Art Alliance of America Scrapbook, 1918-1919

  • IdentificationPUBLIC "-//The Art Institute of Chicago::Ryerson and Burnham Art and Architecture Archives//(US::ICA::00.13::ART ALLIANCE OF AMERICA SCRAPBOOK, 1918-1919)//EN" "ica000013.xml"
  • TitleArt Alliance of America Scrapbook, 1918-1919
  • PublisherArt Institute of Chicago Archives, Research Center, The Art Institute of Chicago,
  • Language
    • English.
    • English
  • Date1918-1919
  • Physical Description
    • 0.1 linear feet (1 box)
    • Bound scrapbooks containing printed paper.
  • RepositoryRyerson and Burnham Art and Architecture Archives, The Art Institute of Chicago 111 S. Michigan Ave. Chicago, IL 60603-6110 archives@artic.edu https://www.artic.edu/archival-collections
  • AbstractA scrapbook documents the activities of the Art Alliance of America between 1918 and 1919.
  • OriginationArt Alliance of America.
  • LocationThe collection is housed in the Art Institute of Chicago Archives’ on-site stacks.

The Art Alliance of America was concerned with the state of industrial arts in America. It was established to raise public awareness of the lack of artistic creativity in the industrial goods produced by America and the poor education of our designers. This organization was concerned with the inability of the United States to compete with the highly creative design elements of the European industries - that American products were boring and made in the interest of the manufacturer and not the consumer. The Art Alliance of America proposed to bring together artists and artisans from across the country to supply American industries with designers and craftspeople who would improve product design and advertising. The Alliance also proposed a new educational system to perpetuate new concepts for joining the arts and industry. It used the endorsements from the Smith-Hughes Bill passed in Congress to provide funds for industrial arts education, an idea borrowed from Europe. The group sponsored exhibitions on interior design, textiles, and books, as well as various demonstrations on subjects such as good taste in home furnishings.

The scrapbook is a compilation of various newspaper clippings and pamphlets regarding the establishment of the Art Alliance of America in the Midwest. The clippings span the years from 1918, when the first hearing on the creation of a Central States chapter took place, to 1919, when the first exhibition exemplifying the ideals of the group was installed. The sixteen-page scrapbook contains news clippings, invitations to the various conferences and luncheons, pamphlets regarding the exhibitions, and a catalogue of the New York exhibition featuring twenty-six different industrial art schools.

The newspaper clippings and pamphlets are arranged in chronological order.

  • Names
    • Art Alliance of America.
    • Art Alliance of America--History--Sources.
    • Art Alliance of America. Central States Chapter--History--Sources.
  • Subject
    • Design, Industrial--United States--History--Sources.
    • Design, Industrial--United States--Societies, etc.

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The Art Institute of Chicago is providing access to the materials in the Archives' collections solely for noncommercial educational and research purposes. The unauthorized use, including, but not limited to, publication of the materials without the prior written permission of the Art Institute is strictly prohibited. All inquiries regarding permission to publish should be submitted in writing to the Director, Art Institute of Chicago Archives. In addition to permission from the Art Institute, permission of the copyright owner (if not the Art Institute) and/or any holder of other rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) may also be required for reproduction, publication, distribution, and other uses. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of any item and securing any necessary permissions rests with the persons desiring to publish the item. The Art Institute makes no warranties as to the accuracy of the materials or their fitness for a particular purpose.

The Art Alliance of America Scrapbook, Ryerson and Burnham Art and Architecture Archives, The Art Institute of Chicago.

The source of acquisition is unknown at this time.

This scrapbook was transferred from the Ryerson and Burnham Libraries to the Ryerson and Burnham Archives.

The collection was processed by the staff of the Ryerson and Burnham Archives. The finding aid was revised and expanded by Jeffrey Massanova and Annemarie van Roessel of the Ryerson and Burnham Archive in 2003.