Research Seminar: Diane E. Bockrath

Virtual Event 
April 29 2026
Time 12:00-1:30
Registration via Eventbrite

In 1934, Russian Jewish immigrant and committed Socialist Samuel Golden (1895-1963) launched what might seem to be an unlikely new endeavor: he started a Christmas card business. The company, American Artists Group (AAG), was founded with a three-fold vision to provide income for artists struggling during the Great Depression; democratize American art by bringing it into the average person’s home in accessible ways; and elevate the quality of Christmas cards on the market, which Golden felt had become tawdry and substandard. The group began with thirty-eight prominent artists representing a cross-section of American artistic styles and mediums, eventually expanding to more than 400 members and producing original designs as late as the 1990s. Its portfolio included artists such as John Taylor Arms, Peggy Bacon, Thomas Hart Benton, Rockwell Kent, Doris Lee, Reginald Marsh, and Diego Rivera.

The AAG collection, consisting of 120 linear feet of artist files, albums and sample books, and business records, was opened for research by Hagley Museum and Library in 2025 and has not yet been used by scholars. This paper by the processing archivist examines this newly available body of material that sits at the intersection of art history, business history, and the material culture of social customs. It offers an enhanced understanding of the American commercial art market from the 1930s to the 1960s through an intricate network of artistic production and introduces Golden himself, a surprisingly well-connected figure who maintained longstanding friendships with many well-known artists and who until now has remained opaque in the art-historical discourse. It also illuminates Golden’s unusual business model that paid artists royalties and allowed them to retain their copyright.

Diane E. Bockrath is the Processing and Collections Archivist at the Hagley Museum and Library.

Jennifer Greenhill from the University of Arkansas will provide an introductory comment.