Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Leo Castelli

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.castel69may
Creators:
Castelli, Leo
Cummings, Paul
Dates:
1969 May 14-1973 June 8
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
194 Pages
Transcript
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
Interview of Leo Castelli conducted 1969 May 14-1973 June 8, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Scope and Contents
Castelli speaks of his background; fleeing Europe, 1940-1941; his U.S. Army service; The Club; establishing his New York galleries; his first wife, Ileana Sonnabend, and her success as an art dealer; galleries in the 1940s and 1950s; his staff; prints; commissioned works; exhibitions and sales of works by Dan Flavin, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Bruce Nauman, Robert Rauschenberg, Richard Serra, Frank Stella, and others; collectors including Philip Cortelyou Johnson, Vera G. List, Peter Ludwig, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Scull, and Mr. and Mrs. Burton Tremaine. Castelli recalls Alfred H. Barr, Richard Bellamy, John Cage, René Drouin, Ivan C. Karp, and Alan Robert Solomon.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Leo Castelli (1907-1999) was an art dealer from New York, New York.

Administration

Existence and Location of Copies
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.

Digital Content


More Information

General

General
Originally recorded as 8 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 15 digital wav files. Duration is 14 hr., 12 min.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bellamy, Richard Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Callahan, Harry M. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drouin, René Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Flavin, Dan, 1933- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Johns, Jasper, 1930- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Johnson, Philip, 1906-2005 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Karp, Ivan C., 1926-2012 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lichtenstein, Roy, 1923-1997 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
List, Vera Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ludwig, Peter, 1925- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nauman, Bruce, 1941- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rauschenberg, Robert, 1925-2008 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scull, Robert C. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Serra, Richard, 1938- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Solomon, Alan R., 1920-1970 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sonnabend, Ileana Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tremaine, Burton Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Club (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Leo Castelli Gallery Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Archives of American Art
750 9th Street, NW
Victor Building, Suite 2200
Washington, D.C. 20001
https://www.aaa.si.edu/services/questions