Paul Theobald and Company Record
1935-1988 (bulk 1946-1955)
Walter Gropius (1883-1969) György Kepes (1906-2001) Kazimir Malevich (1878-1935) László Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946)
Paul Theobald, an amateur artist and bibliophile, combined his interests and opened a bookstore/gallery in Chicago in 1936. The gallery offered exhibitions of George Grosz, Hans Hoffmann, and Archipenko, which attracted clients from the large émigré population in Chicago. At first simply encouraging his clients to write, Theobald ultimately became a publisher, drawn to books that related the visual arts to social issues. Among the titles Theobald published are: Walter Gropius’ Rebuilding Our Communities (1945); Gyorgy Kepes’ Language of Vision (1944); Kazimir Malevich’s The Non-Objective World (1959); Laszlo Moholy-Nagy’s Vision in Motion (1947); and five books by Ludwig Hilberseimer. The collection includes correspondence with authors, manuscripts, contracts, and Completes.
Collection access:
Collections may be accessed in the Franke Reading Room of the Research Center at The Art Institute of Chicago, by appointment only. For further information, consult the FAQ.
Finding aids by subject
Browse all finding aids
Browse images and media
Oral histories
Contact the Ryerson and Burnham Art and Architecture Archives:
archives@artic.edu
Correspondence, printed papers, black and white photographic prints, a linocut and a bound book.