VAN ZELST FAMILY COLLECTION
Introduction
Theodore and Louann Van Zelst transferred records about the artist Un-ichi Hiratsuka, his artwork, and his family to the Special Collections Department of Northern Illinois University Libraries on July 9, 2002.
Property rights in the collection were transferred to Northern Illinois University Libraries. Literary rights are dedicated to the public, however any copyrights so stated in the materials will continue in force. The materials in this collection are available for research to qualified scholars as determined by the Northern Illinois University Libraries without restrictions.
Linear feet of shelf space: 2.2
Number of containers: 7
Scope and Content
Materials in this collection provide documentation on the work of Un-ichi Hiratsuka and his family's relationship and activities with the art collector Theodore Van Zelst and his family. There is an emphasis Hiratsuka's work itself and exhibitions of his work in the United States and in Japan along with correspondence about those exhibitions. Documents on the exhibitions include advertisements, press releases, newspaper articles, catalogs, invitations, and posters. Additionally, there is biographical information about Hiratsuka and his daughters Keiko Moore, also a printmaker, and cellist Thalia Moore along with several Japanese books and catalogs about Hiratsuka's artwork. Documents in this collection cover the period between 1959 and 2002.
Historical Sketch
Un-ichi Hiratsuka, a master of Ukiyo-e, or Japanese woodblock printing, moved to the United States with his wife in 1962 and lived near his daughter, Keiko Moore, in Washington, D.C. He already helped revive this type of printmaking in Japan and his early work depicts Japanese landscapes and buildings. While in Washington, D.C., Hiratsuka created prints of buildings and locations in that city and surrounding area. Also, many of his prints depicted bridges and those images sparked Theodore Van Zelst's interest, as his occupation as a civil engineer involved bridge design. Van Zelst and his wife Louann, soon became avid collectors of Hiratsuka's prints and amassed an important collection of Hiratsuka's work. Soon, the families of Hiratsuka and Van Zelst became life-long friends. This collection documents letters between the families; exhibitions of Hiratsuka's work in the United States and Japan; catalogs of Hiratsuka's prints; the art of printmaking; and biographical information about Hiratsuka and his daughter Keiko Moore, an accomplished printmaker herself, and granddaughter Thalia Moore. Hiratsuka and his wife later moved back to Japan where he died in 1997 at the age of 102.
The previous owners, Theodore and Louann Van Zelst, organized this collection beginning decades ago with the assistance of the artist and his family. Their efforts of organization were retained. The Art Institute of Chicago also received copies of this collection.
SUBJECT TRACINGS
Un-ichi Hiratsuka
Ukiyo-e
Japanese Woodblock Prints
Keiko Moore
Theodore Van Zelst
Louann Van Zelst
Art Institute of Chicago
Helen Merritt
Thalia Moore
Inventory of the Collection
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 1
Folder 1
Content: Copy of "Un-ichi Hiratsuka, Buddhist Woodblock Master" by Stewart J. Teaze, 1959
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Box 1
Folder 2
Content: Correspondence and press articles of Un-ichi Hiratsuka, 1960 - 1969
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Box 1
Folder 3
Content: Correspondence and press articles of Un-ichi Hiratsuka, 1970 - 1979
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Box 1
Folder 4
Content: Correspondence and press articles of Un-ichi Hiratsuka, 1980 - 1989
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Box 1
Folder 5
Content: Correspondence and press articles of Un-ichi Hiratsuka and Keiko Moore, 1990 - 1999
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Box 1
Folder 6
Content: Correspondence with Keiko Moore and press articles about Un-ichi Hiratsuka, 2000 - 2001
Lecture notes by Helen Merritt
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Box 1
Folder 7
Content: Handwritten notes and correspondence, 1960 - 1975
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Box 1
Folder 8
Content: Postcards and notecards of Hiratsuka
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Box 1
Folder 9
Content: Postcards and notecards of Hiratsuka
1970 Appointment calendar
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 2
Folder 1
Content: Information on roof tiles
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Box 2
Folder 2
Content: "The Bridge and I" catalog, 1969
Descriptions of "The Bridge and I" in English and Japanese
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Box 2
Folder 3
Content: Letters to Van Zelst from Hiratsuka's friends and fellow artists, 1971 - 1993
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Box 2
Folder 4
Content: Articles about Hiratsuka's work
Reader's Digest in Japanese with English translations
Articles on Hiratsuka
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Box 2
Folder 5
Content: Hiratsuka's obituary, 1997
Letter from Van Zelst to the Hiratsuka family
Articles about Hiratsuka's life, 1997
Memorial by Keiko Hiratsuka Moore, 1999
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Box 2
Folder 6
Content: Press articles about an exhibition at the Missouri Botanical Gardens, St. Louis, 1987
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Box 2
Folder 7
Content: Announcement of exhibition at the University of North Carolina, 1967?
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Box 2
Folder 8
Content: Letters regarding an exhibit of Van Zelst's collection at the University of Wisconsin at Baraboo, 1971
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Box 2
Folder 9
Content: Articles and advertisements for exhibitions in the Washington, D.C. area, 1966 - 1999
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Box 2
Folder 10
Content: Articles and advertisements for exhibitions at the Franz Bader Gallery, 1970, 1975, and 1976
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Box 2
Folder 11
Content: Article on the National Museum of American Art exhibition in 1999
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Box 2
Folder 12
Content: Invitation for exhibition at the Palm Springs Desert Museum, 1987
Advertisement and letter on the for University of California at Riverside lecture,
1970
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Box 2
Folder 13
Content: Letters and invitation regarding exhibition at Kendall College, Evanston, Ill., 1969
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Box 2
Folder 14
Content: Letters, article, and catalog regarding exhibition at Marillac High School, Northfield, Ill., 1969
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Box 2
Folder 15
Content: Letters, articles, invitation, copies of photos regarding exhibition at Dittmar Gallery, Northwestern University, 1972 - 1973
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Box 2
Folder 16
Content: Letters, articles, invitation, copies of photos regarding exhibition at Illinois Bell Telephone Co., Chicago, 1974
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Box 2
Folder 17
Content: Letters and articles regarding exhibition at Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, Ill., 1975
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Box 2
Folder 18
Content: Letters, notes, invitations, articles, and copies of photographs regarding exhibition at Art Institute, 1978
Notes and copies of photographs of prints donated to the Art Institute by Van
Zelst
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Box 2
Folder 19
Content: Letters, advertisement, and photocopies of photographs regarding "Japan Today" exhibition at Art Institute of Chicago, 1979
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Box 2
Folder 20
Content: Loan agreement, letter, and photocopies of photographs regarding exhibition at Evanston Art Center, 1983
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Box 2
Folder 21
Content: Letters, memos, articles, poster, and catalog regarding exhibition at Hiraki Ukiyo-e Museum, Yokohama, Japan, 1996
Midwest Engineer, Sept./Oct. 1996
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Box 2
Folder 22
Content: News and Events: The Art Institute of Chicago, May/June 2001
2001 Press Coverage
Hiratsuka, Publicity Report, The Art Institute of Chicago
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Box 2
Folder 23
Content: Letters, advertisements, and checklists regarding exhibition at Mary & Leigh Block Museum, Northwestern University, 2001 - 2002
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 3
Folder 1
Content: Hiratsuka Selected Prints, exhibition catalog in Japanese
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Box 3
Folder 2
Content: Notes on Hiratsuka Selected Prints
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Box 3
Folder 3
Content: Exhibit to Commemorate Return of Hiratsuka Un-ichi to His Home Country, catalog in Japanese
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Box 3
Folder 4
Content: Isetan Department Store, Tokyo, exhibition catalog in Japanese
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Box 3
Folder 5
Content: Notes on Isetan Department Store exhibition catalog and envelope
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Box 3
Folder 6
Content: Commemorating Opening of Hiratsuka Museum, Nagano, catalog in Japanese, note, and envelope
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Box 3
Folder 7
Content: Great Modern Japanese Woodcut Print Artist Un-Ichi Hiratsuka, A Hundred Years of Woodblock Print, in Japanese
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Box 3
Folder 8
Content: Un-ichi Hiratsuka, exhibition catalog for Sabu Department Store, Tokyo, in Japanese and English
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Box 3
Folder 9
Content: "Japan, A Country of Printmaking, Un-ichi Hiratsuka" excerpt translated by Keiko Moore
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Box 3
Folder 10
Content: Hiratsuka: Modern Master
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Box 3
Folder 11
Content: Hangwa Geijutsu, magazine in Japanese
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Box 3
Folder 12
Content: 1973 calendar
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 4
Folder 1
Content: "Life in the Hiratsuka Family" by Keiko Moore
"Keiko Hiratsuka Moore" in Circle of Friendship
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Box 4
Folder 2
Content: Advertisements, letters, and newspaper articles for exhibits and lectures by Keiko Moore
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Box 4
Folder 3
Content: Advertisements for Japanese Woodblock Prints
Articles on visit with Japanese emperor
Articles and letters on ballroom dancing
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Box 4
Folder 4
Content: Catalog of Moore woodblock prints owned by the Van Zelsts
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Box 4
Folder 5
Content: Correspondence from Keiko Moore to the Van Zelsts
1993 Calendar by Moore
Moku Hanga: How to make Japanese wood block prints
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Box 4
Folder 6
Content: Articles and programs on Thalia Moore, cellist and daughter of Keiko Moore
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Box 4
Folder 7
Content: Archives Table of Contents, detailed listing of this archival collection, manuscript
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Box 4
Folder 8-9
Content: Catalog of Woodblock prints, manuscript
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Box 4
Folder 10
Content: A.L. De Sanctis Collection
Video on Hiratsuka by NHK, Japan Public Television
Archival data from Van Zelst Collection, Macintosh zip disk
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 5
Folder 1
Content: Mita Arts Gallery, catalog, in Japanese
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Box 5
Folder 2
Content: Mita Arts Gallery, catalog, in Japanese
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Box 5
Folder 3
Content: Japanese Prints, 1999, 11, No. 5, 7, and 8, in Japanese
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Box 5
Folder 4
Content: Mita Arts Catalogue, Nos. 9 & 10
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Box 5
Folder 5
Content: Mita Arts Catalogue, Nos. 11 & 12
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 6
Folder 1
Content: Art Magazine, Familiar Tokyo, 1976, comments by Keiko Moore
Art Magazine, Familiar Tokyo, 1976
1964 Wall Calendar
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Box 6
Folder 2
Content: posters of 1978 Art Institute Retrospective
Box 1 | Box 2 | Box 3 | Box 4 |
Box 5 | Box 6 | Box 7
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Box 7
Folder 1
Content: Blue Scarf for Matsue Bank of San Insanin and box
Poster of 1978 Art Institute Retrospective, oversize
