Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt papers
name: label: Creator
content: Nordfeldt, Bror Julius Olsson, 1878-1955
label: Names
content: Passedoit Gallery (New York, N.Y.)
label: Names
content: Nordfeldt, Emily Abbott, 1900-
topic: label: Occupation
content: Watercolorists -- New Mexico -- Santa Fe
label: Occupation
content: Printmakers -- New Mexico -- Santa Fe
label: Occupation
content: Painters -- New Jersey
label: Occupation
content: Painters -- New Mexico -- Santa Fe
label: Topic
content: Expressionism (Art)
label: Topic
content: Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- United States
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Material on reels D166-D167 lent for microfilming 1963 by Emily Abbott Nordfeldt, Nordfeldt's widow. In 1991 her estate donated additional material as well as portions of the previously microfilmed material.
creator: label: Creator
content: Nordfeldt, Bror Julius Olsson, 1878-1955
setName: label: See more items in
content: Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of painter, printmaker, and educator Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt date from circa 1900-1991, and measure 2.7 linear feet. They document his work as a painter in New Mexico and New Jersey. Found within this collection are biographical material, including resumes and financial records; correspondence Nordfeldt and his widow Emily had with family, friends, and colleagues; writings including essays and reflections by others about Nordfeldt; and printed material comprised of newspaper and magazine clippings, clippings scrapbooks, and exhibition catalogs and announcements. There is also photographic material including portraits and snapshots of Nordfeldt, as well as a catalog with photographs and descriptions of his paintings compiled by Emily, and artwork comprised of sketchbooks and sketches by Nordfeldt. The collection also contains a motion picture reel depicting Nordfeldt and his dogs.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Painter, printmaker, and educator Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt (1878-1955) spent significant parts of his career in New Mexico and New Jersey. He was born in Sweden, immigrated to Chicago with his family when he was 14, and attended the Art Institute of Chicago. In the early twentieth-century he changed his name from Olsson (his father's name) to Nordfeldt (his mother's).   

Nordfeldt traveled to Paris to assist Albert Herter with the McCormick Harvester Company's murals for the Paris Exposition of 1900. He then studied etching in England before returning to Chicago in 1903 and setting up a studio there. He later moved to New York City, where he met and married his first wife, Margaret, in 1911. From 1914 until the United States' entrance into World War I, Nordfeldt spent his summers painting landscapes in Provincetown, MA. While there, he helped found the Provincetown Players, an experimental theater troupe. He also experimented with printmaking at this time. During World War I he painted camouflage on ships in San Francisco.  

After the war, Nordfeldt settled in New Mexico, joining the Taos Society of Artists in 1921 and exploring expressionism.  During the 1930s Nordfeldt taught at Utah State College, Wichita Art Association, and the Minneapolis School of Art, where he met Emily Abbott, who he later married in 1944. 

In 1937 Nordfeldt moved to a farm in Lambertville, New Jersey, where he lived for the rest of his life, though he traveled to California and elsewhere to paint. He was the subject of a one-man show at the Lilienfeld Galleries in New York City in 1939.  

Nordfeldt died of a heart attack in Texas in 1955, on the way home from a trip to Mexico. Following his death, his widow Emily worked with museums and galleries to exhibit and sell Nordfeldt's work. The Metropolitan Museum of Art staged a Nordfeldt Memorial Exhibit in 1956.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 2.7 Linear Feet
label: Extent
content: 2 Microfilm reels
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1909-1991
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.nordbror
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Microfilm reels
label: Type
content: Sketchbooks
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 6 series. 

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1900-1979 (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)  

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1909-1979 (1.2 linear foot; Box 1-2)  

Series 3: Writings, circa 1913-1979 (0.2 linear feet; Box 2) 

Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1905-1991 (0.5 linear feet; Box 2, OV4)  

Series 5: Photographic Material, circa 1900-1979 (0.4 linear feet; Box 3, FC6)  

Series 6: Artwork, circa 1900-1959 (0.2 linear feet; Box 3, OV5)
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Portions of the collection and material lent for microfilming are available on 35mm microfilm reels D166-D167 at the Archives of American Art offices. Researchers should note that the arrangement of material described in the container inventory does 
not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sketchbooks
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of painter, printmaker, and educator Bror Julius Olsson (B.J.O.) Nordfeldt date from circa 1900-1991, and measure 2.7 linear feet.  

Biographical material includes a family tree, resumes, biographical timelines, and artwork price lists, shipping, and storage receipts.  Correspondence includes letters between Nordfeldt and his wife Emily and family and friends, gallerists including Georgette Passedoit, Virginia Zabriskie, and Harriet Hanley, and fellow painters including Raymond Jonson, as well as scholars such as Van Deren Coke, the author of a biography of Nordfeldt. 

Writings include artist statements, essays and reflections on Nordfeldt by others, and an interview of Raymond Jonson by Van Deren Coke about Nordfeldt and his work. Printed Material includes exhibition catalogs and announcements, as well as magazine and newspaper clippings, including four scrapbooks of clippings. 

Photographic material includes portraits of Nordfeldt, deconstructed photo albums of works of art, a catalog of Nordfeldt's paintings compiled by Emily with photographs and descriptions, as well as snapshots of him with Emily Nordfeldt and others. There is also a motion picture film reel of Nordfeldt and his dogs. Artwork consists of sketchbooks and sketches by Nordfeldt.
separatedmaterial: label: Separated Materials
content: Material previously lent but not subsequently donated includes portions of the biographical material; several letters; artists' statements; a few personal photographs; 5 sketchbooks; items from scrapbooks; and a catalog of paintings.