A Finding Aid to the Kennedy Galleries Miscellaneous Records, 1864-circa 1983, in the Archives of American Art
AAA.fleimart
Author
Finding aid prepared by Barbara Aikens
Biographical/Historical note
Established in 1874 by Hermann Wunderlich as H. Wunderlich & Co. in Manhattan, Kennedy Galleries has a long history of dealing American art. When Wunderlich died in 1892, Edward G. Kennedy took over the gallery and changed the name in 1912 to Kennedy & Co. Kennedy was the first U.S. dealer to exhibit the etchings and paintings of James McNeill Whistler, and he compiled a 1910 catalogue raisonné of the artist’s work. Kennedy retired in 1916, and Herman Wunderlich (Jr.) became senior partner.
Lawrence A. Fleischman, joined the gallery in 1966 as a partner with the late Rudolf G. Wunderlich. In the course of more than a century in business, the gallery has promoted work by artists the likes of Albert Bierstadt, William Merritt Chase, Frederic E. Church, John Singleton Copley, Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, Walt Kuhn, Georgia O’Keeffe and Ben Shahn, among others. Under Lawrence A. Fleischman, the gallery served as adviser to the Vatican Museum, Rome in the early 1970s assisting in the selection and acquisition of modern art. Lawrence Fleischman was also the founder of the Archives of American Art, now a part of the Smithsonian Institution. He also served on the White House Committee for the Fine Arts during the administrations of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1966, the gallery moved to East 56th street; and in 1974 moved again to a newly constructed gallery on West 57th Street. In 2005, the gallery became a private dealership under the direction of Martha Fleischman, Lawrence A. Fleischman’s daughter.
Arrangement note
The collection is arranged into one series.
Series 1: Kennedy Galleries Miscellaneous Records, 1864-circa 1980 (1.1 linear feet; Box 1, OV 2)
Scope and Contents note
The Kennedy Galleries Miscellaneous Records date from 1864 - circa 1983 and measure 1.1 linear feet. These scattered records were compiled by gallery owner Martha Fleischman and relate to art collections and artists historically represented by or associated with the gallery. The collection includes a few letters, one essay, reports, ledger pages, a certificate, printed materials, and photographs of artists and artwork, particularly artwork by Walt Kuhn.
Provenance
These records were donated to the Archives in 2005 and 2006 by Martha Fleischman, director of the Kennedy Galleries, who compiled these miscellaneous items from the Kennedy Galleries' storage.
Related Archival Materials note
Also found at the Archives of American Art are the Lawrence and Barbara Fleischman Papers, 1837-1984, bulk 1935-1979; an interview of Lawrence A. Fleischman conducted in 1970, Feb. 28-Mar. 9, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art; an interview of Lawrence A. Fleischman conducted 1994 Apr. 18, by Gail Stavitsky, for the Archives of American Art; and an interview of Barbara Fleischman (Lawrence Fleischman's wife) conducted 2011 Dec. 27 and 2012 Jan. 5, 20, and 23 by Avis Berman for the Archives of American Art.
Processing Information note
The collection was processed by Nicole Blechynden and Barbara Aikens in 2016-2017, and the finding prepared by Barbara Aikens in 2017. Funding from the Smithsonian Institution's Collections Care and Preservation Fund supported this work.
Image assets for this folder have not been fully processed.
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