INVENTORY OF THE BERNARD RUDOFSKY PAPERS, ca. 1910-1987

Inventory prepared by Lynda Bunting

The Getty Research Institute

Research Library

Special Collections and Visual Resources

1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100

Los Angeles, California 90049-1688

Phone: (310) 440-7390

Fax: (310) 440-7780

Email Requests: http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/library/reference_form.html

URL: http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/library

J. Paul Getty Trust.

INVENTORY OF THE BERNARD RUDOFSKY PAPERS, ca. 1910-1987

Accession no. 920004

Inventory prepared by Lynda Bunting

Getty Research Institute

Contact Information:

The Getty Research Institute
Research Library
Special Collections and Visual Resources
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles, California 90049-1688
Phone: (310) 440-7390
Fax: (310) 440-7780
Email Requests: http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/library/reference_form.html
URL: http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/library/

Processed by:: Lynda Bunting
Date Completed:: April 1998
Encoded by:: Philip Curtis

Descriptive Summary

Title: Bernard Rudofsky papers

Date (inclusive): ca. 1910-1987

Collection number: 920004

Creator: Rudofsky, Bernard, 1905-

Extent: 8.5 linear ft. (25 boxes, 23 flat file folders, 1 roll)

Repository: Getty Research Institute

Research Library

Special Collections and Visual Resources

1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100

Los Angeles, CA 90049-1688

Abstract: Architect, exhibition organizer, and architectural theorist. Rudofsky's working papers consist of 56 notebooks with writings and drawings; magazine articles; magazine cover designs; ca. 150 drawings in watercolor, pencil, and crayon; plans, sketches, and photographs of his building projects in Brazil, Italy, and the United States; illustrated lectures; photographs of exhibition installations organized by Rudofsky; and examples of fashion designs. Also included are 33 travel notebooks (1948-1984) with many drawings, and ca. 5,500 color slides and ca. 125 black and white photographs taken during his travels.

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Language: Collection material in English

Administrative Information

Access

Open for use by qualified researchers.

Publication Rights

Contact Library Rights and Reproductions

Preferred Citation

Bernard Rudofsky papers, ca. 1910-1987, Getty Research Institute, Research Library, Accession no. 920004.

Acquisition Information

Acquired in 1992.

Processing History

Approximately 30 books were transferred to the library in 1991. Lynda Bunting processed the collection in April 1998. J. Gibbs re-processed sections of the collection and amended the finding aid in 2005.

Biographical/Historical Note

1905	Born April 13.

1922-1928

Attends Technische Hochschule, Vienna.

1928	Receives masters in architecture and English.

1928-1929

Works in office of Professor O.R. Salvisberg, Dean, School of Architecture, Berlin.

1930-1931

Associate of Professor S. Theiss, Dean, School of Architecture, Vienna.

1931	Receives doctorate.

1932-1935

Ghost architect for national competitions, Capri, Naples.

1935-1936

Study trip to the United States.

1936	Designs Casa Oro, Naples.

1937-1938

Partner of Giovanni Ponti, Milan, and editor of Domus.

1938-1941

Independent architect, São Paolo, Brazil.

1941	Second visit to the United States upon the invitation of the Museum of Modern Art, New York (MoMA) as the Brazilian winner of an inter-American design competition. Permanently resides in New York until his death.

1942-1943

Associate Editor and Art Director, New Pencil Points (now known as Progressive Architecture).

1944-1945

Director of Apparel Research, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Guest Director of Exhibitions, MoMA, for "Are Clothes Modern?"

1945	Receives New York State architectural license.

1946-1949

Editorial and Art Director, Interiors.

1956	Guest Director of Exhibitions, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) for "Textiles U.S.A."

1956-1957

Bemis Visiting Lecturer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

1957-1958

Chief Architect and Originator of the United States Government Exhibitions at the United States Pavilion, Brussels Universal Exposition.

1958-1960

Research Professor, Waseda University, Tokyo.

1961	Visiting Critic, Graduate School of Architecture, Yale University.

1961-1965

Consultant, Department of Architecture, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

1961-1963

Member, Advisory Screening Committee on Art & Architecture, United States Government Awards.

1964	Guest Director of Exhibitions, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) for "Architecture without architects."

1965	Guest Director of Exhibitions, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) for "Japanese Manuscript Maps" with works from his own collection.

1965-1966

Visiting Professor of Art, Yale.

1975	Guest Professor of Architecture, Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen.

1979-1981

Smithsonian Scholar in Residence, Cooper-Hewitt Museum, New York.

1988	Dies in New York.

Scope and Content of the Collection

Bernard Rudofsky's papers document his architectural and other design ideas through 56 notebooks with dense writings and pencil drawings, magazine cover designs, ca. 150 drawings of building studies and other designs, and plans, sketches and photographs of his building projects in Brazil, Italy and the United States. Included are his illustrated lectures, magazine articles by and about him, photographs of exhibition installations organized by Rudofsky, and examples of fashion designs. Also included are 33 travel notebooks (1948-1984) with writings and many drawings, and ca. 5500 color slides and 128 black and white photographic prints taken during his travels. Includes a copy of his dissertation.

Arrangement

The papers are arranged in 2 series: Series I. Working papers, ca. 1910-1987 Series II. Travel notebooks and photographs, ca. 1910-1987

Indexing Terms

Subjects

Rudofsky, Bernard, 1905-

Architecture—Brazil—São Paulo

Architecture—Italy—Capri

Architecture—United States

Architecture, Domestic

Clothing and dress

Fashion design

Genres and Form of Material

Architectural drawings

Notebooks

Photographic prints

Photographs, Original

Sketches

Slides (photographs)

Series I. Working papers, ca. 1910-1987

Physical Description: 7 boxes, 23 flat file folders, 1 roll

Scope and Content Note

Series contains 56 notebooks dense with writings and pencil drawings, and magazine articles by and about Rudofsky. Designs include his magazine cover designs, and circa 150 drawings, primarily building studies, done in watercolor, pencil and crayon. Plans, sketches and photographs document his building projects in Brazil, Italy and the United States. Other materials include his illustrated lectures, photographs of exhibition installations organized by Rudofsky, examples of fashion design, and a copy of of his doctoral dissertation.

Box 1-4

Working notebooks

Scope and Content Note

56 notebooks, densely written with drawings.

Box 5, Folder 1

Dissertation

Box 5, Folder 2

Lectures - Tokyo, 1931

Scope and Content Note

Eine primitive Betonbauweise auf den südlichen Kykladen, nebst dem versuch einer Datierung derselben.

Box 5, Folder 3

Lectures - Copenhagen, 1975

Box 5, Folder 4

Lectures - Provincetown, Virginia, Tallahassee, Bennington, Toronto

Box 5, Folder 5

Manuscripts of articles for Horizon and Cooper-Hewitt

Box 5, Folder 6

Eight articles by Rudofsky photocopied from Horizon

Box 5, Folder 7

"Golden eye" exhibition announcement

Box 5, Folder 8

Two sketchbooks

Scope and Content Note

total of 52 pencil and 13 watercolor drawings (see also oversize for more drawings).

Box 5, Folder 9

Fabric swatches

Box 6, Folder 1

Casa Oro, Naples, 1936

Scope and Content Note

29 photographs of structure and architectural drawings.

Box 6, Folder 2

Tennis club, Naples, ca. 1930s

Scope and Content Note

9 photographs of models and architectural drawings.

Box 6, Folder 3

Casa a Procida, Italy, ca. 1930s

Scope and Content Note

7 photographs of models.

Box 6, Folder 4

Casa Arnstein, São Paolo, 1940

Scope and Content Note

12 photographs of models and structure.

Box 6, Folder 5

Casa Frontini, São Paolo, 1940

Scope and Content Note

14 photographs of structure. [House for Dr. Virgilio Frontini.]

Box 6, Folder 6

Swiss watch shop, São Paolo, ca. 1938-1941

Scope and Content Note

4 photographs of exterior and interior.

Box 6, Folder 7

U.S. Pavilion, Brussels Universal Exposition, 1957-1958

Scope and Content Note

21 photographs of pavilion and model.

Box 6, Folder 8

Carmel House, Bloomfield Hills, ca. 1962

Scope and Content Note

2 photographs of exterior of house for Jim Carmel.

Box 6, Folder 9

House garden, Long Island, n.d.

Scope and Content Note

4 photographs of exterior garden.

Box 6, Folder 10

Bernardo sandals, ca. 1950s

Scope and Content Note

21 photographs of live models and manikins wearing sandals.

Box 6, Folder 11

Stimulus fabric, n.d.

Scope and Content Note

5 photographs of fabric designed by Rudofsky.

Box 6, Folder 12

"Are clothes modern?" 1944

Scope and Content Note

14 photographs of live models and Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) installation.

Box 6, Folder 13

"The Third Rome" in Architectural Review, 1951

Scope and Content Note

37 photographs of Rome.

Box 6, Folder 14

"Textiles U.S.A.," 1956

Scope and Content Note

8 photographs of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) installation.

Box 6, Folder 15

"Japanese vernacular graphics," 1961

Scope and Content Note

11 photographs of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) installation.

Box 6, Folder 16

"Roads," 1961

Scope and Content Note

9 photographs of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) installation.

Box 6, Folder 17

"Architecture without architects," 1964

Scope and Content Note

1 photograph of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) installation.

Box 6, Folder 18

"Now I lay me down to eat," 1980

Scope and Content Note

2 photographs of Cooper-Hewitt installation.

Box 25*, Folder 1-2

Drawings

Scope and Content Note

38 watercolor sketches of Istanbul, 1925 and France, 1926.

Box 25*, Folder 3

Drawings

Scope and Content Note

15 sheets with pencil and crayon drawings on recto and verso, drawn during Rudofsky's pre-school days.

Box 25*, Folder 4

Designs

Scope and Content Note

3 sheets of geometric patterns done in crayon.

Box 25*, Folder 5

Journal articles

Scope and Content Note

"Una casa a Procida: dell'arch. Bernhard Rudofsky" in Casabella September 1937 (2 sets of clippings) and "Der wohltemperierte Wohnhof" in Umriss 1/86.

Box 25*, Folder 6

Journal articles

Scope and Content Note

Photocopies of articles by or about Rudofsky, including "The Third Rome" in Architectural Review, July 1951.

Box 25*, Folder 7

Fashion tearsheets

Scope and Content Note

30 sheets of Rudofsky fashion designs and reviews of "Are clothes modern?"

Flat file folder 1-11**

Architectural drawings

Flat file folder 1**

Tennis Club, Naples, 1935

Scope and Content Note

2 perspectives, pencil and crayon.

Flat file folder 2**

Casa Oro, Naples1935

Scope and Content Note

10 drawings: elevations, plans, axonometric views.

3 pencil drawings on tracing paper.

4 ink drawings on tracing paper.

2 crayon drawings and 1 pencil drawing.

Roll 1**

Casa Oro, Naplesca. 1935

Scope and Content Note

1 ink drawing: elevation.

Flat file folder 3**

Teatrum Nudum, 1936

Scope and Content Note

4 ink drawings on tracing paper: 3 elevations, 1 plan.

Flat file folder 4**

Casa Frontini, São Paolo, 1939-1941

Scope and Content Note

3 drawings on 4 sheets.

1 (ink?) drawing on 2 sheets of tracing paper.

1 pencil drawing on tracing paper: view of courtyard.

1 ink drawing on paper: cross section through courtyard.

Flat file folder 5**

Casa Frontini, São Paolo, 1939-1941

Scope and Content Note

2 blueprints: plans.

Flat file folder 6**

Casa Arnstein, São Paolo, 1939-1941

Scope and Content Note

1 blueprint: plan, plus 3 copies.

Flat file folder 7**

Casa Cuaruja, Feb - Mar 1940

Scope and Content Note

6 drawings on tracing paper:

5 ink drawings numbered D1-D4 and R-8: plans, sections, elevations; and 1 pencil sketch of elevation.

Flat file folder 8**

Carmel house (Bloomfield Hills, MI), garden design, 1962

Scope and Content Note

4 pencil drawings on tracing paper: plans.

Flat file folder 9**

Exhibition design: Architecture without architects, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), 1964

Scope and Content Note

4 drawings on tracing paper:

1 pencil drawing: section through elevation; and 3 ink drawings: plans.

Flat file folder 10**

Exhibition design: Architecture without architects, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), 1964

Scope and Content Note

1 blackline drawing: plan.

Flat file folder 11**

Rudofsky house (Frigiliana, Spain), 1969-1971

Scope and Content Note

4 ink drawings on tracing paper: plans elevations, sections.

Flat file folder 12-20**

Travel drawings, 1927-1940, undated

Flat file folder 12**

Italy, 1927

Scope and Content Note

10 watercolors (Bologna, Fiesole, Firenze (Florence), Siena, Anacona, and unidentified).

Flat file folder 13**

Greece (Santorini), 1929

Scope and Content Note

2 mounted watercolors.

Flat file folder 14**

Greece (Santorini), 1929

Scope and Content Note

2 mounted watercolors.

Flat file folder 15**

Greece (Santorini), 1929

Scope and Content Note

5 watercolors.

Flat file folder 16**

Italy (Sicily and Venice), 1931

Scope and Content Note

9 watercolors.

Flat file folder 17**

Capri, 1932

Scope and Content Note

9 watercolors.

Flat file folder 18**

Unidentified, 1933

Scope and Content Note

2 watercolors.

Flat file folder 19**

Brazil, ca. 1939-1940

Scope and Content Note

4 watercolors.

Flat file folder 20**

Unidentified, undated

Scope and Content Note

8 watercolors.

Flat file folder 21-23**

Other designs

Flat file folder 21**

Figure drawings, ca. 1943-1944

Scope and Content Note

2 drawings for Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) exhibit, Are clothes modern?

Flat file folder 22**

Magazine covers, 1943, undated

Scope and Content Note

10 (?) cover designs:

New Pencil Points, 6 covers, 1943, undated.

Interiors, 3 covers, 1946-1947.

Empire State Architect, 1 cover, undated.

Flat file folder 23**

Poster for Sparta Sybaris exhibit, MAK, Vienna, 1987

Scope and Content Note

1 poster in 4 parts.

Series II. Travel notebooks and photographs, ca. 1910-1987

Physical Description: 18 boxes

Scope and Content Note

Thirty-three notebooks record Rudofsky's travels and design ideas in words and drawings. Circa 128 black-and-white photographs and ca. 5500 slides also record his travels and interests in other countries.

Box 7-9

Travel notebooks, 1948-1984

Scope and Content Note

33 notebooks, densely written with drawings.

Box 10, Folder 1-13

Travel photographs

Box 10, Folder 1

Italy

Scope and Content Note

20 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 2

France

Scope and Content Note

5 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 3

Spain

Scope and Content Note

31 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 4

Portugal

Scope and Content Note

7 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 5

Malta

Scope and Content Note

9 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 6

Romania

Scope and Content Note

9 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 7

Yugoslavia

Scope and Content Note

3 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 8-9

Greece

Scope and Content Note

22 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 10

Morocco

Scope and Content Note

4 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 11

Turkey

Scope and Content Note

9 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 12

India

Scope and Content Note

7 photographs.

Box 10, Folder 13

Japan

Scope and Content Note

2 photographs.

Box 11-24

Color travel slides

Scope and Content Note

Circa 5500 slides. Only partially identified.

Box 11-12

Italy

Box 13

France

Box 14-15

Spain and Portugal

Box 16

Austria

Box 17

Malta, England, Holland, Rumania, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia

Box 18

Greece and United States

Box 19

Morocco

Box 20-21

Turkey

Box 22-23

India

Box 24

Asia (mostly Japan, Italy and other places

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