Oral history interview with Grace M. Mayer, 1970 May 11-28

Collection Information

Size: 128 Pages, Transcript

Format: Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hrs., 4 min.

Summary: An interview of Grace M. Mayer conducted 1970 May 11-28, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art. Mayer discusses her education; working at the Museum of the City of New York early in her career; her focus on photography collections and exhibitions; conducting historical research; prints and photographs by Currier and Ives, Jacob Riis, and Alexander Alland. She discusses her career move to the Museum of Modern Art and her long working relationship with Edward Steichen and Rene d'Harnoncourt. She also recalls Hardinge Scholle, Lessing Rosenwald, Harry Bland, Harry Newman, Alfred Stieglitz, and Reginald Marsh, among others. She discusses major exhibitions at MOMA, including the Family of Man photography exhibition. She discusses the Print Council of America, the Steichen Archive, and associations with dealers and galleries in New York City.

Biographical/Historical Note

Grace M. Mayer (1901-1996) was a curator and collector from New York City. She worked with photography collections and exhibitions at the Museum of the City of New York and the Museum of Modern Art.

Provenance

These interviews are part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.

Language Note

English .

Funding

This interview received support from the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative Pool.