Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America

Parsons, Betty print view role Dealer/Gallery Artist Collector dates 1900-1982 city New York City state NY other cities Paris, France; sex F historical notes Described by ARTnews as the "den mother of Abstract Expressionism," Betty Parsons became famous for identifying, promoting, and nurturing a new generation of American artists in the years after World War II. From her gallery on Fifty-Seventh Street, she spent more than three decades championing the work of numerous young artists, including most notably the painters of the New York School—Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Clyfford Still, Barnett Newman, Hans Hofmann, and Ad Reinhardt. An artist herself, she was as famous for encouraging young talent to grow and experiment as she was in recruiting them to her gallery. Before she married, her name was Betty Bierne Pierson. Betty Parsons was also an artist. During much of her life, she devoted her attention to helping other artists and although she was always creating her own artwork, she often did not promote herself. decades of activity 1920-1930 1930-1940 1940-1950 1950-1960 1960-1970 1970-1980 updated 10/31/2024 13:33:18 bibliographic search Search Frick Art Reference Library Catalog Search Photoarchive Search Worldcat Search Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF) Search Virtual International Authority File (VIAF) Search Wikidata Entry Archives/Repository Collection Title Collection Details Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers, 1916-1991, bulk 1946-1983 see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Oral history interview with Betty Parsons, 1969 June 4-9 see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 American Museum of Natural History, Dept. of Anthropology correspondence with Barnett Newman and Betty Parsons, 1944-1946. see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 David Herbert papers, circa 1909-1996, bulk 1945-1995 see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Oral history interview with Walter Murch, 1967 June 6 see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Midtown Galleries records, 1904-1997. see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 John Little papers, 1935-1978. see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Colette Roberts Papers and Interviews with Artists, 1918-1971 see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Joan Seeman papers, 1973-1981. see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Henry Ernest Schnakenberg papers, 1905-1969. see details... The Getty Research Institute Research Libraries, Archives and Special Collections Lawrence Alloway papers, 1935-2003. see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Norman Carton papers, 1949-1980. see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Grand Central Art Galleries records, 1931-1968, bulk circa 1952-circa 1965 see details... Archives of American Art Victor Building, Suite 2200 Colette Roberts Papers and Interviews with Artists, 1918-1971 see details... National Portrait Gallery Library Smithsonian American Art Museum Artist file: Parsons, Betty see details... Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Library Smithsonian Institution Artist file: Parsons, Betty see details... see also: Betty Parsons Gallery Sullivan, Mary Quinn, 1877-1939 «  back