Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Ralph Soule Du Casse Papers, circa 1892-1980, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.ducaralp
Creators:
Du Casse, Ralph Soule, 1916-
Dates:
circa 1892-1980
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
4 Linear feet
Repository:
The Ralph Soule Du Casse papers measure 4 linear feet and date from circa 1892-1980. They illustrate his career through biographical materials, correspondence, writings, personal business records, printed and photographic materials, and artwork.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The Ralph Soule Du Casse papers measure 4 linear feet and date from circa 1892-1980. Biographical material consists of Du Casse's resume, materials regarding Du Casse's military records and career, and documents regarding genealogical records and family members. Correspondence is to and from Du Casse and includes family and business correspondence. Writings consist of a script for Du Casse's play "Route Order," a typescript of "West Coast School of Painting Since 1946", and other writings by Du Casse. Also present are writings by others including "Ralph Du Casse Exhibition" by Louise Ballard and a typescript of "The Bold Noo World of Ralph Soule Du Casse" by Annette Kazuko Kaide.
Personal business records consist of materials related to Du Casse's time as a teacher, lists of artworks and sales records, travel records, and other miscellaneous business records. Printed material includes a scrapbook compiled by Du Casse's father, Ralph R. Du Casse (1926-1960) and a disassembled scrapbook compiled by Du Casse containing letters, school records, four sketches, clippings, announcements, and photographs (1909-1967). Also included are various news clippings, press releases, exhibition announcements and catalogs for Du Casse and for others, brochures and pamphlets, and programs and other printed material. Photographic material consists of personal photographs of Du Casse and his family and friends, as well as his artwork. Artwork includes a folder of seven sketches.

Arrangement

Arrangement
This collection consists of seven series.
  • Series 1: Biographical Materials, circa 1892-1970 (.2 Linear feet: Box 1, OV 6)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1913-1976 (.2 Linear feet: Box 1)
  • Series 3: Writings, circa 1908-1971 (.5 Linear feet: Box 1)
  • Series 4: Personal Business Records, circa 1930-1977 (.3 Linear feet: Boxes 1-2)
  • Series 5: Printed Material, circa 1909-1977 (2.3 Linear feet: Boxes 2-4)
  • Series 6: Photographic Material, circa 1904-1980 (.4 Linear feet: Box 5, OV 7)
  • Series 7: Artwork, circa 1940-1980 (.1 Linear feet: Box 5)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Ralph Soule Du Casse (1916-2003) was a painter who worked primarily in San Francisco, California.
Ralph Soule Du Casse was born in Kentucky and attended the University of Cincinnati in 1940 where he gained a bachelor's degree, and at the University of California in Berkeley where he obtained a master's in 1948. He also studied with Hans Hoffman and attended the California College of Arts in 1950 where he obtained an additional master's degree in fine arts. His early paintings ranged from a loose and gestural abstract style to a linear style rooted in cubism.
During World War Two Du Casse served in the U.S. Army's cavalry corps and was honorably discharged due to demobilization. After the war he studied in Sorbonne in Paris. Du Casse taught at the University of California, Berkeley, the California College of Arts and Crafts, and the California School of Fine Art. Throughout the 1970s he was chairman of the art department at Mills College in Oakland.
Du Casse has had exhibitions at the Lucien Labaudt Gallery, the Rotunda Gallery, the Guggenheim Museum, the University of Illinois, the Syracuse Museum in New York, and many others. His work is housed in the collections of the Guggenheim Museum, the Museum of Modern Art in Brazil, the museum of modern art in San Francisco, and the Virginia Museum of Fine Art. It also resides in the private collections of Vincent Price, Phyllis Wattis, and the Haas family collection in San Francisco.
Ralph Soule Du Casse died on December 30, 2003 in the San Francisco Bay area.

Administration

Author
Allessandra Liberati
Sponsor
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.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Ralph Soule Du Casse papers were donated in 1979 by Ralph Soule Du Casse.
Existence and Location of Copies
Portions of the collection are available on 35mm microfilm reels 4023-4025 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
Processing Information
This collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared, by Allessandra Liberati in 2023.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing 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
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Preferred Citation
Ralph Soule Du Casse papers, circa 1892-1980, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scrapbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- California -- San Francisco Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art teachers -- California -- San Francisco Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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