Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Victoria Hutson Huntley Papers, 1929-1999, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.huntvict
Creators:
Huntley, Victoria Hutson, 1900-1971
Dates:
1929-1999
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
1.3 Linear feet
Repository:
The papers of Victoria Hutson Huntley measure 1.3 linear feet and date from 1929-1999. Biographical material, correspondence, writings, artwork, printed material and photographs chronicle the professional activities and personal life of the lithographer and muralist.

Scope and Content Note

Scope and Content Note
The papers of Victoria Hutson Huntley measure 1.3 linear feet and date from1929-1999. Biographical material, correspondence, writings, artwork, printed material and photographs chronicle professional activities and personal life of the lithographer, painter, and muralist.
Biographical materials highlight Huntley's achievements. Her professional correspondence illustrates an active career; correspondents include Old Bergen Art Guild and Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Autobiographical notes convey her passion for art, feelings about her health, and the hindrances faced by female artists. Her other writings include "An Artist's Experience in the Everglades" and "On Making a Lithograph," articles that reflect her personality, ideas, rationale and procedures for executing her work.
Artwork consists of a mural design and 10 sketchbooks that also include notes. Printed material includes newspaper clippings and pamphlets that provide insight into the art world of the 1930s and 1940s as it chronicles Huntley's art endeavors and exhibitions. Books are Le Colophon Book Collector's Quarterly containing a reproduction of work by Huntley, and Victoria Hutson Huntley, an article she made into a volume as a gift for her mother.
The majority of the photographs are of Huntley's artwork. They show her growth as an artist and the influences of the places she lived. Also found are some family photographs.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged as 6 series:
  • Missing Title
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, 1946-circa 1968 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, 1954-1997 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)
  • Series 3: Writings, 1946-1999 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
  • Series 4: Artwork, 1939-1952 (Box 1-2; 0.2 linear feet)
  • Series 5: Printed Materials, 1929-1999 (Box 1; 0.50 linear feet)
  • Series 6: Photographs, 1929-circa 1970's, undated (Box 1; 0.20 linear feet)

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
Victoria Hutson Huntley (1900-1971) was a painter, printmaker, muralist, and educator who worked in New York City, Florida, and New Jersey.
Beginning in 1919, Victoria Ebbels studied at the Art Students League with John Sloan, George Bridgman, Max Weber, Kenneth Hayes Miller, George Luks, and William C. Palmer. After her father's death, circa 1920, she briefly attended teacher's college and moved to Denton, Texas.
At the time of her first solo exhibition at Weyhe Gallery, New York City, in 1930, she was encouraged by Mr. Weyhe and his gallery director, Carl Zigrosser, to explore lithography. Hutson followed their suggestion. George Miller was her lithography instructor from 1930-1948. For the first five years, she devoted herself to lithography exclusively; during the first year, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, Houston Museum of Fine Arts, and Newark Public Library purchased prints. After developing chronic health problems and undergoing surgery in 1954, the physical demands of lithography greatly limited her ability to work, and when she did, assistance was required.
Huntley considered herself to be a modern artist but felt it was going nowhere. Around 1935, she explored Cubism and other modern movements. After experimenting with other techniques she adopted the Mixed Technique, using egg emulsion underpainting with resin-oil overpainting. Subjects included lyrical landscapes of the Florida Everglades, industrial themes, people, flora, and fauna. She also painted murals commissioned by the U.S. Treasury Department Section of Fine Arts for post offices in Greenwich, Connecticut, and Springfield, New York.
From 1921-1930 she was an Associate Professor of Art at the College of Industrial Arts, which later became the State College for Women. Huntley taught painting and drawing at Birch-Wathen School in New York City. In Connecticut she was resident artist at Redding Ridge School, 1939-1942 and at Pomfret School for Boys, 1942-1946. She served on the faculty of Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida, from 1946-1953. Although Huntley stopped teaching when health problems curtailed her activities and they had to move to a cooler climate, she continued to paint and, when able, produced prints.
Victoria Hutson Huntley exhibited widely. She had solo exhibitions in New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., and participated in group shows throughout the United States, and in Algeria, England, France, Italy, Scotland, South America, and Sweden.
When Kopper's Coke won The Philadelphia Print Club's Mary Collins prize for Lithography in 1932, the donor found it difficult to accept that a woman would find a factory suitable subject matter, and made it clear she had no part in selecting the winner. (When Huntley's industrial scenes were exhibited in London, it was assumed the artist was a man and she received checks written to Victor Huntley.) Huntley also won awards from the Library of Congress (1945), Association of American Artists (1946), and Society of American Graphic Artists (1950 and 1951). In 1947, the National Academy of Arts and Letters funded an Everglades expedition. The following year, a Guggenheim fellowship enabled her to create 25 lithographs in Florida.
The work of Victoria Hutson Huntley is represented in the permanent collections of many institutions, including: Metropolitan Museum of Art; Boston Museum of Fine Arts; Art Institute of Chicago; IBM Corporation; University of Florida; Art Students League Memorial Collection; Bureau of Education, Italy; Collection of the Government of Italy; and University of Glasgow, Scotland.
She married William K. Hutson in 1925 and they had one daughter. The marriage ended in divorce in 1933 and Ralph Huntley, a scientist and mathematician, became her second husband. By the following year, she was using the name Victoria Hutson Huntley professionally. His academic career took them to Connecticut, New York City, back to Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, and New Jersey. After her husband retired, the Huntleys remained in Chatham, New Jersey, where she had two studios, one for painting and another for lithographic work.
Victoria Hutson Huntley died in 1971.

Administration

Author
Jivan Kaur Soverall
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
The Victoria Hutson Huntley papers were donated by Derek Cocovinis of DDC Fine Arts, which purchased the artist's estate.
Processing Information
The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Jivan Kaur Soverall in June 2009.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
The Victoria Hutson Huntley papers, 1929-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Restrictions on Access
Use of original material requires an appointment.
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.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mural painting and decoration Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Printing -- Technique Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women painters Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women printmakers Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women educators Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sketchbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Designs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women muralists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Philadelphia Museum of Art Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Old Bergen Art Guild Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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