Oral history interview with Ida Kohlmeyer, 1989 May 17-20

Collection Information

Size: 165 Pages, Transcript

Format: Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr.

Summary: An interview of Ida Kohlmeyer conducted 1989 May 17-20, by Avis Berman, for the Archives of American Art.

Kohlmeyer discusses how she became an artist, her training, her family, her Jewish upbringing, the New Orleans art scene, her teaching and students, her painting, her work in sculpture, the "Clusters," "Semiotics" and "Circus" series, and the "Krewe of Poydras" sculpture. She discusses her inspirations, subject matter, process, and materials, including working with assistants. She also discusses competitions and commissions. She recalls Pat Trivigno, Mark Rothko, Hans Hofmann, Clyfford Still, James Johnson Sweeney, Luba Glade, Simonne Stern, Orleans Gallery and Ruth White Gallery.

Biographical/Historical Note

Ida Kohlmeyer (1912-1997) was a painter and sculptor from New Orleans, Louisiana.

Provenance

This interview is 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. Funding for this interview provided by the Lannan Foundation.

Language Note

English .

Funding

Funding for this interview was provided by the Lannan Foundation. Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service. This interview received support from the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative Pool.