Agnes Rindge Claflin papers concerning Alexander Calder
name: label: Creator
content: Claflin, Agnes Rindge, 1900-1977
label: Names
content: Vassar College
label: Names
content: Calder, Alexander, 1898-1976
topic: label: Occupation
content: Collectors -- New York (State) -- Poughkeepsie
label: Occupation
content: Arts administrators -- New York (State)
label: Occupation
content: Educators -- New York (State)
label: Topic
content: Art -- Collectors and collecting
label: Topic
content: Women arts administrators
label: Topic
content: Women educators
label: Topic
content: Mobiles (Sculpture)
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The collection was donated in 1981 by Philip W. Claflin, widower of Agnes Rindge Claflin.
creator: label: Creator
content: Claflin, Agnes Rindge, 1900-1977
setName: label: See more items in
content: Agnes Rindge Claflin papers concerning Alexander Calder
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of arts administrator, collector, and educator Agnes Rindge Claflin concerning Alexander Calder measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1936-circa 1970s. Included are five letters, two of which are illustrated, and one postcard from Alexander Calder to Claflin; two handwritten manuscripts by Calder, one untitled and "A Propos of Measuring a Mobile," 1943; an invitation to a Calder exhibition at Galerie Maeght, Paris, 1952; and 14 photographs of Calder, of Calder and Claflin in Calder's studio, of Calder's art work, and of a Calder exhibition installation at Vassar Art Gallery, 1942. Transcriptions of three of the letters and both manuscripts are also included.
bioghist: label: Biographical Note
content: Agnes Rindge Claflin (1900-1977) was an arts administrator, collector, and educator who spent the majority of her career at Vassar College as a professor and serving as director of its art gallery for 28 years.

Claflin was born Agnes Millicent Rindge in Grand Rapids, Michigan on May 19, 1900. She graduated from the Madeira School in 1917, attended Mount Holyoke College for two years, and graduated magna cum laude from Radcliffe College. Afterwards, Claflin briefly taught at Vassar College before returning to Radcliffe and earning her M.A. and Ph.D. She rejoined the Vassar College faculty in 1928 and served as the director of the Vassar Art Gallery from 1934-1962. Claflin published Sculpture in 1929 and in the 1930s she began writing articles for several different publications. At the request of Alfred Barr, she joined the Advisory Committee for the Museum of Modern Art in 1941 and became the Assistant Executive Vice President from 1943-1944. Claflin held a number of other positions in art organizations such as the Commission on Arts of the American Association of Colleges (1939), Art in America (1940-1943), Art Division of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs (1941-1942), American Federation of Arts (1944-1945), and Committee on Fellowships of the College Art Association (1945-1948). She married Philip W. Claflin, a captain in the U.S. Army, in 1945. Throughout her career, Claflin lectured at organizations and universities across the United States, including the Chicago Art Institute, Columbia University, New York University, Yale University, and many others. Agnes Claflin died on June 12, 1977.

Claflin and Calder were colleagues and friends. In 1942, the Vassar Art Gallery hosted a Calder exhibition installation. The following year, Claflin wrote and narrated a short film, "Alexander Calder: Sculpture and Constructions," which was presented with the Museum of Modern Art's Calder exhibition of the same year.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.2 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1936-circa 1970s
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.clafagne
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Postcards
label: Type
content: Manuscripts
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Illustrated letters
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Due to the small size of the collection, items are organized into one series of 23 folders:

Series 1: Agnes Rindge Claflin Papers Concerning Alexander Calder, 1936-circa 1970s (Box 1; 23 folders)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was microfilmed upon receipt on reel 2520. It was fully processed and described by Margaret J. Hughes in 2010.
altformavail: label: Alternative Forms Available
content: This site provides access to the papers of Agnes Rindge Claflin concerning Alexander Calder in the Archives of American Art that were digitized in 2010, and total 71 images.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Postcards
label: Genre/Form
content: Manuscripts
label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Illustrated letters
scopecontent: label: Scope and Content Note
content: The papers of arts administrator, collector, and educator Agnes Rindge Claflin concerning Alexander Calder measure 0.2 linear feet and date from 1936-circa 1970s. Included are five letters and one postcard from Alexander Calder to Claflin, two of which are illustrated; two handwritten manuscripts by Calder, one untitled and "A Propos of Measuring a Mobile," 1943; an invitation to a Calder exhibition at Galerie Maeght, Paris, 1952; and 14 photographs of Calder, of Calder and Claflin in Calder's studio, of Calder's art work, and of a Calder exhibition installation at Vassar Art Gallery, 1942. One photograph depicting an event is possibly the opening of the Calder exhibition at Vassar Art Gallery, 1942. Also included are two polaroid photographs most likely from the 1970s. Transcriptions of three of the letters and both manuscripts are also included.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Material
content: The Archives of American Art holds several collections related to the Agnes Rindge Claflin papers concerning Alexander Calder, including the Alexander Calder papers which have been fully digitized; Alexander Calder letters and photographs microfilmed on reel 4781; Alexander Calder letter microfilmed on reel 2787, frames 963-970; and an oral history interview with Alexander Calder, October 26, 1971, available as a transcript online.