Number 2 Spring 2005
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L O L L E C T H E SP E C I A C T I O N S RE S E A R S F R O M C H C E NE W N T E R NUMBER TWO SPRING 2005 T HE COURANT Sponsored by the Syracuse University Library Associates ISSN 554-2688 WILLIAM GROPPER EXHIBITION Arna Bontemps, Granville Hicks, Lillian Gilkes, John The work of twentieth-century American cartoonist, painter, Spivak, Horace Gregory, Harry Roskolenko, and the records lithographer, and muralist William Gropper is featured in of Grove Press. Kathleen Manwaring, our curator of manu- an exhibition organized by the Special Collections Research scripts and archives, discusses our radicalism collections in Center. People Are My Landscape: Social Struggle in the Art more detail in an article that begins on page seven. of William Gropper will be on display from 27 May through 6 September on the sixth floor of E. S. Bird Library. The text and images from the exhibition can be viewed online at http://scrc.syr.edu. William Gropper (897–977) was best known for his sa- tirical portrayals of the elite and powerful and the effects of capitalism and war on American life. Often associated with the artistic movement known as social realism, Gropper de- picted the harsh reality of social injustices as they played out in the everyday life of the working class. His cartoons and other illustrations appeared in both mainstream maga- zines and leftist publications. He was blacklisted and lost many commissions after refusing to testify during his 953 appearance before Senator Joseph McCarthy’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. The exhibition includes examples of Gropper’s cartoons; magazine, book, and pamphlet illustrations; American folk- lore lithographs; original sketches; and assorted memora- bilia. On loan from the Syracuse University Art Collection are selections from Gropper’s series of lithographs entitled The Capriccios in which he expresses his disdain for the ide- Bank Nite by William Gropper. The artist’s messages, con- ological culture of the McCarthy era. Also on display are veyed in the spirit of social realism, were seldom, if ever, twelve prints from The Shtetl, a series of color lithographs ambiguous. This cartoon appeared in Gropper (New York: portraying Jewish village life purchased with funds from the ACA Gallery Publications, c938), the New Masses edition. recently established Peter Graham Fund for Radicalism in Literature and Art (see page nine). FEATURES The Special Collections Research Center has a rich array Director’s Note and Staff Focus . .page 2 of materials pertaining to the expression of radical thought Exhibitions. page 3 in literature and art. In addition to the recently reprocessed Research Notes. .page 4 William Gropper Papers, the holdings also include printed Recent Acquisitions . page 5 works, papers, or collections related to the artists Maurice Our Collections in Print . page 0 Becker, Fred Ellis, Philip Evergood, Jacob Lawrence, Louis Our Collections on Tour . page Lozowick, Diego Rivera, and Art Young. Writers include Adopt-a-Book Program . page 2 DIRECTOR’S NOTE STAFF FOCUS We printed fifteen hundred copies of our first issue, and its Niagara Falls native Kathleen Manwaring took her first job electronic version has been downloaded even more times than in the library in June 968 after studying English literature as that from our web site. The editor of a children’s literature an undergraduate at Syracuse University. Like many in those newsletter contacted us to request permission to republish days before electronic catalogs, she began by typing and fil- the “Research Notes” by Philip Nel. We have received a mul- ing catalog cards. For a time, she also supervised the bindery. titude of complimentary comments, and we are delighted to When E. S. Bird Library opened in 972, Kathleen moved have our circle of associations expand in this way. Our desire to what was then called the Library Processing Center in the to build community and conversation around our collections basement where she edited the series authority file before as- has found its wings and is taking flight. suming a position in serials cataloging. In 984, she moved A member of our Library Associates, Marlene Williams, to the sixth floor as a manuscript processor under the direc- called to support our first adopt-a-book offering, Some tion of Carolyn Davis, whose retirement from our staff we Children’s Book-Plates: An Essay in Little by Wilbur Macey announced in the last issue. In 990, Kathleen became the Stone, in honor of former neighbors in Fayetteville, New manuscripts processing supervisor when Carolyn’s duties York, Joseph (’38, G’4) and Elaine (’42) Spector. Joe and shifted to reference and public services. Since 2003, Kathleen Elaine have made many benefactions to the library, includ- has served as curator of manuscripts and archives as her ac- ing the renovation of our wall display cases and technology tivities have expanded to include acquisitions and collection and furnishing enhancements to the Solomon Spector Room, development. named in honor of Joe’s father. If you ask Paul Barfoot how long he has lived in Syracuse, Yet, as we were preparing to mail out our inaugural num- he will tell you two hundred years. His ancestors were in fact ber, we were saddened to learn of the loss of two friends. among the first to settle the area. As a result, it sometimes Printmaker and engraver John DePol passed away on 5 happens that, as Paul processes one of our regional collec- December 2004 at the silvery age of ninety-one. DePol had tions, he finds mention of a relative or even a photograph approved our plan to incorporate a version of the “horse and of himself as a child. After working as a freelance photog- readers” wood engraving he had designed for the Syracuse rapher and portrait studio manager, Paul took a position in University Library Associates Courier more than forty years ago the library’s Media Services Department in 983. Through into the masthead of the Courant, but our new publication a grant-funded project, he had the opportunity one year to unfortunately did not appear in time for him to see it. assist with the organization of our Margaret Bourke-White Eric W. Lawson Sr. also died on 5 December 2004. As photographic archives. He discovered then that archival pro- reported in our previous issue, Lawson last year created the cessing would be an ideal job, but there were no permanent Eric W. Lawson Family Endowment for New York State openings at the time. He thoroughly enjoyed working in the Documentary Heritage. Some of the first purchases made main reference department until 996, however, when he was with the endowment are described in the following pages. offered his present position as an archival processing assistant. Since Lawson’s death, nearly two dozen family members and Paul has since developed expert knowledge of many of the friends have added gifts to the fund, and his estate will in- collections he has processed, including the Albert Schweitzer crease it still more. We greatly appreciate the generosity of all Papers and the Boris Drucker Papers. those who have contributed to this means of continuing Eric Debra Olson has worked part-time on several process- Lawson’s lifelong desire to preserve the culture and history of ing projects since 2000, beginning with the papers of former our region. School of Architecture dean Werner Seligmann. Most recent- The memory of former university librarian Peter Graham, ly, Debbie has processed the papers of Marguerite Higgins who lost his battle with cancer last August, has been honored and William Gropper, and has curated exhibitions on both of through a special gift from his father, Harold Graham, and them. Debbie has also prepared the cumulative index to the Harold’s wife, Alaine Krim, to establish the Peter Graham Courier that will be published later this year. Fund for Radicalism in Literature and Art. Peter helped us In the last year, we were fortunate to have been able to to recognize the important concentration of collections in hire two archival processing project assistants, both graduates this area that curator Kathleen Manwaring describes in an from the School of Information Studies. Jennifer Nace has article in this issue. The library will soon transform its prin- surveyed our collections in the area of adult and continuing cipal public lecture and meeting room into the Peter Graham education. Michele Rothenberger has processed the records Scholarly Commons thanks to a major donation from Peter’s of the Inter-University Case Program as part of an electronic father and contributions from family and friends. finding aid pilot project. —Christian Dupont THE COURANT , NO. 2, SPRING 2005 2 SPECIAL COLLECTIONS RESEARCH CENTER E. S. BIRD LIBRARY EXHIBITIONS at East 6st Street in New York City. All exhibitions are All exhibitions in the sixth-floor gallery of E. S. Bird Library free and open to the public during normal business hours. are open between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through For further information, consult the Lubin House web site at Friday, with the exception of holidays. For more details, http://lubinhouse.syr.edu or telephone 22-826-0320. please consult our web site at http://scrc.syr.edu. “Don’t pay any attention to him. He’s 90% water.”: People Are My Landscape: The Cartooning Career of Boris Drucker Social Struggle in the Art of William Gropper 9 March–2 June 2005 (The exhibition has been extended.) 3 June–6 September 2005 See the article about the exhibit on page one. Original artwork for the Boris Drucker cartoon “Don’t pay any attention to him; he’s ninety percent water.” For more than half a century, Boris Drucker earned a live- lihood and reputation as a cartoonist.