Skip to main content

Search

My Visit
Donate
Home Smithsonian Institution

Site Navigation

  • Visit
    • Museums and Zoo
    • Entry and Guidelines
    • Maps and Brochures
    • Dine and Shop
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Group Visits
      • Group Sales
  • What's On
    • Exhibitions
      • Current
      • Upcoming
      • Past
    • Online Events
    • All Events
    • IMAX & Planetarium
  • Explore
    • - Art & Design
    • - History & Culture
    • - Science & Nature
    • Collections
      • Open Access
    • Research Resources
      • Libraries
      • Archives
        • Smithsonian Institution Archives
        • Air and Space Museum
        • Anacostia Community Museum
        • American Art Museum
        • Archives of American Art
        • Archives of American Gardens
        • American History Museum
        • American Indian Museum
        • Asian Art Museum Archives
        • Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, African Art
        • Hirshhorn Archive
        • National Anthropological Archives
        • National Portrait Gallery
        • Ralph Rinzler Archives, Folklife
        • Libraries' Special Collections
    • Podcasts
    • Stories
  • Learn
    • For Caregivers
    • For Educators
      • Art & Design Resources
      • Science & Nature Resources
      • Social Studies & Civics Resources
      • Professional Development
      • Events for Educators
      • Field Trips
    • For Students
    • For Academics
    • For Lifelong Learners
  • Support Us
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Make a Gift
    • Volunteer
      • Smithsonian Call Center
      • Ambassador Program
      • Museum Information Desk
      • Docent Programs
      • Behind-the-Scenes
      • Digital Volunteers
      • Participatory Science
  • About
    • Our Organization
      • Board of Regents
        • Members
        • Committees
        • Reading Room
        • Bylaws, Policies and Procedures
        • Schedules and Agendas
        • Meeting Minutes
        • Actions
        • Webcasts
        • Contact
      • Museums and Zoo
      • Research Centers
      • Cultural Centers
      • Education Centers
      • General Counsel
        • Legal History
        • Internships
        • Records Requests
          • Reading Room
        • Tort Claim
        • Subpoenas & Testimonies
        • Events
      • Office of Human Resources
        • Employee Benefits
        • How to Apply
        • Job Opportunities
        • Job Seekers with Disabilities
        • Frequently Asked Questions
        • SI Civil Program
        • Contact Us
      • EEO & Small Business
        • EEO Complaint Process
        • Individuals with Disabilities
        • Small Business Program
          • Doing Business with Us
          • Contracting Opportunities
          • Additional Resources
        • Special Emphasis Program
      • Sponsored Projects
        • Policies
          • Combating Trafficking in Persons
          • Animal Care and Use
          • Human Research
        • Reports
        • Internships
    • Our Leadership
    • Reports and Plans
      • Annual Reports
      • Metrics Dashboard
        • Dashboard Home
        • Virtual Smithsonian
        • Public Engagement
        • National Collections
        • Research
        • People & Operations
      • Strategic Plan
    • Newsdesk
      • News Releases
      • Media Contacts
      • Photos and Video
      • Media Kits
      • Fact Sheets
      • Visitor Stats
      • Secretary and Admin Bios
      • Filming Requests

Edward Melcarth papers

Archives of American Art

Object Details

Creator
Melcarth, Edward, 1914-1973
Occupation
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York
Topic
Sound recordings
Provenance
The Edward Melcarth papers were donated in mulitple installments between 1971 and 2007: in 1971 by Edward Melcarth; in 1977 and 1978 by a friend, Robert Morgan; in 2000 by a friend, Albert La Tucha; and in 2007 by Richard Taddei, Melcarth's former student.
Creator
Melcarth, Edward, 1914-1973
See more items in
Edward Melcarth papers
Sponsor
The processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.
Summary
The Edward Melcarth papers measure 6.0 linear feet and date from circa 1900 to 2003. The papers document his career as a painter through resumes, address books, estate papers, and other biographical material; correspondence with family, colleagues, and art institutions; manuscripts, essays, lectures, and other writings; speeches, writing excerpts, and other sound recordings; clippings, exhibition announcements, exhibition catalogs, and other printed material; paint sketches, sketches, sketchbooks, and other artwork; and photographs and slides of Melcarth, his family, artwork, friends, and models for pieces.
Biographical / Historical
Edward Melcarth (1914-1973) was a painter in New York, New York, primarily known for his portraits of working-class men. Melcarth was born Edward Epstein in Louisville, Kentucky in 1914, and he moved to New York City during his youth. He studied in London, Paris, and at Harvard. He taught at Parsons School of Design, Columbia University, University of Washington (Seattle), University of Louisville and the Educational Alliance Art School. Melcarth died in 1973.
Extent
6 Linear feet
Date
circa 1900-2003
Archival Repository
Archives of American Art
Identifier
AAA.melcedwa
Type
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Citation
Edward Melcarth papers, circa 1900-2003. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into seven series. Series 1: Biographical Material, 1902-1980 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1) Series 2: Correspondence, 1911-1974 (0.9 linear feet; Boxes 1-2) Series 3: Writings, 1934-1967 (0.9 linear feet; Box 2) Series 4: Sound Recordings, 1967-1970 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3, 8) Series 5: Printed Material, 1941-2005 (0.5 linear feet; Box 3, OV 9) Series 6: Artwork, 1946-1957 (0.5 linear feet; Box 3, 8) Series 7: Photographic Material, circa 1900-1973 (2.8 linear feet; Boxes 3-8)
Processing Information
The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Ricky Gomez in 2020.
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.
Genre/Form
Sketchbooks
Drawings
Scope and Contents
The Edward Melcarth papers measure 6.0 linear feet and date from circa 1900 to 2003. The papers document his career as a painter through resumes, address books, estate papers, and other biographical material; correspondence with family, colleagues, and art institutions; manuscripts, essays, lectures, and other writings; speeches, writing excerpts, and other sound recordings; clippings, exhibition announcements, exhibition catalogs, and other printed material; paint sketches, sketches, sketchbooks, and other artwork; and photographs and slides of Melcarth, his family, artwork, friends, and models for pieces. Biographical material includes address books, an autograph book, estate papers, passports, resumes, Melcarth's baby book, and scrapbook related to Melcarth's family. Correspondence includes personal letters between his parents, and letters to his mother regarding his acquaintences Peggy and Hazel Guggenheim, and Norman Parkinson. Other correspondents include Gore Vidal and Gael Greene, New York magazine food critic, and artist Richard Taddei. Also included are letters from artists Lief Anderson, Peter Carello, Pablo Pristeno, Ernst Teves, from playwright William Inge, from actors George Maharis, Ronald Staba and Joseph Newlin, Henry Allen Moe, R. Kirk Askew, agent John Schafner, and Charles B. Moses. Writings include manuscripts of Melcarth's short stories, novels, and plays; essays and lectures on various topics related to modern art; and other literary works such as poems and song lyrics. Sound recordings consist of interviews and speeches by Melcarth on five sound tape reels and two cassettes. Printed material consists of clippings, exhibition catalogs and announcements, and newsletters. Works of art consist of sketches and sketchbooks. Photographic material consists of photos of Melcarth, Melcarth's family, friends, various unidentified people, his paintings and sculptures, and works of art by fellow artists. There are also photos of various scenes in New York City, Coney Island, and Venice, Italy. Also included are slides, negatives, and transparencies of Melcarth's works.
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 References Services for more information.
Related link
Record ID
ebl-1596270686014-1596270686015-0
Metadata Usage
CC0
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw98f74e2f2-b3d0-45ca-a81f-cc76a7a5ce96

In the Collection

Pages

  • « first
  • ‹ previous
  • 1
  • 2
  • Family

  • Beach and Coney Island

  • Newsletters

  • Sculptures by Others

  • Letters Between Melcarth's Parents

  • Estate Papers

  • America's Empty Pedestals

  • Photos for Magazines

  • Black and White Tracer for Rooftop Theater

  • Play, "Pieces of Eight"

  • Anti-Art and After

  • Recording Warhol, Melcarth, Wingate

  • Bambino

  • Personal

  • Magazine Clippings

  • Melcarth's Mother

  • Dead Dogs

  • People, Coney Island

  • Business

  • Business

  • Kings of New York

  • Writings

  • Peter Carella

  • Exhibition Announcements

  • Address Books

  • Personal, 1967

  • When

  • Business

  • The Prize

  • Pablo Pristieno

  • Manuscripts

  • Sketchbook

  • Photo Album

  • Business

  • Flight From Nature

  • Fallen Angel

  • Enamorata

  • Miscellaneous Photographs

  • Interview for Boston University

  • Glass Designs

  • Press Releases

  • Photo Scrapbook

  • Personal

  • Miscellaneous

  • "Interview With Kertez" and Excerpts From "Followers of Comus"

  • Contact Sheets

  • Sketchbook and Sketches

  • Family

  • Business

  • Autograph Book

  • Paintings

  • Sketches

  • Play, "Break-Up"

  • Joan C. Beer

  • Look Back at Space

Pages

  • « first
  • ‹ previous
  • 1
  • 2
Leif Anderson
View Slideshow
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer
View Finding aid

Footer logo

Link to homepage

Footer navigation

  • Contact Us
  • Job Opportunities
  • Get Involved
  • Inspector General
  • Records Requests
  • Accessibility
  • EEO & Small Business
  • Shop Online
  • Host Your Event
  • Press Room
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Use

Social media links

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn

Get the latest news from the Smithsonian

Sign up for Smithsonian e-news

Get the latest news from the Smithsonian

Email powered by BlackBaud (Privacy Policy, Terms of Use)
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Back to Top