Ruth Nickerson papers, 1924-2009, bulk 1930s-1997

Collection Information

Size: 2.6 Linear feet

Summary: The papers of sculptor and WPA artist Ruth Nickerson measure 3 linear feet and date from circa 1924-1997 and 2005, 2009. Included are personal resumes and professional summaries, as well as sculpture awards and honors; letters from artists and art administrators, correspondence with foundries and art organizations, the Treasury Department Section of Painting and Sculpture, and the Section of Fine Arts. Letters from Ruth Nickerson to her mother Kate Mary Nickerson and copies of outgoing letters from Nickerson to other are also includeds; writings, including typescripts of manuscripts and unpublished talks; files regarding Guggenheim Fellowships; Nickerson's cast stone formulas; photographs of works in progress; artwork consisting of watercolor studies for American Oriental Rug Weaving (sculpture panel) for the US Post Office, Leaksville, North Carolina, 1941, and handmade Christmas cards; and printed material including exhibition catalogs and newspaper clippings. Also included is an unpublished memoir The Stone Carver in the House , by Nickerson's daughter Elizabeth R. Knudsen, 2005.

Biographical/Historical Note

Ruth Nickerson (1905-1997) was a Works Progress Administration (WPA) artist, direct stone sculptor, art educator and teacher in White Plains, New York. Nickerson was married to Edmund Greacen, Jr., son of painter Edmund Greacan. She studied art at the Detroit School of Applied Art, the National Academy school and at the Beaux Arts Institute of Design in New York. She also studied direct carving techniques with Ahron Ben-Shmuel.

Provenance

Donated 2019 and 2021 by Elizabeth R. Knudsen, Ruth Nickerson's daughter.

Related Materials

Also found in the Archives of American Art are the Edmund Greacen papers, 1987-1972, bulk 1905-1949 and the Public Works of Art Project selected administrative and business records, 1933-1936.

Language Note

English .