View XML QR Code

Wesley Wehr papers, 1902-2004

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Wehr, Wesley, 1929-2004
Title
Wesley Wehr papers
Dates
1902-2004 (inclusive)
Quantity
60.02 cubic feet (82 boxes plus 2 map tubes, 2 videotapes, 2 vertical files, 4 oversize vertical files, and 3 sound cassettes)
Collection Number
2316
Summary
Correspondence, writings, artwork, and other papers of a painter, composer, and paleobotanist in Seattle, Washington
Repository
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions

No restrictions on access.

Some material stored offsite; advance notice required for use.

Request at UW

Additional Reference Guides

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was partially provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Return to Top

Biographical Note

Wesley Wehr was a painter, paleobotanist, correspondent, autograph collector, friend and champion of Northwest artists. He was born in 1929 in Everett, Washington, and grew up in Seattle. He attended Queen Anne High School and the University of Washington, where he studied musical composition and earned a bachelor's (1951) and a master's (1953) degree. While a student at the University, Wehr became acquainted with Mark Tobey when, for a short period, he instructed Tobey in musical composition. Their friendship continued throughout Tobey's lifetime and Tobey encouraged Wehr's development as an artist. Over the years, Wehr developed friendships with numerous other Northwest artists, such as Morris Graves and Guy Anderson. While at the University of Washington, Wehr also studied poetry with Theodore Roethke and became acquainted with Susanne Langer, who was a visiting professor of philosophy in 1953. His friendship with Langer also lasted to the end of her life.

During the mid-1950s, while working as a watchman at the Henry Gallery, Wehr began to draw with pen and ink. In the 1960s he turned his creative efforts to painting, beginning with small landscapes in colored crayon. His first exhibit was at the "Artists of the Puget Sound" show at the Henry Gallery in 1961. The next year he was included in the Northwest Annual for the first time. His first one-man show was at the Otto Seligman Gallery in 1967 and his first exhibit outside the region was in 1968 as a part of "Selections From the Personal Collection of Morris Graves" at the Humboldt Gallery in San Francisco. He received international recognition in 1976 with a show at the Gallerie Rosenau in Bern, Switzerland and in 1977 at the Gallerie D'Art Modern group show in Munich. In 1980 the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria presented a retrospective of his work. In addition to his miniature paintings, Wer is known for his line drawings of imaginary figures, sometimes called "monster drawings." Wehr has also served as guest curator and consultant to the Henry Gallery and other galleries.

Wehr's longtime friendship with the Seattle artist Helmi Juvonen (1903-85) also dates from his time at the Henry Gallery. He provided aid and encouragement to Juvonen, particularly in the later years of her life when two retrospective shows which he curated brought her increased, though belated, recognition. He was also responsible for persuading Juvonen to donate her papers to the Libraries' Manuscripts Collection.

Another of Wehr's interests is paleontology. In 1978 he was appointed affiliate curator of paleobotany at the Burke Museum on the University of Washington campus, where he has pursued studies of the region near the Gingko Petrified Forest and, later, a dig near Republic, Washington. In 1980 he discovered a species of extinct fern which was named Osmunda Wehrii for him.

Wesly Wehr began collecting musician's autographs as a high school student. Throughout his life, Wehr has sought the acquaintance of persons he admires and has sustained friendships with Susanne Langer, Elizabeth Bishop, and others through years of correspondence. As a lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest, he has also collected documentation on the cultural history of the region. This interest has spurred him not only to collect the papers of artists in the region, but also to record and preserve his own experiences and observations through his published and unpublished writings. Examples of this effort are Wehr's "letters to Jose" (Joseph Newland) and to Susanne Langer, which are actually diary entries commenting upon the Seattle arts scene and other topics. Some of the letters to Jose were never actually mailed.

Wesley Wehr died in 2004.

Return to Top

Content Description

Correspondence, writings, poems, drawings, paintings, sketches, music manuscripts, list, catalogs, reviews, clippings, poster, ephemera, photographs, sound cassettes, and videotapes.

Return to Top

Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Some restrictions exist on copying, quotation or publication. Contact Special Collections for details.

Preferred Citation

Return to Top

Administrative Information

Arrangement

Organized into 12 accessions.

  • Accession No. 2316-001, Wesley Wehr papers, 1902-1986
  • Accession No. 2316-037, Wesley Wehr papers, approximately 1950s-2004
  • Accession No. 2316-038, Wesley Wehr videotapes, 1991
  • Accession No. 2316-039, Wesley Wehr videotape, 1990
  • Accession No. 2316-040, Wesley Wehr videotape, 1986
  • Accession No. 2316-041, Wesley Wehr letter and list, 1948
  • Accession No. 2316-042, Wesley Wehr interviews, 1991
  • Accession No. 2316-043, Wesley Wehr art collection, 1946-2002
  • Accession No. 2316-044, Wesley Wehr papers, circa 1949-2004
  • Accession No. 2316-045, Wesley Wehr papers, 1979-2001
  • Accession No. 2316-046, Wesley Wehr papers, approximately 1992-1995
  • Accession No. 2316-047, Wesley Wehr papers, 1978-2004

Processing Note

Processing levels vary. Contact the Special Collections for details.

Return to Top

Detailed Description of the Collection

 


2007 (Last modified: 10/20/2023)

CC0

About Creative Commons Licenses in Archives West