Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Jane Sauer Papers and Gallery Records, 1898-2013, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.janesaug
Creators:
Sauer, Jane, 1937-
Dates:
1898-2013
Languages:
Material is in English, Dutch, and Japanese
Physical Description:
16.1 Linear feet
2.08 Gigabytes
Repository:
The papers and gallery records of fiber artist Jane Sauer measure 16.1 linear feet and date from 1898 to 2013. The papers document her career as a fiber artist through awards, family histories, and other biographical material; correspondences with family, friends, and art colleagues; journals, notebooks, and other writings; workshops, committee work, exhibitions, consignments, and other professional activity; artist files; sketchbooks and other artwork; personal photographs and slides, photographs of artwork, and photographs of exhibitions; and administrative files, artist files, and exhibition materials of the Jane Sauer Gallery.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers and gallery records of fiber artist Jane Sauer measure 16.1 linear feet and date from 1898 to 2013. The papers document her career as a fiber artist through awards, family histories, and other biographical material; correspondences with family, friends, and art colleagues; journals, notebooks, and other writings; workshops, committee work, exhibitions, consignments, and other professional activity; artist files; sketchbooks and other artwork; personal photographs and slides, photographs of artwork, and photographs of exhibitions; and administrative files, artist files, and exhibition materials of the Jane Sauer Gallery.
Biographical material includes a family tree and history of Sauer's family. awards, legal documents concerning divorce, and documents and correspondence related to her children and grandchildren.
Correspondence is mainly between Sauer and either family or colleagues. Among some of the material is a file of correspondence with Jack Larsen.
Writings consist of a journal, notecards, notebooks, and some speeches by Sauer and other artists.
Professional material consists of event files related to knotting workshops Sauer held and basketry trips that she organized. There are also files related to work Sauer did while serving on committees for organizations such as the American Craft Council. Also included are files for exhibitions that Sauer either participated in or curated from the 1980s through the early 2000s; these files consist of correspondence, loan forms, photographs, and some printed material. Finally, there are other business related materials such as tax documents, consignments, and grant applications.
Artist files consist of material on artists that Sauer gathered while researching artists for the various exhibitions she curated between 1980 and 2003. These files consist of resumes, photographs of artist works, and some printed material such as exhibition announcments.
Printed material consists of clippings, articles and reviews, andd exhibition announcements and catalogs for exhibitions that Sauer either participated in or curated between 1979 and 2003.
Artwork consists of one file of sketches and a number of sketchbooks.
Photographic material consists of photographs, slides, negatives, and transparencies of personal material, artwork, and exhbitions. Included among the personal photographs are those of family members from the 1890s through 1920s, some of which are in fragile condition.
Gallery records consists of material related to the Jane Sauer Gallery which was in operation between 2005 and 2013. Materials include some administration files such as leases and budget material, artist files on artists represented by the gallery, exhibitions held at the gallery, and articles and catalogs related to gallery exhibitions. Also included among the exhibition files are unbound binders for Sculpture Objects and Functional Art (SOFA) fairs held annually in Chicago, New York, and on the West Coast.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged into nine series.
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, 1942-2003 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, 1970-2003 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1)
  • Series 3: Writings, 1976-2001 (0.6 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
  • Series 4: Professional Activity, 1967-2006 (5.5 linear feet; Boxes 2-7)
  • Series 5: Artist Files, 1981-2004 (0.2 linear feet; Box 8)
  • Series 6: Printed Material, 1979-2003 (0.8 linear feet; Box 8)
  • Series 7: Artwork, circa 1987-2000 (0.9 linear feet; Box 9)
  • Series 8: Photographic Material, 1898-2002 (2.2 linear feet; Boxes 9-11, OV 17)
  • Series 9: Jane Sauer Gallery Records, 1991-2013 (5.0 linear feet; Boxes 12-16)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Jane Sauer (1937-) is a fiber artist based in New Mexico. Sauer was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1937, and she earned a BFA from Washington University in St. Louis in 1959. Sauer initially focused on painting, but shifted to fiber art. She is known for her basket forms, made with knotted waxed-linen. Sauer moved to New Mexico in the 1990s and founded the Textile Art Alliance. She also served as artistic director of Thirteen Moons Gallery until 2005 when she took over management and renamed it the Jane Sauer Gallery. In addition to her gallery work, Sauer has served on committees for organizations such as the American Craft Council. The Jane Sauer Gallery (established 2005; closed 2013) was a gallery owned and operated by artist Jane Sauer in Santa Fe, New Mexico and specialized in fine arts and crafts. The gallery was purchased by Mike and Jennifer Tansey in 2013 and is now called the Tansey Contemporary.

Administration

Author
Ricky Gomez
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
Donated 2016 by Jane Sauer.
Processing Information
The collection and born-digital materials were processed, and a finding aid prepared by Ricky Gomez in 2022.

Using the Collection

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. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
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.
Preferred Citation
Jane Sauer papers and gallery records, 1898-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Related Materials
Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Jane Sauer conducted by Paul J. Smith, July 11, 2005.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Art galleries, Commercial -- New Mexico Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fiber artists Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Women art dealers Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sketchbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Jane Sauer Gallery Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Larsen, Jack Lenor Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
American Craft Council Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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