Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America
Archives related to: Clement, Arthur W. (Arthur Wilfred), 1878-
| title | Arthur W. Clement Papers, 1794-1952, 1934-1952 (bulk) | repository | The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives |
| description | The papers of collector Arthur W. Clement (1878-1952) consist of records relating to his research on early American decorative arts such as pottery, china, porcelain, and pewter, the individuals who practiced these arts, and the development of his personal collection of ceramics. Included are letters from collectors, museum curators, and directors regarding objects and collections; mock-ups and drafts of his articles and essays; lecture texts; clippings of articles relating to objects, some written by Clement; and photostats of letters and documents of early potters such as William Tucker. Included, as well, are two scrapbooks containing clippings; invitations; announcements to meetings, exhibition openings, and lectures; and photographs. Of note are several original documents that may have been acquired by Clement for research purposes. These include late eighteenth and nineteenth century invoices from potteries and early twentieth century correspondence between the director of the Pennsylvania Museum and collectors.The letters, notes, and articles reveal the meticulous and thorough research that Clement undertook to gain a true understanding of the artistry and early manufacture of ceramics, pottery, glass and pewter. Texts of his publications and lectures, and clippings, including reviews of his books, help define him as an authority on art and collecting. The papers also provide some information on his working relationship with museums such as the Brooklyn Museum and the Newark Museum. Biographical/historical note Arthur W. Clement was born in 1878, the son of a Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Nathaniel Holmes Clement. He attended Yale College (class of 1900) and after graduating from New York Law School in 1902, he worked for the law firms of Cravath & Henderson and Tipple & Plitt. He became a partner at the firm of Bigham, Englar, Jones & Houston. He served as a trustee of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences and a member of the Governing Committee of the Brooklyn Museum, beginning in 1943. He was elected vice-chairman of the Committee in 1944. In addition, he was elected director of the Kings County Trust Company and was a member of the New York City Bar, the Maritime Law Association and the Century Association of Manhattan (1945-1952). He also served as president of the Rembrandt Club of Brooklyn, a social club for art patrons and collectors. He was exceedingly interested in art, especially early American pottery, ceramics and china, and traveled throughout the United States, Western Europe and Central America, acquiring ceramics, which he would donate to the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Newark Museum. He was an avid collector of early American ceramics and wrote and lectured on this subject extensively. In addition to conducting thorough research on early potters, he also lectured and published articles, catalogs, and pamphlets on other early American decorative arts, the art of collecting, and object research. Among these are The Gentle Art of Collecting and Our Pioneer Potters, in addition to articles in Antiques magazine and The New York Times. After donating his vast American ceramics collection to the Brooklyn Museum, he assisted the curators in installing the objects in a new gallery dedicated to ceramics in 1944. He also worked with curators in the decorative arts department at the Brooklyn Museum on exhibitions of American pottery, pewter, and glass, to name a few, and at the Newark Museum. Clement died on October 31, 1952 in Brooklyn, New York. Cite as Brooklyn Museum of Art Archives, Arthur W. Clement Papers. Location: Brooklyn Archives Call Number: S28 1 1 |
| extent | 1 linear Foot |
| formats | Research Files Correspondence Notes Photographs |
| access | Permission of Archivist or Librarian required. |
| record link | http://library.brooklynmuseum.org/bib&fa/fa/Clement_final.pdf |
| record source | https://library.nyarc.org/permalink/01NYA_INST/ai54l4/alma991013148499707141 |
| finding aid | Finding aid and database access in repository. For online finding aid SEE http://library.brooklynmuseum.org/bib&fa/fa/Clement_final.pdf |
| acquisition information | The Arthur W. Clement papers were transferred to the archives on January 20 and October 7, 2004 from the Department of Decorative Arts by Kevin Stayton, chief curator. |
| updated | 02/14/2025 10:07:31 |
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| title | Isabel Spaulding Roberts records, 1943-46 | repository | The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives |
| description | The Isabel Spaulding Roberts records document all activities of the Museum and include correspondence with donors, lenders, and vendors; Board of Trustees and Governing Committee members, especially Edward C. Blum, Robert E. Blum, Arthur W. Clement, Walter H. Crittenden, Sidney W. Davidson, Louis V. LeDoux, Caroline A.L. Pratt, and Adrian Van Sinderen; New York City agencies; and staff of other museums and cultural institutions. Correspondence with Robert Moses and other Parks Department officials documents the beginnings of the post-war construction program. The effects of World War II continue to be evident in files on defense measures, including the return of evacuated works of art, and the creation of new or installation of loan exhibitions on civil defense, home-front topics, and the cultures of areas involved in the war. Curatorial activities are documented in departmental files and in exhibition files. Bio/History: Isabel Spaulding Roberts was born in 1911 in San Francisco, the daughter of Morrill B. Spaulding. She attended Vassar College, receiving a B.A. degree in 1933. From 1933-37, she was a member of the staff of the Education Division at The Brooklyn Museum, resigning after her marriage to Laurance Page Roberts in September 1937. Cite as: Records of the Office of the Director, Isabel Spaulding Roberts, 1943-46, The Brooklyn Museum Archives. Location: Brooklyn Archives Call Number: DIR: ISR Related collections Records of the Office of the Director, Wills & Estates (1896-ongoing), contains material from Roberts' administration concerning bequests, gifts, legal affairs, and grants. Records of the Office of the Director, Reports (1935-71), contains monthly reports to the Institute which incorporate the Director's and departmental reports. |
| extent | 2.5 linear ft. plus .5 linear ft. oversize materials and photos |
| formats | Correspondence Exhibition Catalogs Business Papers Legal Papers Photographs |
| access | Some folders may be restricted. See archivist for details. |
| record source | https://library.nyarc.org/permalink/01NYA_INST/ai54l4/alma991004037179707141 |
| finding aid | Unpublished finding aid available in repository. Folder-level descriptions available on-line in repository. Contemporaneous card index available in repository. |
| acquisition information | Records of the Office of the Director, Isabel Spaulding Roberts internal transfer |
| updated | 02/14/2025 10:07:33 |
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| title | Charles Nagel records, 1946-1955. | repository | The Brooklyn Museum Libraries and Archives |
| description | The Charles Nagel records document all activities of the Museum and include correspondence with Museum staff; donors, lenders, and vendors; Board of Trustees and Governing Committee members, especially Robert E. Blum, Francis T. Christy, M.D.C. Crawford, Arthur W. Clement, Sidney W. Davidson, and Adrian Van Sinderen; New York City agencies; and staff of other museums and cultural institutions. Curatorial records are found under departmental and object-related files as well as in exhibition files. Exhibition files generally reflect the more ceremonial functions of the Director's Office in planning opening and handling publicity. Voluminous files on "Italy at Work," however, reflect Nagel's personal involvement in creating that exhibition. The United Nations and UNESCO programs also appear to have been more directly under Nagel's direction, with numerous files documenting these activities. Correspondence about building plans with the Department of Parks, particularly with Robert Moses, is quite heavy. The increasing involvement of the Museum with City officials in its search for funding also resulted in a corresponding increase in documentation. The work of the architectural firm, Brown, Lawford & Forbes, is also well documented. Biographical/historical note Charles Nagel was born in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1899. His father, Charles Nagel, was an attorney and Secretary of Commerce and Labor in the Cabinet of President William Taft. Nagel attended Yale University, receiving B.A. (1923), B.F.A. (1926), and M.F.A. (1928) degrees. He practiced architecture in Boston and St. Louis from 1926 through 1930, when he returned to Yale to serve as Curator of Decorative Art at the Yale Gallery and Assistant Professor of Art History. In 1936, Nagel returned to the practice of architecture in St. Louis and in 1942 was appointed Acting Director of the City Art Museum, St. Louis. When Isabel Spaulding Roberts resigned the directorship of The Brooklyn Museum in February 1946, Nagel was appointed Acting Director. He became full Director in May of that year, shortly after the resignation of Laurance Page Roberts, who had been on military leave. Nagel served until June 1955, when he returned to St. Louis as Director of the City Art Museum (1955-64). From 1964 through 1969, he was Director of the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, D.C. During his nine years at The Brooklyn Museum, Nagel's goals, as articulated in the annual reports, were to maintain the programs developed by his predecessors, to reach more deeply into the community, and to stimualte more interest in the Museum's services and resources. These post-war years were a period of planning and evaluation, but implementation of plans was often hampered by financial retrenchment. A number of administrative changes occurred under Nagel. The Children's Museum became a separate, independent division of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences with its own Director, Margaret DeWolf Tullock. The Art School expanded in both curriculum and physical plant. As a result, the last of the Natural History installations, the habitat groups, were dismantled. The position of Museum Secretary was created, with John J. Gordon overseeing publicity, publications, and membership. The Edward C. Blum Design Laboratory opened in October 1948 and an industrial membership program was developed. The Community Committee was established in 1949 and took on responsibility for increasing the Museum's membership rolls. The Community Committee Fair also held an annual fair to raise funds for the Museum. Staff benefits began to improve under Nagel's administration. A forty-hour week was inaugurated in 1947-48, along with a salary bonus to City and private employees. Discussions continued on establishing a pension plan, with inclusion under the Social Security Act accomplished in 1950-51. In the area of community involvement, the Museum and the other Institute departments were the focus of a new organization, Toward a Better Brooklyn. This group, with heavy participation from school and parent groups, raised funds for programs. Closer involvement of Brooklyn borough officials was ensured with the appointment of the Borough President as an ex officio member of the Board of Trustees. The Museum reached out to a broad audience with programs centered around the new United Nations, intending to "create a climate that would teach the virtues of tolerance and responsibility." In September 1952, the Museum hosted the UNESCO International Seminar, "The Role of the Museum in Education." Use of the media as an outreach tool also increased under Nagel, with the production of two films: a movie on the Museum and its programs, and "Take Care," a film dealing with art conservation. Educational television was also under consideration as a method of reaching a larger audience. The curatorial departments continued the policy of producing fewer but larger exhibitions, some of which were borrowed from other institutions. The National Print Annual series was inaugurated in 1947; purchase awards from these exhibitions were added to the collections. The new Design Lab also created a number of exhibitions. Nagel, who served as Curator of Decorative Arts concurrently with his directorship, was a member of the jury and assisted in organizing the exhibition, "Italy at Work" (1949-50), which premiered at The Brooklyn Museum and then travelled to several institutions in the United States. A great deal of effort focussed on the Museum building. Extensive renovation and improvement of mechanical systems was finally undertaken. A lecture hall was created in a third-floor gallery. The architectural firm of Brown, Lawford & Forbes surveyed the Museum and planned adaptations to accomodate growing programs. In particular, separate Art School and Education facilities were considered essential. Discussions were held with the Institute over the possibility--eventually rejected--of moving the parent institution's offices and Department of Education programs from the Brooklyn Academy of Music to Museum facilities. Nagel was very active in professional circles during his tenure at The Brooklyn Museum. He served on the council of the American Association of Museums, was president of the Association of Art Museum Directors, chairman of the Museums Council of New York City, and a trustee of the American Federation of Arts, the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Association, and the Textile Museum of Washington, D.C. In addition, he maintained his architectural connections, serving on various committees of the American Institute of Architects, including as chair of the Committee on Allied Arts, and assisted in compiling a list of New York City historic buildings worthy of preservation, as a member of the Municipal Art Society's Committee on Historic Sites and Structures. Note The Charles Nagel records form one of 12 series in the Records of the Office of the Director, The Brooklyn Museum. Cite as: Records of the Office of the Director, Charles Nagel, 1946-55, The Brooklyn Museum Archives. Location: Brooklyn Archives Call Number: DIR: CN |
| extent | 8.25 linear ft. plus .25 linear ft. .25 linear ft. |
| formats | Administrative Records Correspondence Ephemera Exhibition Files |
| access | Some folders may be restricted. See archivist for details. |
| record source | https://library.nyarc.org/permalink/01NYA_INST/ai54l4/alma991004037249707141 |
| finding aid | Unpublished finding aid available in repository. Folder-level descriptions available on-line in repository. Contemporaneous card index available in repository. |
| acquisition information | Records of the Office of the Director, Charles Nagel internal transfer Records of the Office of the Director, Charles Nagel accessioned 1986 D NBB |
| updated | 02/14/2025 10:07:39 |
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