Carlin Galleries records
name: label: Creator
content: Carlin Galleries
label: Names
content: Carlin, Electra, 1912-2000
label: Names
content: Hurd, Peter, 1904-1984
topic: label: Topic
content: Women art dealers
label: Topic
content: Regionalism
label: Topic
content: Realism
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The collection was loaned to the Archives of American Art for microfilming in 1980 by Electra Carlin, as part of the Archives of American Art's Texas project, and was returned after filming.
creator: label: Creator
content: Carlin Galleries
setName: label: See more items in
content: Carlin Galleries records
abstract: label: Summary
content: The records of Fort Worth, Texas, Carlin Galleries date from 1942-1979 on 4 microfilm reels. The collection documents the gallery's history primarily through artist files, and scrapbooks.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Carlin Galleries (est. 1959, closed 1990) was an art gallery in Fort Worth, Texas. It was Fort Worth's first art gallery, predating the Amon Carter Museum of American Art and the Kimbell Art Museum. Under the leadership of Electra Carlin, Carlin Galleries represented artists from Fort Worth and the broader Southwest region and exhibited contemporary American paintings, works on paper, sculptures, and crafts. Carlin Galleries was also one of the first galleries outside Canada to show Inuit art. 

Electra Marshall Carlin (1912-2000) was an American art dealer and gallery owner. Following the death of her husband in an automobile accident, she relocated from Dallas to her hometown of Fort Worth and became a partner in an art gallery called Wonderful Things. In 1959, Carlin took over as the sole owner of Wonderful Things and moved the gallery to a new location in a converted laundromat. Wonderful Things was renamed Carlin Galleries shortly after. Electra Carlin represented many artists from the Fort Worth area, including Blanche McVeigh and Emily Guthrie Smith. Other notable artists associated with Carlin Galleries include Peter Hurd, Adolf Dehn, and John Chumley. Carlin frequently partnered with local museums to organize exhibitions, contributing to the region's burgeoning art scene.
function: label: Function
content: Art galleries, Commercial -- Texas -- Fort Worth
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 4 Microfilm reels
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1942-1980
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.carligall
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Microfilm reels
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as two series.

Series 1: Artist Files, 1942-1980 (Reels 1835-1836, 2057)

Series 2: Scrapbooks, 1959-1978 (Reels 1836-1837)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was microfilmed on Reels 1835-1837 and 2057 and was returned to Electra Carlin after filming. The microfilm was described in a finding aid by Stephanie Ashley in 2024 and the microfilm was digitized in 2024 with funding provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: The collection has been microfilmed on reels 1835-1837 and 2057. The microfilm has been digitized and is available on the Archives of American Art website.
originalsloc: label: Existence and Location of Originals
content: Originals returned to Electra Carlin after microfilming.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The records of Fort Worth, Texas, Carlin Galleries date from 1942-1980 on 4 microfilm reels. The collection documents the gallery's history through artist files and scrapbooks.

Artist files include correspondence, sales statements, price lists, exhibition catalogs and announcements, and publicity material including press releases and magazine and news clippings. Also included are photos of the artwork of each artist featured in the collection in addition to a few photos of the artists themselves. An additional subject file on Peter Hurd contains correspondence between Electra Carlin and Hurd and others; statements of Hurd's sales; consignment statements; and a receipt from the Amon Carter Museum of Western Art.

Twelve scrapbooks dating from 1959-1978 contain news clippings, photos, guest lists, exhibition announcements, and invitations.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: The Fort Worth History Center at the Fort Worth Public Library holds the Carlin Art Galleries Records, 1959 - 1987.