Michele Smolen collection of Hilla Rebay materials

Michele Smolen collection of Hilla Rebay materials

Collection Overview

Repository:
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Archives
Creator:
Smolen, Michele.
Title:
Michele Smolen collection of Hilla Rebay materials
Call Number:
M0005
Dates:
1938-2005 (bulk 1938-1962)
Volume:
1.3 cubic ft. (3 boxes)
Biographical Abstract:
Michele Smolen (MS) was born in Forest Hills, Queens. She studied at both the Julliard School and the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. After marrying her husband, Donald Smolen, a marketing and advertising executive for United Artists and successful commercial artist, the two moved to Westport, CT, where Hilla Rebay (HR), the first director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, had maintained a home since 1938. Although MS did not know HR personally, she was aware of HR's reputation as a patron and promoter of modern art. MS donated the collection to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Archives in July 2005.
Scope and Content Abstract:
The Michele Smolen collection of Hilla Rebay materials is comprised of materials relating to Hilla Rebay and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, dating from 1938 to 2005. It contains newspaper clippings, postcard books for the Museum of Non-Objective Painting showing interior shots of the museum and proposed new building, publications, and seven catalogues for exhibitions presented by the Museum. The collection also contains 20 etchings made by Rebay along with a copper plate and etched postcard, also designed by Rebay.
Location:
OS, CF
Language:
Collection is primarily in English.
Arrangement:
Arranged alphabetically.
Restrictions:
The collection is unrestricted.
Publication Rights:
Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be discussed with the Manager of the Library and Archives.
Preferred Citation:
The Michele Smolen collection of Hilla Rebay materials. M0005. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Archives, New York, NY.
Subjects:
Art exhibitions.
Art, Modern -- 20th Century.
Museum of Non-Objective Painting.
Rebay, Hilla, 1890-1967.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Finding aid prepared by Alan Houston in 2006.

Biographical Note

Michele Smolen (MS) was born in Forest Hills, Queens. She studied at both the Julliard School and the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. After marrying her husband, Donald Smolen, a marketing and advertising executive for United Artists and successful commercial artist, the two moved to Westport, CT, where Hilla Rebay (HR), the first director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, had maintained a home since 1938. Although MS did not know HR personally, she was aware of HR's reputation as a patron and promoter of modern art. MS donated the collection to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Archives in July 2005.

Scope and Content Note

The Michele Smolen collection is comprised of materials related to Hilla Rebay and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, dating from 1938 to 2005. It contains clippings, postcard books for the Museum of Non-Objective Painting showing interior shots of the museum and proposed new building, publications, and a number of catalogues for exhibitions presented by the Museum, including a working copy of the Art of Tomorrow catalogue. Exhibition catalogues are listed by Guggenheim exhibition number. The collection also contains 20 etchings made by Rebay (15 signed, 5 unsigned) along with a copper plate and etched postcard, also designed by Rebay.

Folder List

BoxFolderTitleDate
101200Announcement for Exhibition of Non-Objective Paintings, Gibbes Memorial Art Gallery, Charleston, SC 1938
Etchings/Postcards Designed by Hilla Rebay
101200Copper Plate and Etching 1958
000511Signed Sepia Brown Etchings/Postcards (4 folders) undated
000511Unsigned Etchings/Postcards undated
Exhibition Catalogues
101200Exhibition 1: Solomon R. Guggenheim Collection of Non-Objective Paintings 1936
101200Exhibition 4: Solomon R. Guggenheim Collection of Non-Objective Paintings (2 copies) 1938
101200Exhibition 6: Art of Tomorrow (catalogue and mock-up) 1939
101200Exhibition 43: In Memory of Wassily Kandinsky 1945
101200Exhibition 57: In Memoriam László Moholy-Nagy 1947
101200Exhibition 61: Hilla Rebay (2 copies) 1948
101200Hilla Rebay, Paintings and Collages, French & Company 1962
Newspaper and Magazine Clippings
101200Hilla Rebay Estate for Sale 2003-2004
101200Hilla Rebay Exhibitions in Westport, CT 1989, 2005
101200Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Expansion and Rennovation 1987, 1992
101200Postcard Book for Museum of Non-Objective Painting (2 copies) undated
Publications
101200Hilla Rebay, by Yvanhoé Rambosson (2 copies) 1930
101200Nuestra Arquitectura, Casa en Mar del Plata 1947