Managing editor Russell Lynes correspondence with artists, 1946-1965

Russell Lynes (1910-1991) joined Harper's Magazine as an assistant editor in 1944, and served as managing editor from 1947-1967. As an essayist, social historian, photographer, and arbiter of taste, Lynes served informally as art editor and corresponded with many artists regarding submissions to the magazine.

In addition to gaining renown for the thoughtful articles published in Harper's under his stewardship, Lynes was known for his satirical commentary on American tastes and preferences, particularly in architecture and decoration, in such books as Highbrow, Lowbrow, Middlebrow (1949), The Tastemakers (1954), and later works including The Art-Makers of Nineteenth Century America (1970).