Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Marion Greenwood papers, 1883, circa 1933-circa 1960, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.greemari
Creators:
Greenwood, Marion, 1909-1970
Dates:
1883, circa 1933-circa 1960
Languages:
The collection is in English.
Physical Description:
0.5 Linear feet
Repository:
The papers of painter and muralist Marion Greenwood (1909-1970) measure 0.5 linear feet and date from circa 1933 to circa 1960. The collection is comprised of biographical materials, printed materials, photographs and negatives.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of painter and muralist Marion Greenwood (1909-1970) measure 0.5 linear feet and date from circa 1933 to circa 1960. The collection is comprised of biographical materials, printed materials, photographs and negatives.
Biographical materials consist of a resume. Printed materials include exhibition announcements and catalogs; clippings of Greenwood's art in commercial publications; a profile of Greenwood written for American Artist magazine; and other miscellaneous material. Photographs in the collection include black and white originals, negatives, copies, and snapshots, primarily depicting Greenwood's work as a muralist and painter. Also present are photographs of the artist, including images of Greenwood with Mexican Muralist Diego Rivera, sculptor and designer Isamu Noguchi, friends, and family.

Arrangement

Arrangement
This collection is arranged as three series.
  • Missing Title
  • Series 1: Biographical material, circa 1960 (1 folder; Box 1)
  • Series 2: Printed Material, 1883, 1937-1960 (4 folders; Box 1)
  • Series 3: Photographic material, circa 1933-circa 1960 (0.3 linear feet; Box 1-2, OV 3)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Marion Greenwood (1909-1970) was an American social realist painter and muralist who worked in both the United States and Mexico.
Greenwood was born in Brooklyn, and educated at the Art Students League of New York and the Academie Colarossi in Paris. She travelled extensively throughout Mexico, China, and the United States, and her travels were often reflected in her paintings. She was the first female American painter to receive a mural commission from the Mexican government, and painted a series of commissioned murals from 1932-1936. Greenwood also worked for the U. S. Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project from 1936-1940, painting murals and frescoes in housing projects in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and Camden, NJ, as well as in the post office of Crossville, TN. After 1940, Greenwood primarily focused on easel painting. In 1944, she was commissioned as a war artist by the Army Medical Corps and by the pharmaceutical company Abbott Laboratories to document soldiers returned from war and their medical care. Greenwood served as a visiting professor at the University of Tennessee from 1954-1955, and was commissioned to paint a mural for the university in 1955.
Marion Greenwood died in Woodstock, NY in 1970.

Administration

Author
Megan Bean
Existence and Location of Copies
A portion of this collection is available on 35 mm microfilm reel 85 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of the material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated by Marion Greenwood in 1964, and at an earlier, unknown date.
Processing Information
This collection was minimally processed and a finding aid prepared by Megan Bean in 2016.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Microfilmed portion must be consulted on microfilm. Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. 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.
Preferred Citation
Marion Greenwood papers, 1883, circa 1933-circa 1960. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Related Materials
Within the collections of the Archives is the Oral history interview with Marion Greenwood, 1964 Jan. 31, by Dorothy Seckler.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Muralists -- Mexico Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- Mexico Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Social realism Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women painters Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women muralists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988 -- Photographs Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rivera, Diego, 1886-1957 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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