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Editta Sherman photographs

Call Number

PR 322

Date

1940-1995 (bulk, undated), inclusive

Creator

Sherman, Editta

Extent

14.5 Linear feet in seven flat boxes and two drawers

Language of Materials

This collection is primarily visual. Any text is likely to be in English.

Abstract

The collection includes approximately 700 portrait photographs taken by Editta Sherman (1912-2013). Sherman was a resident of the artist apartments above Carnegie Hall and is known for her portraits of celebrities. This collection includes primarily black and white photographs, and about fifteen color photographs. Subject individuals primarily include authors and other figures from literature, classical musicians, singers, actors, actresses, and other individuals connected to the performing arts, theatre, movies, and television. Figures from business, sports, art, and politics each make up a smaller portion of the collection.

Biographical / Historical

Editta Sherman (1912-2013) was born in Philadelphia, the eldest child of Nunzio and Piernia Rinaolo, two recent Italian immigrants to the United States. Editta's father was a wedding and portrait photographer and she learned the trade from him during her youth. In 1935, she married Harold Sherman and would have five children with him. In the early years of their marriage, the Shermans lived in various places, including Martha's Vineyard where, in 1944, Editta opened a studio with her husband, who found the sitters and handled business matters.

In the mid-1940s, the Shermans moved to New York City. In 1949 they moved into one of the apartments above Carnegie Hall, taking up residence on the top floor in Studio 1208, which also served as Editta's photography studio. Formerly, the studio had been the center one of three apartments occupied by the sculptor Walter Russell. Although constantly worried about food and lodging, the Shermans were able to hold things together at the Carnegie Hall studio, though in the early 1950s they found a healthier environment out of the city for the children, with the hope of bringing the entire family back together when finances permitted. Harold died of diabetes in 1954, and Editta's work continued with an expanding celebrity clientele. Renowned as the "Duchess of Carnegie Hall," Sherman lived in Studio 1208 for 61 years until 2010 when, along with other residents, she was forced out by the Carnegie Hall Corporation, which sought to repurpose the apartments.

(The above note is based primarily on the New York Times obituary of 5 November 2013. Other sources include the Editta Sherman website and the introductory panel for the exhibition of Sherman's work held at N-YHS in 2017.)

Arrangement

The collection is organized in three series. Each series includes the photographs donated by particular Sherman family members:

Series I. The Kenneth Sherman Collection

Series II: The Melisande Sherman Collection

Series III: The Children of Lloyd Sherman Collection

Within each series, the photographs are arranged (and boxed) by size (8x10, 11x14, 16x20), with matted/other oversize photographs individually placed in oversize drawers. Within each box, the photographs are in alphabetical order by subject name. Images of a particular individual will be found in various boxes when that individual is represented with multiple size prints; the container list indicates these multiple locations.

About fifty of the photographs in the collection were included an exhibition at N-YHS in 2017. A slip of paper identifying a photograph as having been exhibited is included behind the photograph, within its enclosure. Exhibition items are also identified in the collections management system.

Scope and Contents

The collection includes approximately 700 portrait photographs taken by Editta Sherman. The bulk of the photographs are undated but range from the 1940s into the 1970s, with a few into the 1990s. The individuals depicted in the photographs are generally celebrity figures and are generally authors and other figures from literature, classical musicians, singers, actors, actresses, and playwrights and other individuals connected to the performing arts, theatre, movies, and television. Figures from business, sports, art, and politics make up a smaller portion of the collection. The container list includes reference to all individuals depicted in the photographs.

The bulk of the photographs are black and white. The few color photographs, about fifteen of them, are noted in the container list.

Some photographs were signed by Editta Sherman. These are noted in the container list. Many of the photographs have identifying references or other notations on the back.

Some photographs were inscribed to Sherman and/or autographed by their subject. These are noted in the container list.

Many, perhaps most, of the subjects are represented by multiple prints and poses. The container list indicates the approximate size of the prints, the number of prints, and the number of poses. Many of the prints are Gavelux.

Many of the photographs are in the original enclosures as received from the donor. Many of these enclosures include a label with a code assigned to the photo by family members. (In addition to appearing on the enclosures of the photographs, the codes were recorded by the processing archivist in the collections management system, but do not appear in the on-line finding aid. A version of the finding aid with the codes can be requested.)

Conditions Governing Access

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Conditions Governing Use

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.

Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

The collection should be cited as: Editta Sherman photographs, PR 322, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, The New-York Historical Society.

Credit lines on labels for particular photographs used in exhibitions should reflect the specific donor of that photograph as indicated in the finding aid below.

Location of Materials

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The collection was formed from donations made in July 2016 by members of Editta Sherman's family. Although the family members collaborated to form one overall donation, the donation of each photograph is attributable to a particular donor, based on the individual depicted in the photograph. Accordingly, the collection is organized to connect the Sherman donors with their related photographs.

Related Materials

Other collections at N-YHS relevant to Editta Sherman include:

Photographs from Editta Sherman's collaboration with fellow photographer and Carnegie Hall resident Bill Cunningham can be found in the Bill Cunningham Facades Photograph Collection (PR 307).

Photographs of Sherman and the Carnegie Hall apartments and residents can be found in the Melanie Tinnelly collection of photographs of or by Bill Cunningham and Toni "Suzette" Cimino (PR 329).

Accruals

The collection also includes photographic negatives. As of February 2018, these have not yet been inventoried, but will be added to the finding aid in the future.

Exhibitions

Following are the exhibitions, beginning in 2017 with N-YHS's exhibition of Editta Sherman photographs, in which selections from N-YHS's Editta Sherman collection were used.

The Duchess of Carnegie Hall: Photographs by Editta Sherman. Held at New-York Historical Society, 18 August to 15 October 2017.

Collection processed by

Larry Weimer and Anne Boissonnault

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:51:25 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: Description is written in: English, Latin script.

Processing Information

The collection was processed in 2017 by archivist Larry Weimer and archival intern Anne Boissonnault.

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024