Archives of American Art

Leslie Cheek papers

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.cheelesl
Creators:
Cheek, Leslie, 1908-
Dates:
1940-1983
bulk 1940-1942
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
4.2 Linear feet
(partially microfilmed on 1 reel)
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
Papers, ca. 1938-1988, including files kept during Cheek's tenure as director at the Baltimore Museum of Art, 1939-1942, as editor at "Architectural Forum" magazine, 1945-1947, "House Beautiful" magazine, 1947-1942, and as head of the U.S. Army Camouflage Training Unit, 1942-1945. Also included are files related to projects he undertook from 1968 to 1988, following his tenure as Director of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Leslie Cheek (1908-1992) was a museum director and editor in Virginia. Cheek studied Fine Arts and was trained in architecture and stage design. His work as director of the Baltimore Museum of Art was marked by innovative and theatrical exhibitions, and led to his selection by the trustees of the Museum of Modern Art as curator for a planned exhibit "For Us The Living," regarding the rise of Nazism and fascism in Europe.

Administration

Existence and Location of Copies
35mm microfilm reel 4885 available for use at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Existence and Location of Originals
Reel 4885: Originals located in the Museum of Modern Art, New York, N.Y..
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Material on reel 4885 was lent for microfilming in 1993 by Mary Tyler Cheek, widow of Leslie Cheek. She donated the unmicrofilmed material, 1993. Mrs. Cheek deposited additional papers in the College of William and Mary (where Cheek had founded the Fine Arts Department in 1936), the Virginia State Library, and the Museum of Modern Art.

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
Also in the Archives are papers lent for microfilming on reel 4885 including material concerning the proposed exhibition, "For Us the Living," designed by Cheek with text written by Lewis Mumford for the Trustees of the Museum of Modern Art. The exhibit was never installed. Included are correspondence with Mumford, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, Nelson Rockefeller, Alfred Barr, and others; draft "scenarios" or exhibition narratives; sketches; and blueprints, 1940-1942. Also included is Cheek's 1983 correspondence with American Heritage magazine regarding a proposed article about the exhibition.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
House beautiful Title Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Architectural forum Title Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art -- Periodicals Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Exhibitions -- Design Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum directors Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Editors Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Designers Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art museums Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mumford, Lewis, 1895-1990 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rockefeller, Nelson A. (Nelson Aldrich), 1908-1979 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Barr, Alfred H., Jr., 1902-1981 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rockefeller, Abby Aldrich Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Baltimore Museum of Art Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
United States. Army. Camouflage Training Unit Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
For us the living (1940-1942 : New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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