urn:taro:utexas.hrc.00281 Kenneth W. and Emma-Stina Prescott: A Preliminary Inventory of Their Collection of Ben Shahn at the Harry Ransom Center Finding aid created by Ransom Center Staff Harry Ransom Center, 2003 Text converted by SPI Content Sciences Inc., July 2003. Finding aid written in English. Collection Summary Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin Prescott, Kenneth W. and Emma-Stina Kenneth W. Prescott and Emma-Stina Prescott Collection of Ben Shahn 1944-1998 Books, serials, and exhibitition catalogs, as well as art historian and scholar Kenneth Prescott's resesarch materials and correspondence, document the works of artist Ben Shahn. Also included in the collection are illustrations by Shahn and photographs of Shahn and his works. Manuscript Collection MS-04777 English 7 document boxes, 2 card boxes, 1 oversize box (4.79 linear feet) Acquisition:

Gift, 1997 (G11021)

 Access:

Open for research

 Processed by:

Jan Root and Liz Murray, 1999

 Scope and Contents

This collection of artist Ben Shahn was donated to the Ransom Center by Kenneth W. and Emma-Stina Prescott. Art historian and scholar Kenneth Prescott is the author of several works on the life and art of Ben Shahn. Compiled by Prescott over a forty-year period, this collection contains a wealth of documentation on the artist in the form of books, serials, exhibition catalogs, illustrations by Shahn in numerous printed formats including record albums, invoices and loan information, articles, photographs of Shahn and his works, and Prescott's research materials and correspondence.

The collection is arranged in two Series: Series I on Ben Shahn's works, including information about Shahn and exhibitions of his works, and Series II on Kenneth Prescott's research, writing and correspondence, reflecting his organization of exhibitions and books about Shahn.

Numerous books, serials, and exhibition catalogs have been transferred to the Ransom Center library.

 Prescott Collection of Ben Shahn--Folder List I. Ben Shahn A. Works By Shahn 1 1 Book covers and jackets designed by Shahn 1 2-4 Greeting cards, announcements, etc. with Shahn repros. 1 5 Illustrations for books, serials, performing arts events, and other printed material Individual works 1 6 Ben Shahn's Haggadah, Little Brown, 1965, promotional material 1 7 The Dreyfus Affair: The Ben Shahn Prints, Crossroads Books, 1st ed., 1984, publicity brochure 1 8 Time, eight magazine covers, 1955-68 1 9 A Vision Shared - A Portrait of America and Its People, 1935-1943, St. Martin's Press, N.Y., 1976, photocopy of sections pertaining to Shahn's photography Photographic reproductions of BS works 1 10-11 Black & white photos 1 12 Color photos, with photos of Kenneth Prescott at the Ben Shahn Exhibition and Seminar, Santa Fe East Gallery, New Mexico, 1981 1 13 Color photograph, self-portrait, 1926-28 1 14 Color transparencies, negatives, and color photo, various scenes 1 15 35 mm color/Kodachrome slides, #1-239 1 * Sound recordings, cover illustrations by Shahn [*removed to oversize, Box 8] 1 SR 1 Albert Schweitzer: Bach, Columbia Records, ML 5042, Volume VI 1 SR 2 Die Dreigroschenoper, music by Kurt Weill; lyrics by Bertolt Brecht. Columbia Records, O2L 257 1 SR 3 Music excerpts from Jerome Robbins' Ballets: U.S.A. RCA Records, LPM/LSP-2435, 1961 1 SR 4 Music of Old Russia, Nathan Milstein, violin. Orchestra conducted by Robert Irving, Angel Records, S36002. [together with a postcard from R.A. Shwalb to Prescott with album cover descriptive information] 1 SR 5 Wagner: Prelude and Love Death; Strauss: Death and Transfiguration; Leinsdorf: The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Capitol Records, P8580 B. Information about Shahn 1 * Card files for Shahn owners, paintings, prints, refs., etc. 1 * Shahn's works loaned by owners for KWP exhibitions [*removed to Box 9] 1 * Citations, information, references, etc. for specific Shahn paintings/works [*removed to Box 9] 1 * Shahn's works categorized by subject matter areas [*removed to Box 9] 1 * Paintings by title, media, etc. & owners [*removed to Box 10] 1 * Owner cards [*removed to Box 10] Downtown Gallery, New York City Deliveries of Shahn works, 1944-1967 2 1 Dec. 1944-Feb. 1953 2 2 Dec. 1953-Jan. 1959 2 3 Dec. 1960-Feb. 1967 Invoices, 1944-1963 2 4 1944-1950 2 5 1951-1952 2 6 1953-1954 2 7 1955 2 8 1956-1957 3 1 1958 3 2 1959-A 3 3 1959-B 3 4 1960 3 5 1961 3 6 1962-1963 Purchase invoices, 1964-1968 3 7 1964-1968 (mixed entries) - part I 3 8 1966-1967 (mixed entries) - part II 3 9 Articles by and about Shahn; articles featuring Shahn's illustrations 4 1-4 Journal articles arranged alphabetically by serial title, from 3-ring binder 4 5-7 News articles from newspapers, magazines, journals, galleries, etc., from 3-ring binder 4 8 Original works in estate as of date of death, Schedule A [descriptive list] 4 9 Sale & estimated prices, 1969-95 C. Shahn Exhibitions 5 1-2 1945-1997, Shahn exhibitions, descriptive material from 3-ring binder 5 * 1970, Retrospective, Japan tour, repros of Shahn works [*removed to oversize, Box 8] 5 3 1981, Ben Shahn: Voices and Visions, Santa Fe East, New Mexico, symposium packet 5 * 1991, Ben Shahn Retrospective Exhibition, Japan, commemorative album of photographs and exhibition announcements [*removed to oversize, Box 8] Loan correspondence 5 4 A-F 5 5 G-M 5 6 N-Z 5 7 Loan forms 5 8 1998, Common Man, Mythic Vision: The Paintings of Ben Shahn, The Jewish Museum, New York, invitation to opening II. Kenneth W. Prescott A. Works The Complete Graphic Works of Ben Shahn (1973) 6 1 Photographs used for illustrations 6 2 IIA - Fig. 113-224 6 3 IIA - Fig. 222-272a 6 4 IIA - Fig. 273a-282a 6 5 IIB - part 1 - color transparencies. Fig. 1-85 6 6 IIB - part 2 & 4. Fig. 94-269 (not inclusive) 6 7 IIB - part 3 - posters. Fig. 137-204 6 8 IIA - Hallelujah Miniatures, 1970-71. Fig. 268-309. IIB - Part 1. Fig. 54 - Warsaw 1943, 1963 6 9 Prints and Posters of Ben Shahn (1982). Color repro. proofs of Shahn's works for KWP Research 6 10 Commercial work 6 11 Murals 6 12 Music/Plays/Ballet 6 13 Political/Social/Activist 7 1 Portraits 7 2 Religious/Philosophical 7 3 WW II Photographic images used in KWP books on Shahn 7 4 Color transparencies of Shahn's works 7 5-6 Photographs of Shahn's works, b & w 7 7 Photographs of Ben Shahn B. Correspondence 7 8 Appel, Benjamin, manuscript, Prophet With a Brush: Ben Shahn with correspondence 7 9-10 Bressler, Morris, correspondence, manuscripts, tape transcriptions 7 11 Greenstone, Prof. Leonard 7 12 Shahn, Bernarda 7 13 Wofsy, Alan 7 14 KWP & various sources re data on Shahn works 7 15 Misc. Shahn correspondence, information, etc. 8-10 Oversize and card boxes