Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Frances Higgins

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.higgin03
Creators:
Higgins, Frances Stewart, 1912-2004
Adamson, Glenn
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America
Dates:
2003 November 8
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
43 Pages
Transcript
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
An interview of Frances Higgins conducted 2003 November 8, by Glenn Adamson, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Riverside Illinois.
Scope and Contents
Higgins speaks of her education at the Georgia College for Women and the Chicago Institute of Design; her marriage to fellow artist Michael Higgins; and the development of her glass techniques such as fused glass and the slumped method. She discusses her work for the Dearborn Glass Company, Heager Potteries, and General Electric; and the significance of several of these designs and patterns, including the popularity of Rondelays. She also comments on the Midwest Designer-Craftsmen; the glass blowing movement; the studio in Riverside; and the book, "Higgins: Adventures in Glass." Higgins also recalls Harvey Littleton, Maurice Heaton, Earl McCutcheon, Charles and Ray Eames, and others.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Frances Stewart Higgins (1912-2004) was a glass artist of Riverside, Illinois. Glenn Adamson is an art historian.

Administration

Sponsor
Funding for this interview was provided by the Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America. Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.
Existence and Location of Copies
Transcript available on line.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.

Digital Content


Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.

More Information

General

General
Originally recorded on 1 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 21 min.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Women artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Decorative arts Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Glass artists -- Illinois -- Chicago Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Glass art Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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