Archives of American Art
Amy Goldin papers
Goldin, Amy
AAA.goldamy
Archival Resource Key
3.5 Linear feet
1945-1978
The papers of author, art critic, and educator Amy Goldin measure 3.5 linear feet and date from 1945 to 1978. The collection comprises biographical materials that include identification documents, a sketchbook from 1946, student records, and other material; personal and professional correspondence with Goldin's sister Ruth Huston, Oleg Grabar, Robert Duncan, and others; Goldin's writing and research projects and a few writings by others; printed materials mainly featuring Goldin's published writings; and photographic materials consisting of photographs of Goldin, friends and family, and works of art by Goldin and others.
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.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Amy Goldin papers were donated by Mrs. Ruth M. Huston, the sister of Amy Genevieve Goldin, in 1978.
Existence and Location of Copies
The collection is available on 35mm microfilm reels 1401 through 1405 for use at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as five series.
- Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1945-1978 (0.3 linear feet; Box 1)
- Series 2: Correspondence, 1959-1978 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)
- Series 3: Research and Writing Projects, 1950-1977 (2.0 linear feet; Boxes 1-3, OV 4)
- Series 4: Printed Materials, circa 1960-1978 (0.9 linear feet; Boxes 3-4, OV 5)
- Series 5: Photographic Materials, circa 1950-circa 1975 (0.1 linear feet; Box 4)
Biographical / Historical
Amy Goldin (1926-1978) was an art critic, author, and educator in New York, New York.
Goldin started her career in art as a painter in her birthplace of Detroit, Michigan. She attended Wayne University from 1944 to 1946 before attending the University of Chicago from 1946 to 1948. She continued her training in painting after receiving the Art Students' League scholarship for 1948 to 1949 and a scholarship to train under Hans Hofmann from 1950 to 1952. She eventually settled in New York City.
Goldin was a prolific writer over the course of her short career as an art critic. She was contributing editor for the publications Arts, Arts News and Art in America. In 1972 she received a National Endowment Critic's Grant to study with Dr. Oleg Grabar, a leading scholar on Islamic art, at Harvard University and traveled to Iran to study the country's architecture. Goldin devoted much of her career to covering topics such as Islamic art, decoration and pattern, and examining folk art from an original viewpoint. In 1976 the College Art Association awarded her the Frank Jewett Mather award for distinguished art criticism.
Goldin was also a visiting lecturer and educator at the University of California in San Diego, Northwestern University, and Queens College. Goldin and Dr. Michael Brown of Queens College collaborated on the book Collective Behavior (1974) that explored style and collective behavior.
Goldin died of cancer in 1978 in New York, N.Y.
Preferred Citation
Amy Goldin papers, 1945-1978. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Processing Information
The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Sarah Mundy in 2020.
Related Materials
Also found at the Archives of American art is the Herb Bronstein correspondence with Amy Goldin, circa 1952-1976.
Scope and Contents
The papers of author, art critic, and educator Amy Goldin measure 3.5 linear feet and date from 1945 to 1978. The collection comprises biographical materials that include identification documents, a sketchbook from 1946, student records, and other material; personal and professional correspondence with Goldin's sister Ruth Huston, Oleg Grabar, Robert Duncan, and others; Goldin's writing and research projects and a few writings by others; printed materials mainly featuring Goldin's published writings; and photographic materials consisting of photographs of Goldin, friends and family, and works of art by Goldin and others.
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.
Sketchbooks
Art critics -- New York (State) -- New York
Women authors
Women art critics
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York
Grabar, Oleg
Duncan, Robert Edward, 1919-
Biographical Materials
Series 1
Archival Resource Key
0.3 Linear feet
Box 1
1945-1978
Scope and Contents
Biographical material includes Goldin's curriculum vitae; a grant application to connect tourists in California with indigenous artists; passports; some personal business papers including financial records; a sketchbook and student records belonging to Goldin; and a file labeled as teaching material which contains several pages of drawn patterns and some printed materials.
Curriculum Vitae
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975
1
1
Grant Application for Tourism Project
Archival Resource Key
1978
1
2
Passports
Archival Resource Key
1970-1976
1
3
Personal Business
Archival Resource Key
1959-1976
1
4
Sketchbook
Archival Resource Key
1946
1
5
Student Records
Archival Resource Key
1945-1976
1
6
Teaching Material
Archival Resource Key
circa 1971
1
7
Correspondence
Series 2
Archival Resource Key
0.2 Linear feet
Box 1
1959-1978
Scope and Contents
The series includes Goldin's personal and professional correspondence with her sister Ruth Huston, Max Palevsky, Manny Farber, Oleg Grabar, and Robert Duncan. Also found is correspondence with art publications concerning Goldin's writing projects.
General
Archival Resource Key
1959
1
8
General
Archival Resource Key
1964-1975
1
9
General
Archival Resource Key
circa 1966-circa 1973
1
10
General
Archival Resource Key
1976-1978
1
11
Research and Writing Projects
Series 3
Archival Resource Key
2 Linear feet
Boxes 1-3, OV 4
1950-1977
Scope and Contents
This series documents Goldin's writing projects, writing projects by others or unidentified authors, and research material documenting Goldin's career as an art critic and historian. Records relate to Goldin's work as a contributing editor to the publications Arts, Art News, and Art in America, as well as to her freelance work.
In 1969 Goldin served as a consultant to the Helena Rubenstein Foundation, and in 1972 began collaborating with Dr. Michael Brown of Queens College, with whom she wrote Collective Behavior: A Review and Reinterpretation of the Literature which was published in 1974. Work related to these projects is also documented here. Researchers should note that Goldin sometimes used the name Amy Mendelson.
Writing Projects by Goldin
3.1
Archival Resource Key
circa 1965-circa 1973
Scope and Contents
The subseries consists of drafts, typescripts, related research material, notes, correspondence, and other material relating to Goldin's numerous projects. These include a teacher's manual titled Art for Young America.
Art, Perception, and Reality Book Review
Archival Resource Key
1973
1
12
"Art as Politics"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
1
13
"Art for Young America" Teacher's Manual, General
Archival Resource Key
circa 1967
1
14-18
"Art for Young America" Teacher's Manual, Books1-4
Archival Resource Key
circa 1967
1
19-25
"The Court of Gayumart"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1973
1
26
"Decoration, Matisse and the Timurid Miniature"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974
1
27
Diane Arbus
Archival Resource Key
1973
1
28
"A Dodo in Eternity"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
1
29
"Drawing: Writing and Gestural Line"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
1
30
Fallas in Valencia, Spain
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
1
31-34
Folk Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975
2
1
"Formal Analysis of an Islamic Ceramic Dish"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1973
2
2
"The Form of the Timurid Miniature"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
2
3
"Indian Drawings and Painted Sketches" Exhibition Review
Archival Resource Key
1976
2
4
Islamic Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
5-12
"A Laboratory Course in Art" Outline
Archival Resource Key
1967
2
13
Manny Farber Exhibition Review
Archival Resource Key
circa 1974
2
14
"On Being Ill at Ease: An Essay on Style and Decorum"
Archival Resource Key
1969
2
15
"The Perfidy of the Parks Department: An Unbiased View"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1967
2
16
Plastic Arts
Archival Resource Key
circa 1965
2
17
"Pop Art, Slide Set with Commentary by Amy Goldin"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
18
"Some Implications of Formal Analysis"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
19
"Some Remarks About Islamic Decoration"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
20
Writing Projects by Others or Unidentified
3.2
Archival Resource Key
1950-1975
Scope and Contents
Material found here is similar in type to that found in suberies 3.1. Writings are by unidentified authors unless otherwise noted. Because Goldin worked as an editor as well as a writer, some writings are by others but contain edits by Goldin. The last file in the subseries contains various philosophical writings on freedom, love and sex, suicide, and society.
"American Art and Anti-Art" Film Transcript
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
21
Art and Decoration
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
22
Art History and Elitism
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
23
Book Review by Alice Cruikshank Dodd
Archival Resource Key
1975
2
24
Charles McCurdy Material
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
25-29
Scope and Contents
Folders include writings on Naum Gabo, James Gibbons Huneker, André Gide, Guillaume Apollinaire, and George Moore.
"Condemnation and Persecution: Social Control and the Closing of Alternatives. A Case Study" by Michael E. Brown
Archival Resource Key
circa 1968
2
30
Helena Rubinstein Foundation Material
Archival Resource Key
circa 1969
2
31
"The Iconic Mode"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
2
32
Matisse and Oriental Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
33-34
Modern Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
35
Plays
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
36
Politicized Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
37
"Prospectus"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
38
Rugs and Decoration
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
39
"Seurat"
Archival Resource Key
circa 1965
2
40
"Some Ideas in Music" by Edward Bland
Archival Resource Key
1950
2
41
Various Writings
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
2
42
Research Material
3.3
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960-1977
Scope and Contents
This subseries includes printed material, bibliographies, photographic slides, conference materials, and notes collected in support of Goldin's writings and research projects.
Annotated Book, Reason and Controversy in the Arts by Mortimer R. Kadish
Archival Resource Key
1968
2
43
Bibliographies
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
2
44
Brooklyn and Guggenheim Museums
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
2
45-46
Conceptual Art
Archival Resource Key
1964
2
47
Conceptual Art
Archival Resource Key
1970
5
Conference Materials
Archival Resource Key
1974-1976
2
48-49
Scope and Contents
Includes material for the World of Islam Festival, the Japan Society, Canadian arts, and the College Art Association's art history sessions.
General Research Material
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
3
1
General Research Material
Archival Resource Key
circa 1972
5
Maurice B. Prendergast Chronology
Archival Resource Key
circa 1970
3
2
Notebook on Canadian Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
3
Notebook on China
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
4
Notebooks on Museums
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960
3
5
Scope and Contents
2 books
Notebooks
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
6-10
Scope and Contents
3 books
Note Cards on Topics for Papers
Archival Resource Key
1968-1977
3
11
Notes
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
12-17
Photographic Slides
Archival Resource Key
circa 1975
3
18-19
Printed Materials
Series 4
Archival Resource Key
0.9 Linear feet
Boxes 3-4, OV 5
circa 1960-1978
Scope and Contents
The series consists of art reproductions, brochures and pamphlets, bulletins, clippings, exhibition catalogs, magazines and journals, press releases, and other material that focuses mainly on Goldin, her writing, and, to a lesser extent, her artwork.
Art Reproductions
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
20
Art Reproductions
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
5
Booklets
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
21
Brochures and Pamphlets
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
22
Bulletins
Archival Resource Key
1975
3
23
Business Cards
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960-1978
3
24
Clippings
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
3
25-29
Clippings
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
5
Exhibition Catalogs
Archival Resource Key
1963-1977
3
30
Exhibition Catalog
Archival Resource Key
1970
4
1
Scope and Contents
Includes the unconventional catalog for the exhibition 955,000 organized by Lucy Lippard.
Journals
Archival Resource Key
1975
4
2
Magazine
Archival Resource Key
1960-1974
4
3-4
Scope and Contents
Includes the magazine Trobar with cover art by Goldin, credited as Amy Mendelson.
Postcards
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
4
5
Press Releases
Archival Resource Key
circa 1973
4
6
Photographic Materials
Series 5
Archival Resource Key
0.1 Linear feet
Box 4
circa 1950-circa 1975
Scope and Contents
Photographic materials include photographic prints, negatives and transparencies, and slides of Goldin, as well as of others who appear to be family or friends of Goldin, personal snapshots of interiors, and works of art by Goldin. Other materials of works of art were probably used as supplemental research material.
Goldin
Archival Resource Key
circa 1950-circa 1975
4
7
Others
Archival Resource Key
circa 1950-circa 1975
4
8
Personal
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
4
9
Buildings
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
4
10
Works of Art by Goldin
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960
4
11
Works of Art
Archival Resource Key
circa 1960s
4
12-13