Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Photographs and Letters Relating to Mark Tobey Murals, circa 1933-1988, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.stramich
Creators:
Straight, Michael Whitney
Dates:
circa 1933-1988
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
13 Items
Repository:
The photographs and letters relating to Mark Tobey murals consist of nine photographs (ca. 1933) of murals of dancers by Mark Tobey at the Dartington Hall dance center in Devonshire, England; one photograph each of Mark Tobey and dancer Paula Morel; and two letters (1988) from Mary Bride Nicholson, the archivist at Dartington Hall, and donor Michael Straight discussing the murals.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The photographs and letters relating to Mark Tobey murals consist of nine photographs (ca. 1933) of murals of dancers by Mark Tobey at the Dartington Hall dance center in Devonshire, England; one photograph each of Mark Tobey and dancer Paula Morel; and two letters (1988) from Mary Bride Nicholson, the archivist at Dartington Hall, and donor Michael Straight discussing the murals.

Arrangement

Arrangement
Due to the small size of the collection the papers are arranged as one series.
  • Series 1: Photographs and Letters Relating to Mark Tobey Murals (13 items; Folder 1)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
The donor, Michael Straight, grew up at Dartington Hall, Devonshire, England, an experimental community founded by his mother, Dorothy Whitney Straight and her second husband Leonard K. Elmhirst. The community included a progressive coeducational boarding school and a cluster of art centers. In the early 1930s, Straight's sister, Beatrice, returned from the Cornish School in Seattle, where she had studied drama, with Mark Tobey. He became an artist-in-residence and, around 1933, was commissioned to paint a series of murals in the Dartington dance center. In the following decade, the murals were damaged beyond repair and the walls were painted over.

Administration

Author
Rihoko Ueno
Existence and Location of Copies
Portions of the collection are available on 35mm microfilm reel 4283 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of material described in the container inventory does not refelct the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
Existence and Location of Originals
The two letters in the collection are photocopies. The original letters are in the AAA collection file.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The photographs and letters relating to Mark Tobey murals were donated to the Archives of American Art by Michael Straight, son of Dorothy Whitney Straight who was the founder of Dartington Hall. He found the photographs in the Dartington Hall archives.
Processing Information
The collection received a preliminary level of arrangement by Jean Fitzgerald in 1989. The collection was then processed and a finding aid prepared by Rihoko Ueno in 2021.

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. Microfilmed materials must be consulted on microfilm. Contact Reference 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 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
Photographs and Letters Relating to Mark Tobey Murals, circa 1933-1988. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Mural painting and decoration, British Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Muralists -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Morel, Paula Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tobey, Mark Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Dartington Hall (Totnes, England) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Archives of American Art
750 9th Street, NW
Victor Building, Suite 2200
Washington, D.C. 20001
Business Number: Phone: 202-633-7950
https://www.aaa.si.edu/services/questions