Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Ben-Zion interview

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.benzio82
Creators:
Ben-Zion, 1897–1987
Shikler, Barbara
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project
Dates:
1982 August 3-September 21
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
56 Pages
Transcript
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
An interview of Ben-Zion conducted 1982 August 3-1982 September 21, by Barbara Shikler, for the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and His Times oral history project.
Scope and Contents
Ben-Zion speaks of his family's background in Ukraine and Poland and their arrival in the United States after the death of his father. He remembers working as a writer for a Hebrew newspaper in the Bronx, the writing block he suffered in reaction to Nazi atrocities in Europe, and his turn to art with the patronage of J. B. Neumann. He recalls exhibiting with The Ten, meeting Mark Rothko through the Gallery Secession, and the rift that developed among members of The Ten. He describes his own commercial success, the influence of Jewish tradition upon his choices of subject matter, and his relationship with the Jewish Museum in New York. He discusses a period in which he stopped painting and returned to writing, and his later interest in sculpture. He speaks of his writings and his work habits.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Ben-Zion (1897-1987) was a painter and sculptor from New York, N.Y.

Administration

Sponsor
Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.
Existence and Location of Copies
Transcript available on line.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This interview was conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's Mark Rothko and his Times oral history project, with funding provided by the Mark Rothko Foundation.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Others interviewed on the project (by various interviewers) include: Sonia Allen, Sally Avery, Bernard Braddon, Ernest Briggs, Rhys Caparn, Elaine de Kooning, Herbert Ferber, Esther Gottlieb, Juliette Hays, Sidney Janis, Buffie Johnson, Jacob Kainen, Louis Kaufman, Jack Kufeld, Katharine Kuh, Stanley Kunitz, Joseph Liss, Dorothy Miller, Betty Parsons, Wallace Putnam, Rebecca Reis, Maurice Roth, Sidney Schectman, Aaron Siskind, Joseph Solman, Hedda Sterne, Jack Tworkov, Esteban Vicente and Ed Weinstein. Each has been cataloged separately.

Digital Content


Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.

More Information

General

General
Originally recorded on 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 5 min.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Abstract expressionism Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Jewish artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Philadelphia Ten (Group of artists) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
World War, 1939-1945 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art criticism Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Neumann, J. B. (Jsrael Ber) Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rothko, Mark, 1903-1970 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Gallery Secession (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Jewish Museum (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mark Rothko and His Times Oral History Project Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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