Olin Dows letters
name: label: Creator
content: Dows, Olin, 1904-1981
label: Names
content: American Federation of Arts
label: Names
content: Treasury Relief Art Project
label: Names
content: United States. Department of the Treasury
label: Names
content: Bruce, Edward, 1879-1943
label: Names
content: Sterne, Maurice, 1878-1957
label: Names
content: Watson, Forbes, 1880-1960
topic: label: Occupation
content: Arts administrators
label: Topic
content: Federal aid to the arts
label: Topic
content: Art and state
label: Topic
content: Mural painting and decoration, American -- Washington (D.C.)
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Letters were donated in 1962 by Olin Dows; the provenance of one letter (on microfilm reel 2803) is unknown.
creator: label: Creator
content: Dows, Olin, 1904-1981
setName: label: See more items in
content: Olin Dows letters
abstract: label: Summary
content: This small collection of letters to and from painter and arts administrator Olin Dows measures 0.2 linear feet and dates from 1938 to 1949. The letters primarily document his work as director of the Treasury Relief Art Project, as an admistrator for the American Federation of Arts, and his work as a war artist. Much of the correspondence is with arts administrators Edward Bruce and Forbes Watson.
bioghist: label: Biographical Note
content: Olin Dows (1904-1981) was a painter and arts administrator; he primarily lived and worked in Rhinebeck, New York. Dows was born in Irvington-on-Hudson, NY. He graduated from Harvard University in 1926 and also studied at the Yale School of Fine Arts. In 1935 he was appointed director of the Treasury Relief Art Project, funded by the Works Progress Administration. In 1938 he painted a series of murals for the post office in Rhinebeck, NY, and in 1941 painted murals for the post office in Hyde Park, NY. From 1938 to 1941 Dows was on the Board of Directors of the American Federation of Arts. In 1942 he enlisted in the Army Engineers Corps and was commissioned as a war artist, covering the European Theater of Operations. An exhibit of works produced by this project was held in 1944, entitled "The Army at War." Dows was discharged from the army in 1945. A book of his watercolors, Franklin Roosevelt at Hyde Park, was published in 1949.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.2 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1938-1949
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.dowsolin
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 1 series:

Series 1: Olin Dows Letters, 1938-1949 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was microfilmed upon receipt on reel NDA 14. One additional letter was microfilmed on reel 2803. The collection was processed in 2011 by Erin Kinhart.
altformavail: label: Alternative Forms Available
content: The collection is available on 35 mm microfilm reels NDA 14 and 2803 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan. Researchers should note that the arrangement of the material described in the container inventory does not reflect the arrangement of the collection on microfilm.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Content Note
content: This small collection of letters to and from painter and arts administrator Olin Dows measures 0.2 linear feet and dates from 1938 to 1949. The letters primarily document his work as director of the Treasury Relief Art Project, as an admistrator for the American Federation of Arts, and his work as a war artist. Much of the correspondence is with arts administrators Edward Bruce and Forbes Watson.

Much of the correspondence is from 1941. Also of note is correspondence relating to the controversy over one of Maurice Sterne's murals for the Justice Department in 1940 and efforts to form a "Corps of Pictorial War Correspondents" in 1942. Some letters include attached documents including exhibition lists, announcements, news clippings, and reports.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Material
content: Also at the Archives of American Art is an interview of Olin Dows conducted on October 31, 1963, by Harlan Phillips.