JEFFERSON PLACE: A TIMELINE
Below is an outlined history of the Jefferson Place Gallery. Compiled from news articles, published calendars, and various archives, it is an attempt to present the most comprehensive list of activities and events within the gallery, and of notable achievements by its exhibiting artists.
Lease is signed
August 1, 1957
Alice Denney finds building with Mary Orwen, signs lease.
Partnership Agreement Created
September 1, 1957
This document defined William Calfee, Robert Gates, Helene McKinsey, Mary Orwen, Ben Summerford, and Alice Denney as equal partners to "own and operate the gallery." Each partner provided a capital contribution of $100 to the gallery. The document further defined that "participating artists" would pay the gallery $15/month for the operation of the gallery, until it could become self-sustaining.
Miscellaneous Understandings
September 1, 1957
This foundation document outlined the potential artists of the gallery. It included gallery partners: Somerford [sic], Orwen, McKinsey, Calfee, and Gates; other artists asked to participate: Brabanski, Nolan [sic], Maurer, Bayliss, Shackelford, (Rueben) Kramer*, (Sarah) Baker*; and other artists to be considered: Morris Lewis* [sic], Kainen, (Don) Aquilino†, and Gene Davis.
* declined to exhibit with the gallery
† unknown; no record of exhibiting with gallery
First Group Show
October 10, 1957 - November 9, 1957
The gallery's opening exhibition.
1957 Mary Orwen
November 12, 1957 - December 7, 1957Exhibition Artists:
Christmas Show
December 9, 1957 - January 4, 1958
Art prepared for Christmas gifts, priced $5–$5000, including painting, drawing, sculpture, and prints.
1958 Leonard Maurer
January 7, 1958 - January 24, 1958Exhibition Artists:
1958 Kenneth Noland
January 30, 1958 - February 22, 1958Exhibition Artists:
1958 Toko Shinoda
February 25, 1958 - March 15, 1958
Abstract Calligraphy
Exhibition Artists:
1958 William Calfee
March 17, 1958 - April 5, 1958
Recent sculpture
Exhibition Artists:
1958 Colin Greenly
April 7, 1958 - April 26, 1958
An Exhibition of Drawing, Painting, and Printmaking
Exhibition Artists:
1958 George Bayliss
April 28, 1958 - May 17, 1958
An Exhibition of Recent Painting, Drawing, and Ceramics
Exhibition Artists:
1958 The Group + 2
May 20, 1958 - June 17, 19581958 Helene McKinsey
May 28, 1958 - June 16, 1958
6 paintings included in group show
Stable Gallery, New York City
Exhibition Artists:
1958 Helene McKinsey
September 23, 1958 - October 11, 1958
Recent Paintings
First Anniversary Celebration
Exhibition Artists:
1958 Shelby Shackleford
October 14, 1958 - November 11, 1958
Paintings
Exhibition Artists:
1958 12 Washington Artists, University of Kentucky, Lexington
October 19, 1958 - November 16, 19581958 Robert Gates
November 4, 1958 - November 22, 1958
Recent paintings
Exhibition Artists:
1958 Group Show
November 25, 1958 - December 31, 19581959 11 British Painters
January 29, 1959 - February 27, 1959
Former American University Art Department secretary, Barbara Burton, returned from a year studying painting in Cornwall, England, with an exhibition practically tucked under her arm. Featuring 11 artists working in St. Ives, the exhibition’s program also contained an introduction by Sir Herbert Read.
The exhibition featured works by Sandra Blow, Terry Frost, Patrick Heron, Roger Hilton, Peter Lanyon, John Milne, William Redgrave, John Wells, Karl Weschke, Nancy Wynne-Jones, and Bryan Wynter
1959 Gene Davis
March 3, 1959 - March 21, 1959Exhibition Artists:
1959 Jack Tworkov
March 26, 1959 - April 18, 1959
Drawings
Courtesy of Stable Gallery
Exhibition Artists:
1959 Member’s Show
April 21, 1959 - May 2, 19591959 Belisario Contreras
May 5, 1959 - May 23, 1959Exhibition Artists:
1959 4 Baltimore Artists
May 26, 1959 - June 13, 1959
Cecile Baer, Jack Bonsal, Helen Jacobson, and William Waller
1959 As We See It
June 23, 1959 - July 15, 1959
Featuring the photography of Fred Maroon, Yoichi Okamoto, and Robert Phillips, it was one of the first commercial gallery exhibitions of photography in Washington.
1959 Helene McKinsey
July 1, 1959 - September 20, 1959
Solo exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery of Art
Exhibition Artists:
1959 Approaches to Contemporary Painting
September 22, 1959 - October 10, 1959
The exhibition aimed to focus around a central concept of contemporary approaches to painting: emphasizing the various abstract processes the artists in the gallery exercised. Coupled with the exhibition were quotes by philosophers and artists—framing an idea behind each artist’s approach—as well as weekly Thursday afternoon seminars.
1959 Mary Orwen
October 13, 1959 - October 31, 1959
Solo Exhibition
Exhibition Artists:
1959 Kenneth Noland
October 13, 1959 - November 1, 1959
Exhibition at Tibor de Nagy
Exhibition Artists:
1959 William Calfee and Lothar Brabanski
November 3, 1959 - November 21, 1959Exhibition Artists:
1959 Frederic Thusz
November 24, 1959 - December 12, 1959
As an analog to the concept of Washington Color, Thursz, who taught at the University of Kentucky, created nearly monochromatic works that were rich in surface.
Exhibition Artists:
1959 Group Show
December 15, 1959 - January 2, 1960Exhibition Artists:
1960 Kenneth Noland
January 5, 1960 - January 23, 1960Exhibition Artists:
1960 Jean Clad
January 26, 1960 - February 13, 1960Exhibition Artists:
1960 Colin Greenly
February 16, 1960 - March 5, 1960Exhibition Artists:
1960 William Calfee
March 8, 1960 - March 26, 1960
Sculpture
Exhibition Artists:
1960 George Bayliss
March 29, 1960 - April 16, 1960Exhibition Artists:
1960 Robert Gates
April 19, 1960 - May 7, 19601960 Helene McKinsey
May 3, 1960 - May 30, 1960
Exhibition at Poindexter Gallery, New York City
Exhibition Artists:
1960 End of Year Review
May 17, 1960 - June 11, 1960Art From America’s Cities
September 20, 1960 - November 15, 1960
Alice Denney took the family across country and stopped at galleries in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, to assemble works by prominent contemporary artists. The goal was to create and display a direct relationship between the artists at the Jefferson Place Gallery to the contemporary trends in Post War American Art, demonstrating that the work in Washington was just as good as work in New York, or on the West Coast.
Featuring:
Elmer Bischoff, Joan Brown, George Cohen, Claire Falkenstein, Robert Goodnough,
Dimitri Grachis, James Jarvaise, Alvin Light, Manuel Neri, Nathan Oliveiera, David Park,
Robert Rauschenberg, Peter Voulkas
1960 Howard Mehring
October 18, 1960 - November 12, 1960Exhibition Artists:
1960 Robert Goodnough
November 15, 1960 - December 10, 19601960 Christmas Show
December 13, 1960 - January 7, 1961
A quasi reprise of Art from America’s Cities, the exhibition included works by Michael Goldberg, Robert Goodnough, Robert Natkin, Peter Voulkas, and Manoucher Yektai, as well as Jasper Johns’ first series of prints with ULAE, including Target, Coathanger, and “American Flag.”
Exhibition Artists:
1961 Winter ’61 Twentieth Century Gallery, Williamsburg, Virginia
January 9, 1961 - February 17, 19611961 Gene Davis
January 10, 1961Exhibition Artists:
Inauguration of President John F. Kennedy
January 20, 19611961 Liz Whitney Quisgard
January 31, 1961 - February 18, 19611961 Hilda Shapiro
February 21, 1961 - March 10, 1961
In an exhibition where she was beginning to display her own style, Washington Post critic Leslie Judd Ahlander called her “one of the most interesting artists to emerge in Washington in the last few years.”
Exhibition Artists:
1961 12 British Artists
March 14, 1961 - April 1, 1961
Including: Kenneth Armitage, Alan Davie, Elizabeth Frink, Terry Frost, Patrick Heron,
Peter Lanyon, John Milne-Smith and Jack Smith
1961 Tom Downing
April 4, 1961 - April 22, 1961Exhibition Artists:
1961 Helene McKinsey
April 25, 1961 - May 20, 1961Exhibition Artists:
1961 Review and Preview 1957-1961
May 22, 1961 - June 4, 1961Exhibition Artists:
Transition of Directorship
June 5, 1961 - October 2, 1961
Alice Denney leaves the gallery to help create the Washington Gallery of Modern Art. Nesta Dorrance is appointed Director of the Jefferson Place Gallery.
1961 The Year Ahead
October 3, 1961 - November 4, 1961
Including several artists from Castelli Gallery, Salvatore Scarpitta among them.
1961 Carneigie International, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
October 27, 1961 - January 7, 1962Exhibition Artists:
1961 Jacob Kainen
November 7, 1961 - November 25, 1961Exhibition Artists:
1961 Paper Show
December 5, 1961 - January 5, 19621962 Small Paintings
January 7, 1962 - January 27, 19621962 Frederic Thursz
January 30, 1962 - February 17, 19621962 William Calfee
March 1, 1962 - April 8, 1962
A companion to his exhibition at the Corcoran Gallery, Calfee chose to show the process behind the making of his sculpture, displaying maquettes, plasters, and waxes.
Exhibition Artists:
1962 Robert Gates
April 10, 1962 - April 29, 1962
"The River and the Sea"
Exhibition Artists:
1962 Robert D’Arista
May 23, 1962 - June 9, 1962Exhibition Artists:
1962 Helene McKinsey Herzbrun begins reviewing art books in the Washington Post
September 1, 19621962 Group Show
October 2, 1962 - October 20, 1962Exhibition Artists:
1962 Howard Mehring
October 23, 1962 - November 3, 1962Exhibition Artists:
Washington Gallery of Modern Art Opens
October 31, 1962
First exhibition is a memorial retrospective to Franz Kline.
1962 Pre-Christmas show
November 6, 1962 - November 24, 19621962 Gene Davis
November 27, 1962 - December 15, 1962Exhibition Artists:
1963 Group Show
January 3, 1963 - January 19, 1963E.R. Rankine
January 22, 1963 - February 19, 1963Ed Kelley
February 12, 1963 - March 2, 1963Helene McKinsey
March 5, 1963 - March 22, 1963Exhibition Artists:
Peter Thomas
March 26, 1963 - April 13, 19631963 Colin Greenly
April 16, 1963 - May 4, 1963Exhibition Artists:
Hilda Shapiro
May 7, 1963 - May 25, 1963Exhibition Artists:
Mariska Karasz
May 28, 1963 - June 14, 1963William Calfee Sculptures
October 1, 1963 - October 19, 1963Exhibition Artists:
Summerford Paintings
October 22, 1963 - November 16, 1963Exhibition Artists:
Mary Meyer
November 19, 1963 - December 14, 1963Assassination of President John F. Kennedy
November 22, 19631963 Christmas Show
December 17, 1963 - January 18, 19641964 Robert Gates
February 25, 1964 - March 14, 1964Exhibition Artists:
Ed Kelley
February 28, 1964 - March 19, 1964
Painting and Sculpture, + opening night Film
1964 Luciano Pena-y-Lillo
May 18, 1964 - June 13, 19641964 Freda Mulcahy
June 16, 1964 - July 4, 19641964 Hilda Shapiro
October 4, 1964 - October 24, 1964Exhibition Artists:
1964 Helene McKinsey Herzbrun
October 27, 1964 - November 14, 1964Exhibition Artists:
1964 Krishna Reddy and Shirley Wetebsky
November 16, 1964 - November 30, 1964Jeannie Lee Knight
December 6, 1964 - January 2, 1965Grand Opening
January 25, 1965 - February 13, 1965
Robert d'Arista, William Calfee, Robert Gates, Colin Greenly, Helene Herzbrun, J.L. Knight, Luciano Penay, V.V. Rankine, Ben Summerford, Hilda Shapiro Thorpe
New Location
January 25, 1965
The Jefferson Place celebrates it’s grand opening in its new address at 2144 P Street, NW.
5 Painters
February 16, 1965 - March 6, 19651965 E. R. Rankine
March 9, 1965 - March 27, 19651965 Colin Greenly
March 30, 1965 - April 17, 1965Exhibition Artists:
1965 Dana Romano
April 20, 1965 - May 8, 196511 Painters from Wales
May 10, 1965 - May 29, 19651965 Sam Gilliam
June 7, 1965 - June 26, 1965Exhibition Artists:
1965 Group Show
June 29, 1965 - July 24, 1965Blaine Larson–Crowther
October 25, 1965 - November 13, 1965Howard Mehring Paintings from 1961–1962
November 16, 1965 - December 4, 1965Exhibition Artists:
1965 William Calfee
December 6, 1965 - December 31, 1965Exhibition Artists:
Ed Kelley
February 28, 1966 - March 18, 1966
Paintings
Luciano Pena y Lillo
March 21, 1966 - April 9, 19661966 Willem de Looper
April 12, 1966 - April 30, 1966Exhibition Artists:
Sally Cary Kearsley & Roger Tripp
May 2, 1966 - May 21, 1966 Paintings1966 Hilda Shapiro
May 24, 1966 - June 11, 1966Exhibition Artists:
Swedish Print Show
June 13, 1966 - July 2, 1966Helene Herzbrun
October 3, 1966 - October 22, 1966Eric Rudd & Valerie Hollister
October 24, 1966 - November 12, 1966Group Show
January 2, 1967 - January 20, 1967
Robert d'Arista, Robert Gates, Sam Gilliam, Colin Greenly, Helene Herzbrun, Ed Kelley, Joe Summerford
Mary Orwen, New Paintings
March 6, 1967 - March 25, 1967Exhibition Artists:
Gene Davis
March 28, 1967 - April 15, 1967 MicropaintingsExhibition Artists:
1967 I Willem de Looper
June 6, 1967 - June 24, 1967Exhibition Artists:
1967 II Willem de Looper
September 3, 1967 - September 25, 1967Exhibition Artists:
1967 Robert Gates
September 25, 1967 - October 14, 1967 Recent PaintingsExhibition Artists:
1967 Chun Chen
October 16, 1967 - November 4, 19671967 Paul Reed
October 31, 1967 - November 25, 1967Exhibition Artists:
1967 Sam Gilliam
November 28, 1967 - December 16, 1967Exhibition Artists:
1968 Rockne Krebs Sculpture
February 10, 1968 - March 8, 1968Exhibition Artists:
1968 Valerie Hollister
March 12, 1968 - March 30, 19681968 Jack Boul
April 2, 1968 - April 20, 1968
Paintings and Drawings
1968 Blaine Larson
April 3, 1968 - May 11, 1968
Painting and Drawing
Assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
April 4, 1968Roy Slade
May 13, 1968 - June 4, 1968
Paintings
Sheila Isham
June 3, 1968 - June 22, 1968Bell Contreras
June 25, 1968 - July 13, 1968Jefferson Place Ten Years
July 16, 1968 - August 7, 1968
Preview Monday July 15, 2144 P St; July 16–Aug 7
William Calfee, Gene Davis, Willem de Looper, Thomas Downing, Robert Gates, Colin Greenly, Sam Gilliam, Helene Herzbrun, Valerie Hollister, Sheila Isham, Jacob Kainen, Rockne Krebs, Blaine Larson, Howard Mehring, Mary Meyer, Kenneth Noland, V.V. Rankine, Paul Reed.
Selected by James Harithas, Director of the Corcoran, and Walter Hopps, Director Washington Gallery Modern Art
J.L. Knight Sculpture
October 1, 1968 - October 19, 1968WGMA/Corcoran Merger
October 7, 1968
The Corcoarn Gallery of Art announces the merger with the Washington Gallery of Modern Art. The collection of the WGMA would later be sold to the Oklahoma Art Center (now Oklahoma City Museum of Art).
1968 Willem de Looper
October 22, 1968 - November 9, 1968Exhibition Artists:
1968 Hilda Shapiro Thorpe
November 12, 1968 - November 30, 1968Exhibition Artists:
Michael Clark
December 2, 1968 - December 22, 1968Sandy Waters
January 6, 1969 - January 25, 1969Rockne Krebs Energy Structures
February 18, 1969 - March 8, 1969Exhibition Artists:
1969 V. V. Rankine
March 10, 1969 - March 30, 19691969 Sam Gilliam
April 1, 1969 - April 19, 1969 New PaintingsExhibition Artists:
1969 Sheila Isham
May 13, 1969 - May 31, 1969Robert Polo
June 3, 1969 - June 21, 1969Ed Zerne, Timothy Corkery, Elliott Thompson, Ken Wade
July 12, 1969 - August 1, 1969Exhibition Artists:
1969 Chun Chen
October 14, 1969 - November 1, 19691969 Howard Mehring
November 4, 1969 - November 22, 1969 Paintings from 1957–1958Exhibition Artists:
1969 Eric Rudd
November 25, 1969 - December 13, 1969Exhibition Artists:
Margaret Kressley
December 16, 1969 - January 9, 1970Ken Wade
January 12, 1970 - February 7, 19701970 Elliot Thompson
February 10, 1970 - February 28, 1970John Wise
March 3, 1970 - March 21, 1970Exhibition Artists:
Roy Slade and Blaine Larson
March 28, 1970 - June 13, 1970Helene Herzbrun
April 14, 1970 - May 2, 19701970 Howard Mehring
September 18, 1970 - October 3, 1970Exhibition Artists:
1970 Willem de Looper
October 30, 1970 - November 14, 1970Exhibition Artists:
1970 Sheila Isham
November 17, 1970 - December 5, 1970Sam Gilliam Recent Paintings and Watercolors
December 11, 1970 - January 2, 1971Exhibition Artists:
Carol Sockwell
January 5, 1971 - January 23, 1971 "Mirror Series"1971 Tim Corkery Recent Paintings
February 16, 1971 - March 6, 1971Exhibition Artists:
Benjamin Abramowitz
March 8, 1971 - March 27, 1971 Recent PaintingsExhibition Artists:
1971 Rockne Krebs
March 30, 1971 - April 17, 1971Exhibition Artists:
Jack Solomon
April 20, 1971 - May 8, 19711971 Eric Rudd
May 12, 1971 - May 29, 19711971 Roberto Polo
June 1, 1971 - June 19, 1971Stephen Ringle, Lee Haner, Tom Williams, Carmen Almon
June 22, 1971 - July 10, 1971James Hampton on View at NCFA
June 27, 1971
James Hampton's "The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nation's Millennium General Assembly" goes on view for the first time at the National Collection of Fine Arts (now Smithsonian American Art Museum). The artwork was first discovered in a rented garage by Alice Denney and Ed Kelley.
1971 Sam Gilliam Watercolors and Multiples
July 13, 1971 - August 8, 1971Exhibition Artists:
Franklin White
September 14, 1971 - October 2, 1971Leni Stern
October 5, 1971 - October 23, 1971 Sculptures - polished lucite1971 Elliot Thompson
October 26, 1971 - November 13, 1971 Paintings1971 Howard Mehring
November 16, 1971 - December 4, 1971 Seven paintings from 1961–1962Ed Zerne Soil Structures
January 4, 1972 - January 22, 1972
Drawings
Exhibition Artists:
Antoinette Bradlee
January 25, 1972 - February 12, 1972
Concrete sculpture
1972 Robert Gates
February 15, 1972 - March 4, 1972
Paintings
Exhibition Artists:
1972 Roy Slade
March 7, 1972 - March 25, 1972Sandy Coukouma
March 28, 1972 - April 15, 1972
Waters paintings
David Stephens
April 18, 1972 - May 6, 1972
New paintings
1972 Valerie Hollister
May 9, 1972 - May 27, 1972Jennie Lee Knight and Andrew Hudson
May 30, 1972 - June 17, 1972
Small sculptures
David Stanton
June 20, 1972 - July 8, 1972
Sculptures
Grace Spring, Hank Harmon, James Miller
July 11, 1972 - July 29, 1972
Sculptures and painting
Angelo Hodick
October 31, 1972 - November 18, 1972
Paintings, drawings, prints
1972 Sam Gilliam
November 27, 1972 - December 16, 1972Exhibition Artists:
1973 V. V. Rankine
January 9, 1973 - January 27, 1973
Plexiglass sculpture
Exhibition Artists:
Gallery Relocates
March 1, 1973
Gallery Relocates to 2000 P Street.
Former 2144 P Street location razed for condos
Eric Rudd and William Christenberry
April 13, 1973 - May 5, 1973
Eric Rudd, apple drawings
William Christenberry, photographs after Walker Evans
Exhibition Artists:
1973 Group Show
June 27, 1973 - July 28, 1973
Photography by Joe Cameron, William Christenberry, John Gossage, Mark Power, Nancy Rexroth, and Steve Szabo
Exhibition Artists:
1973 New Work
September 6, 1973 - September 22, 1973 This show inaugurates the opening of the 1st floor gallery of the new location: 2000 P St.
Willem de Looper, Robert Gates, Sam Gilliam, Jennie Lea Knight, Rockne Krebs, Eric Rudd, Leni Stern, Elliott Thompson, Franklin White. Selected by Nina Felshin.
Exhibition Artists:
Leni Stern and Rockne Krebs
September 28, 1973 - October 13, 1973
Leni Stern drawings, Rockne Krebs sculpture
Exhibition Artists:
Elliott Thompson and Joe Cameron
October 16, 1973 - November 3, 1973
Elliott Thompson paintings, Joe Cameron photographs
1973 Robert Gates
November 6, 1973 - November 24, 1973
Robert Gates paintings and drawings, and group photo show
1973 Sam Gilliam
November 27, 1973 - December 31, 1973
Paintings
Exhibition Artists:
John Wise and Lee Friedlander
January 8, 1974 - January 26, 1974
John Wise works in wood,
Lee Friedlander photographs: “America”
Exhibition Artists:
Mark Power
January 29, 1974 - February 23, 1974 PhotographsSheila Isham and Lewis Baltz
February 8, 1974 - March 2, 1974
Sheila Isham, Paintings
Lewis Baltz, Photographs