Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Bardene Allen Papers, circa 1965-2014, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.allebard
Creators:
Allen, Bardene, 1933-
Dates:
circa 1965-2014
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
0.8 Linear feet
Boxes 1-2
0.788 Gigabytes
Repository:
The papers of sculptor, painter, and gallery owner Bardene Allen measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1965-2014. Allen's career as a painter and sculptor, her friendship with Frederick Hammersley, and her administration of the Fine Arts Gallery in Laguna Beach, California, are documented through biographical material, correspondence, professional files, exhibition files, photographic materials including digital photographs, and printed material.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of sculptor, painter, and gallery owner Bardene Allen measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1965-2014. Allen's career as a painter and sculptor, her friendship with Frederick Hammersley, and her administration of the Fine Arts Gallery in Laguna Beach, California, are documented through biographical material, correspondence, professional files, exhibition files, photographic materials including digital photographs, and printed material.
Correspondence includes a small amount of professional correspondence regarding Allen's career. Also of note is personal corresondence which includes letters from Frederick Hammersley and actor Richard Chamberlain. Professional files include a statement of Allen's thoughts on her relationship with Frederick Hammersley, as well as price lists, artwork inventories, donations, commission proposals, and documentation of her involvement with both the Fine Arts Gallery in Laguna Beach, California and the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art. Exhibition files are for select exhibitions Allen participated in. Photographic material includes printed photographs and transparencies as well as digitized and digital images of artwork and of Allen with her artwork and at exhibitions. Printed material includes press clippings and exhibition invitations and catalogs.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged in 6 series:
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1990-1996 (0.1 Linear Feet; Box 1)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1965-2009 (0.2 Linear Feet; Box 1)
  • Series 3: Professional Files, circa 1980-1994 (0.1 Linear Feet; Box 1)
  • Series 4: Exhibition Files, circa 1989-1995 (0.1 Linear Feet; Box 2)
  • Series 5: Photographic Material, circa 1977-2014 (0.2 Linear Feet; Box 2, ER01)
  • Series 6: Printed Material, circa 1981-2007 (0.1 Linear Feet; Box 2)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Bardene Allen (1933- ) is a sculptor, painter and former gallery owner in Laguna Beach, California. Allen received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Pomona College in 1955 where she studied under Frederick Hammersley, who would become a life-long friend and correspondent. She is the former owner of the Fine Arts Gallery in Laguna Beach, California which was in operation from 1980 to 1983. As a sculptor Allen has worked in stone, wood, resin, bronze and terracotta. Her subjects in sculpture and painting range from mythic gods and imaginary creatures to everyday characters, Hollywood entertainers, and popular musicians in rock and jazz music.

Administration

Author
Ryan Evans and Stephanie Ashley
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The papers were donated from 1992 to 2002, 2009, and 2014 by Bardene Allen.
Processing Information
The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Ryan Evans in 2019. The collection was prepared for digitization and the finding aid was revised by Stephanie Ashley in 2021. The collection was digitized in 2022 with funding provided by the Frederick Hammersley Foundation.
Existence and Location of Copies
The bulk of the collection was digitized in 2022 and is available on the Archives of American Art website. Items not digitized include blank versos of photographs, and the full text of exhibition catalogs and a directory for which only front covers, title pages, and other relevant pages have been digitized.
Access copies of born-digital records are not online and are available at the Archives of American Art offices.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
Bardene Allen Papers, circa 1965-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Terms of Use
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Sculptors -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Gallery owners -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women painters Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women sculptors Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hammersley, Frederick, 1919-2009 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Chamberlain, Richard, 1935- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Orange County Center for Contemporary Art Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fine Arts Gallery (Laguna Beach, California) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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