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Balcomb Greene Papers

An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University

Finding aid created by: MRC
Date: 9 Sep 2010

Revision history:
14 Sep 2022	collection processed (GU)

Biographical History

Balcomb (John Wesley) Greene (1904-1990) was an American artist known for his murals and abstract work.

Greene was born in Millville, New York. After graduating from Syracuse University in 1926 with a degree in philosophy, Greene married the aspiring sculptor and painter Gertrude Glass whom he had met during his senior year. After spending a year in Vienna and Paris to do graduate work, the couple returned to New York where Greene pursued a master's in English literature at Colombia University. He then taught literature at Dartmouth College until 1931 while writing fiction in his spare time.

During a second visit to Paris, Greene began to pick up an interest in art, with exposure to the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere and influences such as Picasso, Matisse, and particularly Piet Mondrian helping him develop a sense for modernism. Upon returning to New York, Greene was determined to pursue art as a full-time profession, and in the latter-half of the 1930s he was employed by the Works Progress Administration to paint murals, including one for the 1939 World's Fair. In 1937 Greene helped found, and served as the first chairman of, the American Abstract Artists. He obtained a master's degree in art history at New York University in 1943 and taught art history at the Carnegie Institute of Technology from 1942 to 1959.

Greene's style transformed throughout the decades, from mixtures of realism and fantasy to working with more abstract geometric planes and overlaying color. He enjoyed commercial and critical success, showed frequently at exhibitions and contributed greatly to the modernist cause through his writings.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Balcomb Greene Papers contains two items: a document listing Greene's achievements, and a biographical publication.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Subject Headings

Persons

Greene, Balcomb, 1904-1990.

Subjects

Art, American.
Artists -- United States.
Collage.
Painters -- United States.

Genres and Forms

Bio-bibliographies.

Occupations

Painters.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Balcomb Greene Papers,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Unspecified, circa 1967.

Table of Contents

Biographical material

Inventory