Frank and Eleanor Freed papers, 1923-1992, bulk 1943-1975

Collection Information

Size: 2.9 Linear feet

Summary: The Frank and Eleanor Freed papers measure 2.9 linear feet and date from 1923-1992 with bulk dates from 1943-1975. The papers document Frank Freed's career through biographical material, printed material, and artwork. Both Freeds are documented through writings and printed material.

Biographical/Historical Note

Frank Freed was a self taught painter, cartoonist and writer. His wife, Eleanor (1914-1992) was an art critic for The Houston Post and an active member in the arts and culture sector of Houston, Texas where the couple lived. Born in San Antonio, Texas, Freed and his family moved to Houston in 1913, where Freed drew cartoons for his high school yearbook and the Rice Owl , the campus humor magazine, during a year of study at Rice University. Ultimately, Freed graduated from Harvard in 1927 with a degree in English Literature. After graduation he published several articles and began a forty-two-year career as a life-insurance salesman. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1943 and from 1944 to 1946 served in Normandy with the United States Corps of Engineers. In 1948 Freed began to paint and in 1949 he was included in two group shows in Houston galleries and then participated in annual group shows of Houston artists sponsored by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston in 19501952 and 19581959. Freed went on to participate in numerous group and solo exhibitions in the United States and abroad, including a 1970 solo show in Mexico City. Freed's work can be found in the collections of the Museum of Fine Art, Houston; the Marion Koogler McNay Art Museum in San Antonio; and the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas, Austin.

Provenance

Material on reels 3432-3433 lent for microfilming 1985, by Frank and Eleanor Freed as part of the Archives of American Art's Texas project. The remainder was donated by the Freeds, 1978-1985, and by Eleanor Freed Stern's estate, 1993. The estate bequest included the guestbooks which were part of the 1985 loan.

Related Materials

The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reels 432-3433, 3538) including 3 scrapbooks containing clippings regarding a trial on which Frank was a juror and Mexican Painting and Drawing, a show curated by Frank; articles written by Eleanor as art critic for the Houston Post, 1965-1973; and an article written for Texas Humanist, 1984, Dominique de Menil: Rare Visions in the Arts, outlining the collecting philosophy of Menil and the establishment of a private museum to exhibit the collection; source material for paintings; a guestbook from an exhibition at Instituto Mexicanos Norteamerico de Relaciones Culturales; and sketches. Loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.

Language Note

English .

Funding Note

The processing of this collection received Federal support from the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund, administered by the National Collections Program and the Smithsonian Collections Advisory Committee.