Below is a current list of artists' papers and artists' correspondence held in the Archives, each with a brief description and links to the finding aid or catalog record when available.
Artists’ Papers and Correspondence
Artists' Papers and Correspondence
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Anna Kleinman Research Files on Rosalba Carriera, undated
Typescript photocopies of the English translations of the correspondence and diary of Rosalba Carriera (1675–1757), prominent Venetian Rococo portraitist. Also includes explanatory footnotes, biographical sketches of correspondents, and microfilm of the original documents.
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Artists' Correspondence, 1596–1925
A collection of approximately twenty-five letters from various artists received by the Frick Art Reference Library as gifts. The artists lived mainly during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The subjects discussed in the letters are both personal and professional, including some references to the artists' works. The content of the letters is noted in the finding aid when possible; some letters are in French or Italian.
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Charles W. Hawthorne Papers, 1904–1947
Correspondence, newspaper clippings, photographs, and research material regarding the work of Charles W. Hawthorne, American painter and founder of the Cape Cod School of Art.
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Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century British Artists Collection, 1756–1838
Correspondence, engravings, printed material, and ephemera from eighteenth and nineteenth century British artists most likely compiled by art authority Charles Henry Hart (1847–1918). Most of the letters are written to either Joseph Nollekens (1737–1823) or to Ozias Humphry (1742–1810). Many of the correspondents were students or professors at the Royal Academy, Associates of the Royal Academy, or Royal Academicians.
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Helen Clay Frick Papers, Series VI: Research Files on Jean Antoine Houdon, 1802?–1976
Helen Clay Frick (1888–1984), daughter of industrialist and art collector Henry Clay Frick, had a lifelong interest in art history, particularly in the French sculptor Jean Antoine Houdon (1741–1828). These research files contain typed and handwritten research notes, correspondence, photographs, Frick Art Reference Library photo mounts, publications, newspaper and magazine clippings, and typescript drafts and correspondence related to both published and unpublished writings on Houdon. Of special interest are approximately 300 photostats and transcriptions of the papers of Houdon, acquired from a descendant of the sculptor.
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Hesselius Family Papers, 1780–1822
Correspondence of the descendants of Gustave Hesselius, including his granddaughter, Elizabeth Henderson Wertmuller, her mother, Lydia Hesselius Henderson, and her aunt Mary Hesselius, as well as other relatives, concerning personal and business matters.
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Josef Albers Papers, 1933–1961
Artwork, exhibition catalogues and announcements, writings, and clippings that document the career of artist and art educator Josef Albers (1888–1976). Collection includes three original woodcut prints, as well as photographs and reproductions of works.
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Peter H. Davidson & Co., Inc. Weir Records, 1957–1991
Correspondence, photographs, provenance records, invoices, inventories, and printed material pertaining to Davidson's association with the descendants of painter J. Alden Weir. Also concerns the creation of the Weir Foundation and the effort to designate Weir Farm, the home of J. Alden Weir, a national park.
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Raymond P. R. Neilson Papers, circa 1930s–1950s
Diaries, notebooks, and other notes regarding the work of New York City portraitist, still-life painter, and art instructor Raymond P. R. Neilson. The collection also includes some correspondence regarding portrait commissions.
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Sister Mary of the Compassion (Constance Mary Rowe) Collection, 1959–circa 1970s
Holy cards and greeting cards, photographs and postcards of paintings, and clippings document the work of the artist Sister Mary of the Compassion (1908–77), formerly known as Constance Mary Rowe, a member of the Community of the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary in the Blue Chapel, Union City, N.J.
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Vollon Correspondence Collection, 1846-1937
Correspondence and other documentation relating to French nineteenth century artist, Antoine Vollon, his son, Alexis Vollon, and their peers.
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Walter and Matilda Gay Collection
Walter Gay (1856–1937) was an American artist known for his paintings of interiors. For the better part of his life, Gay lived in France, where he met and married heiress and fellow expatriate Matilda E. Travers (1855–1943). The bulk of this collection is formed by Matilda Gay's diaries, which provide detailed insight into the Gays' daily life as well as American expatriate life in France before, during, and after World War I. The collection also contains correspondence, photographs (including an album of photographs of Walter Gay's early paintings), material relating to the death of Walter Gay, and various artifacts and printed material.