Sylvia Fein papers
name: label: Creator
content: Fein, Sylvia
label: Names
content: Glasier, Marshall, 1902-
label: Names
content: Huppler, Dudley, 1917-1988
label: Names
content: Priebe, Karl J., 1914-1976
label: Names
content: Wilde, John, 1919-2006
topic: label: Occupation
content: Painters -- Wisconsin
label: Occupation
content: Authors -- Wisconsin
label: Topic
content: Magic realism (Art)
label: Topic
content: Women artists
label: Topic
content: Women painters
label: Topic
content: Women authors
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The collection was donated in 2011 by Sylvia Fein and in 2020 by Barbara Bhachu, Fein's friend.
creator: label: Creator
content: Fein, Sylvia
setName: label: See more items in
content: Sylvia Fein papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of painter and author Sylvia Fein measure 9.9 linear feet and date from 1936 to 2020. The papers primarily document her friendships with other artists from the Wisconsin-based Magic Realist group, including Dudley Huppler, John Wilde, Marshall Glasier, and Karl Priebe, as well as her career as a painter and her work on the books Heidi's Horse and First Drawings: Genesis of Visual Thinking. Documentation consists of scattered biographical material, extensive correspondence, project files, writings by Huppler and others, artists' and gallery files, personal business records, printed material, photographic materials, artwork by Wilde and Glasier, and scrapbooks.
bioghist: label: Biographical Note
content: Sylvia Fein (1919-2023) was a painter and author in Martinez, California. She was part of the Magic Realist Group of artists that originated at the University of Wisconsin.

Fein was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and from 1938 to 1942 she studied art at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. While there she became friends with fellow artists Marshall Glasier, John Wilde, Dudley Huppler, and Karl Priebe. In 1942 she married William Scheuber and briefly had a factory job in Milwaukee testing switches for naval planes. From 1944 to 1947 Fein lived and traveled throughout Mexico. Much of the work produced during this period was included in a solo exhibition of her paintings at the Perls Galleries in 1946. She and her husband then moved to northern California and had a daughter, Heidi. During the 1950s and 1960s, Fein continued to paint in her home studio.

In 1973 Fein decided to take a break from painting and published two books, Heidi's Horse (1976) and First Drawings: Genesis of Visual Thinking (1993). These works were greatly inspired by her friendship with art educator and researcher, Henry Shaefer-Simmern. In 2003 she resumed painting. She was featured in the group show, "With Friends: Six Magic Realists, 1940-1965" at the University of Wisconsin in 2005 and in a solo retrospective at the Bakersfield Art Museum in 2007. From 1970 to 2000 Fein was also active in the community of Pleasant Hill, California, as a member of several public services commissions.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 9.9 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1936-2020
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.feinsylv
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Scrapbooks
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 11 series:

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1936-2010 (Boxes 1, 8-9; 0.7 linear feet)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1941-2011 (Boxes 1-3, 9-10; 3.3 linear feet)

Series 3: Project Files, 1970-2012 (Boxes 3-4, 8, 11; 1.4 linear feet)

Series 4: Writings by Others, circa 1940s-1994 (Boxes 4, 11; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 5: Artists' Files, 1949-2020 (Boxes 10; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 6: Gallery Files, 1999-2020 (Boxes 10-11; 1.0 linear feet)

Series 7: Personal Business Records, 1968-2020 (Boxes 11-12; 0.5 linear feet)

Series 8: Printed Material, 1941-2011 (Box 4-5, 12; 0.7 linear feet)

Series 9: Photographic Materials, circa 1940-2005 (Boxes 5, 12; 0.4 linear feet)

Series 10: Artwork, 1941-1947 (Box 5; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 11: Scrapbooks, circa 1940-2015 (Boxes 5-7, 12; 1.3 linear feet)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared in 2012 by Erin Kinhart. An addition was processed, and the finding aid revised by Sarah Mundy in 2024.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Scrapbooks
scopecontent: label: Scope and Content Note
content: The papers of painter and author Sylvia Fein measure 9.9 linear feet and date from 1936 to 2020. The papers primarily document her friendships with other artists from the Wisconsin-based Magic Realist group, including Dudley Huppler, John Wilde, Marshall Glasier, and Karl Priebe, as well as her career as a painter and her work on the books Heidi's Horse and First Drawings: Genesis of Visual Thinking. Documentation consists of scattered biographical material, extensive correspondence, project files, writings by Huppler and others, artists' and gallery files, personal business records, printed material, photographic materials, artwork by Wilde and Glasier, and scrapbooks.