Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Anne Arnold Papers, circa 1925-2015, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.arnoanne
Creators:
Arnold, Anne, 1925-
Dates:
circa 1925-2015
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
8.5 Linear feet
Repository:
The papers of sculptor and educator Anne Arnold measure 8.5 linear feet and date from circa 1925 to 2015. The papers document Arnold's career in New York City and Montville, Maine, where she had a house and barn with her husband the painter Ernest Briggs. The collection includes biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, artists, schools and galleries; writings by Anne Arnold and others; financial records in the form of the sales of artwork and records relating to income and expenses; teaching files, mostly for Brooklyn College where she taught; printed materials including scrapbooks, clippings, and magazines; audiovisual material in the form of videocassettes or various artist panels and talks; and photographs of Anne Arnold and her work, friends and family, and reference photographs of animals.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of sculptor and educator Anne Arnold measure 8.5 linear feet and date from circa 1925 to 2015. The papers document Arnold's career in New York City and Monteville, Maine, where she had a house and barn with her husband the painter Ernest Briggs. The collection includes biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, artists, schools and galleries; writings by Anne Arnold and others; financial records in the form of the sales of artwork and records relating to income and expenses; teaching files, mostly for Brooklyn College where she taught; printed materials including scrapbooks, clippings, and magazines; audiovisual material in the form of videocassettes or various artist panels and talks; and photographs of Anne Arnold and her work, friends and family, and reference photographs of animals.

Arrangement

Arrangement
This collection is arranged as 7 series.
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, 1925-2014 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 1, 10)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, 1902, 1937-2014 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
  • Series 3: Writings, circa 1964-2010 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
  • Series 4: Financial Records, 1967-2006 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3)
  • Series 5: Teaching Files, circa 1970-2009 (0.4 linear feet; Box 3)
  • Series 6: Printed Material, 1958-2015 (3.9 linear feet; Boxes 3-7, 10)
  • Series 7: Photographs, circa 1930-circa 2014 (1.6 linear feet; Boxes 7-10)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Anne Arnold (1925-2014) was a sculptor and educator in New York, N.Y. and Montville, Maine. Arnold was born and raised in Massachusetts, attended the University of New Hampshire for college, received her master's degree from Ohio State University, then studied art at the Art Students League in New York City from 1949 to 1953. Arnold married the painter Ernest Briggs in 1960 and the two bought a house in Montville, Maine the following year.
Arnold taught sculpture at Brooklyn College from 1971 to roughly 1991 and was a member of the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture's Board of Governors for twenty years or so starting in 1981. She also taught at Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, and Geneseo College.
While Arnold created some paintings and drawings, the bulk of her work consists of sculptures of animals. She made sculptures of people, as well as domesticated creatures such as cats, dogs, pigs, and cows, often using her pets as models. She also included more exotic members of the animal kingdom such as elephants, rhinos, giraffes, various birds, and even a cheetah. Arnold's knack for capturing the personalities of the animals she portrayed led to expressive and eye-catching sculptures for which she became renowned and exhibited widely. She passed away in her New York City studio in 2014.

Administration

Author
Rihoko Ueno
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Anne Arnold papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2015 by the Anne Arnold Estate, via the executors, Robert Brooks and Janice Kasper.
Processing Information
The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Rihoko Ueno in 2023.

Using the Collection

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.
Conditions Governing 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 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.
Preferred Citation
Anne Arnold papers, circa 1925-2015. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Related Materials
Also found in the Archives of American Art are the papers of Ernest Briggs.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women sculptors Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women educators Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Artists' studios -- Photographs Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scrapbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Video recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Brooklyn College Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Stable Gallery (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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