BY ERIN RUSHING
This post was written by Katie
Martin, Summer 2016 Art Deco Trade Literature Research internat the National
Museum of American History Library.
For six weeks in June and July,
my task was to research and identify materials from the trade literature and
world’s fair collections housed at the National Museum of American History
Library that showcase the Art Deco period in Chicago.
I earned bachelor’s degrees in
History and American Studies from Purdue University and am currently working
toward a master’s in Library Science with a specialization in Archives and
Records Management from Indiana University. With my background, I could not ask
for a better place to complete my required internship credits than the National
Museum of American History Library.
I began researching the Art Deco
period in Chicago before I left Indiana for the summer. Art Deco style stemmed
from the exhibitions of the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et
Industrials Modernes held in Paris in 1925. Following the exposition, the style
made its way into the US and pervaded all aspects of design including
architecture, fashion, interior design, and household accessories. Art Deco
reflected advances in technology and industry by incorporating geometric
details, bright colors, and clean lines. At its height in the years between the
two World Wars, the style was referred to as modern, modernistic, or art
moderne. The 1933-1934 Chicago World’s
Fair, known as “A Century of Progress International Exposition,” was the peak
of the Art Deco movement in the Midwest. The Fair was held to celebrate the
city’s centennial and to illustrate progress in the fields of science,
engineering, social science, transportation, public health, and business. The
organizers decided to utilize an Art Deco motif because it was functional,
modern, simplistic, and served as a visual representation of progress.
Owens-Illinois Glass Company,
Toledo, OH. Owens-Illinois Glass Containers 1934 Chicago World’s Fair, 1934,
first pages of World’s Fair brochure.
When I arrived for my internship,
I was glad I started the research process early. The trade literature
collection consists of over 460,000 items that might include catalogs,
advertisements, price lists, company histories, manuals, and other related
materials representing over 36,000 companies.
Because the collection is so varied, it offers valuable insight into the
history of business, design, and consumerism. Six weeks is a short period of
time to look for materials in such a vast collection, so I tried to stick to a
research plan from the beginning.
I started by looking at the
library’s secondary source materials on Art Deco architecture, jewelry, appliances,
and décor to create a short list of Chicago companies with promising
connections to the 1933-34 World’s Fair. This was a great place to start and I
succeeded in finding catalogs featuring neon lighting, chandeliers, and
futuristic exhibitions for the Fair in my first week. After I completed this
list, I waded through 144 pages of search results from theCollections Search
Center. I searched for the term “Chicago” in the trade literature and looked
for companies with descriptions related to architecture, interior design,
household products, and general wholesale. This process kept me busy for weeks.
The collection has a minimum level of description in the online catalog because
it would be difficult to create an item-level description for companies that produced
hundreds of catalogs. The Westinghouse Electric and Mfg. Co., for example, has
over 9,000 individual pieces from the late 1800s to the mid-1900s. In this
case, I searched through several boxes and found one catalog related to modern
lighting for movie theaters.
Joseph Hagn, Co., Chicago, IL.
Annual Counter Catalog No. 39, 1938, page 682, juvenile wagons.
Throughout my internship, I found
beautiful illustrations and pictures of interior and exterior lighting,
decorative glass, jewelry, and furniture that showcased the modern style in
Chicago. Interestingly, modern-style products were often mixed in alongside
items crafted in traditional styles. I expected to find architectural and
interior design elements; however, I was surprised to see Art Deco toasters,
waffle irons, wallets, and even baby carriages in my research! My favorite find
was a catalog called “Vitrolite Bathrooms – Kitchens” from the Vitrolite
Company that featured high-end Art Deco bathrooms described as “the dream come
true of many whose tastes have been hard to satisfy.”
Vitrolite Co., Chicago, IL.
Vitrolite Bathrooms – Kitchens, circa 1935, bathroom interior.
By the end of my internship, I
found more than 80 individual catalogs in the collection and looked through
materials from more than 150 companies. Ultimately, my list will be used to
determine a digitization plan for these materials in the future.
Although I spent a lot of time
digging into the trade literature, it was not all work and no play. I had the
opportunity to tour the Library of Congress with a Rare Book Cataloguer, go
behind-the-scenes at the National Zoo, and attend the annual staff picnic at
the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. My team even won the Smithsonian Intern
Scavenger Hunt! It was a wonderful experience and I’ll never forget my summer
in Washington, D.C. with the Smithsonian Libraries.
Sources consulted:
Ganz, Cheryl. The 1933 Chicago
World’s Fair: a century of progress. Urbana: University of Illinois Press,
2008.
Weber, Eva. Art Deco in North
America. London: Bison Books, 1985.