Acknowledgments

Reynolds-Kaye, Jennifer

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Acknowledgments

Jennifer Reynolds-Kaye

Small-Great Objects: Anni and Josef Albers in the Americas

Acknowledgments

Author

Jennifer Reynolds-Kaye

PublisherYale University Art Gallery

https://doi.org/10.37862/aaeportal.00113.003

Stable URL: https://aaeportal.com/?id=-15268

Acknowledgments

At the heart of this exhibition and publication beats the enduring passion of Anni and Josef Albers, and their love for each other and for Prehispanic art. I continue to be inspired by their unwavering dedication to their ancient teachers. The foundation of the archival research for this catalogue was correspondence between the Alberses and Ted and Bobbie Dreier, and I am grateful to the Dreiers for keeping those precious records. Conversations with Michael D. Coe and Sheila Hicks, who both knew the Alberses personally, were central to my understanding of their collections and south-of-the-border turn. This show would also not have happened without the vision of Jock Reynolds, the Henry J. Heinz II Director of the Yale University Art Gallery. Not only did he see the significance of this story for Yale, but he also took a risk on a newly minted Ph.D. with twin infants in tow. I am so grateful for his confidence in me.

The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, the Gallery’s neighbors in Bethany, Connecticut, grew equally excited about the premise of the show and invited me into their lofted archives every week for more than a year. The staff’s generosity—with their time, energy, and resources—has been immeasurable, and it has been a privilege to work with such dedicated experts on all things Albers. Executive director Nicholas Fox Weber and chief curator Brenda Danilowitz supported the project every step of the way and introduced me to the world of Anni and Josef Albers. Brenda, in particular, was critical to shaping the project and provided exceptionally astute advice. Curatorial assistant Michael Beggs eagerly reviewed every photograph and photo-collage that Josef ever made, while Fritz Horstman, Artist Residency and Education Coordinator, inspired me with his creative approaches to teaching and learning. Collections manager and preparator Samuel McCune patiently walked me through the smallest details of the objects in the collection, and catalogue raisonné expert Jeanette Redensek expanded my understanding of Anni and Josef’s work in new and unexpected directions. Anne Sisco, Karis Medina, Nicole Marino, and Rebecca Race provided additional support and encouragement, and I appreciated the limited but rich interactions with Nicholas Murphy, Projects Director. The two shows and catalogues produced by the foundation, Anni and Josef Albers: Latin American Journeys and A Beautiful Confluence: Anni and Josef Albers and the Latin American World, continue to be a source of reference and inspiration for me.

The Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History advocated the project from the beginning and generously offered staff expertise, time, and energy to the exhibition. Senior collections manager Roger Colten rallied his remarkable and hard-working team, including museum assistants Maureen DaRos White and Rebekah DeAngelo, around this project. Maureen was particularly vital in arranging special scholar visits, assisting with photography, and siphoning off precious storage space to stage the exhibition. Additional thanks to Oswaldo Chinchilla Mazariegos, Assistant Curator, and David Heiser, Director of Student Programs. I would also like to pay special homage to two Yale University faculty members—Mary Miller, the Sterling Professor of the History of Art, and associate professor Anoka Faruqee—who both masterfully balanced the roles of supporter and sounding board.

I also thank the Smithsonian American Art Museum, in Washington, D.C., for generously lending Anni Albers’s masterpiece Ancient Writing to the exhibition. I would like to acknowledge the early support of Nicholas R. Bell, the former Fleur and Charles Bressler Curator-in-Charge of the Renwick Gallery, and Nora Atkinson, the Lloyd Herman Curator of Craft. Additional thanks to Jim Concha, Collections Manager, Paintings and Sculpture; Paula Binari, Registration Assistant, Loans; and Rebecca Sullesta, assistant at the Renwick Gallery, who made this critical loan possible.

I have been profoundly shaped by the scholars, artists, and curators who have tirelessly researched the impact of Latin America on Anni and Josef Albers specifically, and throughout history more broadly. Virginia Gardner Troy, Kiki Gilderhus, and Karl Taube taught me about the Alberses in particular, and I benefited from advice from Anna Blume, Lauren Hinkson, and Vanja Malloy. Ned Cooke, the Charles F. Montgomery Professor of American Decorative Arts at Yale, and Andrew Hamilton, the Cotsen Postdoctoral Fellow in the Society of Fellows at Princeton University, lent to the project their invaluable expertise in how objects are made. The intersections between Prehispanic and modern art would be completely undeveloped without the contributions to the field by Holly Barnet-Sanchez, Elizabeth Hill Boone, Barbara Braun, Shelly Errington, Diana Fane, Enrique Florescano, Shelley Elizabeth Garrigan, Jesse Lerner, and James Oles. I could not have succeeded without the intellectual and emotional support of Macarena Gomez-Barris, Selma Holo, Suzanne Hudson, María Elena Martínez, John Pohl, and Megan O’Neil. Special thanks are due to the artists who inspired me along the way, including Mariana Castillo Deball, Demián Flores, and Tatiana Parcero.

At the Gallery, I would like to thank Pamela Franks, Deputy Director for Exhibitions, Programming, and Education and the Seymour H. Knox, Jr., Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, and Laurence Kanter, Chief Curator and the Lionel Goldfrank III Curator of European Art, who guided me through my first major exhibition and helped me narrow its focus. I have had the opportunity to work for two Nolen Curators of Education and Academic Affairs—Kate Ezra, who formerly held the position, and Ryan Hill, who succeeded her—both of whom provided me with the time and support for this project to flourish. I also appreciate the rest of my colleagues in the Education Department—Jessica Sack, the Jan and Frederick Mayer Senior Associate Curator of Public Education; Elizabeth Manekin, former Assistant Curator of Education; Stephanie Sparling Williams, the John Walsh Fellow; Elizabeth Williams, the former John Walsh Fellow; and Sara Carrigan, Senior Administrative Assistant. David McCormick, Ph.D. candidate in Anthropology at Yale, was a vital researcher to the project, and he expertly drew connections between Josef’s drawings and Prehispanic objects. Two other Yale graduate students—Mina Magda, Ph.D. candidate in Slavic Languages and Literatures, and Corrin Laposki, who recently completed a master’s degree in Anthropology—were remarkable research assistants. I valued the support of the Programs Department as well: Molleen Theodore, Associate Curator of Programs; Elizabeth Harnett, Program Coordinator; Emily Arensman, Programs Fellow; and Regina Starolis, Program Outreach Advisor.

Working with objects in four curatorial departments at the Gallery was a pleasurable challenge, but only because of my kind and nimble colleagues. Special recognition is due to Susan B. Matheson, the Molly and Walter Bareiss Curator of Ancient Art, and museum assistant Megan Doyon; Frauke V. Josenhans, the Horace W. Goldsmith Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, and senior museum assistant Alexander Harding; Suzanne Boorsch, the Robert L. Solley Curator of Prints and Drawings, Elisabeth Hodermarsky, the Sutphin Family Senior Associate Curator of Prints and Drawings, and museum assistant Suzanne Greenawalt; and Patricia E. Kane, Friends of American Arts Curator of American Decorative Arts, John Stuart Gordon, the Benjamin Attmore Hewitt Associate Curator of American Decorative Arts, and museum assistant Nancy Stedman. The textile aficionados across the museum—Ruth Barnes, the Thomas Jaffe Curator of Indo-Pacific Art; Barbara Plankensteiner, the Frances and Benjamin Benenson Foundation Curator of African Art; and Theresa Fairbanks Harris, Senior Conservator of Works on Paper—helped me look at warp and weft in entirely new ways. Archivist Elise Kenney was an early source of support for the project, and she introduced me to the first exhibition of the Harriet Engelhardt collection, assembled by Anni Albers, at the Gallery. Senior museum technician Diana Brownell was a kindred spirit in the project who lent an artist’s eye to the framing of the works on paper.

This publication relied on the steady hand of Madeline Kloss, Assistant Editor, who deftly maneuvered tricky situations, sticky word choices, and accent-mark dilemmas. Tiffany Sprague, Director of Publications and Editorial Services, and Stacey Wujcik, former Assistant Editor, were critical sounding boards at key moments, and Julianna White, former Senior Editorial Assistant, managed the images for the book. Christopher Sleboda, Director of Graphic Design, applied his creative mind and good taste to the design of the book and exhibition.

Jeffrey Yoshimine, Deputy Director for Exhibition and Collection Management, guided me with care and consideration through the exhibition design process, always offering an insightful comment or word of encouragement when I needed it most. Former exhibitions production manager Clarkson Crolius and senior museum technician Peter Cohen examined the Alberses’ furniture in new ways and translated relevant elements of this vision to the exhibition design. Thanks to registrar L. Lynne Addison, senior associate registrar Amy Dowe, and museum assistant Anna Russell for their quick replies and attention to detail.

Additional thanks to members of the Gallery’s conservation team—Carol Snow, Deputy Chief Conservator and the Alan J. Dworsky Senior Conservator of Objects; Anne Gunnison, Associate Conservator of Objects; and Cynthia Schwarz, Associate Conservator of Paintings—for their help getting the objects exhibition-ready. I also appreciate the help of members of the Visual Resources Department: John ffrench, Director of Visual Resources; Kathleen Mylen-Coulombe, Rights and Reproductions Coordinator; David Whaples, Visual Resources Coordinator; and Richard House, Senior Photographer. The financial elements of the exhibition and catalogue were finely managed by Jill Westgard, Deputy Director for Advancement; Brian McGovern, Associate Director of Advancement; and Charlene Senical, Assistant Business Manager. Joellen Adae, Director of Communications, wonderfully spread word of the exhibition and its programs, while Heather Nolin, Assistant Director of Exhibitions, Programming, and Education, offered thoughtful advice and support.

For their unwavering support and love, special thanks go out to my “small-great” family, Al, Dashiell, and Theodore.

Jennifer Reynolds-Kaye
The Lewis B. and Dorothy Cullman–Joan Whitney Payson Senior Fellow
Education Department
Yale University Art Gallery

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