Clay Spohn papers, circa 1862-1985, bulk 1890-1985

The three sketchbooks found here contain notes and annotated drawings made by Spohn during his stay in Paris. Sketchbook I contains a drawing of Hemingway's friend, Musgrave, at Le Dome, schematic drawings for a "portable studio," and notes about what to take to Giverny. Sketchbook II contains a self-portrait drawing and one drawing each of Musgrave and Duff Twisden, Hemingway's model for "Brett" in The Sun Also Rises, with whom Spohn became acquainted in the cafes of Paris. Sketchbook III contains designs for chairs and notes giving advice on art.

Writings consist of Spohn's reminiscences in the form of a 100-page letter to sculptor and art historian Mary Fuller McChesney. He answers questions about his career and describes, with words and drawings, his works for the exhibition The Museum of Unknown and Little Known Objects at the California School of Fine Arts in 1949.

Found here is a letter from Reginald Vaughn discussing the acquisition of Spohn's Los Gatos mural for the Morrison Center for Rehabilitation, a letter from the W.P.A. office concerning exhibitions, and three clippings. Also found are twelve photographs of artwork (primarily Spohn's murals) including: the mural The Legend of New Almaden; mural for a post office in Montebello, California; a mural for Castro Valley community center; a mural Fireman Save My Child for Volunteer Fire Department in Carmel, California; scale drawings of Benimino Bufano's proposed statue for Twin Peaks, San Francisco; and the lithograph Greek Legend.

Biographical material includes a variety of official documentation for Spohn and his parents. Documents concerning Spohn's parents include their marriage license. Documents concerning Spohn include his baptismal certificate, passport, the contents of two wallets, membership and identity cards, biographical sketches, two wills, and Spohn's death certificate. There is also a typescript biography of Spohn, "Life of a Painter," by David R. Beasley.

Correspondence is between Spohn and his colleagues, including two letters from Alexander Calder, eight letters from Mark Rothko, and twenty-eight letters from Clyfford Still.

See Appendix for an alphabetical list of correspondents from Series 2.2.

Business records primarily consist of Spohn's general accounting records, account books, banking records, contracts, inventories of artwork sold, records of support from the Lannan Foundation, records concerning Spohn's house in Taos, and miscellaneous receipts for healthcare, travel, art supplies, photographic services, and shipping. This subseries also includes documents concerning the companies managed by Spohn's father, John H. Spohn, and the patents and estate papers of Spohn's brother, John H. Spohn, Jr. These can be found at the beginning of the subseries.

This subseries contains miscellaneous notes and writings and includes 188 notebooks, address lists, a card file of book titles, Spohn's "Subject Location," "Index and Date," and "School of Visual Arts" files, and two typescripts by other writers. The miscellaneous notes and writings, and the notebooks, are concerned with various topics, often intermingled, such as teaching notes; lists of names, books, and groceries needed; financial records for art supplies; Spohn's thoughts on philosophy and art; dietary advice; annotated studies and calculations concerning the "trisection of an arbitrary angle"; notes for his unpublished literary work "The Book," (sometimes entitled "The Actual Book" or "The Truth Book"); and brief and incomplete drafts written either for writing class assignments or for "The Book."

Files on the School of Visual Arts contains class schedules, grade sheets, and 37 notebooks of class assignments, records of student grades, notes for lectures, lists of books for teaching, writings about teaching, and notes on art supplies for class.

Artwork consists of 557 drawings, including 27 undated drawings of Washington D.C., and 14 sketchbooks.

Printed material consists of clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs for Spohn and others, exhibition prospectuses, reproductions of artwork, calendars of events, programs, brochures, books, and miscellaneous printed material.

Photographs are of Spohn and his family, colleagues, studio, house in Taos, exhibition installations, and artwork. There are also photographs of San Francisco, including six views of damage done by the 1906 earthquake. Colleagues pictured in the photographs include Marion Karnes, Urban Neininger, Jeanne Reynal, Louis Ribak, Alfred Rogoway, and Maurice Sievan.

Photographs of artwork for projects by Spohn picture the following: an entrance hall mural for Officers Club, San Francisco (undated); a cartoon for copper repousee sculpture for Carmel, California, Volunteer Fire Department (1936); a cartoon for copper repousee sculpture for Castro Valley Community Center (1937); a mural for Montebello, California, post office (1938); and a mural for Los Gatos Union High School (1939).

Artifacts consist of four military pins from Marion Karnes.