Archives of American Art

Lester Burbank Bridaham papers

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.bridlest
Creators:
Bridaham, Lester Burbank
Dates:
1912-1986
Languages:
Some material in Julio De Diego files are in Spanish.
Physical Description:
7.4 Linear feet
(partially microfilmed on 2 reels)
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
Correspondence, writings, art works, scrapbooks, printed material, photographs, and files on Julio De Diego and Kimon Nicolaides and other topics, related to Bridaham's career as an artist and writer.
Scope and Contents
REEL 8: Printed material, including articles written by Bridaham for periodicals (1950-1957), 15 exhibition catalogs (1928-1968), clippings by and about Bridaham (1930-1959), 6 press releases (1956-1957), a transcript of a radio discussion which included Bridaham (1951), 2 advertisements, a lecture announcement (1957), instructions on using egg tempera for Bridaham's students, a guide book to the Louisiana State Museum (1956), brochures about Strathmont Museum (1958), and resumes.
Scope and Contents
REEL 3: Material related to Kimon Nicolaides, including a radio address given by him, 1933; publicity for his book THE NATURAL WAY TO DRAW; exhibition catalogs; clippings; press releases; and a photograph of one of his sculptures. [Microfilm title: Kimon Nicolaides papers]
Scope and Contents
UNMICROFILMED: Correspondence with Kimon Nicolaides and Henry Schnackenberg (1921-1923), Julio De Diego (1941-1952), Ethel Spears (1961), Isabel Bishop (1975), and George and Edith Rickey. Letters to Mamie Harmon concern a Nicolaides exhibition and book (1938-1941). Writings include nine v. of diaries (1946-1954) kept during his tenure at the Art Institute of Chicago, and notes and drafts for an unpublished book (1938-1982).
Scope and Contents
Subject files concerning Ivan Albright's poetry, the Colonial Craft Survey for Massachusetts (1935), Olof Krans (1939), the reorganization of the Metropolitan Museum's photographic department (1949), Romanesque and Gothic sculpture and the Society for Contemporary American Art. A file (1921-1983) on Julio De Diego contains Bridaham's research materials, sketches and drawings by the artist, a journal kept by De Diego in New York (1932) and photographs of De Diego, his family including third wife Gypsy Rose Lee, friends and art works. Kimon Nicolaides' file (1921-1986) contains his writings and drawings (1928), drawings by Vivian Gordon and Howard Ahrens (1923-1986), photographs and other research materials.
Scope and Contents
Printed materials consists of clippings (1930-1972), "The Chicago Artist" newsletter (1938), press releases, a book cover, Artists Equity publications (1952-1953), posters, exhibition catalogs and anouncements and membership cards. Photographs show Bridaham, friends, National Art Week activities with Macena Barton, Charles Biesel, Jules Eboli and Richard Florsheim, his studio and drawings (1928-1949). Other materials include over 150 prints and drawings (1927-1977) of Moroccan scenes, Colorado wildflowers and other subjects, resumes, an illustrated notebook of Bridaham's plans for art works (1931-1932) and a list of his works (1974).
Scope and Contents
ADDITION: Material concerning the latter part of Bridaham's life, including original works of art, photographs, a dream sketchbook (1945), a notebook devoted to Julio de Diego; Bridaham's letters to Jeanette Fowler, 1989-1990 and other correspondence, 1940s-1950s; and printed material.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Museum director, art historian, painter, and printmaker; d. 1992. Bridaham received a degree in chemical engineering from M.I.T. and studied art history at Harvard's Fogg Museum from 1936-1937. He received a 1931 American Field Service fellowship for study in France and Morocco, and studied studio art at the Art Students League under Kimon Nicolaides and Kenneth Hayes Miller. Between 1938 and 1954, Bridaham was a staff officer at the Art Institute of Chicago. He was also the director of the Louisiana State Museum, New Orleans, and of the Strathmont Museum, Elmira, N.Y. He is the author of Gargoyles, Chimeras and the Grotesque in French Gothic Sculpture.

Administration

Existence and Location of Copies
35mm microfilm reels 3 and 8 available at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Reproduction Note
Writings by Kimon Nicolaides are photocopies.
Existence and Location of Originals
Writings by Kimon Nicolaides: Location of originals unknown.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated 1974-1987 by Lester Burbank and Dorothy Bridaham. In 1996, an additional 0.8 ft. was donated from the Jeanette Fowler estate.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm.

Related Materials
Lester Bridaham photographs and papers relating to gargoyles, 1895-1987, are located at The Getty Research Institute Special Collections.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- United States Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mural painting and decoration Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scrapbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sketchbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art historians Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art teachers Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum directors Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- United States Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Printmakers Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Albright, Ivan, 1897-1983 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Barton, Macena, 1901-1986 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Biesel, Charles, 1865-1945 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
De Diego, Julio, 1900- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Eboli, Jules Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Florsheim, Richard A., 1916-1979 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Krans, Olof, 1838-1916 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lee, Gypsy Rose, 1914-1970 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nicolaïdes, Kimon, 1892-1938 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bishop, Isabel, 1902-1988 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rickey, George Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Schnakenberg, H. E. (Henry Ernest), 1892-1970 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Spears, Ethel, 1903-1974 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art Institute of Chicago Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Colonial Craft Survey for Massachusetts Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Society for Contemporary American Art Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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