This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
Neil Welliver (1929-2005) was a painter and educator from Millville, Pennsylvania.
Welliver earned his bachelor's degree from the Philadelphia College of Art and his Master of Fine Arts degree at Yale University where he studied under Josef Albers and Burgoyne Diller. By the late 1950s Welliver had developed his signature style of combining abstract and representational art, painting people and landscapes and other natural scenes. He taught at Cooper Union from 1953-1957 and at Yale University from 1955-1966. He then began working at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Fine Art, going on to become chairman before retiring in 1989. With the encouragement of Alex Katz and Lois Dodd, Welliver began spending time in Maine in the early 1960s, painting and exploring the natural landscape. By the 1970s, Welliver spent most of his time away from Philadelphia on his property in Lincolnville, Maine.
Welliver's solo shows included exhibitions at Alexandra Grotto in Philadelphia, Stable Gallery in New York, Tibor de Nagy Gallery in New York, and the Farnsworth Museum of Art in Maine. Group exhibitions that featured his work included
The collection was donated by Neil Welliver in 1981 and 1999.
The papers of painter and educator Neil Welliver measure 1.4 linear feet and date from 1964-1981. The collection documents Welliver's career through mixed professional and personal files that include correspondence, some exhibition material, writings, slides of art by others and of friends, and a video recording of a talk given by Welliver in 1974.
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
The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Christopher DeMairo in 2021.
This collection is arranged as one series due to its small size.
Neil Welliver papers, 1964-1981. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
The bulk of the series is comprised of mixed correspondence with friends, colleagues, galleries, museums, and fellow artists that covers a variety of topics including exhibitions, paintings, Welliver's personal life, art and critics, and other matters. Notable artists represented here include Mark Strand, Rackstraw Downes, and Red Grooms. Also found are several exhibition checklists and contracts, writings, slides from artists John Knowlton, Stanley Sporny, and author and photographer John Naar, and a video recording of a talk given by Welliver entitled "The Values of the Making of the Environment," at the University of Pennsylvania, delivered April 4, 1974, as part of the Fine Arts Lecture Series.