Collections : [Virginia Museum of Fine Arts]

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

VMFA Archives
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Margaret R. and Robert M. Freeman Library
200 N. Arthur Ashe Boulevard
Richmond, VA 23220-4007
Primary Collecting Areas:
VMFA institutional records, Donor papers, Virginia Artists Archives, Oral histories, Artist subject files, Analog, and digital audiovisual collections
Description:

The Margaret R. and Robert M. Freeman Library provides access to a wealth of rare and unique primary source materials for scholars, researchers, and the public.

The Archives consists of a diverse and growing collection of permanent materials, covering museum history from its beginnings in the 1930s until today. The Archives includes institutional records from over 25 museum departments, thousands of artist and subject files, as well as donated collections related to the museum and the history of art in Virginia. The Archives also recently launched the Virginia Artists Archives, a collecting initiative that aims to create a rich, diverse, and unprecedented collection of Virginia artists’ papers to increase awareness about the contributions of Virginia artists, both past and present.

POC: Roxanne Winfield
Phone: (804) 340-1497
Phone: (804) 340-1495
Start Over Repository Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Date range 1937

Colt, Thomas C., Jr., 1935/1955 Box 33863 Box 21, Folder 23, Item RG01.01.1.0856

Correspondence between T.C. Colt, Jr. and Mrs. J.G. Pollard. Subject- detailed letters about the goings-on at the Museum while Colt was serving in WWII, also letter from Mrs. Alfred DuPont about art education. Dates-8/37-8/53. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Davenport, Carson, 1935/1944 Box 33863 Box 24, Folder 17, Item RG01.01.1.0972

Correspondence with and biographical information about Carson Davenport, Virginia artist. Dates- 1936-1944. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Davis, Mrs. Lincoln, 1935/1944 Box 33863 Box 24, Folder 19, Item RG01.01.1.0975

Correspondence between Mrs. J.G. Pollard and donors Mrs. Lincoln Davis, and George Cole Scott and Hildreth Dunn Scott, 1937-43. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Day, Elizabeth Nottingham, 1934/1945 Box 33863 Box 24, Folder 22, Item RG01.01.1.0980

Subject- Elizabeth Nottingham Day and Horace Day, patrons and donors, 1934-45. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009 248.5 Linear Feet 204 boxes; 7,156 folders

This series is comprised of correspondence of all of the various Directors of the museum. Files were arranged alphabetically by subject, and there is a lot of overlap between different Director's as the files often contained pertinent items from a predecessor. In the case of the first sub-series (1.1), until 1976, the entire museum's files were maintained centrally as one unit in the Director's Office.

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Dugald Stewart Walker Memorial, 1937 Box 31633 Box 1, Folder RG23.01.0.0009

Extensive correspondence regarding memorial committee and its purchase of a memorial; his works; and fundraising efforts; Colt was treasurer. The Committee also paid off all of the debts for Walker's illness, donations coming from across the country. Thank you letters in alpha order, hundreds of them, plus originals from donators; a few have copies of bookplates attached; original loan requests and replies; original Christmas card with Walker print of a home in Connecticut (1931) and a memorial card that he created in 1936

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Records of the Exhibitions Department (RG-23), 1936/2015
  3. Series 1: Exhibition Files, 1936/2015

duPont, Mrs. Alfred I., 1935/1947 Box 33863 Box 26, Folder 14, Item RG01.01.1.1052

Correspondence with Mrs. Alfred I. (Jessie Ball) Dupont. Subject- Donations. Contains a letter regarding her feelings in favor of segregation at the museum and in the arts. Dates- 1935-43. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

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