Betty Parsons Gallery records and personal papers, 1916-1991, bulk 1946-1983

This suberies provides detailed information about the gallery's sales and, to a lesser extent, purchases of works of art through invoices, ledgers, record books, and summaries. Due to the variety of formats there is a significant duplication of information. There are only three folders of invoices for purchases dating from 1950-1974. Additional information regarding sales can be found in the general ledgers that are located in disbursements and receipts. Of particular interest are summaries of sales of art works by Ad Reinhardt, Jackson Pollock, and Mark Rothko (circa 1952) and summaries of sales to museums from 1946 - 1952.

The majority of the files are sales invoices. Most invoices include detailed information about the work of art, the name and address of the buyer, price, and date of sales. Sales invoice files are arranged by four access points: artist, buyer, year, and invoice number. Sales invoices arranged by buyer make up the bulk of the invoices and may represent the most complete record of gallery sales. Filing idiosyncrasies exist within this category, primarily when the buyer is an institution or organization. In some instances the invoices and sales related correspondence were filed under the institution/organization name, while in others it was filed by the last name of the primary correspondent.

Purchase invoices identify the institution or individual from whom a work was purchased and establishes provenance for works that were not acquired directly from the artist. Purchase invoices can also be found scattered amongst the sales invoice files.

Files are arranged by format.