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Archives of American Art
A Finding Aid to the Staempfli Gallery Records, 1958-1992, in the Archives of American Art
Summary
- Collection ID:
- AAA.staegall2
- Creators:
-
Staempfli Gallery (New York, N.Y.)
- Dates:
-
1958-1992
- Languages:
-
English.
- Physical Description:
-
5.2 Linear feet
- Repository:
The Staempfli Gallery records measure 5.2 linear feet and date from 1958 to 1992. Scattered administrative and financial records, correspondence, sales invoices, inventory records, and exhibition catalogs document the business activities of this New York gallery.
Scope and Content Note
Scope and Content Note
The Staempfli Gallery records measure 5.2 linear feet and date from 1958 to 1992. Scattered administrative and financial records, correspondence, sales invoices, inventory records, and exhibition catalogs document the business activities of this New York gallery.
Administrative records include certificates of incorporation, minutes and by-laws, lease forms, and an employment agreement between Staempfli Gallery and its director Phillip A. Bruno.
Correspondence is with Joan Brown, David Park, Elmer Bischoff, and Roland Peterson. One file of general correspondence includes other letters to and from George Staempfli.
Financial records of are not comprehensive and primarily document financial activities from the late 1970s and 1980s. Included are annual financial reports, income tax records, records of commissions, and shipping invoices. During the mid-1980s the gallery had a sales tax audit, and many of the records of the gallery, including correspondence and notes regarding sales, sales invoices, and shipping records from 1980 to 1985 were gathered and can be found within these files.
Sales invoices are from 1986 to 1988 and include sales from the Chicago International Art Expo and Art Basel. Additional information regarding sale of artwork can also be found in the inventory records which consist of three inventory lists and an inventory card file. The inventory card file was maintained during the entire operation of the gallery from 1959 to 1992. Each work of art was given its own card and was filed alphabetically by artist. Researchers should note that cards for artists with a last name beginning with C through K were not included in the donation to the Archives of American Art.
Exhibition catalogs document one-person shows of modern American and European painters and sculptors, and several group exhibitions are also included. A few of the catalogs include annotations regarding price and sale of the exhibited works. Also found is one theater program inscribed to Geroge Steampfli by the artist Paul Delvaux.
Arrangement
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as 5 series:
- Series 1: Administrative Records, 1958-1991 (Box 1; 8 folders)
- Series 2: Correspondence, 1959-1989 (Box 1; 6 folders)
- Series 3: Financial Records, 1959-1991 (Box 1; 0.9 linear feet)
- Series 4: Sales Records, 1986-1988 (Box 2; 8 folders)
- Series 5: Inventory Records, 1959-1992 (Boxes 2-5; 3.2 linear feet)
- Series 6: Printed Material, 1959-1988 (Boxes 5-6; 0.7 linear feet)
Missing Title
Historical Note
Historical Note
Staempfli Gallery was established by George Staempfli in 1959 in New York City and specialized in modern art by European and American artists. George William Staempfli (1910-1999) was born in Bern, Switzerland, and moved to the United States in 1935. He worked at M. Knoedler & Company and was curator of paintings the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston from 1954 to 1956. He founded Staempfli Gallery in 1959 and exhibited the work of a variety of artists. Phillip A. Bruno served as co-director for over twenty years, until the gallery officially closed in 1988. George Staempfli retired to Annapolis, Maryland, in 1992, and lived there until his death in 1999.
Administration
Author
Erin Kinhart
Provenance
Exhibition Catalogs were donated in 1989 by Philip Bruno, co-director of Staempfli Gallery. Additional records of the Staempfli Gallery were donated in 2010 by Candida Steel, George Staempfli's daughter and in 2014 by Robert Aichele, a private dealer in Sacramento, California, who purchased the letters from Barbara Staempfli, George Staempfli's widow.
Processing Information
The Staempfli Gallery records were merged with the earlier donated collection of Staempfli Gallery exhibition catalogs, and fully processed and described by Erin Kinhart in 2011. Additional material was processed in 2015.
Using the Collection
Preferred Citation
Staempfli Gallery records, 1958-1992. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Restrictions on Access
Use of original papers requires and 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.
Keywords
| Keyword Terms | Keyword Types | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sculptors | Topical | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Financial records | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Art, Modern | Topical | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Tax records | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State) | Function | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Staempfli, George W. | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Brown, Joan, 1938-1990 | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Bischoff, Elmer, 1916-1991 | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Park, David, 1911-1960 | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Bruno, Phillip A. | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
| Peterson, Roland | Personal 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
