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About the Dwan Gallery (Los Angeles, Calif. and New York, N.Y.) records

A Finding Aid to the Dwan Gallery Records, 1959 - circa 1982, bulk 1959-1971, in the Archives of American Art, by Jayna M. Hanson (Download PDF Version, 77 KB )

Historical Note | Description of the Collection | How to Use the Collection | Series Descriptions

Historical Information [+]

In 1959, Virginia Dwan opened her first gallery on 1091 Broxton Avenue in the Westwood Village neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Her independent wealth allowed her to open a gallery without worrying about business and sales. Three years after opening, the Dwan Gallery moved into a new Westwood Village space especially designed to express the gallery's contemporary aesthetic. In 1965, Virginia Dwan moved to New York City and founded an east coast branch of the Dwan Gallery at 29 West 57th Street. READ MORE

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Description of the Collection

Overview - Scope and Contents [+]

The Dwan Gallery records consist primarily of files of exhibitions curated by Virginia Dwan at Dwan Galleries in Los Angeles (1959-1967) and New York (1965-1971). Found within this almost comprehensive set of exhibition files are lists of exhibited works, price lists, photographs, slides or color transparencies of installations, invitations, full-size posters, magazine and newspaper clippings and exhibition catalogs. READ MORE

Arrangement and Series Description

The collection is arranged into two series:

Series 1: Los Angeles Exhibition Files, 1959-1967, after 1981 (Box 1-2, 5, OV6, OV8; 1.3 linear feet)
Series 2: New York Exhibition Files, 1965-1971, after 1982 (Box 2-4, OV7; 0.9)

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Subjects

This collection is indexed in the online catalog of the Archives of American Art under the following terms:

Subjects:
- Smithson, Robert
- Lewitt, Sol,1928-
- Andre, Carl,1935-
- Snelson, Kenneth,1927-
- Parker, Raymond,1922-
- Flavin, Dan,1933-
- Morris, Robert,1931-
- Rauschenberg, Robert,1925-
- Mitchell, Joan,1926-
- Saint-Phalle, Niki de,1930-
- Oldenburg, Claes,1929-
- Kienholz, Edward,1927-
- Kline, Franz,1910-1962
- Arman,1928-
- Reinhardt, Ad,1913-1967
- Scarpitta, Salvatore,1919-
- Klein, Yves,1928-1962
- Guston, Philip,1913-
- Rivers, Larry,1925-
- Richenburg, Robert
- Goodnough, Robert,1917-
- Arakawa, Shusaku,1936-

Subjects-Topical:
- Abstract expressionism
- Art galleries, Commercial -- New York (State)-- New York
- Art galleries, Commercial -- California -- Los Angeles
- Art -- California -- Los Angeles -- Exhibitions
- Art -- New York (State)-- New York -- Exhibitions
- Artists -- United States
- Nouveaux réalistes (Group of artists)
- Minimal art
- Earthworks (Art)

Types of Materials:
- Photographs
- Slides (photographs)

Names:
- Dwan, Virginia
- Weber, John,1932-
- Dwan Gallery (Los Angeles, Calif.)
- Dwan Gallery (New York, N.Y.)

Provenance

The Dwan Gallery records were donated in 1996 by Virginia Dwan, the former owner of the gallery. Dwan also donated exhibition catalogs in 1989, which were subsequently transferred to the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) Library.

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How the Collection was Processed

The records were processed by Jayna M. Hanson in 2008.

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How to Use the Collection

Restrictions on Use

The Dwan Gallery records are owned by the Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Literary rights as possessed by the donor have been dedicated to public use for research, study, and scholarship. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.

The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment.

Related Collections

Also found within the Archives of American Art is an interview with Virginia Dwan conducted March 21 through June 1, 1984 by Charles Stuckey.

Bard College's Center for Curatorial Studies and Art in Contemporary Culture holds a similar collection of Dwan Gallery materials at the Library and Archive, consisting of eight binders of materials relating to the exhibitions held at the Dwan Gallery - Los Angeles from 1959-1967 and the Dwan Gallery - New York from 1965-1971. The binders contain press releases, exhibition checklists, black and white 8 X 10 photographs, announcements, newspaper and magazine reviews, and other ephemera.

Separated Materials

Dwan Gallery exhibition catalogs that were donated to the Archives in 1989 were transfered to the SAAM Library.

How to Cite this Collection

Dwan Gallery records, 1959 - circa 1982. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

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Series Descriptions

Series 1: Los Angeles Exhibition Files 1959-1965, after 1981 (Box 1-2, 5, OV6, OV8; 1.9 linear feet)

Noteworthy exhibitions include artists Robert Goodnough, Raymond Parker, Yves Klein, Salvatore Scarpitta, Arakawa, Martial Raysse, Robert Rauschenberg, Niki de Sainte Phalle, Claes Oldenburg, Larry Rivers and Kenneth Snelson. Other important exhibitions include Boxes (1964), My Country 'tis of Thee (1962), and 10 (1967).

This series is arranged in chronological order according to the opening date of each exhibition. Exhibition posters and photos of installations have been removed and placed into oversized folders.

Box	Folder
1 (hol)	1	Guides to Los Angeles Exhibtions, after 1981
1 (hol)	2	Stanley Twardowicz, 1959 October 19
1 (hol)	3	Various Artists: Prints, 1959 November 17
1 (hol)	4	Drawings, Watercolors, Collages, 1959 December 12
1 (hol)	5	Matsumi Kanemitsu, 1960 January 19
1 (hol)	6	Reginald Pollack: Recent Paintings, 1960 February 9
1 (hol)	7	Friedel Dzubas, 1960 March 8
1 (hol)	8	Paul Brach, 1960 April 4 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	9	Robert Goodnough, 1960 May 2
1 (hol)	10	Seymour Boardman: Paintings, 1960 May 31
1 (hol)	11	Harry Nadler, 1960 June 27
1 (hol)	12	15 of New York, 1960 October 10 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	13	Robert Richenburg, 1960 November 14 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	14	Various Artists, 1960 December 19
1 (hol)	15	Stanley Twardowicz, 1961 January 9 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	16	Stephen Pace, 1961 March 6
1 (hol)	17	Larry Rivers, 1961 February 6
1 (hol)	18	Franz Klein and Philip Guston, 1961 April 3
1 (hol)	19	Raymond Parker, 1961 May 1 See also OV6)
1 (hol)	20	Yves Klein: Le Monochrome, 1961 May 29 See also OV6)
1 (hol)	21	Salvatore Scarpitta, 1961 June 24 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	22	Joan Mitchell, 1961 September 18
1 (hol)	23	Six Sculptors, 1961 October 16
1 (hol)	24	Matsumi Kanemitsu, 1961 November 13 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	25	Robert Goodnough, 1962 January 27
1 (hol)	26	Ad Reinhardt, 1962 February 4
1 (hol)	27	Robert Rauschenberg, 1962 March 4 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	28	William Waldren, 1962 April 1
1 (hol)	29	Arman, 1962 May 13
1 (hol)	30	Various Artists, 1962 June 11
1 (hol)	31	Harry Nadler, 1962 July 9
1 (hol)	32	Various Artists, 1962 September 7
1 (hol)	33	Raymond Parker, 1962 October 7
1 (hol)	34	My Country 'tis of Thee, 1962 November 18
1 (hol)	35	Matsumi Kanemitsu: Recent Paintings, 1962 December 16
1 (hol)	36	Martial Raysse, 1963 January 6
1 (hol)	37	Dealer's Choice, 1963 February 10
1 (hol)	38	Franz Kline: Memorial, Paintings 1950-1961, 1963 March 3 (See also OV8)
1 (hol)	39	Larry Rivers, 1963 April 15
1 (hol)	40	Jean Tinguely, 1963 May 13 (See also OV8)
1 (hol)	41	Edward Kienholz, 1963 June 17
1 (hol)	42	Claes Oldenburg, 1963 October 1
1 (hol)	43	Sven Lukin, 1963 October 27 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	44	Ad Reinhardt: Recent Paintings, 1963 November 24 (See also OV8)
1 (hol)	45	Various Artists, 1963 December 29
1 (hol)	46	Niki de Sainte Phalle, 1964 January 5 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	47	Boxes, 1964 February 2 (See also Box 5)
1 (hol)	48	William Waldren, 1964 March 1 (See also OV6)
1 (hol)	49	Arakawa: Diagrams, 1964 March 29 (See also OV8)
1 (hol)	50	Martial Raysse, 1964 May 4 (See also OV6, OV8)

Box	Folder
2 (hol)	1	Gallery Artists, 1964 June 1
2 (hol)	2	New York, New York, 1964 June 29 (See also OV8)
2 (hol)	3	Edward Kienholz: 3 Tableaux 1964 September 29
2 (hol)	4	James Rosenquist, 1964 October 27
2 (hol)	5	Lucas Samaras, 1964 November 24 (See also OV8)
2 (hol)	6	Arena of Love, 1965 January 1 (See also OV8)
2 (hol)	7	Oldenburg, Whitman, Dine and Talbert, 1965 February 9
2 (hol)	8	Dakota Daley and Nicholas Quennell, 1965 March 16 (See also OV8)
2 (hol)	9	Robert Rauschenberg: Drawings, 1965 April 13 (See also OV6, OV8)
2 (hol)	10	Charles Frazier, 1965 May 11
2 (hol)	11	Mark Di Suervo: Two Large Works, 1965 September 29
2 (hol)	12	Various Artists, 1965
2 (hol)	13	Larry Rivers, 1965 November 16 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	14	Various Artists, 1965 December 21
2 (hol)	15	Allen D'Archangelo, 1966 January 18
2 (hol)	16	Neil Williams, 1966 February 15 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	17	Robert Morris: Sculpture, 1966 March 15 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	18	Arakawa, 1966 May 10 (See also OV6, OV8)
2 (hol)	19	Various Artists, 1966 May 10 (See also OV8)
2 (hol)	20	Robert Grosvenor, 1966 April 12
2 (hol)	21	Summer Show, 1966 July 5 (See also OV6, OV8)
2 (hol)	22	Anthony Magar and Forrest Myers, 1966 October 4 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	23	David Novros: Five Paintings, 1966 November 1 (See also OV6, OV8)
2 (hol)	24	John Chamberlain, 1966 November 29 (See also OV6, OV8)
2 (hol)	25	Kenneth Snelson, 1967 January 9 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	26	DWNY at DWLA, 1967 February 7 (See also OV8)
2 (hol)	27	Carl Andre: Cuts, 1967 March 8 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	28	Sol LeWitt, 1967 April 4
2 (hol)	29	10, 1967 May 2 (See also OV6)
2 (hol)	30	Martial Raysse: Retrospective, 1967 June 31 (See also OV8)

Box
5 (hol)		Oversized Boxes catalog, 1964 February 2

Box
OV6		Oversized Exhibition Posters 1960-1964

Box
OV8		Oversized Photographs, 1963-1964

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Series 2: New York Exhibition Files, 1965-1971, after 1982 (Box 2-4, OV7)

Noteworthy exhibitions include artists Arakawa, Anastasi, Kenneth Snelson, Sol LeWitt, Robert Smithson, Carl Andre, Dan Flavin, and Walter De Maria. Other important exhibitions include 10 (1966), Language to be Looked at and/or Things to be Read (1967-1970), and Earth Works (1968).

This series is arranged in chronological order according to the opening date of each exhibition. Exhibition posters and photos of installations have been removed and placed into oversized folders.

Box	Folder
2 (hol)	31	Guides to New York Exhibitions, after 1982
2 (hol)	32	Edward Kienholz: The Beanery, 1965 November 23 (See also OV7)
2 (hol)	33	Arakawa: For Instance, Instant, 1966 January 4 (See also OV7)
2 (hol)	34	Anastasi: Sound Object, 1966 February 1 (See also OV7)
2 (hol)	35	Tom Doyle, 1966 March 1 (See also OV7)
2 (hol)	36	Kenneth Snelson, 1966 April 12 (See also OV7)
2 (hol)	37	Sol LeWitt, 1966 May 10
2 (hol)	38	10, 1966 October 4

Box	Folder
3 (hol)	1	Michael Steiner, 1966 November 1 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	2	Robert Smithson, 1966 November 29 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	3	Scale Models and Drawings, 1967 January 7 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	4	Edward Kienholz: Concept Tableaux, 1967 February 4
3 (hol)	5	Richard Baringer, 1967 March 4 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	6	David Novros: Paintings, 1967 April 1
3 (hol)	7	Anastasi: Six Sites, 1967 April 29 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	8	Language to be Looked at and/or Things to be Read, 1967 June 3 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	9	Tim Doyle, 1967 October 7
3 (hol)	10	Arakawa, 1967 November 4 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	11	Carl Andre: Periodic Table, 1967 December 2 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	12	Kenneth Snelson, 1968 January 6 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	13	Sol LeWitt: 46 3 Part Variations, 1968 February 3
3 (hol)	14	Robert Smithson, 1968 March 2 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	15	Michael Steiner, 1968 March 30 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	16	Charles Ross: Prisms, 1968 April 27 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	17	Language II, 1968 May 25
3 (hol)	18	Earth Works, 1968 October 5
3 (hol)	19	Dan Flavin: Cool White, etc., 1968 November 2
3 (hol)	20	Erwin Heerich: Cardboard Sculpture, 1968 November 30
3 (hol)	21	Fred Sandback: Five Situations, 1969 January 4 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	22	Robert Smithson: Lake Site-Nonsite, 1969 February 1
3 (hol)	23	Charles Ross: Prisms, 1969 March 1 (See also OV7)
3 (hol)	24	Walter De Maria: Bed of Spikes, 1969 March 29
3 (hol)	25	Carl Andre, 1969 April 26

Box	Folder
4 (hol)	1	Language III, 1969 May 24
4 (hol)	2	Sol LeWitt: Wall Drawing, 1969 October 4
4 (hol)	3	Arakawa: Decisive Ending, 1969 November 1 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	4	Dwan, 10 Years, 1969 November 29 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	5	Michael Heizer: New York/ Nevada, 1970 January 10
4 (hol)	6	Dan Flavin: Cornered Installations, 1970 February 7 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	7	Kenneth Snelson, 1970 March 7 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	8	Fred Sandback, 1970 April 4 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	9	Anastasi: Sculpture, 1970 May 2 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	10	Anastasi: Continuum, 1970 May 16 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	11	Language IV, 1970 June 2
4 (hol)	12	Richard Long: Sculpture, 1970 October 3
4 (hol)	13	Robert Smithson: Great Salt Lake, Utah, 1970 October 31 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	14	Gallery Artists, 1970 November 28
4 (hol)	15	Charles Ross: Sunlight Dispersion, 1971 January 6
4 (hol)	16	Robert Ryman: Paintings, 1971 February 6
4 (hol)	17	Carl Andre, 1971 April 3
4 (hol)	18	Sol LeWitt: Paintings and Drawings, 1971 May 1
4 (hol)	19	Dan Flavin: to Barnett Newman, 1971 March 6 (See also OV7)
4 (hol)	20	Final Exhibition, Gallery Artists, 1971 June 1

Box
OV7		Oversized Exhibition Posters 1965-1971

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