Archives of American Art

Oral history interview with Bernarda Bryson Shahn

Summary

(Electronic Resource)

Oral history interview with Bernarda Bryson Shahn, 1983 April 29, Transcript
Collection ID:
AAA.shahn83
Creators:
Bryson, Bernarda
Kirwin, Liza
Dates:
1983 April 29
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
37 Pages
Transcript
Repository:
Scope and Contents
Scope and Contents
An interview of Bernarda Bryson conducted 1983 April 29, by Liza Kirwin, for the Archives of American Art.
Scope and Contents
Bryson speaks of her family background and education; writing for the Ohio State Journal; teaching etching and lithography; meeting Diego Rivera and Ben Shahn; the formation of the Unemployed Artists Group and her role as secretary, 1933; the Gibson Committee, the John Reed Club, and the Artists' Union in New York City; founding Art Front magazine; pressure from the Communist Party; demonstrating at the Whitney Museum of American Art, 1934; lithography under Adrian Dornbush; assisting Ben Shahn; her work as an illustrator; and her painting since 1971.
Biographical / Historical
Biographical / Historical
Bernarda Bryson (1903-2004) was a printmaker and painter from Roosevelt, New Jersey. She is the widow of artist Ben Shahn.
Administration
Sponsor
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.
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 others.
Digital Content

(Electronic Resource)

Oral history interview with Bernarda Bryson Shahn, 1983 April 29, Transcript

(Sound Recording)

Oral history interview with Bernarda Bryson Shahn, 1983 April 29, Digital Sound Recording (Excerpt)
More Information
General
General
Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 26 min.
Keywords
Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Painters -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Illustrators -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Printmakers -- New Jersey -- Roosevelt Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art, Modern 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
Art front Title Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sound recordings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Interviews Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Shahn, Ben, 1898-1969 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Artists' Union (New York, N.Y.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
John Reed Club Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Repository Contact
Archives of American Art
750 9th Street, NW
Victor Building, Suite 2200
Washington, D.C. 20001
https://www.aaa.si.edu/services/questions