Finding Aid to the Edward DeCelle Papers, 1969-2001
Finding Aid written by Josh Schneider
The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, California, 94720-6000
Phone: (510) 642-6481
Fax: (510) 642-7589
Email: bancref@library.berkeley.edu
URL: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/
© 2006
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Finding Aid to the Edward DeCelle Papers, 1969-2001
Collection Number: BANC MSS 2005/185c
The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, California
- Finding Aid Written By:
- Josh Schneider
- Date Completed:
-
November 2006
© 2006 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Collection Summary
Collection Title: Edward DeCelle papers,
Date (inclusive): 1969-2001
Collection Number: BANC MSS 2005/185c
Creators :
DeCelle, Edward Brooks
Extent:
Number of containers: 2 cartons
Linear feet: 2.5
Repository: The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, California, 94720-6000
Phone: (510) 642-6481
Fax: (510) 642-7589
Email: bancref@library.berkeley.edu
URL: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/
Abstract: The Edward DeCelle Papers, 1969-2001, includes the correspondence, transaction records and research files of art collector
and former San Francisco gallery owner Edward Brooks DeCelle.
Languages Represented: Collection materials are in English
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
Information for Researchers
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from or otherwise use collection materials must be submitted in writing to the Head
of Public Services, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 94270-6000. Consent is given on behalf of The
Bancroft Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission from the copyright
owner. Such permission must be obtained from the copyright owner. See:
http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/reference/permissions.html .
Restrictions also apply to digital representations of the original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research
and educational purposes.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Edward DeCelle Papers, BANC MSS 2005/185c, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
Alternate Forms Available
There are no alternate forms of this collection.
Separated Material
Photographs have been transferred to the Pictorial Collections of The Bancroft Library.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Barton, Crawford, 1943-
Mapplethorpe, Robert--Exhibitions
Tress, Arthur--Exhibitions
DeCelle, Edward Brooks--Archives
Art--Collectors and collecting--California--San Francisco
Art--Exhibitions
Art galleries, Commercial--California--San Francisco
Censorship--United States--History--20th century
Arts--Censorship
Gay artists--Exhibitions
Administrative Information
Acquisition Information
The Edward DeCelle Papers were given to The Bancroft Library by Margaret DeCelle on February 17, 2005.
Accruals
No additions are expected.
Processing Information
Processed by Josh Schneider in 2005.
Biographical Information
Edward Brooks DeCelle was a gallery owner, curator, and fine art collector based primarily in San Francisco and Washington,
D.C. Perhaps best known for the curation of the 1979 exhibit at 80 Langton in San Francisco entitled "Censored" showcasing
the works of Robert Mapplethorpe, DeCelle was heavily influential in the gay renaissance of the 1970's and 1980's in San Francisco.
From 1972-1983, DeCelle ran the Lawson DeCelle Gallery in SF, which had a strong reputation as a waypoint for young, talented
gay artists. He was also a founding board member of 80 Langton (now New Langton Arts) in San Francisco. He later moved to
Washington D.C. and became highly involved in the art scene there. DeCelle donated countless works to galleries and museums
across the United States, including the Corcoran, Getty, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, National Portrait Gallery, and
the Whitney.
Other prominent artists represented by DeCelle include photographers Crawford Barton and Arthur Tress.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Edward Brooks DeCelle Papers, 1969-2001, includes the correspondence, transaction records and research files of art collector
and former San Francisco gallery owner Edward Brooks DeCelle.
Coverage of Robert Mapplethorpe's earliest West Coast exhibitions, including the surrounding controversy, is particularly
strong. As DeCelle was personally acquainted with many of the key players in that important moment in art history, an insider's
viewpoint is frequently revealed. Other notable correspondents include Arthur Tress, Crawford Barton, Thom Gunn, and San Francisco
socialite Katharine Cebrian.
Series 1
Performances/ Exhibitions
1978-2001
Physical Description:
Carton 1, Folders 1-7
Arrangement
Arranged Chronologically
Scope and Content Note
This series includes materials from multiple Robert Mapplethorpe photograph and film exhibitions, including one curated by
DeCelle at the Lawson-DeCelle gallery in San Francisco. Of particular interest is coverage of the cancellation of a 1989 Mapplethorpe
exhibit at the Corcoran Gallery in Washington D.C. entitled
The Perfect Moment, an act which some perceived as an accommodation to conservative sentiment at a time when the National Endowment for the Arts
was coming under increasingly sharp attack. A guidebook from an Arthur Tress Retrospective is also included.
Carton 1, Folder 4-6
The Perfect Moment
1989-1990
Series 2
Subject Files
1969-2001
Physical Description:
Carton 1, Folders 8-43; Carton 2, Folders 1-4
Arrangement
Arranged Alphabetically
Scope and Content Note
This series comprises the personal and professional subject files maintained by DeCelle. Files may include correspondence,
press materials, transaction records, and articles.
Carton 1, Folder 9
Press Materials
1991-1997
Carton 1, Folder 13
Cebrian, Katharine
1983-1992
Carton 1, Folder 15
Drici, Milou-Daniel
1996-1998
Carton 1, Folder 18
Fritscher, Jack
1990-1998
Carton 1, Folder 27
Lorenz, Richard
1978-1998
Carton 1, Folder 28
Lucie-Smith, Edmund
1997-1999
Carton 1, Folder 32
Press Materials
1978-1989
Carton 1, Folder 33
Mardikian, Anita & Pepo Pichler
1981-1998
Carton 1, Folder 36
Morgan, Richard
1994-1998
Carton 1, Folder 38
Odocha, Okay Harold
Undated
Carton 1, Folder 42
Stevens, Bradley
1996-2000
Carton 2, Folder 1-2
Publicity Materials
1993-1997
Carton 2, Folder 4-5
Various Artists
1993-2001
Carton 2, Folder 6
Venera, Michael
1984-1996
Series 3
Galleries
1976-2000
Physical Description:
Carton 2, Folders 5-22
Arrangement
Arranged Alphabetically
Scope and Content Note
This series includes the professional subject files DeCelle kept on galleries and collectors. It consists primarily of professional
correspondence, transaction records, press materials, and articles.
Carton 2, Folder 9
Archives of American Art
1996
Carton 2, Folder 10
Baltimore Museum of Art
1995-1997
Carton 2, Folder 11
Columbia University Rare Book and Manuscript Library
1995-1996
Carton 2, Folder 12
Corcoran Gallery of Art
1989-2000
Carton 2, Folder 13
Gay and Lesbian Historical Society of Northern California
1992-1998
Carton 2, Folder 14
Grey Art Gallery, New York University
1995-1996
Carton 2, Folder 15
High Museum of Art, Atlanta
1994-1995
Carton 2, Folder 16
J. Paul Getty Museum
1994-1995
Carton 2, Folder 17
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
1995
Carton 2, Folder 18
National Gallery of Art
1995-1999
Carton 2, Folder 19
National Portrait Gallery
1994-1997
Carton 2, Folder 20
National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian
1991-1994
Carton 2, Folder 22
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
1995-1998
Carton 2, Folder 23
Wessel & O'Conner Gallery
1997-1998
Carton 2, Folder 24
Whitney Museum of American Art
1996-1997
Carton 2, Folder 25-26
80 Langton, San Francisco
1976-1981
Carton 2, Folder 27
544 Natoma, San Francisco
1983