Tucked away among the letters, diaries, and other ephemera in the Smithsonian's archives lies a trove of rarely seen snapshots of some of the twentieth century's most celebrated artists. Unlike the familiar official portraits and genius-at-work shots, these humble snaps capture creative giants with their guard down, in the moment, living life. Pablo Picasso stands proudly on a balcony with young daughter Maya—a tiny, meticulously inked annotation penned by an unknown hand proclaims that "he's very much in love." Jackson Pollock morosely carves a turkey while his mother, Stella, and wife, Lee Krasner, look on. A young Andy Warhol clowns for the camera with college friend Philip Pearlstein, and in a later shot more closely resembles his famously enigmatic public self at a gallery opening with John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

From the weekly shopping list to the Ten Commandments, our lives are shaped by lists. Whether dashed off as a quick reminder, or carefully constructed as an inventory, this humble form of documentation provides insight into its maker's personal habits and decision-making processes. This is especially true for artists, whose day-to-day acts of living and art-making overlap and inform each other. Artists' lists shed uncover a host of unbeknownst motivations, attitudes, and opinions about their work and the work of others. Lists presents almost seventy artifacts, including "to do" lists, membership lists, lists of paintings sold, lists of books to read, lists of appointments made and met, lists of supplies to get, lists of places to see, and lists of people who are "in." At times introspective, humorous, and resolute, but always revealing and engaging, Lists is a unique firsthand account of American cultural history that augments the personal biographies of some of the most celebrated and revered artists of thelast two centuries. Many of the lists are historically important, throwing a flood of light on a moment, movement, or event; others are private, providing an intimate view of an artist's personal life: Pablo Picasso itemized his recommendations for the Armory Show in 1912; architect Eero Saarinen enumerated the good qualities of the then New York Times art editor and critic Aline Bernstein, his second wife; sculptor Alexander Calder's address book reveals the whos who of the Parisian avant-garde in the early twentieth century. In the hands of their creators, these artifacts become works of art in and of themselves. Lists includes rarely seen specimens by Vito Acconci, Leo Castelli, Joseph Cornell, Hans Hofmann, Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, Lee Krasner, H. L. Mencken, Robert Motherwell, Barnett Newman, Jackson Pollock, Richard Pousette-Dart, Robert Rauschenberg, Ad Reinhardt, Mark Rothko, Clyfford Still, and Andrew Wyeth.

Published in conjunction with the Smithsonian's Archives of American Art, this book provides insight to the work of American artists and their unique studio spaces. Over 100 photographs with letters and other primary source materials (notes, sketchbook pages, invitations, etc.) offer an intimate perspective on the work and studios of over 100 significant American artists from the late 19th century to the 1970s. ARTISTS IN THEIR STUDIOS shows the evolution of studio spaces and by extension the public/private personae of the artists. It also informs the public about the holdings of the Smithsonian's Archives and creates an awareness of the value of these primary sources as historical evidence.

Reading other peoples' love letters brings out the voyeur in most of us. These deeply personal communications have the power to make us blush or, at the very least, to let us observe a tender moment in the lives of others. With Love: Artists' Letters and Illustrated Notes, a selection of more than forty affectionate communiqués and rare photographs from the Smithsonian's Archives of American Art, provides a glimpse into the private affairs of some of our greatest creative minds, celebrating romantic and familial love, as well as friendship. This beautifully designed book is a treasury of love letters, illustrated poetry, collages, and drawings in various media from renowned talent such as Frida Kahlo, Ee ro Saarinen, Lee Krasner, and Gio Ponti. A separate section containing complete transcriptions of all the supplementary materials further enriches this fascinating, visually rich, and collectible volume.

For more than a decade, Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner devoted their lives to each other, serving in turn as muse, critic, companion, lover, friend and alter ego. Their romance was stormy - their raucous arguments are the stuff of legend - but their talents were prodigious. This book is packed with examples of the contributions both artists made to the world of modern art. Readers will learn how Pollock and Krasners artistry evolved and how they influenced each others success. Recent developments, such as a revealing biopic and the art worlds elevation of Pollock to the status of being the most expensive artist in the world, bring their portrait fully up-to-date. While the author acknowledges historys sensationalisation of their lives, it is the paintings themselves - revolutionary, innovative and daring - that tell the most compelling story.

Robert Smithson (1938-1973), one of the most important artists of his generation, produced sculpture, drawings, photographs, films, and paintings in addition to the writings collected here.

Collects the best artwork created before, during and following the Civil War, in the years between 1859 and 1876, along with extensive quotations from men and women alive during the war years and text by literary figures, including Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain and Walt Whitman. 15,000 first printing.

Explores how one group of Latin American artists express their relationship to American art, history and culture.

Asian American Art: A History, 1850-1970 is a first-ever survey exploring the lives and artistic production of artists of Asian Ancestry active in the United States before 1970, and features ten essays by leading scholars, biographies of more than 150 artists, and more than 400 reproductions of artwork and photographs of artists, together creating compelling narratives of this heretofore forgotten American art history.

Cats, cats, and more cats! Expressive or aloof, affectionate or enigmatic, cats have complicated characters that make them compelling artists' muses. Artful Cats explores the quirky and charming relationships of artists with their cats in 130 rarely seen photos, paintings, sketches, manuscripts, and letters from the Archives of American Art. Jasper Johns, Frank Stella, Louise Nevelson, Marcel Breuer, Yves Tanguy, Georgia O'Keeffe, Edward Weston, Robert Indiana, Judy Chicago, Berenice Abbott, and Romare Bearden show off their artful cats, which appear as companions, inspirations, instigators, and often regents of the home or studio. The images, culled from the archive's extensive holdings from the nineteenth century through today, celebrate our cultural heritage through our enduring fascination, love, and bemusement with our feline familiars. A foreword by Kate Haw, director of the Archives of American Art, describes how these archival treasures provide a window on unexpected and personal details of celebrated artists' lives and work.