Sonia Gechtoff papers
name: label: Creator
content: Gechtoff, Sonia, 1926-2018
topic: label: Occupation
content: Painters -- California -- San Francisco
label: Occupation
content: Painters -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: Abstract expressionism
label: Topic
content: Women artists
label: Topic
content: Women painters
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Sonia Gechtoff donated her papers to the Archives of American Art in 1980.
creator: label: Creator
content: Gechtoff, Sonia, 1926-2018
setName: label: See more items in
content: Sonia Gechtoff papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of abstract expressionist painter Sonia Gechtoff measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1950 to 1980. The scattered papers include artwork, biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, photographs, printed material, and writings by Gechtoff.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Sonia Gechtoff (1926-2018) was a painter and printmaker active in San Francisco, California, and New York City, New York. 

Gechtoff was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and raised in San Francisco, California. Her parents, Ethel (Etya) and Leonid Gechtoff, were active in the art industry--her mother ran art galleries and her father was a successful painter. Gechtoff studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and, after graduation, moved to San Francisco where she became acquainted with Beat culture and continued her studies at the San Francisco Art Institute. Over the course of her career her style moved toward abstract expressionism. Her works were included at the Guggenheim Museum's Younger American Painters in 1954.

Gechtoff married artist Jim Kelly and together they moved to New York City in the late 1950s, where she continued to paint and was active in the New York art world. Additionally, Gechtoff taught at various institutions later in her career. 

With Kelly, Sonia Gechtoff had two children, Susannah and Miles. She died in 2018 in New York City.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.4 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1950-1980
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.gechsoni
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Jayna Josefson in 2020.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of abstract expressionist painter Sonia Gechtoff measure 0.4 linear feet and date from 1950 to 1980. The scattered papers include artwork, biographical material, correspondence, personal business records, photographs, printed material, and writings by Gechtoff.