Scope and Contents
The collection consists of material created and accumulated by James Lord in the course of his activities as an art critic and writer, and includes drafts of writings, research material, correspondence, photographs, and audiovisual recordings. Correspondence (Series I) is both personal and professional, and relates chiefly to the artistic and literary world of mid- and late-twentieth-century Paris. Writings (Series II) include Lord's extensive research files, drafts, and primary sources for Giacometti: A Biography. Drafts and correspondence relating to Lord's memoirs, including his letters from his mother that he used as source material for Six Exceptional Women: Further Memoirs (1994), are also filed in the Writings series. Visual Material (Series III) includes photographs of Pablo Picasso by Lord and an unidentified photographer, and photographs of Lord in the 1950s and 1960s, including portraits by Henri Cartier-Bresson. Series III also includes drawings by Jean Cocteau and others. Audiovisual recordings (Series IV) relate chiefly to Lord's research on Alberto Giacometti and include interviews and lectures. Personal Papers (Series V) consist of Lord's 1960 passport and fragmentary portions of his journals. Printed Material (Series VI) consists chiefly of clippings and magazine articles related to Lord and his research. A small amount of printed ephemera is also filed in Series VI.
Dates
- 1909-2018
- Majority of material found within 1946 - 2003
Creator
Language of Materials
In English and French.
Conditions Governing Access
The materials are open for research.
Boxes 80-81 (audiovisual material): Restricted fragile. Reference copies may be requested. Consult Access Services for further information.
Existence and Location of Copies
Reference copies of sound recordings are available.
Conditions Governing Use
The James Lord Papers is the physical property of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the appropriate curator.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of James Lord, 1982-2009, unless otherwise noted on folder labels.
2016 and 2017 Acquisitions: Purchased from Glenn Horowitz Bookseller, Inc., on the Edwin J. Beinecke Book Fund, 2016, 2017.
2020 Acquisition: Gift of Gilles Roy Lord, 2020.
Arrangement
Organized into eleven series: I. Correspondence, 1946-2002. II. Writings, 1917-2003. III. Visual Material, 1924-1964. IV. Audiovisual Recordings,1982-2002. V. Personal Papers, circa 1950-2001. VI. Printed Material, 1949-circa 2003. VII. March 2016 Acquisition. VIII. July 2016 Acquisition. IX. October 2016 Acquisition. X. April 2017 Acquisition, 1960-2017. XI. March 2020 Acquisition, 1950-2018.
Extent
38.72 Linear Feet (95 boxes)
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Abstract
The collection consists of material created and accumulated by James Lord in the course of his activities as an art critic and writer, and includes drafts of writings, research material, correspondence, photographs, and audiovisual recordings. Correspondence (Series I) is both personal and professional, and relates chiefly to the artistic and literary world of mid- and late-twentieth-century Paris. Writings (Series II) include Lord's extensive research files, drafts, and primary sources for Giacometti: A Biography. Drafts and correspondence relating to Lord's memoirs, including letters from his mother that he used as source material for Six Exceptional Women: Further Memoirs (1994), are also filed in the Writings series. Visual Material (Series III) includes photographs of Pablo Picasso by Lord and an unidentified photographer, and photographs of Lord in the 1950s and 1960s, including portraits by Henri Cartier-Bresson. Series III also includes drawings by Jean Cocteau and others. Audiovisual recordings (Series IV) relate chiefly to Lord's research on Alberto Giacometti and include interviews and lectures. Personal Papers (Series V) consist of Lord's 1960 passport and fragmentary portions of his journals. Printed Material (Series VI) consists chiefly of clippings and magazine articles related to Lord and his research. A small amount of printed ephemera is also filed in Series VI.
James Lord, 1922-2009
James Lord was an American writer and art critic who lived in France from 1945 until his death. He authored several works on the artist Alberto Giacometti, including A Giacometti Portrait (1965), Alberto Giacometti Drawings (1971), Giacometti: A Biography (1985), and Mythic Giacometti (2004). His memoirs and portraits of the artistic and literary world include Picasso and Dora: A Personal Memoir (1993), Six Exceptional Women: Further Memoirs (1994), Some Remarkable Men: Further Memoirs (1996), and My Queer War (2010).
Processing Information
Collections are processed to a variety of levels, depending on the work necessary to make them usable, their perceived research value, the availability of staff, and competing priorities. The library attempts to provide a basic level of preservation and access for all collections, and does more extensive processing of higher priority collections as time and resources permit.
This collection received a basic level of processing, including rehousing and minimal organization.
As a rule, descriptive information found in the Collection Contents section is drawn in large part from information supplied with the collection and from an initial survey of the contents. Folder titles appearing in the contents list below are often based on those provided by the creator or previous custodian. Titles have not been verified against the contents of the folders in all cases. Otherwise, folder titles are supplied by staff during initial processing.
Former call numbers: Uncat MS Vault 369, Uncat MS Vault 425, Uncat MS Vault 439, Uncat MS Vault 454, Uncat MS Vault 475, Uncat MS Vault 477, Uncat MS Vault 532, Uncat MS Vault 539, Uncat MS Vault 551, Uncat MS Vault 627, Uncat MS Vault 663, Uncat MS Vault 684, Uncat MS Vault 792, Uncat MS Vault 806, Uncat MS Vault 819, Uncat MS Vault 828, Uncat MS Vault 829, Uncat MS Vault 862, Uncat MS Vault 867 Uncat MSS 67, Uncat MSS 372, Uncat MSS 406, Uncat MSS 442, Uncat MSS 445, Uncat MSS 447, Uncat MSS 795, Uncat MSS 1062, Uncat MSS 1072, Uncat MSS 1174.
Box 71 and folder numbers 668-675 are unused. Reference copies have been discarded. Original audiocassettes are housed in box 80 and original audiotape reels are housed in box 81.
This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.
- Art critics
- Art critics
- Art critics -- United States -- Archives
- Art, European
- Audiovisual materials
- Authors, American
- Authors, American
- Authors, American -- 20th Century -- Archives
- Autobiography
- Biography
- Cartier-Bresson, Henri, 1908-2004
- Cocteau, Jean, 1889-1963
- Giacometti, Alberto, 1901-1966
- Lord, James, 1922-2009
- Photographic prints
- Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973
- Sound recordings
- Video recordings
- Title
- Guide to the James Lord Papers
- Author
- by Lisa Conathan
- Date
- 2007-05-16
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Revision Statements
- October 2020: Added March 2020 addition.
- 2014: [Revision description not specified]
- 2011-05-25: Baseline processing completed.
- 2010-02-10: Transformed with yale.addEadidUrl.xsl. Adds @url with handle for finding aid. Overwrites @url if already present.
Part of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Repository
Location
121 Wall Street
New Haven, CT 06511
Opening Hours
Access Information
The Beinecke Library is open to all Yale University students and faculty, and visiting researchers whose work requires use of its special collections. You will need to bring appropriate photo ID the first time you register. Beinecke is a non-circulating, closed stack library. Paging is done by library staff during business hours. You can request collection material online at least two business days in advance of your visit, using the request links in Archives at Yale. For more information, please see Planning Your Research Visit and consult the Reading Room Policies prior to visiting the library.