenstein executed a number of large scale commissions, including the stair screen for Galerie Stadler (1955), grotto gates for Princess Pignatelli's villa in Rome (1957), and the bronze, steel, and the glass gate at the Peggy Guggenheim Museum in Venice (1961). While in Paris, she became acquainted with noted art critic Michel Tapie, with whom she maintained a life-long friendship.

During the 1940s and 1950s Falkenstein was a regular contributor to Arts and Architecture magazine, most often writing the "Art Comments from San Francisco" section. While in Paris, she also wrote a column on art news for the New York Herald Tribune.

Falkenstein returned to the United States in 1962, eventually renovating a studio space in Venice, California. It was here that she conceived her largest commissions. In 1965, Falkenstein received a commission from the California Savings and Loan to create a sculpture for a large fountain at the front of the bank in downtown Los Angeles. The copper tube fountain, entitled "Structure and Flow #2," was the first of many large scale public art commissions that Falkenstein completed during her years in California. Her most important commission in the United States, completed in 1969, was for the doors, rectory gates and grills and stained-glass windows for St. Basil's Church on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. The eight doors and fifteen rectory screens, including 80 foot high windows in the nave, were an expansion of the "never ending screen" concept that Falkenstein executed with the Pignatelli commission in Rome. She continued to use this motif in her work throughout her career.

Claire Falkenstein worked as an arts instructor, visiting artist, and guest lecturer at many colleges, workshops, and schools in California. Her first position was at Mills College from 1946-1947. Shortly thereafter, she was appointed to the faculty at the California School of Fine Arts and later taught in the Extension Divisions of the University of California, Berkeley. She taught classes at California State Polytechnic University, California State University at Davis, and the Anna Head School. Falkenstein also taught art at the Pond Farm Workshops in California, and lectured at numerous colleges and museums. She served on many juried art shows in Southern California.

Falkenstein was acquainted with many artists, writers, instructors, collectors, gallery owners, and critics. Close friends included Esther and Bob Robles, Clyfford and Patricia Still, Michel Tapie, Allan Temko, Mark Tobey, Frans Wildenhain, and other notable figures in the art world.

Falkenstein continued to complete large scale private and public commissioned sculptures during the 1960s through the 1980s, including work for the University of Southern California, Hyland Biological Laboratory, California State University at Dominquez Hills and the California State Department of Motor Vehicles. Throughout her career, Falkenstein's work was featured in numerous exhibitions across the country. Her sculpture and other artwork can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Coos Art Museum, Harvard University Art Museum, University of Southern California Fisher Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Tate Gallery.

Falkenstein died in 1997 at the age of 89.
Related Material:
The Archives of American Art also holds two oral history interviews with Claire Falkenstein. The interview on April 13, 1965 was conducted by Betty Hoag and the one on March 2 and 21, 1995 was conducted by Paul Karlstrom.
Provenance:
The Claire Falkenstein papers were donated in 1997 by Steffan Wacholtz and Nancy Kendall, trustees for the Claire Falkenstein Trust.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers 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.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- California  Search this
Painters -- California  Search this
Jewelers -- California  Search this
Educators -- California  Search this
Authors -- California  Search this
Topic:
Art patronage  Search this
Artists' studios  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women designers  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Women authors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sketchbooks
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Interviews
Citation:
Claire Falkenstein papers, circa 1914-1997, bulk 1940-1990. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.falkclai
See more items in:
Claire Falkenstein papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9911c74ff-413b-4b54-9280-89c8b0480495
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-falkclai
Online Media:

Alice Brown Chittenden papers

Creator:
Chittenden, Alice Brown, 1859 or 60-1944  Search this
Extent:
1.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
1860-1974
Summary:
The scattered papers of painter Alice Brown Chittenden measure 1.1 linear feet and date from 1860 to 1974. Found are biographical material, correspondence, drawings by Chittenden and others, an inventory of works of art, photographs and albums, printed material, and a clippings scrapbook.
Scope and Contents:
The scattered papers of painter Alice Brown Chittenden measure 1.1 linear feet and date from 1860 to 1974. Found are biographical material, correspondence, drawings by Chittenden and others, an inventory of works of art, photographs and albums, printed material, and a clippings scrapbook.
Arrangement:
Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Alice Brown Chittenden (1859-1944) was a painter active in San Francisco, California. She is known for her paintings of flowers and California wildflowers. Additionally, she taught painting at the Hopkins Art School (later the California School of Design) and the California School of Fine Arts.
Provenance:
Donated 1974 by Virginia Larribeau, granddaughter of Alice B. Chittenden.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Painters -- California -- San Francisco  Search this
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Scrapbooks  Search this
Citation:
Alice Brown Chittenden papers, 1860-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.chitalic
See more items in:
Alice Brown Chittenden papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw95358003a-a774-46bb-b9dd-bb72ad9a85bb
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-chitalic

Display cloth

Maker:
Mbuti artist  Search this
Medium:
Bark cloth, raffia cloth, dye
Dimensions:
H x W: 208.3 x 134.6 cm (82 x 53 in.)
Type:
Textile and Fiber Arts
Geography:
Epulu, Ituri Forest, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Date:
1955
Topic:
male  Search this
Credit Line:
Gift of Robert McGregor
Object number:
77-44-1
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
National Museum of African Art Collection
Data Source:
National Museum of African Art
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys7cc1b2474-a5b1-4fc4-931e-f42d7c6552b3
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:nmafa_77-44-1

Audrey Flack papers

Creator:
Flack, Audrey  Search this
Names:
Arizona State University  Search this
Atlantic Center for the Arts (New Smyrna Beach, Fla.)  Search this
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art  Search this
Guild Hall of East Hampton  Search this
Louis K. Meisel Gallery  Search this
Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Janson, Anthony F.  Search this
Extent:
34.6 Linear feet
0.897 Gigabytes
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Motion pictures (visual works)
Video recordings
Sound recordings
Date:
1950-2022
Summary:
The papers of painter Audrey Flack measure 34.6 linear feet and 0.897 GB and date from 1950-2022. The collection documents Flack's career as an artist through biographical material, correspondence, extensive project files, writings and notes by Flack and others, exhibition catalogs, news and magazine clippings, other printed and digital material, and scrapbooks. Also found are photographs by Audrey Flack as well as photographs of the artist and works of art.

There is an 18.8 unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2022 that includes project files; correspondence; photographs, slides and negatives of works of art, exhibition installations, events, Flack and others; teaching notes; biographical information including resumes, awards, calendars, address books and identification cards; writings, notes and diaries by Flack; scrapbooks; sketches; financial records; commission applications; contracts; audio visual material including mini-DVs, VHS , DVDs and Super 8 film of interviews and lectures by Flack; and printed material including newspaper clippings, articles and posters. Materials date from circa 1950-2022.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of painter Audrey Flack measure 34.6 linear feet and 0.897 GB and date from 1950-2022. The collection documents Flack's career as an artist through biographical material, correspondence, extensive project files, writings and notes by Flack and others, exhibition catalogs, news and magazine clippings, other printed and digital material, and scrapbooks. Also found are photographs by Audrey Flack as well as photographs of the artist and works of art.

Biographical material includes curricula vitae, diplomas, an award certificate, and bibliographies of monographs and articles by and about Audrey Flack. Flack's correspondence documents her professional activities and business dealings.

There is correspondence with galleries, museums, arts organizations; architects and foundries; and academic institutions. Included are letters from Arizona State University, Atlantic Center for the Arts, Cooper Union, Guild Hall, Louis K. Meisel Gallery, and the Museum of Modern Art. There are letters from art historians and critics, including Flack's correspondence with Anthony Janson. Letters from publishers and agents pertain to book projects, proposals for articles, and requests to reproduce artwork in monographs or catalogs.

Interviews with Flack from the 1970s through the 1990s are found, recorded on sound and video. Writings and notes include manuscript versions for a book, typescripts of speeches, and a notebook. Also found are audio and video recordings of lectures and talks by Flack discussing her paintings and sculptures. The collection includes extensive project files on Flack's commissioned public works and exhibitions. The files also include correspondence concerning book projects, permission requests, and Flack's participation in art educational programs, and some projects are documented with recorded sound and moving images, two if which are in digital format.

Printed material consists of catalogs of Flack's shows, invitations and announcements to openings, press releases, reproductions of artwork, exhibition posters, clippings, periodicals, and books reflecting Flack's professional activities from the 1950s-2008. Photographs are of portraits by Flack, Flack by herself and with colleagues and students, as well as of the artist's studio. Also found are photographs of artwork.

There is an 18.8 unprocessed addition to this collection donated in 2022 that includes project files; correspondence; photographs, slides and negatives of works of art, exhibition installations, events, Flack and others; teaching notes; biographical information including resumes, awards, calendars, address books and identification cards; writings, notes and diaries by Flack; scrapbooks; sketches; financial records; commission applications; contracts; audio visual material including mini-DVs, VHS , DVDs and Super 8 film of interviews and lectures by Flack; and printed material including newspaper clippings, articles and posters. Materials date from circa 1950-2022.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 9 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1951-2006 (Box 1; 0.25 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1950-2009 (Boxes 1-3; 2.4 linear feet)

Series 3: Interviews, circa 1970-1998 (Boxes 3-4; 0.8 linear feet)

Series 4: Writings and Notes, circa 1970-2007 (Boxes 4-6; 2.15 linear feet)

Series 5: Project Files, 1966-circa 2007 (Boxes 6-11, FC 18-21; 5.6 linear feet, ER01-ER02, 0.897 GB)

Series 6: Printed Material, 1950-2008 (Boxes 11-16, OV 17; 4.1 linear feet)

Series 7: Scrapbooks, 1977-2008 (Box 15; 2 folders)

Series 8: Photographs, 1966-2009 (Boxes 15-16; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 9: Unprocessed Addition, circa 1950-2022 (Boxes 22-41, OV 42-43; 18.8 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Audrey Flack (1931-) is a painter and sculptor in New York City and in Long Island, New York. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Cooper Union in 1951 and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Yale University in 1952. In the 1950s, she was part of the New York School that included the Abstract Expressionist painters Franz Kline and Jackson Pollock. By the 1960s, Flack had turned to painting in a realistic manner. She pioneered the technique of incorporating photographic images from contemporary sources such as magazines and newspapers; the art form became known as Photorealism. Her subjects have included families, celebrities, and public figures. An early work, The Kennedy Motorcade captured President John Kennedy moments before he was assassinated. Flack's paintings have also centered on the varied experiences of women as depicted in her Vanitas series done in the 1970s. Flack was the first Photorealist painter to have a work acquired by the Museum of Modern Art. By the 1980s, Flack was creating sculptures, goddess figures and other mythological deities of various cultures. The sculptures, many of monumental proportions were executed as commissioned works for public spaces. Flack's commissions have included Civitas: Four Visions, South Carolina, Galatea Fountain, South Pasadena, Florida, Islandia, New York City Technical College, and The Art Muse, Tampa, Florida. Further, Audrey Flack has also worked in other media such as photography and printmaking.

Audrey Flack has taught and lectured at colleges and universities in the United States and abroad, including Cooper Union, Pratt Institute of New York, and the Studio Art School International, Florence, Italy. She has been a Visiting Professor at a number of universities, including the University of North Dakota, University of Tennessee, and the University of Pennsylvania. Her paintings, watercolors, and sculptures have been featured in solo and group exhibitions in major museums and galleries. Flack's artwork has also been shown in a number of traveling exhibitions including "Saints and Other Angels: The Religious Paintings of Audrey Flack" sponsored by Cooper Union and "Breaking the Rules: Audrey Flack, A Retrospective, 1950-1990" organized by the J.B. Speed Museum. Flack has been represented by the Louis K. Meisel Gallery, the Vered Gallery, and the Gary Snyder Gallery. Among the many awards and honors she has received are the Honorary Ziegfeld Award, National Art Education Association, an Honorary Doctorate, Lyme Academy of Art, and the U.S. Government National Design for Transportation Award. Audrey Flack has also written two books and numerous articles. Audrey Flack lives and works in New York and in East Hampton, New York.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Audrey Flack conducted by Robert C. Morgan, February 16, 2009.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Audrey Flack in 2009 and 2022.
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.
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 -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Art -- Study and teaching  Search this
Art -- Economic aspects  Search this
Artists' studios -- Photographs  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Scrapbooks
Photographs
Motion pictures (visual works)
Video recordings
Sound recordings
Citation:
Audrey Flack papers, 1950-2022. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.flacaudr
See more items in:
Audrey Flack papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9c12179ce-d722-47e1-b806-32a27e29d8f3
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-flacaudr

Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears papers, 1920-1991

Creator:
Blackshear, Kathleen, 1897-1988  Search this
Spears, Ethel, 1902 or 03-1974  Search this
Subject:
Gardner, Helen  Search this
Art Institute of Chicago  Search this
Art Institute of Chicago. School  Search this
Type:
Diaries
Sketchbooks
Citation:
Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears papers, 1920-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Theme:
Women  Search this
Diaries  Search this
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)10522
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)213992
AAA_collcode_blackath
Theme:
Women
Diaries
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_213992

Barbara Aubin papers, circa 1949-2006

Creator:
Aubin, Barbara, 1928-2014  Search this
Subject:
Kucera, Kathryn  Search this
Art Institute of Chicago. School  Search this
Type:
Scrapbooks
Video recordings
Citation:
Barbara Aubin papers, circa 1949-2006. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Theme:
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)17365
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)381310
AAA_collcode_aubibarb
Theme:
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_381310

Oral history interview with Suellen Rocca

Interviewee:
Rocca, Suellen, 1943-2020  Search this
Interviewer:
Stieber, Jason, 1973-  Search this
Names:
Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project  Search this
Chicago's Art-Related Archival Materials: A Terra Foundation Resource  Search this
Extent:
1 Item (digital video file (1 hr., 2 min.) Video, digital, wav)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Video recordings
Interviews
Date:
2016 May 26
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Suellen Rocca conducted 2016 May 26, by Jason Stieber, in Chicago, Ill, for the Archives of American Art's Chicago Art and Artists: Oral History Project.
Biographical / Historical:
Interviewee Suellen Rocca (1943- 2020) was an artist, curator, and educator in Romeoville, Ill. Interviewer Jason Stieber (1973- ) is the National Collector for the Archives of American Art.
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.
Restrictions:
For information on how to access this interview contact Reference Services.
Topic:
Hairy Who (Group of artists)  Search this
Art, American -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Women museum curators  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Video recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.rocca16
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw90c231313-e4c8-4ded-b9fa-d94af1467d09
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-rocca16

Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears papers

Creator:
Blackshear, Kathleen, 1897-1988  Search this
Spears, Ethel, 1903-1974  Search this
Names:
Art Institute of Chicago  Search this
Art Institute of Chicago. School  Search this
Gardner, Helen, d. 1946  Search this
Extent:
9.2 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Diaries
Sketchbooks
Date:
1920-1991
Summary:
The papers of educators and painters Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears measure 9.2 linear feet and date from 1920 to 1991. The papers focus primarily on Blackshear's career but also document the career of Blackshear's partner Ethel Spears, and the involvement of both women in the Chicago, Illinois art scene. Papers include biographical material, correspondence, handmade holiday and greeting cards, artist files, research and subject files, and printed material.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of educators and painters Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears measure 9.2 linear feet and date from 1920 to 1991. The papers focus primarily on Blackshear's career but also document the career of Blackshear's partner Ethel Spears, and the involvement of both women in the Chicago, Illinois art scene. Papers include biographical material, correspondence, handmade holiday and greeting cards, artist files, research and subject files, and printed material.

Biographical materials include address books, sketches, teaching records, personal business records of both Blackshear and Spears, and photographs of the two women. Correspondence is scattered but comments on Spears's participation with the Works Progress Administration. Handmade holiday cards are from friends, colleagues, students, and fellow artists, and were sent to Blackshear and Spears throughout their decades-long partnership. The bulk of the papers consist of files kept by Blackshear on artists and various art-related subjects.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 7 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1920-1967 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1925-1986 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 3: Handmade Holiday Cards, circa 1920-circa 1960 (2.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-4

Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1920-1950s (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 4-5)

Series 5: Artist Files, 1922-1981 (0.9 linear feet; Box 5)

Series 6: Research and Subject Files, circa 1920s-circa 1960s (Boxes 6-9; 4.0 linear feet)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1925-1991 (0.2 linear feet; Box 10)
Biographical / Historical:
Kathleen Blackshear (1897-1998) was a painter, writer, and educator. Ethel Spears (1903-1974) was a painter and educator. Blackshear and Spears were longtime partners and both were active in Chicago, Illinois.

Kathleen Blackshear was born in Navasota, Texas in 1897. She attended Baylor University and the Art Students League before settling at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she took graduate classes and served as a teaching assistant under Helen Gardner. She succeeded Gardner as teacher and subsequently held that position for thirty-five years, expanding Gardner's legacy of introducing students to the history of art by placing a special emphasis on artistic traditions outside of Western Europe. The importance and influence of Blackshear's teaching focus is reflected in several subsequent generations of students, including Whitney Halstead and the Chicago Imagists group. Blackshear also lectured at other institutions.

In addition to teaching, Blackshear contributed analytical drawings for Helen Gardner's publications, painted two cycloramas for the Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago in 1933-1934, and exhibited her prints and paintings. As a painter, Blackshear was known for her depictions of African Americans.

Ethel Spears was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1903. She attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and studied under Alexander Archipenko at the Art Students League in New York City before returning to the School of the Art Institute to teach. Spears was known for her paintings of urban scenes.

It is likely that Blackshear and Spears met while teaching at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. They lived together in Chicago and moved to Navasota, Texas upon retiring. They remained together until Spears's death in 1974. Blackshear died in 1988.
Provenance:
The Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears papers were donated in 1990 by William Terrell, Blackshear's nephew and executor.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Educators -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Women educators  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Genre/Form:
Diaries
Sketchbooks
Citation:
Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears papers, 1920-1991. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.blackath
See more items in:
Kathleen Blackshear and Ethel Spears papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9d44201be-9e5a-4f4c-95e8-bfc599018ce6
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-blackath
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Candida Alvarez, 2023 July 12-26

Interviewee:
Alvarez, Candida, 1955-  Search this
Interviewer:
Thomas, Mary  Search this
Type:
Video recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Candida Alvarez, 2023 July 12-26. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Women painters  Search this
Latino and Latin American artists  Search this
Theme:
Latino and Latin American  Search this
Women  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)22284
AAA_collcode_alvare23
Theme:
Latino and Latin American
Women
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_22284

Oral history interview with Candida Alvarez

Interviewee:
Alvarez, Candida, 1955-  Search this
Interviewer:
Thomas, Mary  Search this
Extent:
5 Items (audiovisual files (4 hrs., 50 min.), digital, mp4)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Video recordings
Interviews
Date:
2023 July 12-26
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Candida Alvarez conducted 2023 July 12-26, by Mary Thomas for the Archives of American Art, at Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in New York, New York.
Biographical / Historical:
Candida Alvarez (1955- ) is a painter known for her inventive use of materials on the canvas and her broad exploration of painting's ability to record experience through figuration and abstraction. Born in Brooklyn, Alavrez is now a tenured professor at the School of the Art Institute Chicago.
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.
Restrictions:
This interview is open for research. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its Oral History Program interviews available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. Quotation, reproduction and publication of the recording is governed by restrictions. If an interview has been transcribed, researchers must quote from the transcript. If an interview has not been transcribed, researchers must quote from the recording. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Educators -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago  Search this
Topic:
Women painters  Search this
Latino and Latin American artists  Search this
Genre/Form:
Video recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.alvare23
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw914a47dba-efa1-4231-b138-a5f8cbe793bd
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-alvare23

Estelle Glaser De Escobar papers, 1945-1969

Creator:
De Escobar, Estelle Glaser, 1908-  Search this
Citation:
Estelle Glaser De Escobar papers, 1945-1969. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Latino and Latin American artists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women painters  Search this
Theme:
Latino and Latin American  Search this
Women  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)5461
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)209573
AAA_collcode_deeseste
Theme:
Latino and Latin American
Women
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_209573

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