Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Kenyon and Louise Cox Papers, 1876-1977, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.coxkenyl
Creators:
Cox, Kenyon, 1856-1919
Dates:
1876-1977
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
0.3 Linear feet
Repository:
The papers of Kenyon and Louise Cox measure 0.3 linear feet and date from 1876 to 1977. Included are Kenyon and Louise's Certificate of Marriage, autobiographical notes by Louise focusing on her time at the National Academy of Design, writings, and correspondence, primarily from Kenyon Cox, including several illustrated letters. Also found is artwork by Kenyon and others, including Julian Alden Weir, biographical material on Jacob Dolson Cox, Keyon's Father, photographs and printed reproductions of artwork, magazine and newspaper clippings, an unpublished bibliography on Kenyon Cox, and a handwritten list of Kenyon Cox paintings in the National Academy of Design permanent collection.

Scope and Content Note

Scope and Content Note
The papers of Kenyon and Louise Cox measure 0.3 linear feet and date from 1876 to 1977. Included are Kenyon and Louise's Certificate of Marriage, autobiographical notes by Louise focusing on her time at the National Academy of Design, writings, and correspondence, primarily from Kenyon Cox, including several illustrated letters. Also found is artwork by Kenyon and others, including Julian Alden Weir, biographical material on Jacob Dolson Cox, Keyon's Father, photographs and printed reproductions of artwork, magazine and newspaper clippings, an unpublished bibliography on Kenyon Cox, and a handwritten list of Kenyon Cox paintings in the National Academy of Design permanent collection.

Arrangement

Arrangement
Due to the small size of this collection, items are categorized into one series. Items are arranged chronologically within each folder.

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
Kenyon Cox was a prominent American painter, lecturer, and art critic. He was born in 1856, in Warren, Ohio, and he studied painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and in Paris, where he befriended artist Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Cox returned to the United States and made a living illustrating magazines and books, and teaching at the Art Students League in New York. In 1892 he married his student Louise Howland King, born in San Francisco in 1865. Together they became prominent painters and were responsible for the murals that decorated the Liberal Arts Building at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago. During his career, Cox contributed articles and essays on art subjects to various magazines. He was a member of the Society of American Artists, the National Academy of Design, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Kenyon Cox died in 1919 and Louise in 1945. Their son, Allyn, born in 1896, became a successful muralist.

Administration

Author
Erin Corley
Sponsor
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
Provenance
The collection was donated by Charles E. Feinberg, 1955-1968, the National Museum of American Art in 1967 and 1984, and the Cooper Hewitt Museum in 1983. The material was microfilmed upon receipt as two separate manuscript collections.
Alternative Forms Available
The papers of Kenyon and Louise Cox were digitized in
2006
by the Archives of American Art, and total
168
images.
Processing Information
The collection was microfilmed upon receipt as two separate manuscript collections on reels 3060, D8, 2803 and 3134. It was fully merged, arranged, and described by Erin Corley in 2005, and the bulk of it was scanned, with funding provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.

Using the Collection

Restrictions on Access
The bulk of this collection has been digitized and is available online via AAA's website. Use of material not digitized requires an appointment.
Terms of 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 such 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
Kenyon and Louise Cox papers, 1876-1977. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Related Material
Also found in the Archives of American Art are the Allyn Cox papers, 1870-1982. His papers contain correspondence, biographies, photographs, sketchbooks, writings, and printed material, some of it relating to his father, Kenyon Cox.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painting, American Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Illustrated letters Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art critics Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Works of art Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Cox, Louise Howland King, 1865-1945 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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