2.2 : Correspondence , 1854, 1882-1963
Eighty years of Johnson's general correspondence primarily consists of personal letters with friends, family, and fellow artists. There is also a substantial amount of correspondence with her son, Alfred Dasburg. The bulk of the correspondence dates from 1906 to 1919.
Because Alfred spent most of his childhood living in Taos with his father, Andrew Dasburg, or away at school or camp, Johnson's correspondence with her son provides very candid and detailed accounts of her daily activities. The letters discuss her current artwork, news from her friends and relatives, and her travels, including her stay in Taos, New Mexico in 1919. Also included are numerous letters written during her stay in a mental hospital from 1937 to 1938. Many of her later letters to Alfred include reminiscences of her youth and extensive self-analysis.
General correspondence with other family and friends is extensive and most often discusses social events, news of family and friends, and other daily activities of the writer. Family correspondence includes numerous letters between Johnson and her siblings, especially her brother Van Cleve Johnson. Grace Mott Johnson corresponded with numerous painter and sculptor friends whom she met at the Art Students' League and in Woodstock, New York. Some of these include Marion Bullard, Russell Cowles, John F. and Margaret Carlson, Florence Ballin Cramer, Florence Lucius, Walter Frankl, Lila Wheelock Howard, with whom she shared a studio for a period of time, Thomas Hunt, Henry Lee McFee, Morgan Russell, Mary Riley, Lee Simonson, Lindsey Morris Sterling, and Alice Morgan Wright. Johnson was also close friends with the Davidson family, and found here is her correspondence with the sculptor Jo Davidson and his two sisters Ray and Rose. Other notable correspondence is with friend Vera Spier Kuhn, wife of artist Walt Kuhn, art patron Mable Dodge Luhan, journalist John Reed, gallery owner William Macbeth, and her psychiatrist Abraham Brill. Also found is a small amount of correspondence documenting Johnson's civil rights activities, including letters from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
This subseries also includes the correspondence of Frances H. Johnson, Grace Mott Johnson's aunt, also known as Aunt Fanny, with whom she was very close. Found here are postcards and letters from family and friends as well as numerous letters between Frances and Grace Mott Johnson, including several detailed letters from Grace describing her time in Taos.
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Correspondence with Alfred Dasburg, 1914-1925
Select: Correspondence with Alfred Dasburg, 1914-1925 (6 folders)
Correspondence with Alfred Dasburg, 1931-1963
Select: Correspondence with Alfred Dasburg, 1931-1963 (6 folders)
General Correspondence, circa 1882-1894, 1901-1907
Select: General Correspondence, circa 1882-1894, 1901-1907 (6 folders)
General Correspondence, 1908
Select: General Correspondence, 1908 (6 folders)
General Correspondence, 1909
Select: General Correspondence, 1909 (7 folders)
General Correspondence, 1910
Select: General Correspondence, 1910 (5 folders)
General Correspondence, 1911
Select: General Correspondence, 1911 (7 folders)
General Correspondence, 1912-1914
Select: General Correspondence, 1912-1914 (10 folders)
General Correspondence, 1915-1932
Select: General Correspondence, 1915-1932 (8 folders)
General Correspondence, 1933-1954
Select: General Correspondence, 1933-1954 (7 folders)
General Correspondence, Undated Letters, A-Z, circa 1900-1954
Select: General Correspondence, Undated Letters, A-Z, circa 1900-1954
General Correspondence, Letter Fragments and Drafts, circa 1940-1954
Select: General Correspondence, Letter Fragments and Drafts, circa 1940-1954
General Correspondence, Unidentified, circa 1900-1954
Select: General Correspondence, Unidentified, circa 1900-1954
Frances H. Johnson Correspondence, 1887-1909
Select: Frances H. Johnson Correspondence, 1887-1909 (3 folders)
Frances H. Johnson Correspondence, 1910-1919, 1930
Select: Frances H. Johnson Correspondence, 1910-1919, 1930 (3 folders)
Ebenezer Alfred Johnson Letter, 1854
Select: Ebenezer Alfred Johnson Letter, 1854
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