Mary Swift papers
name: label: Creator
content: Swift, Mary
label: Names
content: Mehring, Howard, 1931-
topic: label: Occupation
content: Curators -- Washington (D.C.)
label: Occupation
content: Photographers -- Washington (D.C.)
label: Topic
content: Women art critics
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: This collection was donated in three installments in 2016, 2018 and 2023 by Mary Swift via her children, Isabel Swift Byron and William Swift.
creator: label: Creator
content: Swift, Mary
setName: label: See more items in
content: Mary Swift papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of photographer and curator Mary Swift measure 8.8 linear feet and date from 1973-2004. The bulk of the collection contains photographs that Swift took while working for the Washington Review. The images consist of photographs, contact sheets, and negatives, along with 3 photograph albums of artists and art events in Washington, D.C. Also included are some personal papers; two video recordings of art events in Washington, D.C.; research material and a manuscript from Swift's M.A. thesis "Howard William Mehring, 1931-1978: Washington Color Painter" from George Washington University; and 107 sound recordings and two VHS videocassette tapes of interviews conducted by Swift, radio programs and panel discussions.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Mary Swift (1929-2022) was a photographer and curator in Washington, D.C. She received her B.A. from Vassar College in 1950 with a major in English History. Swift then moved to London for her husband's work, and did not return to the United States until the 1960s. She received her M.A. from Catholic University's Speech and Drama Department in 1968, and an M.A. in Art History from George Washington University in 1978. 

In October 1977, Swift became a production assistant for the Washington Review, a bi-monthly broadsheet on DC cultural life, while finishing her master's thesis at George Washington University. She was promoted to associate editor in 1978, and became managing editor of the arts section in 1980. 

While at the Washington Review, Swift also worked as a curator and curatorial assistant on exhibitions in Washington, D.C. She worked as a curatorial assistant for Howard Mehring: A Retrospective Exhibition (1977-1978) at the Corcoran Gallery of Art; as a co-curator with Walter Hopps for the exhibition, Eminent Washington Artists: Benjamin Abramowitz, Sarah Baker, Leon Berkowitz, Robert Gates, Sy Gresser, Lois Milou Jones, Jacob Kainen, Alfred McAdams, James McLaughlin, Howard Mehring, Marjorie Phillips, John Robinson, Alma Thomas (1980), at the Art Barn Gallery; and curated, Drawings: 13 Washington Sculptors; Christenberry, Dickson, Fleps, Haley, Knights, Krebs, Lombardo, Mahoney, Puryear, Rudd, Schwebler, Staton, Truitt (1980), at the Diane Brown Gallery.

The professional appointments Swift held include exhibitions coordinator for the International Sculpture Conference in 1980 as well as board of director memberships at the Washington Gallery of Art, Charles Weidman Dance Company, the Washington Review, and the Washington Project for the Arts. Additionally, Swift was involved with her alma mater, Vassar College, in the capacity of Vice present for Programs of the Vassar Club of Washington, and Chairman of the Washington Friends of the Vassar Art Gallery.

Mary Swift's contributions to the Washington Review include photographs, reviews of art exhibitions, and interviews with artists such as choreographer Lucinda Childs and painter Robert Indiana. The exhibition catalogues Swift contributed to include Breton Morse, Paintings 1960-1978 (1978), Sy Gresser—Sculpture (1978), Howard Mehring: A Retrospective Exhibition (1977-1978), and Hands of Artists (1981)

Photographs from Swift's collection were displayed in an exhibition, Mary Swift's Washington (2005), held at Flashpoint Gallery.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 8.8 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1973-2004
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.swiftmar
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
label: Type
content: Video recordings
label: Type
content: Interviews
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: This collection is arranged as five series.

Series 1: Personal Papers, 1973-1984 (Box 1; 2 Folders)

Series 2: "Howard William Mehring 1931-1978: Washington Color Painter", circa 1977-1978 (Box 1; 12 Folders)

Series 3: Photographs, circa 1977-2004 (Box 1-6, 15-16; 6.1 linear feet)

Series 4: Sound and Video Recordings, 1977-1995 (Boxes 6, 8-14; 2.3 linear feet)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Christopher DeMairo in 2019. Additional finding aid description of the sound recordings was completed by Kirsi Ritosalmi-Kisner in 2022.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Mary Swift's M.A. thesis, "Howard William Mehring, 1931-1978: Washington Color Painter," is available on 35mm microfilm reel 2762 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Video recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Interviews
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of photographer and curator Mary Swift measure 8.8 linear feet and date from 1973-2004. The bulk of the collection contains photographs that Swift took while working for the Washington Review. The images consist of photographs, contact sheets, and negatives, along with 3 photograph albums of artists and art events in Washington, D.C. Also included are some personal papers; two video recordings of art events in Washington, D.C.; research material and a manuscript from Swift's M.A. thesis "Howard William Mehring, 1931-1978: Washington Color Painter" from George Washington University; and 107 sound recordings and two VHS videocassette tapes of interviews conducted by Swift, radio programs and panel discussions.