Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Dorothy Goldeen Gallery Records, 1960-circa 2014, bulk 1987-1996, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.dorogolg
Creators:
Dorothy Goldeen Gallery (Santa Monica, Calif.)
Dates:
1960-circa 2014
bulk 1987-1996
Languages:
Collection is in English.
Physical Description:
18.9 Linear feet
2.52 Gigabytes
Repository:
The records of Dorothy Goldeen Gallery, based in Southern California, measure 18.9 linear feet and 2.52 GB and date from 1960 to circa 2014, with the bulk of the items dating from 1987 to 1996. The Dorothy Goldeen Gallery, operated from 1986-1996 and featured the work of prominent contemporary artists, such as Magdalena Abakanowicz, John Altoon, Fletcher Benton, Howard Ben Tre, Ciel Bergman, Squeak Carnwatch, Dale Chihuly, Duck-Hyun Cho, Roy De Forest, Heidi Fasnacht, Robert Hudson, Terence La Noue, Donald Lipski, Nam June Paik, Ed Paschke, Alan Rath, Zizi Raymond, Pablo Reinoso, among many others. The collection includes correspondence, scattered administration records, exhibition files, extensive artists' files that also include many video recordings, financial and legal records, printed and digital materials, and photographic materials.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The records of Dorothy Goldeen Gallery, based in Southern California, measure 18.9 linear feet and 2.52 GB and date from 1960 to circa 2014, with the bulk of the items dating from 1987 to 1996. The Dorothy Goldeen Gallery, operated from 1986-1996 and featured the work of prominent contemporary artists, such as Magdalena Abakanowicz, John Altoon, Fletcher Benton, Howard Ben Tre, Ciel Bergman, Squeak Carnwatch, Dale Chihuly, Duck-Hyun Cho, Roy De Forest, Heidi Fasnacht, Robert Hudson, Terence La Noue, Donald Lipski, Nam June Paik, Ed Paschke, Alan Rath, Zizi Raymond, Pablo Reinoso, among many others. The collection includes correspondence, scattered administration records, exhibition files, extensive artists' files that also include many video recordings, financial and legal records, printed and digital materials, and photographic materials.
Correspondence is with artists, museums, galleries, and collectors regarding exhibitions, sales, and acquisitions of artwork. Administration records include appraisals, mailing lists, materials related to gallery events, a rolodex, and a list of artist contracts. Exhibition files are found for only a few of the gallery's exhibitions, including American Artists in Jewelry (1987), Private Reserve (1988), Fresh Visions 1 (1989), Fresh Visions 2 (1989), and Multiple Parts (1994).
There are extensive artists' files containing correspondence, printed and digital material, resumes, slides, and photographs documenting the gallery's relationship with and exhibitions of many prominent artists. These files also contain numerous audio and video recordings of interviews with artists, exhibitions, documentaries, and video art.
Financial and legal records mostly consist of sales records of artwork by various artists, in addition to materials on a lawsuit, a sublease for exhibition space, and a few invoices.
Printed materials include Dorothy Goldeen Gallery press releases, exhibition announcements, press reviews, newsletters, clippings, and one videocassette of a broadcast news program.
Photographic materials mostly consist of slides and transparencies of artwork by artists represented by the gallery. There are a few images of the gallery building.
Dorothy Goldeen papers include travel notebooks, itineraries, receipts, and other ephemera from domestic and international trips taken by Goldeen; lecture notes; personal correspondence with artists, associates, and others; and files for several exhibitions from after the Goldeen Gallery closed. Also present are blog posts and a contact list from the art advisory business Goldeen started after closing her gallery.

Arrangement

Arrangement
This collection is arranged as 8 series.
  • Series 1: Correspondence, 1979-2012 (1.3 linear feet; Box 1-2, 19)
  • Series 2: Administration Records, circa 1987-circa 2010 (1.2 linear feet; Box 2, 19)
  • Series 3: Exhibition Files, 1987-1995 (0.4 linear feet; Boxes 2-3)
  • Series 4: Artists' Files, 1961-2007 (12.3 linear feet; Boxes 3-14, 19-20, OV 17-18, 2.52 GB; ER01-ER02)
  • Series 5: Financial and Legal Records, 1987-2005 (0.8 linear feet; Box 15)
  • Series 6: Printed Material, 1986-2014 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 15-16, 20, 22)
  • Series 7: Photographic Material, 1960-2005 (0.8 linear feet; Box 16, 20)
  • Series 8: Dorothy Goldeen Papers, 1976-2013 (1 linear feet; Box 20-21)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
The Dorothy Goldeen Gallery (1987-1996) was an art gallery in Santa Monica, California, founded by Dorothy Goldeen.
Dorothy Goldeen graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, where she studied sculpture and textile design. In 1973, Goldeen began her career in the arts working in San Francisco, California at the Hansen Fuller Gallery which later became Fuller Goldeen Gallery.
In 1987, Goldeen moved to Los Angeles and founded the Dorothy Goldeen Gallery. Historically significant artists such as Magdalena Abakanowicz and Nam June Paik were represented by her gallery as well as influential, emerging Los Angeles artists. Other notable artists include Robert Arneson, Paul Kos, Ed Paschke, and Alan Rath.
In 1996, Goldeen closed her gallery and launched the Dorothy Goldeen Art Advisory in Santa Monica. Goldeen often travels internationally as an art consultant for private and institutional clients, advising them on the acquisition and resale of art.

Administration

Author
Carrol Park, Rihoko Ueno, and Christopher DeMairo
Sponsor
A portion of the processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.
Processing Information
Graduate intern Carol Park completed a preliminary finding aid to the collection before the second larger accretion was received in 2014. In 2016, Rihoko Ueno merged the two accretions and created a new finding aid. Born-digital materials were processed by Kirsi Ritosalmi-Kisner in 2020 with funding provided by Smithsonian Collection Care and Preservation Fund. The 2021 addition was processed and added to the finding aid by Christopher DeMairo in 2022.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Dorothy Goldeen Gallery records were donated by Dorothy Goldeen to the Archives of American Art in 2003, 2014, and 2021.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
Dorothy Goldeen Gallery Records, 1960-circa 2014, bulk 1987-1996. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Use
All correspondence: Permission to publish, quote or reproduce requires written permission from Dorothy Goldeen. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Conditions Governing Access
Boxes 19-22 are access restricted; written permission is required. Contact Reference Services for more information. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.

Related Materials
The Archives of American Art also has an oral history interview with Dorothy Goldeen conducted by Hunter Drohojowska-Philp in 2014.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Video recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art galleries, Commercial -- California Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Reinoso, Pablo, 1955- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Cho, Tŏk-hyŏn, 1957- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
De Forest, Roy, 1930-2007 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Paik, Nam June, 1932-2006 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rath, Alan, 1959- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bergman, Ciel, 1938- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hudson, Robert, 1938- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Raymond, Zizi, 1960- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lipski, Donald, 1947- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fasnacht, Heide, 1951- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Abakanowicz, Magdalena Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Altoon, John, 1925- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Benton, Fletcher, 1931- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ben Tré, Howard, 1949- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Carnwath, Squeak, 1947- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
La Noue, Terence Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Chihuly, Dale, 1941- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Paschke, Ed Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Archives of American Art
750 9th Street, NW
Victor Building, Suite 2200
Washington, D.C. 20001
Business Number: Phone: 202-633-7950
https://www.aaa.si.edu/services/questions