Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Ben Cunningham

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.cunnin64
Creators:
Cunningham, Ben, 1904-1975
Phillips, Harlan B. (Harlan Buddington), 1920-1979
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project
Dates:
1964 October 24
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
58 Pages
Transcript
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
An interview of Ben Cunningham conducted 1964 October 24, by Harlan Phillips for the Archives of American Art.
Scope and Contents
Cunningham speaks of his early career in San Francisco during the Depression; the art market there; working as a muralist in the Federal Art Project; political and media problems encountered by the project, including strikes by workers; the work of the Index of American Design in California; working on naval architecture during Work War II; and his philosophies about painting. He recalls Joseph Danysh, William Gaskin, and Hilaire Hiler.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Ben Cunningham (1904-1975) was a painter, educator, and mural painter in New York, New York.

Administration

Existence and Location of Copies
Transcript: 35mm microfilm reel 3418 available at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This interview conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.

More Information

General

General
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 8 min.
General
Sound quality is poor.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Art and state Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Federal aid to the arts Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Muralists -- California -- San Francisco -- Interviews Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Danysh, Joseph A., 1906-1982 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Gaskin, William, 1892-1968 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hiler, Hilaire, 1898-1966 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Index of American Design Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Federal Art Project (Calif.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
New Deal and the Arts Oral History Project Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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