Collection Information
Size: 3.5 Linear feet; 4 Gigabytes
Summary: The papers of Karen Karnes measure 3.5 linear feet and 4.00 GB and date from 1953 to 2016. The papers document Karnes career as a ceramicist in Vermont through correspondence with family, friends, and art institutions; video productions on Karnes' life, exhibitions at museums and galleries, and other professional activities; participation lists, sales documents, correspondence, and other administrative materials; artist files for various participants at the annual Old Church Cultural Center pottery show in Demarest, New Jersey; clippings, announcements, catalogs, and other printed and digital material; personal photographs and photographs and slides of pottery.
Biographical/Historical Note
Karen Karnes (1925-2016) was a ceramicist in Morgan, Vermont. Karnes attended Brooklyn College where she studied design, and decided to concetrate on ceramics after a trip to Italy. In 1954, Karnes and her husband, David Weinrib, moved to Stony Point, New York, where they established the Gate Hill Cooperative. In 1967, while teaching at Penland School of Craft, Karnes began incorporating salt in her firings. It would become a signature of her work until a fire destroyed her studio in 1998. Karnes also organized and took part in the annual Old Church Cultural Center pottery show between 1980 and the 2010s in Demarest, New Jersey.
Provenance
Donated 2018 by Ann Stannard, executor of Karnes' estate. A kiln fire in Karnes' studio and home in 1998 destroyed most of her papers.
Related Materials
Also found in the Archives of American Art are two oral histories with Karen Karnes: one conducted by Paul Cumming, October 4, 1971, and one conducted by Matt Shapiro, August 9-10, 2005.
Language Note
English .
Funding Note
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.
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