Marcella Comès (Winslow) papers
name: label: Creator
content: Winslow, Marcella Comès
topic: label: Occupation
content: Painters -- Washington (D.C.)
label: Occupation
content: Photographers -- Washington (D.C.)
label: Occupation
content: Portrait painters -- Washington (D.C.)
label: Occupation
content: Poets -- Washington (D.C.)
label: Topic
content: Women artists
label: Topic
content: Women painters
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Portions of the collection were loaned to the Archives of American Art for microfilming in 1982 by Marcella Comès Wilson and were returned after filming. Marcella Comès Wilson donated additional material in 1982.
creator: label: Creator
content: Winslow, Marcella Comès
setName: label: See more items in
content: Marcella Comès (Winslow) papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of Marcella Comès Winslow date from 1915 to 1982 and measure 1.1 linear feet. Found are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, photographs, printed material and subject files relating to Marcella Comès Wilson's affiliation with and interest in the Washington, D.C. arts scene. Also found is a guestbook used by Comès from childhood until the early 1980s containing signatures, inscriptions, and sketches from artists and writers with whom she was friends. A mixed-media scrapbook concerns Comès's portraits of literary figures, many of which were done under her role as official portrait painter of the United States Poet Laureate. A 16mm color amateur film features an unidentified exhibition featuring sculpture and painting.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Marcella Comès Winslow (1905-2000) was a portrait painter and photographer in Washington, D.C.. Known professionally as Marcella Comès, she was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and studied at the Carnegie Mellon College of Fine Arts. She married William Randolph Winslow and moved to Washington, D.C.. Comès played an active part in the local D.C. art community as a member of the Women's Commission of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, president of the D.C. chapter of Artists Equity Association (1969-1971), and as the national vice-president of the AEA (1971-1973). Additionally, she was the official portrait painter of the United States Poet Laureate.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 1.1 Linear Feet
label: Extent
content: 2 Microfilm reels
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1915-1982
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.winsmarc
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Microfilm reels
label: Type
content: Motion pictures
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series.
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: Portions of the collection were microfilmed on Reels 2424 and 2425 and returned to Marcella Comès Wilson after filming. The microfilm was described in a finding aid by Jayna Josefson in 2025 and the microfilm was digitized in 2024 with funding provided by Smithsonian Collections Information System (CIS) IRM Pool Fund. The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Jayna Josefson in 2025 with support from the Judith Godwin Arts Foundation.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Portions of the collection have been microfilmed on reels 2424 and 2425. The microfilm has been digitized and is available on the Archives of American Art website.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Motion pictures
originalsloc: label: Existence and Location of Originals
content: The original guestbook and scrapbook were returned to Marcella Comès Wilson.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of Marcella Comès Winslow date from 1915 to 1982 and measure 1.1 linear feet. Found are scattered biographical materials and correspondence, photographs, printed material and subject files relating to Marcella Comès Wilson's affiliation with and interest in the Washington, D.C. arts scene. Also found is a guestbook used by Comès from childhood until the early 1980s containing signatures, inscriptions, and sketches from artists and writers with whom she was friends. A mixed-media scrapbook concerns Comès's portraits of literary figures, many of which were done under her role as official portrait painter of the United States Poet Laureate. A 16mm color amateur film features an unidentified exhibition featuring sculpture and painting.

The guestbook was used by Comès's parents before she used it as her personal guestbook. It contains photographs of the Comès family and their home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Some clippings concern the Winslow family and their notable military service. The guestbook contains enclosures giving further context to Comès's friends: clippings, invitations, letters, and exhibition announcements. Of note are inscriptions and sketches from Robert Frost, Robert McCall, Amedeo Modigliani, and Eudora Welty. Largely, subject files concern the Washington, D.C. arts scene and the federal government in the arts. Of note are Comès's files on the Artist Equity Association which date from her time as vice president and president. The mixed-media scrapbook concerning Comès's portraits of literary figures contains clippings, letters, photographs of the writer and of Comès's portraits of the individual.