Adele Brandeis

Adele Brandeis
Brandeis in 1904
Born1885
Died1975
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Art administrator, writer
EmployerLouisville Courier-Journal
Organization(s)Federal Art Project, Section of Painting and Sculpture
Parent(s)Alfred Brandeis, Jennie Taussig
RelativesUncle, Louis D. Brandeis

Adele Brandeis (1885–1975) was an American art administrator from Louisville, Kentucky.

Work

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In 1911, Brandeis presented a paper on "The Development of Art in Cincinnati" to the Women's Club of Louisville, where she highlighted the crucial role women had played in promoting art in Cincinnati. She encouraged her listeners to work toward the establishment of an art museum and art school in Louisville, which would then lead to greater development of the arts in Louisville.[1]

During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Brandeis worked for the WPA Federal Art Project and the Section of Painting and Sculpture. Brandeis did art research for the Index of American Design, a comprehensive collection of American material culture, and managed the creation of visual artwork by local artists.[2][3] Brandeis focused on ensuring that Shaker art in Kentucky was recorded in the Index of American Design. She knew that the Shaker community near Harrodsburg was closed, and that furniture and other items were being auctioned off. In order to keep a record of the Shaker's furniture, weaving, clothing, and other work, Brandeis arranged for four artists to lodge in Harrodsburg and document the surviving Shaker arts for the Index. The materials in the Index informed the later reconstruction of Shakertown.[4]

Brandeis lectured on art at the University of Louisville in the 1930s,[5] for the Art Association in Louisville,[6] and became a member of the first Arts Center Association Board in Louisville in 1942.[6] She wrote for the Louisville Courier-Journal starting in 1945. Among other jobs, she did research for the editorial page. She was the first woman to be nominated to the board of trustees of the University of Louisville in 1949[5] and served various Kentucky art organizations.

Life

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Brandeis was the daughter of Alfred Brandeis, who was the brother of United States Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis,[7] and Jennie Taussig.[8] She died at Mount Holly Nursing Home on June 1, 1975, at 89 years old.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "GROWTH OF ART: TOPIC DISCUSSED AT WOMAN'S CLUB MEETING TWO PAPERS ON WORK IN OTHER CITIES READ FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE SCHOOL URGED SAY MUSEUM IS NEEDED". Courier-Journal (1869-1922). Louisville. 1911-02-09. ProQuest 1018732887. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
  2. ^ Oral History interview with Adele Brandeis, 1965 June 1, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
  3. ^ Kleber, John E. The Kentucky Encyclopedia. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0813128838.
  4. ^ "Oral History interview with Adele Brandeis, 1965 June 1". Smithsonian Archives of American Art. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
  5. ^ a b "Miss Adele Brandeis Named U. of L. Trustee". The Courier-Journal. Louisville. 1949-06-09. ProQuest 1865402108. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
  6. ^ a b "Tapestry of An Art Association 1909 - 1984" (PDF). 2010-04-15. p. 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-04-15. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  7. ^ Urofsky, Melvin I. (2009-09-22). Louis D. Brandeis. Knopf Doubleday Publishing. ISBN 9780307378583.
  8. ^ "Descendants of Simon Brandeis" (PDF). University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law Library. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  9. ^ "Miss Brandeis, U of L's first woman trustee, dies". The Courier-Journal. June 2, 1975. pp. B 10. Retrieved March 29, 2023.