Harvey Smith Jr. visual arts materials
Scope and Contents
This collection contains works collected by Harvey M. Smith Jr. and his original designs. Materials in this collection by Smith are illustrated works with a focus on the human figure, the natural world, decorative arts and designs and paintings by Claud J. Herndon. The collected works further include photographic prints and negatives of the Smith and Robertson families, and residences; photographs of Claud Herndon (1912-1980); and photography from Smith’s research on the history of potpourri.
Original materials produced by Harvey M. Smith Jr. include drawings, posters, and paintings. Also included are wallpaper and textile samples created by Smith for The Window Shop, Patterson Fabrics, Decorator's Walk, and Piazza Prints. Of particular note is a scrapbook containing pages from Ackermann's Repository of the Arts in which Smith incorporated textile samples and the collaborative “Camilla Project” between Smith and Herndon.
Dates
- 1648-1991, undated
- Majority of material found in 1830-1991
Creator
- Smith, Harvey M., 1906-1994 (Person)
- Herndon, Claud J., 1912-1980 (Person)
- Ackermann, Rudolph, 1764-1834 (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
This material is protected by copyright law. (Title 17, U.S. Code) Permission for use must be cleared through the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center. Licensing agreement may be required.
Biographical / Historical
Harvey M. Smith Jr. (1906-1994) was born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Harvey Smith Sr. (1866-1944) and Minnie Robertson Smith (1873-1963). Smith Sr. was a superintendent for the Southern Express Company. Smith Jr. graduated from Boys High School in 1924 and attended Emory University and Oglethorpe University. In the 1930s, Smith traveled through Western Europe and studied architecture in Italy. Upon his return to the United States he became a publisher for Southern Architectural Review. Between 1943 and 1958, he served in the United States Marine Corps, attaining the rank of major in 1951. He later moved to New York City, where he ran interior design and fabric companies that specialized in curtains and wallpaper with floral motifs. Although his research was never published, Smith researched textiles, the Civil War, his family genealogy, and the history of Chambers County, Alabama, where the Smith family originated. Smith was also a collector of decorative arts, fine arts, rare books, and documents. From the late 1940s until his passing, Smith split his time between his homes in Beaufort, South Carolina, New York City, and his hotel in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. His personal collections are held at Atlanta History Center, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cooper-Hewitt Museum, Michael C. Carlos Museum, Juliette Gordon Low House, and the Staten Island Institute of Arts and Sciences.
Extent
331 item(s) (104 paintings, 81 black and white photographic prints, 52 wallpaper samples, 16 color photographic prints, 16 drawings, 14 pages of descriptive information, 11 pages of photocopied correspondence, nine color negatives, eight black and white negatives, six magazine clippings, four scrapbooks, three textile samples, two ambrotypes, two posters, one black and white photocopy of a news clipping, one stereograph, and one unbound book)
Language
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged alphabetically according to titles supplied by staff.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift, 1974, with subsequent additions
Bias in Description
As archivists, we acknowledge our role as stewards of information. We choose how individuals and organizations are represented and described in our archives. We are not neutral, and bias is reflected in our descriptions, which may not accurately convey the racist or offensive aspects of collection materials. Archivists make mistakes and might use poor judgment. In working with this collection, we often re-use language used by the former owners of the material. This language provides context but often includes bias and prejudices reflective of the time in which it was created. The Kenan Research Center’s work is ongoing to implement reparative language where Library of Congress subject terms are inaccurate and obsolete.
Kenan Research Center welcomes feedback and questions regarding our archival descriptions. If you encounter harmful, offensive, or insensitive terminology or descriptions, please let us know by emailing reference@atlantahistorycenter.com. Your comments are essential to our work to create inclusive and thoughtful description.
Content Advisory
This collection contains original unedited versions of all content. Some material may contain depictions of violence, offensive language, or negative stereotypes reflecting the culture or language of a particular period or place. There may be instances of racist language and depictions, particularly regarding African Americans and Indigenous people. These items are presented as part of the historical record for the purpose of education and research. The viewpoints expressed in this collection do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of the Atlanta History Center or any of its officers, agents, employees, or volunteers.
Processing Information
This collection was processed in 2024.
- Architecture, Domestic -- Georgia -- Atlanta
- Art and design
- Botanical illustration
- Camellias in art
- Decoration and ornament
- Decorative arts
- Draperies
- Flowers in art
- Flowers in art
- Furniture design
- Herndon, Claud J., 1912-1980
- Interior decoration
- Nature in art
- Portrait photography
- Potpourris (Scented floral mixtures)
- Robertson family
- Smith family
- Smith, Harvey M., 1906-1994
- Wallpaper
- Title
- Harvey Smith Jr. visual arts materials
- Subtitle
- ahc.VIS450
- Author
- Vivian Cannella
- Date
- July 2024
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository