A Finding Aid to the Katherine Thayer Hobson Papers, 1930-1982, in the Archives of American Art
AAA.hobskath
Author
Finding aid prepared by Judy Ng
Biographical/Historical note
Sculptor Katherine Thayer Hobson (1889-1982) lived and worked in New York City. She is known for her sculptures of racehorses, war memorials, and portrait busts.
Hobson was born in Denver, Colorado and received her education in the United States and continued her art studies in Europe. Her early career focused on commissioned portrait busts, war memorials, and relief sculptures, including a relief of St. George (1945) at St. James Episcopal Church in New York City, and a World War I memorial installed in Dresden during the 1920s. In the mid-1960s, after watching the horse Buckpasser win a stakes race, Hobson sculpted his bust, after which she earned additional commissions for the racehorses Dr. Fager and Ruffian.
She was a member of the National Sculpture Society, the American Artists Professional League (AAPL), and the Society of Western Artists. Two awards, the AAPL's Katherine Thayer Hobson Award, and Pen and Brush's Katherine Thayer Hobson Memorial Award, are given in her honor. Hobson died in her home in New York City in 1982.
Arrangement note
The collection is arranged as one series.
Series 1: Personal papers, 1930-1982 (0.6 linear feet; Box 1-2)
Scope and Contents note
The papers of sculptor Katherine Hobson Thayer measure 0.6 linear feet and date from 1930 to 1982. Found within the collection are personal and professional correspondence; writings on art and anticommunist activities; printed materials; sketches; and photographic materials of Hobson, her friends, and her artwork.
Provenance
Katherine Thayer Hobson donated her papers to the archives in 1979. Additional material was donated by Hobson's sister, Eleanor Hobson McKenzie, in 1982.
Processing Information note
The collection was minimally processed and described by Judy Ng in 2013 with funding provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. The Archives of American Art has implemented minimal level processing tactics when possible in order to increase access to more of its collections. Minimal processing included merging all accretions and arranging to the series and folder level. Original folder titles were maintained; contents were verified and not arranged further. All materials were rehoused in archival folders and containers for long-term stability, but staples and other fasteners were not removed.
Image assets for this folder have not been fully processed.
We apologize for any inconvenience.
