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Print Council of America records

Archives of American Art

Object Details

Creator
Print Council of America
Names
Print Council of America. Newsletter
Degas, Edgar, 1834-1917
Fine, Ruth, 1941-
Haverkamp Begemann, Egbert
Ostrow, Stephen E.
Reed, Sue Welsh
Occupation
Art dealers
Topic
Curators -- United States
Printmakers
Prints
Prints -- societies, etc
Prints -- Technique -- United States
Provenance
The Print Council of America records were donated in multiple installments from 1981 to 2020 via former council presidents Andrew Robinson, Sue Reed, Jay Fisher, Marjorie B. Cohn, and James A. Ganz and in 2020 via Jane Myers McNamara, Coordinator, Oral History Program.
Creator
Print Council of America
See more items in
Print Council of America records
Sponsor
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Print Council of America.
Summary
The records of the Print Council of America measure 24.5 linear feet and 3.02 GB, and date from 1951 to 2020. The collection includes administrative files, correspondence and subject files, interviews, some in digital format, exhibition and project files, financial records, and printed materials that document the council's founding and activities as a non-profit, professional organization of print specialists.
Biographical / Historical
The Print Council of America (est. 1956- ) is a non-profit, professional organization of print specialists in Boston, Massachusetts. The idea of a print council began in 1954 when a group of prominent art collectors, curators, and scholars gathered in New York to discuss creating a national organization that could promote prints and print collecting. After much discussion, by-laws and other legal documentation were drawn up by Joshua Binion Cahn, a legal advisor for the Print Council of America, to establish the organization. Some of the earliest members of the council, including Adelyn Breeskin, Gustav von Groschwitz, Una Johnson, William Lieberman, A. Hyatt Mayor, Elizabeth Mongan, Paul J. Sachs, and Carl Zigrosser, were led by Lessing J. Rosenwald, an art collector and son of Julius Rosenwald, who was part owner of Sears, Roebuck and Company. Rosenwald's mission was to "foster the creation, dissemination, and appreciation of fine prints, old and new," and to encourage and professionalize the preservation, administration, and study of print collections in the United States and Canada. Eventually the organization evolved to become an authority on print standards, educating print professionals and collectors on how to prevent fraudulent practices by learning ways to identify authentic or "original" prints. As an authority on prints, the council published numerous guides and directories of print resources. One of the council's most notable accomplishments was the compilation of European, American, and Japanese print resources into the Index of Print Catalogues Raisonné online database. The council also aimed to provide its members with an avenue to share ideas through holding annual meetings. After the closing of the organization's New York office in 1973, annual and semi-annual meetings continued to be a valuable resource for members. Today, the council continues to provide educational tools and resources for print professionals.
Function
Arts organizations
Extent
24.5 Linear feet
3.02 Gigabytes
Date
1951-2020
Archival Repository
Archives of American Art
Identifier
AAA.princoun
Type
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Interviews
Photographs
Sound recordings
Transcripts
Citation
Print Council of America records, 1951-2020. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as seven series. Series 1: Administrative Files, 1955-2016 (9.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-7, 24-28, OV 29; 0.26 gigabytes, ER01) Series 2: Correspondence and Subject Files, 1953-2016 (5.9 linear feet; Boxes 7-12) Series 3: Oral History Project, 2006-2016 (0.4 linear feet; Box 13; 2.76 gigabytes, ER02-ER20) Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1956-2005 (3.0 linear feet; Boxes 13-16, OV 29) Series 5: Project Files, 1956-2013 (3.4 linear feet; Boxes 16-19, OV 29) Series 6: Financial Records, 1956-1995 (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 19-21) Series 7: Printed Materials, 1951-2016 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 21-22)
Processing Information
The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Sarah Mundy in 2017 with funding provided by the Print Council of America. Born-digital addition material was processed by Kirsi Ritosalmi-Kisner in 2021 with funding provided by Smithsonian Collection Care and Preservation Fund.
Genre/Form
Interviews
Photographs
Sound recordings
Transcripts
Scope and Contents
The records of the Print Council of America measure 24.5 linear feet and 3.02 GB, and date from 1951 to 2020. The collection includes administrative files, correspondence and subject files, interviews, some in digital format, exhibition and project files, financial records, and printed materials that document the council's founding and activities as a non-profit, professional organization of print specialists. Administrative files consist of general administrative records and files for memberships, board of directors, trustees, committees, and digital photographs. Correspondence and subject files contain a mixture of correspondence, writings, and printed material for various correspondents and topics. The oral history project consists of twenty digital sound recordings and transcripts of interviews with council members Alan Fern, Ruth Fine, Egbert Haverkamp-Begemann, Stephen E. Ostrow, Sue Reed, Robert Waddell, and others. Files for exhibitions include American Prints Today 1959 and 1962 , the VII São Paulo Biennial exhibition Eleven American Printmakers (1963), the New York World's Fair of 1964-1965, and 30 Contemporary American Prints (1964). Project files include documentation for the Index to Print Catalogues Raisonné database, other publishing and research projects, surveys, a print collection in India, the People-to-People Program, the sales of an Edgar Degas work, and project proposals. Financial records consist of cash vouchers, check stub books, financial reports, disbursement and cash receipt ledgers, The Lessing and Edith Rosenwald Foundation grant information, paid bills, and tax information. In printed materials are issues of Print Council's Newsletter, press releases, print sales and exhibition catalogs, reprints of advertisements, informational flyers created by the council, and a booklet marking the council's 50th anniversary.
Restrictions
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of born-digital records with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
Related link
Record ID
ebl-1519218607522-1519218607559-0
Metadata Usage
CC0
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw91764af3b-0da1-43a4-a5b7-9d4c8bab3662

In the Collection

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  • General Files

  • General

  • Administrative Files

  • Correspondence and Subject Files

  • Rockefeller Foundation

  • Ford Foundation

  • Pratt Institute and Graphics Center

  • Tamarind Lithography Workshop, Inc.

  • Advertising with Dealers and Galleries, Correspondence and Clippings

  • Rockefeller Institute

  • Rockefeller Institute, Rockefeller Brothers Fund

  • 1980 Meeting, Minutes and Correspondence

  • American Prints Today 1959, Photographs of Works of Art

  • 1994 Meeting, New Members

  • History, Copies of PCA Documents Compiled by Stephen Hitchings

  • American Prints Today 1962, Printing

  • Press Releases

  • Booklet, Print Dealers and Art Galleries in the U.S. (2nd Edition, 1965), Dealer Applications Pending Recommendations

  • History, Memo Regarding the Closing of New York Office

  • 2009 Mid-Winter Meeting, Minutes

  • 2012 Mid-Winter Meeting, Minutes

  • 1960 Meeting, Minutes and Correspondence

  • Card File, Unlabeled Set

  • 1963 Meeting, Minutes and Correspondence

  • Ackley, Clifford S.

  • Sachs, Dr. Paul J.

  • Lieberman, William S.

  • M, General

  • 1998 Meeting, Minutes and Reports

  • Proposal, "Quality vs. Mediocrity and Inferiority in Prints"

  • 1996 Mid-Winter Meeting, Agenda and Correspondence

  • Cahn, Joshua Binion

  • Elections

  • Archives of American Art

  • Executive Committee, November 16, 1970 - Meeting Minutes

  • 1971 Meeting, Memos to Board of Directors

  • RCH Services, Inc.

  • Hansen, Trudy

  • American Prints Today 1962, Shipping

  • Proposal, Print Submission Center

  • 1996 Meeting, Minutes and Correspondence

  • Ledger, Disbursements

  • Elections

  • Database, "Bibliography of Articles on Prints," Correspondence

  • Printed Materials

  • American Prints Today 1962, Catalog - Shipping

  • Ledger, Disbursements

  • Booklet, Print Collections in the United States (1961), Annotated Copies and Correspondence

  • Research, "Bibliography of Print Oeuvre Catalogs," Timothy Riggs

  • Periodical, Print Exhibitions Calendar, Nos. 15-23

  • Periodical, Newsletter, No. 33

  • Lease, Weylin Management Company

  • 2001 Meeting, Minutes

  • Eleven American Printmakers (1963), Slides of Works of Art

  • Enrollment, Individuals and Institutions, D-H

  • Enrollment, Individuals and Institutions, U-Z

  • Periodical, Newsletter, No. 18, "Some Notes on the Internet and Art Historical Resources," Article Manuscript by Stephen Goddard

  • American Federation of Arts

  • Hitchings, Sinclair H.

  • Papers and Talk Sessions

  • Memos Regarding Activities

  • Elections

  • Field, Richard S. with Judith Levy

  • Elections

  • U, General

  • Member Lists

  • National Gallery of Art

  • Major Printmaker Nominations

  • 1983 Meeting, "William Ivins, Fog-Dispeller," Transcript of Talk by Sinclair Hitchings and Correspondence

  • Fahs, Charles S.

  • 1964 Meeting, Minutes and Correspondence

  • Correspondence

  • 1984 Meeting, Minutes and Correspondence

  • Book, The Print Council Index to Oeuvre-Catalogs of Prints by European and American Artists (1983), Kraus International Publications

  • American Prints Today 1962, Correspondence for Third Showing

  • Riggs, Timothy interviewed by Georgia Barnhill, Amherst, MA (2015 August 7), Digital Audio Recording, Photograph and Documents

  • Periodical, Newsletter, Nos. 6-9

  • Correspondence with Chase Manhattan Bank

  • 2008 Meeting, Business Meeting Minutes

  • 1970 Meeting, Nominating Committee

  • Lists of Directors

  • Book, The Print Council Index to Oeuvre-Catalogs of Prints by European and American Artists (1983), Published Copy Signed by Riggs

  • Lasansky, Mauricio

  • Card File, Artists

  • Card File, Individuals and Institutions

  • Database, Index to Print Catalogues Raisonné, Staffing

  • Book, "American Printmaking: 1930-1966" by Alan Fern

  • History, Lists of Meeting Locations and Officers by Year

  • Photographs of Select Meetings, Digital Photographs

  • Fisher, Jay - Correspondents A-C

  • 1989 Meeting, Agenda and Correspondence

  • History, "The Beginnings of the PCA" by Carl Zigrosser

  • 2005 Meeting, Minutes

  • 2013 Meeting, Minutes

  • Lease, Hildred Management Corporation

  • UNESCO

  • Tax Exemption as Charitable Organization

  • Correspondence from Council President to Members, Martha Tedeschi

  • Booklet, Print Council of America (1961), Published Copies and Correspondence

  • Zigrosser, Carl

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Advertising with Dealers and Galleries, Correspondence and Clippings
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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.
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