Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Zabriskie Gallery Records, 1951-2010, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.zabrgall
Creators:
Zabriskie Gallery
Dates:
1905-2011
Languages:
Multiple languages
.
Physical Description:
110.5 Linear feet
Repository:
The Zabriskie Gallery records measure 110.5 linear feet and date from 1905 to 2011. The records document the history of the Zabriskie Gallery through leases, permits, floor plans, and other administrative files; guestbooks; appointment books, notebooks, and other desk diaries; correspondence from New York and Paris galleries, museums, clients, and other correspondence; appraisals, inventories, consigments, and other registrar files; artist files consisting of resumes, correspondence, exhibition material, and photographs of artwork; institution files consisting of correspondence, consignments,and artwork inquiries with museums, galleries, and corporations; exhibition files consisting of loan agreements, press releases, and correspondence related to exhibitions shown at the gallery; invoices, price lists, and other financial records; clippings, press packets, newsletters, and other printed material; photographs, slides, and transparencies of exhibitions and artists works; and correspondence, photographs, awards, and other personal records of Virginia Zabriskie.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The Zabriskie Gallery records measure 110.5 linear feet and date from 1905 to 2011. The records document the history of the Zabriskie Gallery through leases, permits, floor plans, and other administrative files; guestbooks; appointment books, notebooks, and other desk diaries; correspondence from New York and Paris galleries, museums, clients, and other correspondence; appraisals, inventories, consigments, and other registrar files; artist files consisting of resumes, correspondence, exhibition material, and photographs of artwork; institution files consisting of correspondence, consignments,and artwork inquiries with museums, galleries, and corporations; exhibition files consisting of loan agreements, press releases, and correspondence related to exhibitions shown at the gallery; invoices, price lists, and other financial records; clippings, press packets, newsletters, and other printed material; photographs, slides, and transparencies of exhibitions and artists works; and correspondence, photographs, awards, and other personal records of Virginia Zabriskie.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged into twelve series.
  • Series 1: Administrative Files, 1969-2010 (1.6 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)
  • Series 2: Guestbooks, 1954-1995 (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 2-3)
  • Series 3: Desk Diaries, 1968-1997 (3.4 linear feet; Boxes 3-7)
  • Series 4: Correspondence, 1958-2010 (7.3 linear feet; Boxes 7-14)
  • Series 5: Registrar Files, 1970-2010 (10.0 linear feet; Boxes 14-22, 110-111, OV 112)
  • Series 6: Artist Files, 1905-2010 (66.7 linear feet; Boxes 22-87, OV 113-114)
  • Series 7: Institution Files, 1951-2009 (5.5 linear feet; Boxes 88-93)
  • Series 8: Exhibition Files, 1955-2009 (6.3 linear feet; Boxes 93-99)
  • Series 9: Financial Records, 1960-2011 (3.7 linear feet; Boxes 99-103)
  • Series 10: Printed Material, 1948-2010 (1.0 linear feet; Boxes 103-104)
  • Series 11: Photographic Material, 1950-2006 (5.6 linear feet; Boxes 103-108, OV 112)
  • Series 12: Virginia Zabriskie Personal Records, 1943-2008 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 108-109)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Zabriskie Gallery was founded by Virignia Zabriskie in 1954 when she purchased the Korman Gallery from Marvin Korman. The gallery featured works from artists such as Robert De Niro Sr., Lester Johnson, Mary Frank, and Pat Adams. Some of the more notable exhibitions included "Surrealism 1936 — Objects, Photographs, Collages and Documents" (1986), "Surrealism and the Book" (1991), and "André Masson in America" (1996). In 1977, Zabriskie opened Galerie Zabriskie in Paris to primarily show photography as there was only one gallery at the time doing so in Paris. Zabriskie closed the Galerie Zabriskie in 1998, but continued to operate the Zabriskie Gallery in New York unitl it closed in 2010.
Virginia Zabriskie (1927-2019) was an American art dealer who worked primarily in New York City and Paris. Zabriskie completed her studies in art history at New York University's Institute of Fine Art. Zabriskie became one of the youngest art dealers in New York in 1954 when she purchased the Korman Gallery. Zabriskie was also a founding member of the Art Dealers Association of America.

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
The Zabriskie Gallery records were donated to the Archives of American Art in seven installments by Virginia Zabriskie between 1992-2011.
Processing Information
The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Ricky Gomez 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. 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
Zabriskie Gallery Records, 1905-2011. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Related Materials
Also included in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Virginia Zabriskie conducted by Paul Cummings, May 28-June 6, 1975.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Art, Modern -- 20th century Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art galleries, Commercial -- France Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State) Function Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Zabriskie, Virginia M., 1927-1991 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Galerie Zabriskie Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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