Helen Clay Frick Papers, Series VII: Frick Art Museum

These papers consist of correspondence, publication records, guest books, architectural drawings, programs, pamphlets, clippings, and other printed material pertaining to the founding and early years of the Frick Art Museum. These materials document the construction of the museum building, the acquisition, loan, and care and display of art objects, publication of two books drawing on museum holdings, programming such as concerts, lectures, and films, and events surrounding the opening of the museum in 1970 and the dedication of two trees in honor of Helen Clay Frick’s parents in 1980. Materials are arranged in the following five subseries:

Subseries I: Correspondence, 1965-1981 and undated, consists largely of files compiled by Helen Clay Frick’s secretary, Julia B. Egan, discussing the purchase, loan, display, reproduction, restoration, and appraisal of art objects, as well as staff, building matters, and general administration of the Frick Art Museum. Also included in the secretary’s files are regular letters from museum director Virginia Lewis with updates on museum activities. Other correspondents represented in this subseries include attorneys David B. Buerger and William F. Knox, Walter Read Hovey, former head of the Henry Clay Frick Fine Arts Department at the University of Pittsburgh, and Helen Clay Frick’s longtime employee Walter Cooley. One file in this subseries gives details about a small bequest to the museum from Helen Clay Frick’s cousin, Marianne Rea Hamilton.

Subseries II: Events and Publications, 1970-1994 and undated, contains files regarding lecture, concert, and film series, as well as events surrounding the opening of the museum in 1970 and tree dedication ceremony in 1980. Materials also include newsletters, guest books, and publication files for The Arts in Changing Societies: Reflections Inspired by Works of Art in the Frick Art Museum, Pittsburgh, Five Lectures by Walter Read Hovey (1972), and Treasures of The Frick Art Museum (1975).

Subseries III: Construction, 1967-1970 and undated, includes clippings, correspondence, photographs, samples, and plans and drawings documenting aspects of construction at the Frick Art Museum. See note regarding related materials below for additional architectural plans.

Subseries IV: Virginia E. Lewis Files, 1929, 1953-1984 and undated, contain the personal files of Miss Lewis, founding director of the Frick Art Museum. These files include book catalogs and prospectuses, correspondence, travel itineraries, clippings, and biographical information, and provide details about Lewis’ academic career and professional life prior to joining the Frick Art Museum. They also document her professional memberships and local recognition she received from the Pittsburgh community. To a lesser extent, they provide insight into day to day activities at the museum. Most of the information about daily museum operations in this subseries can be found in the letters of Mary Alice Connors, Lewis’ secretary, who wrote frequently during Lewis’ absences from Pittsburgh. Additional material regarding daily activities at the museum can be found in Subseries I: Correspondence.

Subseries V: Miscellaneous Printed Material, 1969-1985 and undated, contains clippings about the Frick Art Museum, brochures about the care of museum and library collections, a directory for the Shadyside Presbyterian Church, and duplicate offprints of Helen Clay Frick’s essay on Jean Antoine Houdon’s bust of Madame Houdon, originally published in The Art Bulletin in September 1947.