Carlo Ciampaglia papers
name: label: Creator
content: Ciampaglia, Carlo Alberto, 1891-1975
topic: label: Topic
content: Interior decorators -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The Carlo Ciampaglia papers were donated in 1978 by Rosalie Ciampaglia, the artist's widow.
creator: label: Creator
content: Ciampaglia, Carlo Alberto, 1891-1975
setName: label: See more items in
content: Carlo Ciampaglia papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The collection measures 5.6 linear feet, dates from 1909-1978, and documents the career of mural painter and interior designer Carlo Ciampaglia. Found within the papers are biographical material, correspondence, business records, notes and writings, art work, interior decorating and mural project files, printed material, and photographs.
bioghist: label: Biographical Note
content: Carlo Ciampaglia was born March 8, 1891 in Roccaraso, Italy, the son of Natale and Benelde Delmonico Ciampaglia. He came to the United States with his family before his first birthday and became a naturalized citizen in 1919. After attending public schools in Hoboken, New Jersey, Ciampaglia began studying drawing at Cooper Union in 1909, and painting at the National Academy of Design, receiving his diploma in 1917.

In 1920, Ciampaglia married Annette Paltrinieri, and in the same year, he was awarded the Prix de Rome. This prize entitled him to study at the American Academy in Rome, Italy, for the next three years. During this time, he also traveled to other European countries.

Shortly after returning to New York in 1923, Ciampaglia executed a commission for Philadelphia architect Harry Sternfeld to decorate the house of Mr. Frank Potter of Rome, New York. Other commissions included designs for the ceilings of the Chicago Tribune Building, decorations in the chapel of the Fairmount Mausoleum, Newark, and decoration for the niches and ceilings at the First Slovak Girls' Academy, Danville, Pennsylvania.

In 1936, Ciampaglia was commissioned to undertake a major mural project for the Texas Centennial Exposition, for which he completed murals for the transportation, foods, agriculture, and livestock buildings. Three years later, he completed murals for the foods building at the 1939 New York World's Fair.

Ciampaglia lived on his estate, "Woodpeckers' Point," in Middle Valley, New Jersey and maintained a studio on Broadway in New York City. He was also an instructor at Cooper Union and at the Traphagen School of Fashion in New York. He was a member of the Mural Painters Society of America, the Architectural League, and the Allied Artists of America, and was elected an Associate Member of the National Academy of Design.

Carlo Alberto Ciampaglia died in 1975.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 5.6 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1909-1978
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.ciamcarl
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Sketches
label: Type
content: Sketchbooks
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Business records
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: All series are arranged chronologically. Glass plate negatives have been housed separately in Boxes 6 and 7, and are closed to researchers. Oversized material from various series has been housed in Boxes 8, 9, 10, and OV 11, and is noted in the Series Descriptions/Container Listing section at the appropriate folder title with see also/see references. The collection is arranged as 8 series:

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1912-1969, undated (Box 1; 8 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1912-1978, undated (Box 1; 45 folders)

Series 3: Business Records, 1923-1961, undated (Box 1; 11 folders)

Series 4: Notes and Writings, 1927, undated (Box 1; 2 folders)

Series 5: Art Work, 1920, undated (Boxes 1, 8; 6 folders)

Series 6: Project Files, 1924-1961, undated (Boxes 1-2, 6-8, OV 11; 2.5 linear feet)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1913-1975, undated (Boxes 3, 8; 32 folders)

Series 8: Photographs, 1909-1960, undated (Boxes 3-5, 7, 9-10; 1.4 linear feet)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The papers were processed in 2006 by Jean Fitzgerald. Glass plate negatives were re-housed in 2014 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sketches
label: Genre/Form
content: Sketchbooks
label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Business records
scopecontent: label: Scope and Content Note
content: The papers of mural painter and interior designer Carlo Ciampaglia measure 5.6 linear feet and date from 1909 to 1978. Found within the papers are biographical material; correspondence primarily with colleagues discussing projects and the American Academy in Rome Alumni Association's George Washington Bicentennial Exhibition in Washington, D.C.; scattered personal business records including estate documents for various family members and financial material; notes and writings concerning a variety of topics including the Stations of the Cross, decorative encaustic painting, and a typescript about James Whistler; art work including sketchbooks and sketches; printed material including clippings and exhibition catalogs; and photographs of Ciampaglia, family members, and miscellaneous art work. Also found are project files containing correspondence, contracts, financial records, art work, printed material and photographs for fifteen of Ciampaglia's most important commissions.