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Adelyne Dohme Breeskin papers, circa 1934-1986

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Series 1: Biographical Material, 1938-1986
0.6 Linear feet
Box 1, OVs 4-6

Found in this series is a "birthday book" of letters, cards, and artwork given to Breeskin on the occasion of her 90th birthday, with illustrated greetings from artists including Grace Hartigan and Jacob Kainen; family estate papers; news clippings about Breeskin; and resumes and employment related documents including a federal employment application and correspondence related to the professional opportunities Breeskin was exploring in preparation for resigning her position at the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1962.
Photographs include a studio portrait of Breeskin by Leonard L. Greif taken just prior to her retirement from the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1962, and photographs of Breeskin with others including with Betty Parsons in March 1973; with Edwin A. Daniels, Raphael Soyer, William Finn, and Joseph Hirshhorn after receiving an honorary degree at the Maryland Art Institute in 1975; and with Charles C. Cunningham, Tatayana Grossman, and Clyfford Still at an unidentified event, circa 1970s. Also found is a sound recording of a farewell dinner held for Breeskin at the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1962, and a sound recording of a 1969 interview with Sally Avery.
Description Container Select
Dohme Estate Papers, 1938-circa 1950s
1
1
News Clippings on Breeskin, 1948-1962
1
2
News Clippings on Breeskin, 1978
6
Photographs, Breeskin and Others, 1970s
1
3
Photographs, Studio Portraits of Breeskin, 1962
1
4
Resumes and Employment-Related, circa 1960s
1
5
Sound Recording of Breeskin's Baltimore Museum of Art Farewell Dinner, 1962 April 16
1 Sound tape reel
1
6
Sound Recording of Interview with Sally Avery by Adelyn Breeskin, 1969, December 10
1 Sound tape reel
1
7
Sound Recording of Interview with Sally Avery by Adelyn Breeskin, Duplicates, 1969 December 10
3 Sound cassettes
1
8
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Series 2: Correspondence, 1940-1970
0.5 Linear feet
Box 1

Correspondence is personal and professional and includes correspondence with friends and artists such as Joseph Albers, Milton Avery, Lawrence Calcagno, Georgia O'Keeffe, Stanton Macdonald-Wright, and Yulla and Jacques Lipchitz; correspondence with museums, art societies, and arts administrators such as the Baltimore Museum of Art, Currier Gallery of Art, R. Sturgis Ingersoll, the National Society of Arts and Letters, the Royal Society of Arts, the Toledo Museum of Art, and many others. Also found are letters related to Breeskin's Stuart Alumnae Association scholarship to attend Katherine B. Child's school in Italy with nine negatives labeled "Dorothy Breeskin and friends," and correspondence with Marian King related to a proposed book on art by King.
Records are arranged alphabetically by correspondent, followed by congratulatory letters and a small amount of correspondence related to Breeskin's membership in societies and on committees.
Description Container Select
Correspondence, A, 1950-1970
1
9
Correspondence, B, 1949-1957
1
10
Correspondence, C, 1944-1966
1
11
Correspondence, D-E, 1940-1961
1
12
Correspondence, F-G, 1947-1961
1
13
Correspondence, H-J, 1946-1962
1
14
Correspondence, K, 1950-1956
1
15
Correspondence, King, Marian, 1956-1961
1
16
Correspondence, L-M, 1944-1960
1
17
Correspondence, N-P, 1949-1965
1
18
Correspondence, R, 1946-1961
1
19
Correspondence, S, 1944-1961
1
20
Correspondence, T-Z, 1947-1961
1
21
Congratulations for Appointment as Director of Baltimore Museum of Art, 1947
1
22
Congratulations for Appointment as Director Baltimore Museum of Art, 1947-1948
1
23
Membership, Offices, 1960-1961
1
24
Tributes to Breeskin, 1945-1962
1
25
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Series 3: Writings and Lectures, circa 1934-1981
1 Linear foot
Boxes 1-2

This series is arranged as two subseries.
  • 3.1: Writing Projects, circa 1934-circa 1975
  • 3.2: General Writings and Lectures, 1941-1981

3.1

Writing Projects, circa 1934-circa 1970
This series documents three of Breeskin's writing projects. There are drafts of, and notes related to, a catalog and a brief guide prepared by Breeskin at the request of Maryland's Governor Ritchie for visitors to the State House in Annapolis, following the 1933 restoration of some of the paintings in the State House.
Records relating to Breeskin's unpublished monograph on Loren MacIver include correspondence between Breeskin and MacIver (primarily copies); correspondence with Breeskin's publisher, the Pierre Matisse Gallery, and others primarily regarding reproductions for the book; research files containing photocopies of correspondence and records related to MacIver's work for the WPA; photocopies of the Museum of Modern Art's file on MacIver's mural done on the SS Argentina; 13 poems, many concerning works by MacIver written by her husband, Lloyd Frankenberg; and manuscript drafts, including a chronology and lists of art works.
Material relating to Mary Cassatt includes copies and typescripts of letters written by Cassatt to Mathilda Brownell, Adaline Havemeyer, Julie Manet, and others, presumably used by Breeskin in her research on Mary Cassatt.
Description Container
Catalogs of Paintings in the State House, Annapolis, MD, circa 1934, 1962, 1975
1
26
Monograph (Unpublished) on Loren MacIver
Correspondence, 1969-1970
1
27
Copies, 1969-1970
1
28
Manuscript Draft, Chronology and List of Illusrations, circa 1970
1
29
Manuscript Draft, Text, circa 1970
1
30
Manuscript Draft, Text, circa 1970
1
31
Museum of Modern Art Material on MacIver's Mural on the SS Argentina, 1958-1969
1
32
Poems by Lloyd MacIver, circa 1970
1
33
WPA Material, 1936-1969
1
34
Research on Mary Cassatt
Julie Manet Letters, 1970s
1
35
Mr. Whittemore Letters, 1970s
1
36
Other Letters, 1970s
1
37

3.2

General Writings and Lectures, 1941-1981
This series includes handwritten drafts and typescript drafts of manuscripts and lectures by Breeskin, as well as correspondence related to the lectures such as travel arrangements and other details.
Also found is a sound recording of a 1981 lecture delivered by Breeskin at the National Museum of American Art, entitled "Artists I have Known." The sound recording has been digitized for research access.
Description Container
Sound Recording of Lecture "Artists I Have Known", 1981 March 8
1 Sound cassette
Original sound cassette is stored offsite.
Researchers may access digitized audiovisual materials in the Archives' Washington, D.C. or New York, N.Y. Research Centers by appointment.
IM100RC.053
Writings and Lectures, circa 1940s-circa 1960s
1
38
Writings and Lectures, 1941
1
39
Writings and Lectures, 1942-1944
1
40
Writings and Lectures, 1945
1
41
Writings and Lectures, 1946
1
42
Writings and Lectures, 1947
1
43
Writings and Lectures, 1947
2
1
Writings and Lectures, 1948
2
2
Writings and Lectures, 1948
2
3
Writings and Lectures, 1949 January-June
2
4
Writings and Lectures, 1949 July-December
2
5
Writings and Lectures, 1950
2
6
Writings and Lectures, 1950
2
7
Writings and Lectures, 1951
2
8
Writings and Lectures, 1951
2
9
Writings and Lectures, 1952
2
10
Writings and Lectures, 1952
2
11
Writings and Lectures, 1952
2
12
Writings and Lectures, 1952
2
13
Writings and Lectures, 1953
2
14
Writings and Lectures, 1953
2
15
Writings and Lectures, 1954
2
16
Writings and Lectures, 1955
2
17
Writings and Lectures, 1956
2
18
Writings and Lectures, 1956
2
19
Writings and Lectures, 1957
2
20
Writings and Lectures, 1958
2
21
Writings and Lectures, 1959
2
22
Writings and Lectures, 1959
2
23
Writings and Lectures, 1960
2
24
Writings and Lectures, 1960
2
25
Writings and Lectures, 1960-1961
2
26
Writings and Lectures, 1961
2
27
Writings and Lectures, 1962
2
28
Writings and Lectures, 1968
2
29
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Series 4: Professional Files, 1945-1984
0.4 Linear feet
Boxes 2-3

Professional files provide scattered documentation of Breeskin's career as a director, consultant, and teacher. They include notes, correspondence, and reports relating to Breeskin's work as a consultant to the National Collection of Fine Arts (later the National Museum of American Art); a letter, a memorandum, and a transcript of a news clipping briefly summarizing Breeskin's work as Commissioner of the American Pavilion at the 1960 Venice Biennale; correspondence, notes, and course outlines for an art appreciation course Breeskin taught at Johns Hopkins University in the late 1940s; a sound recording of a lecture delivered by Ilya Bolotowsky and introduced by Breeskin at the National Museum of American Art; and correspondence and other documentation relating to arrangements for travel by Breeskin in the USA and abroad, generally related to speaking engagements and participation in art juries.
Description Container Select
Consultant to National Collection of Fine Arts, 1964-1971
2
30
Consultant to National Collection of Fine Arts, 1964-1971
2
31
Commissioner of American Pavilion, Venice Biennale, 1960, 1984
2
32
Johns Hopkins University Art Courses, 1945-1947
2
33
Johns Hopkins University Art Courses, 1947-1948
2
34
Johns Hopkins University Art Courses, 1949-1950
2
35
Johns Hopkins University Art Courses, 1952
2
36
Jurying and Committees, 1949-1953
2
37
Sound Recording of Ilya Bolotowsky Lecture at National Museum of American Art, 1975 January 15
1 Sound cassette
3
1
Travel Abroad, 1955-1958
3
2
Travel USA, Speaking Engagements and Juryin, A-B, 1960-1962
3
3
Travel USA, Speaking Engagements and Juryin, C-D, 1959-1962
3
4
Travel USA, Speaking Engagements and Jurying, E-M, 1960-1961
3
5
Travel USA, Speaking Engagements and Jurying, N-W, 1957-1962
3
6

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  • To request an appointment to view materials, make your selections using the checkboxes and click the "Reading Room" button. Please note, you will receive the full box.
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