Arts and Letters

Collections

The American Academy of Arts and Letters has a collection of over 1,700 works of fine art, 25,000 books by or about members, and original manuscripts of musical and literary works. Our institutional archives include member correspondence, photographs, press clippings, board minutes, and administrative records from 1898 to the present.

For inquiries related to our collections and archive, please write archives@artsandletters.org.

Art Collection Highlights

Our art collection includes paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photography, and decorative arts from the late 19th century to the present by members of Arts and Letters, with notable works by John White Alexander, Childe Hassam, Winslow Homer, and John La Farge. A selection of works from the collection may be seen in our auditorium and library during public tours and events. We regularly loan artworks from our collection to museums.

Vertical painting of a woman posed with one hand on her hip and the other holding the skirt of her long yellow dress. She stands against a grassy background.

John White AlexanderIn the Orchard, 1894

Photograph of a curved, oblong wooden painter’s palette with daubs of paint in various colors

John White Alexander’s palette and four brushes, c. 1915

Painting of a nude figure walking through a dense forest

Childe HassamSummer Idyl (The Alders), c. 1906–10; reworked, 1917–18

Childe HassamThe South Window, 1916

Painting of a quilt draped on a tabletop in front of window

Childe HassamColonial Quilt, 1922

Painting of a dimly lit landscape of trees silhouetted against a glowing sky

Childe HassamDawn (Dawn in the Valley of the Marne), 1914

Painting of rolling green hills rising against a blue sky

Childe HassamCalifornia Hills, In Spring, 1914

Painting of a nude woman shown seated and from behind against a rocky outcrop overlooking water. One arm holds a mirror to her face and the other arm is raised to her face, which is turned away from the viewer.

Childe HassamAphrodite, Appledore, 1907–08

Childe HassamAgainst the Light, 1916

Childe HassamSelf Portrait, 1914

A beach landscape with round and craggy rocks rises to a high horizon where two distant figures can be seen against the blue sky

Childe HassamRocky Beach, Appledore, 1913

A wooden house situated in a lush garden with tall trees with a fence in the foreground

Childe HassamOld House, Late Spring, Easthampton, 1918

A full moon glows, partially visible behind dark clouds in a night sky. The moon’s bright reflection illuminates a body of water below.

Childe HassamMoonlight at Sea, 1916

Childe HassamMiss Ingram Reading a Letter, 1913

Childe HassamVenetian Glass (Kitty Hughes), 1913–16

A painting of a figure walking away from the water on a beach against a backdrop of a gray sky and breaking waves. She holds a large basket on her back and shoulder.

Winslow HomerThe Incoming Tide, 1883

Silver metal cast of a right hand to the wrist. The fingers rest with fingertips slightly curled downwards.

Cast of Archer M. Huntington’s right hand, 1935

Vibrant stained glass window with a woman shown standing at center and looking downwards and to the left at an open book that she holds in her hands. She is surrounded by abstract forms that evoke leaves and flowers and a decorative frame.

John La FargeEvening, c. 1881

Vibrant stained glass window with a woman shown standing at center and looking upwards, with one arm held to her forehead. She is surrounded by abstract forms that evoke leaves and flowers and a decorative frame.

John La FargeMorning, c. 1881

Painting of a standing woman shown wearing a red velvet dress with white lace details. She looks directly at the viewer with a slight smile and holds her hands clasped together in front of her.

Edward H. MayPortrait of Edith Wharton (at the age of eighteen), 1881

Augustus Saint-GaudensPortrait of William Merritt Chase, 1888

Detailed charcoal drawing of a woman, visible from the waist up, looking directly at the viewer. She wears a high-necked white shirt and darker coat.

John Singer SargentAnna Bowman Blake Dodd, 1900

Photograph of a pipe with a wooden bowl and black mouthpiece

Mark Twain’s pipe, 1904

Painting of a nude woman shown seated and from behind against a rocky outcrop overlooking water. One arm holds a mirror to her face and the other arm is raised to her face, which is turned away from the viewer.

Childe HassamAphrodite, Appledore, 1907–08Oil on canvas82 × 56 inchesAmerican Academy of Arts and Letters; Hassam Bequest, 1936

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