Boris Deutsch papers
name: label: Creator
content: Deutsch, Boris, 1892 or 5-1978
label: Names
content: United States. Public Buildings Administration. Section of Fine Arts
topic: label: Occupation
content: Painters -- California -- Los Angeles
label: Topic
content: Mural painting and decoration -- 20th century -- United States
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Clippings and exhibition catalogs were lent for microfilming in 1964 by Betty Hoag. Papers were donated in 1980 by the estate of Boris Deutsch.
creator: label: Creator
content: Deutsch, Boris, 1892 or 5-1978
setName: label: See more items in
content: Boris Deutsch papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of Boris Deutsch measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1912-1979. Deutsch's career as a modernist painter is documented through biographical materials, correspondence, writings, personal business records, printed and photographic material, and artwork.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Boris Deutsch (1892–1978) was a muralist and painter who worked primarily in Los Angeles, California. He was born to a Jewish family in Krasnogorka shtetl, then part of the Russian Empire. Deutsch is known for his work in modernist paintings which were heavily influenced by German expressionalism, portraits, and printmaking with a focus on monotypes and lithography. 

Deutsch obtained his education at the Bloom Academy of Fine Arts in Riga and completed post graduate work in Berlin, Germany. At the start of World War One, he was drafted into the Russian army and his mother helped him falsify identification documents and desert. After deserting the Russian Army, Deutsch went first to Harbin in China and then Japan. In 1916 he immigrated to the United States landing in Seattle before relocating to Los Angeles. There he joined the Art Student's League and worked for Paramount Pictures in the special effects department. While in Los Angeles Deutsch also taught at the Otis Art Institute for six years. In the years following 1924 Deutsch organized his first solo exhibitions and became highly regarded as a portraitist alongside his other artworks. In 1929 he decorated the interior of the Floridian Hotel in Miami Beach and during the 1930s he won many of the prizes earned over his career. During the Great Depression Deutsch was employed by the Federal Arts Program designing murals for post offices across California and New Mexico. Among his commissions sponsored by the New Deal project was the Terminal Annex Post Office in Los Angles. In 1946 he won the Pepsi-Cola art competition with his work What Atomic War Will Do to You. Deutsch is also known for his role in directing the fifteen-minute experimental and expressionist film Lullaby starring Michael Visaroff in 1929. Deutsch died on January 16, 1978, in Los Angeles.
function: label: Function
content: Post office buildings -- California -- Los Angeles
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 3.1 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: circa 1912-1979
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.deutbori
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: This collection consists of seven series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1924-1949 (.1 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1924-1979 (.2 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 3: Writings, circa 1940-1972 (.2 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 4: Personal Business Records , circa 1926-1975 (.3 Linear feet: Box 1)

Series 5: Printed Material, circa 1921-1976 (1 Linear foot: Boxes 1 and 2)

Series 6: Photographic Material, circa 1912-1972 (1.2 Linear feet: Boxes 2-5)

Series 7: Artwork, circa 1930 (.1 Linear feet: Box 4)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: This collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared, by Allessandra Liberati in 2023.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Material lent for microfilming is available on 35mm microfilm reel(s) LA 2 at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The Boris Deutsch papers measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1912-1979. Biographical materials include a resume, identification documents, an interview transcript, and documentation of milestone dates. Correspondence with Deutsch is both personal and professional. Writings includes both autobiographical and biographical writings as well as various speeches and notes. Personal business records consists of business documents, inventories of artwork, and stock market documents created by Deutsch. Printed materials includes various materials relating to the political climate of the 1940s and Deutsch's personal interests, as well as auction and exhibition catalogs, and exhibition announcements. Also included are scans of photographs and scrapbook pages. Photographic material consists of photographs of Deutsch and his wife, family and friends, his artwork, and various installations of exhibits. Artwork includes one sketchbook.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: The archives also hold an oral history interview of Boris Deutsch conducted 1964 June 1-5, by Betty Hoag, for the Archives of American Art.
separatedmaterial: label: Separated Materials
content: The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of material lent for microfilming (reel LA 2) including: clippings and exhibition catalogs.