Archives of American Art
Anna Campbell Bliss papers
Bliss, Anna Campbell
AAA.blisanna
Archival Resource Key
3.8 Linear feet
circa 1948-2015
The papers of Anna Campbell Bliss measure 3.8 linear feet and date from circa 1948-2015. The papers document Bliss' career as an artist and architect along with Bliss' involvement with several professional organizations and time spent giving color theory lectures. Materials in this collection include biographical material, correspondence, exhibition files, and personal business files which document Bliss' financial, project and studio files. Also found are printed materials, and photographic materials.
English
.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Scope and Contents
The papers of Anna Campbell Bliss measure 3.8 linear feet and date from circa 1948-2015. The papers document Bliss' career as an architect and artist along with Bliss' involvement with several professional organizations and time spent giving color theory lectures. Materials in this collection include biographical material, correspondence, exhibition files, and personal business files which document Bliss' financial, project and studio files. Also found are printed materials, and photographic materials. Biographical material contains curriculum vitaes, a student ID from the University of Studies in Florence and interviews with Bliss. Correspondence is both personal and professional in nature and documents Bliss' relationships with friends, other artists, museums, universities, and organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts. Notable correspondence includes Jan van der Marck, Jo Hansen, Gyorgy Kepes and Anni and Josef Albers. The writings series documents Bliss' career through narrative statements on her career, notes and outlines for color theory lectures and workshops as well as an essay on color for Utah Architect magazine, 1967. Exhibition Files document several exhibitions that Bliss participated in, namely in Salt Lake City and Utah at large.
Personal Business document financial, studio and project records. Financial records include price lists, grant and fellowship proposals and Bliss' involvement in supporting professional organizations. Projects document Bliss' career outside of exhibitions including documentary DVD on Bliss titled Arc of Light: A Portrait of Anna Campbell Bliss and the studio records contain an administrative file Bliss compiled as a comprehensive snapshot of her career. Also found are compiled materials on paint colors, framing schematics and software registration records. Printed material includes exhibition announcements, flyers, catalogs and postcards of her digital artwork. Also included are news clippings, and magazine articles about Bliss as well as the Utah art and architecture scene and compiled exhibition material related to Joseph Albers. Of note is a copy of Labyrinths of The Mind, an editioned accordion book with a wooden cover containing mixed media art. Photographic material consists of professional photographs and snap shots of Bliss, her husband and their friends over the years a long with snapshots of travel and the building Bliss transformed into her studio. Also found are photographs, slides and negative of Bliss' artwork and exhibitions along with a small amount of slides that show travel and home interiors.
Biographical / Historical
Anna Campbell Bliss (1925-2015) was an architect, painter, printmaker, and installation artist in Salt Lake City, Utah. Originally from Morristown, New Jersey, Bliss graduated from Wellesley College with a bachelor's degree in art history and mathematics in 1946, followed by a master's degree in architecture from Harvard University in 1950. She also studied color theory and design with Gyorgy Kepes at M.I.T and Josef Albers in Minnesota. While in Minnesota, Bliss and her husband Robert Bliss established their own architectural firm: Bliss and Campbell Architects, a business they brought with them to Salt Lake City when Robert Bliss was hired as the dean of the Department of Architecture at the University of Utah. While in Salt Lake City, Anna Campbell Bliss continued to learn and incorporate new techniques including screen printing and computer programming into her practice. Bliss was also heavily influenced by the Bauhaus movement.
Blending color theory with her architectural and mathematics background, Bliss juxtaposed complementary colors to create optical vibrations and large architectural installations. Throughout her career Bliss displayed her work in several solo and group exhibitions across the country and her work can be found in many collections including that of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Salt Lake City; and the National Building Museum, Washington D.C.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated in 2016 by Robert Bliss, Bliss' husband.
Conditions Governing Use
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Processing Information
The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Sabine Lipten in 2023.
Preferred Citation
Anna Campbell Bliss papers, circa 1948-2015. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as seven series.
- Series 1: Biographical Material, 1951-2012 (4 Folders: Box 1)
- Series 2: Correspondence, 1962-2012 (1.4 Linear feet: Box 1-2)
- Series 3: Writings, circa 1951-2015 (7 Folders: Box 2)
- Series 4: Exhibition Files, 1951-2012 (0.4 Linear feet: Box 2)
- Series 5: Personal Business, 1956-2013 (1 Linear foot: Box 2-4)
- Series 6: Printed Material, 1951-2014 (0.4 Linear feet: Box 4)
- Series 7: Photographic Material, circa 1948-2010 (0.4 Linear feet: Box 4-5)
Installations (Art)
Scrapbooks
Architects -- Utah
Painters -- Utah
Printmakers -- Utah
Biographical Material
Series 1
Archival Resource Key
4 Folders
Box 1
1951-2012
Scope and Contents
Biographical material contains curriculum vitaes, a student identification card from the University of Studies in Florence and interviews with Anna Campbell Bliss by University of Utah architecture students.
Curriculum Vitaes
Archival Resource Key
1997
2012
1
1
University of Studies in Florence Student Identification Card
Archival Resource Key
1951
1
2
University of Utah, School of Architecture Student Interviews
Archival Resource Key
circa 1992
1
3
Women in Design International Certificate of Participation
Archival Resource Key
1981
1
4
Correspondence
Series 2
Archival Resource Key
1.4 Linear feet
Box 1-2
1962-2012
Scope and Contents
Correspondence is both personal and professional in nature and documents Bliss' relationships with family, friends, other artists, museums, universities, and organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts. Correspondence from Bliss include book review and gallery interest request letters along with letters to family and friends. Also found are fan letters to Bliss. Notable correspondence includes Jan van der Marck, Jo Hansen, Gyorgy Kepes and Anni and Josef Albers.
The series is arranged alphabetically by last name.
A
Archival Resource Key
circa 1979-1998
2011
1
5
B
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-2012
1
6
Ruth Bliss
Archival Resource Key
circa 1977-1998
1
7
C
Archival Resource Key
circa 1971-2008
1
8
D
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-2011
1
9
E
Archival Resource Key
1980-2009
1
10
F
Archival Resource Key
circa 1971-2011
1
11
G
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-2011
1
12
Graham Foundation
Archival Resource Key
1976-1981
1
13
H
Archival Resource Key
circa 1973-2011
1
14
Judy Hallet
Archival Resource Key
1999-2005
1
15
I
Archival Resource Key
1981-1992
1
16
J
Archival Resource Key
circa 1962-2011
1
17
K
Archival Resource Key
circa 1971-2011
1
18
Gyorgy Kepes
Archival Resource Key
1973-1997
1
19
L
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-2007
1
20
M
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970-2012
1
21
N
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970-2011
1
22
O
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-2010
1
23
P
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-2003
1
24
R
Archival Resource Key
circa 1971-2009
1
25
S
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-2011
1
26
T
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974-1999
2
1
U
Archival Resource Key
circa 1980-2010
2
2
V
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-1991
2010
2
3
Jan Van Der Marck
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972-2003
2
4
W
Archival Resource Key
circa 1978-2012
2
5
Y
Archival Resource Key
1971-1993
2
6
Miscellaneous, Last Name Unsigned
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-2009
2
7
Holiday and Greeting Cards
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974-2007
2
8
Letters to Galleries and Fellowship Programs
Archival Resource Key
1974-1993
2
9
Intersections Exhibition Catalog Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
2004
2
10
Color Theory Lectures Proposal Letters
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970-1990
2
11
Writings
Series 3
Archival Resource Key
7 Folders
Box 2
circa 1951-2015
Scope and Contents
The writings series documents Bliss' career through narrative statements on her career, notes and outlines for color theory lectures and workshops, as well as an essay on color published in Utah Architect magazine, 1967.
Narrative Artist Statements
Archival Resource Key
1980-2004
2
12
Color Theory Lectures and Workshops
Archival Resource Key
circa 1951-1990
2
13
Color Essays by Campbell Bliss
Archival Resource Key
circa 1967-1990
2
14
Evening for Educators At the Utah Museum of Fine Arts Keynote Lecture
Archival Resource Key
2011
2
15
The Reality of Abstraction: Painting in Utah 1946-1996 Gallery Talk Notes
Archival Resource Key
1997
2
16
Ruth Bliss Memorial Service Speech
Archival Resource Key
1999
2
17
Architecture Essays by Robert Bliss
Archival Resource Key
circa 1990s-2015
2
18
Exhibition Files
Series 4
Archival Resource Key
0.4 Linear feet
Box 2
1951-2012
Scope and Contents
Exhibition Files document a series of exhibitions that Bliss participated in, namely in Salt Lake City and Utah at large. Also found are project and exhibition proposals, loan, consignment and shipping records and other planning documents such as exhibition floorplans and lists of work to be displayed in different exhibitions.
A Color Experience: Modular Serigraphs by Anna Campbell Bliss, Salt Lake Art Center
Archival Resource Key
1971
2
19
Works on Paper: Utah Invitational 1997 (Sept. 27-Oct. 9, 1977), University of Utah
Archival Resource Key
1977
2
20
Utah Museum of Fine Arts Traveling Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
1978-1981
2
21
Utah Arts Council Exhibitions
Archival Resource Key
1979-2004
2
22
Gayle Weyher Gallery Exhibition Planning and Gallery Representation
Archival Resource Key
1986-1989
2
23
10+10+10 An Invitational Exhibition (Apr.-Jun. 1998), Salt Lake Art Center
Archival Resource Key
1988
2
24
Utah Arts Festival Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
1900-2001
2
25
Extended Vision (Oct.-Nov. 1993), Finch Lane Gallery
Archival Resource Key
1992-1993
2
26
The 7th National Computer Art Invitational Exhibition (Jan. 7-28, 1994), Eastern Washington University
Archival Resource Key
1993-1998
2
27
The Reality of Abstraction: Painting in Utah 1946-1996, Touring Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
1995-1997
2
28
Prints & Projects by Anna Campbell Bliss (Mar. 7-13, 1997), Myra Powell Art Gallery
Archival Resource Key
1997
2
29
Utopia, Dystopia, Apocalypse: Images for a New Millennium (Jan. 8-Mar. 5, 2000), Salt Lake City Public Library Atrium Gallery
Archival Resource Key
1999-2000
2
30
Utah, Utah, Utah Artists (Jan. 15-Apr.30, 2002), Springville Museum of Art
Archival Resource Key
2001-2002
2
31
Intersections: The Art of Anna Campbell Bliss Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
circa 2004
2
32
American Mathematical Society Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
circa 2005
2
33
Anna Campbell Bliss (Jul.-Sept. 2009), Finch Lane Gallery
Archival Resource Key
2008-2009
2
34
Exhibition Proposals
Archival Resource Key
1979-2012
2
35
Installation and Exhibition Scrapbooks
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-2000
2
36
Exhibition Floor Plans
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974-2009
2
37
Exhibition Lists
Archival Resource Key
1979-1988
2
38
Loan, Consignment, Sales and Shipping Records
Archival Resource Key
circa 1951-1998
2
39
Miscellaneous Exhibition Records
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-1990
2005
2
40
Personal Business
Series 5
Archival Resource Key
1 Linear foot
Box 2-4
1956-2013
Scope and Contents
Personal Business document financial, studio and project records. Financial records include price lists, grant and fellowship proposals and Bliss' involvement in supporting professional organizations. Projects document Bliss' career outside of exhibitions including documentary DVD on Campbell Bliss titled Arc of Light: A Portrait of Anna Campbell Bliss and materials related to the production of the documentary. Studio records contain an administrative file Bliss compiled as a comprehensive snapshot of her career. Also found are compiled materials on paint colors, framing schematics and software registration records.
Financial
Archival Resource Key
Price Lists
Archival Resource Key
1983-2012
2
41
Grant and Fellowship Applications
Archival Resource Key
circa 1982-2010
3
1-2
American Academy in Rome Fellowships
Archival Resource Key
2002-2009
3
3
Professional Skills Roundtable for Artists
Archival Resource Key
1996
3
4
Personal Art Collection Records
Archival Resource Key
1956-1998
3
5
Salt Lake City Architecture Firm Business Certificate
Archival Resource Key
2010
3
6
Fabric Shipment Lawsuit
Archival Resource Key
1988-1989
3
7
Projects
Archival Resource Key
American Society of Interior Designers, Inter Society Color Council Reports and Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
1976-1988
3
8-9
Museum Benefits Organizing
Archival Resource Key
1967-1974
3
10
Art in Architecture Program
Archival Resource Key
1977
3
11
Museum Without Walls Billboard Project
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974
3
12
Japan and the Western States: Contemporary Arts Today Project
Archival Resource Key
1990
3
13
Who's Who in America Biography Review
Archival Resource Key
2003
3
14
Art for a House of Mathematics Book Promotion
Archival Resource Key
circa 2003-2008
3
15
Intersections Exhibition DVD Material
Archival Resource Key
2005-2007
3
16
Color: Research and Application Journal Manuscript Review
Archival Resource Key
2008
3
17
Arc of Light: A Portrait of Anna Campbell Bliss Documentary Proposal and Planning
Archival Resource Key
2007-2013
3
18
Arc of Light: A Portrait of Anna Campbell Bliss Documentary Correspondence
Archival Resource Key
2008-2013
3
19-20
Arc of Light: A Portrait of Anna Campbell Bliss Documentary DVD and Promotion
Archival Resource Key
2009-2012
3
21
"Projects/Anna Campbell Bliss" Scrapbook of Projects
Archival Resource Key
circa 2002
3
22
Studio
Archival Resource Key
Anna Campbell Bliss Administrative File
Archival Resource Key
circa 1996-2011
Original Binder Table of Contents:
1: Compelete Works
2: Mailing Lists
3: Art Sales
4: Open Invocies
5: Publications
6: Math Projects
7: Grants and Proposals
8: Current Exhibitions
9: Color Council
10: ISAMA and HYPERSEEING
11: American Academy
12: ASCI
13: LEONARDO
14: Images
3
23-24
Paint Palette Samples, Framing and Reference Notes
Archival Resource Key
circa 1985-2000
2009
3
25-26
Software and Website Registration Information
Archival Resource Key
2005-2009
3
27
Miscellaneous Project Records
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-2009
4
1
Printed Material
Series 6
Archival Resource Key
0.4 Linear feet
Box 4
1951-2014
Scope and Contents
Printed Material illuminates Bliss career through exhibition announcements, flyers, catalogs and postcards of her digital artwork. Also included are news clippings, and magazine articles about Bliss as well as the Utah art and architecture scene. Of note is a copy of Labyrinths of The Mind, an editioned accordion book with a wooden cover containing mixed media art.
Labyrinths of the Mind by Anna Campbell Bliss
Archival Resource Key
2000
4
2
Exhibition Announcements and Flyers
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974-2013
4
3
Exhibition Catalogs
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974-2013
4
4
Hyperseeing: The Publication of the International Society of the Arts, Mathematics and Architecture
Archival Resource Key
2014
4
5
Magazine Articles
Archival Resource Key
1978-1982
4
6
News clippings
Archival Resource Key
circa 1978-2012
4
7
Anna Campbell Bliss Postcards
Archival Resource Key
circa 1992-2010
4
8
Lectures and Symposium Flyers and Programs
Archival Resource Key
circa 1989-1998
4
9
Utah Artists and Architecture
Archival Resource Key
1981-1994
2012
4
10
Anni and Joseph Albers
Archival Resource Key
circa 1983-2000
4
11
The Cathedral of the Madeline
Archival Resource Key
1993
4
12
Miscellaneous Printed Material
Archival Resource Key
1951-2014
4
13
Photographic Material
Series 7
Archival Resource Key
0.4 Linear feet
Box 4-5
circa 1948-2010
Scope and Contents
Photographic material consists of professional photographs and snap shots of Bliss, her husband and their friends over the years a long with snapshots of travel and the building Bliss transformed into her studio. Also found are photographs, slides and negative of Bliss' artwork and exhibitions along with a small amount of slides that show Bliss' travels and decorated home interiors.
Artist Portraits
Archival Resource Key
circa 1986
4
14
Photographs, Anna Campbell Bliss and Robert Bliss, and Friends
Archival Resource Key
circa 1948-1994
5
1
Photographs, Artwork
Archival Resource Key
circa 1977-1996
5
2
Snapshots of Bliss, Artwork and Studio
Archival Resource Key
circa 1990s-2010
5
3
Snapshots of Bliss' Studio Building
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975
5
4
Negatives, "Windows" Utah State Capitol Installation
Archival Resource Key
1990
5
5
Negatives, Artwork and Studio
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975-2010
5
6
Slides, Artwork
Archival Resource Key
circa 1976-2002
5
7-8
Slides, Exhibition
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972-1993
5
9
Slides, Interiors and Gardens
Archival Resource Key
circa 1984-1988
5
10
Slides, Travel
Archival Resource Key
1969
5
11
Slides, Anni Albers Artwork
Archival Resource Key
1978
5
12