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Kathleen Gemberling Adkison papers, 1942-2006

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Adkison, Kathleen Gemberling, 1917-2010
Title
Kathleen Gemberling Adkison papers
Dates
1942-2006 (inclusive)
Quantity
3 linear feet, (4 boxes, 1 oversize box)
Collection Number
WUA053
Summary
The Kathleen Gemberling Adkison papers reflect Adkison's work as a Northwest painter. Papers consist of correspondence, an interview transcript, and exhibit materials and pamphlets for Adkison's shows. Also included are photographs, negatives and prints, as well as newspaper clippings and awards for her work.
Repository
Willamette University Archives and Special Collections
Archives and Special Collections
Mark O. Hatfield Library
900 State Street
Salem, OR
97301
Telephone: 5033706866
Fax: 5033706141
archives@willamette.edu
Access Restrictions

Materials are open to researchers.

Languages
English
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Historical Note

Kathleen Gemberling Adkison (1917-2010) was born in Nebraska on July 5, 1917. In 1930 her family moved to Seattle, where she graduated from high school. She had a passion for painting and studied art with Leon Derbyshire at Cornish Institute between 1938 and 1942. In 1942 she was introduced to Mark Tobey, influential Northwest painter and one of the founders of the Northwest School. She continued to study privately with Mark Tobey and Morris Graves, an expressionist painter, from 1942 to 1948.

In 1948 she moved with her family to Spokane but continued to study art in Seattle, returning frequently for lessons. She was an instructor at the Washington State University Extension Service in Spokane from 1953 to 1962, a Visiting Professor of Art at Gonzaga University from 1967 to 1968 and taught private classes in the Spokane art community.

Adkison's first solo exhibition was in 1957 at the Henriette E. Woessner Alumni Gallery, Seattle. Throughout her career she had numerous solo exhibitions, the majority of which were at Gordon Woodside/John Braseth Gallery in Seattle. Adkison participated in group exhibitions throughout Washington as well as throughout the nation. Her pieces are held by museums and in public and private collections throughout the Pacific Northwest.

She married architect Thomas Adkison in 1968 and drew inspiration from nature and her travels with him. Her abstract landscapes grew out of her love of mountain climbing, trekking and hiking. Adkison died on August 3, 2010.

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Content Description

The Kathleen Gemberling Adkison papers reflect Adkison's work as a Northwest painter. Papers include correspondence pertaining to her artwork regarding purchase, congratulations on awards, and inclusion in gallery shows and museum exhibits. An interview transcript in which Adkison talks about her experience as an artist and why she paints is included. Newspaper articles and exhibit programs document her awards and inclusion in gallery shows and museum exhibits, specifically the Gordon Woodside/John Braseth Gallery, the Seattle Art Museum, the Frye Art Museum and the Sonora Art Gallery. Photographs, slides and negatives depict Adkison and her artwork.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Library acts as "fair use" reproduction agent.

For further information, see the section on copyright in the Regulations and Procedures of the Willamette University Archives and Special Collections.

Copyright Information: Before material from collections at Willamette University Archives and Special Collections may be quoted in print, or otherwise reproduced, in whole or in part, in any publication, permission must be obtained from (1) the owner of the physical property, and (2) the holder of the copyright. It is the particular responsibility of the researcher to obtain both sets of permission. Persons wishing to quote from materials in any collections held by University Archives and Special Collections should consult the University Archivist. Reproduction of any item must contain a complete citation to the original.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Kathleen Gemberling Adkison papers, Archives and Special Collections, Mark O. Hatfield Library, Willamette University.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Materials are arranged into three series: Series I. Personal Papers, Series II. Correspondence, and Series III. Photographs of art works. Papers retain original order.

Location of Collection

Mark O. Hatfield Library

Acquisition Information

Gift of Helen Braden, 2009 and 2014.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Arts--Northwest, Pacific
  • Fine Arts

Personal Names

  • Derbyshire, Leon
  • Graves, Morris, 1910-2001
  • Haas, Pauline
  • O'Rourke, Kay
  • Thamm, John
  • Tobey, Mark

Corporate Names

  • Butler Institute of American Art
  • Charles and Emma Frye Art Museum
  • Cornish School of Allied Arts (Seattle, Wash.)
  • Gonzaga University
  • Gordon Woodside/John Braseth Gallery
  • Seattle Art Museum
  • Sonora Art Gallery
  • Zachary Waller Gallery

Form or Genre Terms

  • Photographs
  • correspondence
  • paintings (visual works)

Finding aid processed by Nina Kulander and Ashley Toutain.
2014

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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