Burchfield, Louise (1888-1982)

Person

Staff Only

Dates

Existence: 1888 - 1982

Biography

Louise Burchfield worked for the Cleveland Museum of Art for thirty years. Known for her association with the May Show and associated traveling exhibitions, museum director William Milliken acknowledged Burchfield for her steadfast loyalty and dedication to the exhibition.

Burchfield first joined the CMA in 1924 as an assistant in the registration department. The better half of her career was spent serving as the associate curator of paintings, until her retirement in 1954. Burchfield is particularly remembered for her lead organizational role in the publication of the Edward Greene Collection. She often worked directly with Mr. Greene, transforming her research position to that of an authority figure on portrait miniatures.

Although Burchfield traveled within the United States for the May Show, perhaps her most notable adventures were across Europe. After being awarded the Guggenheim Fellowship, the first member of the museum to have done so, Burchfield embarked on a several month trip to countries such as England, Sweden, Denmark, France, and Italy. This voyage was to prepare for the writing of her book, which was to focus on portrait miniatures in public and private collections. “England,” she remarked, consisted of “the largest and finest array of miniatures.” In a 1952 Cleveland Plain Dealer article written about Burchfield’s return to the states, it is evident that her main takeaway from the trip was to popularize miniatures in American art after seeing the impact the style had on English culture.

On July 16, 1954, Louise Burchfield retired from the Cleveland Museum of Art. In a well-deserved manner, Burchfield finished writing her book on portrait miniatures, using what she had researched in Europe.

Biography written by Lucia Martino, 2024

Occupations

Places

Ohio--Akron (Place of Birth)
Ohio--Salem (Place of Death)

Topics

Women museum curators

Found in 3 Collections and/or Records:

Cleveland Museum of Art May Show records.

Collection

Identifier: 1111.069

Scope and Contents note The May Show records document the Exhibition of Artists and Craftsmen of the Western Reserve. They were created by the museum departments that directly administered the May Show, mainly the Director's Office, the Department of Modern Art and the Registrar's Office. The records reflect the activity both within and between museum departments. The collection is divided into eight series determined by originating office and medium. The largest was created by the Department of Modern Art. Series...

Dates: Majority of material found within Bulk, 1960-1990; 1919-1993

Found in: Cleveland Museum of Art Archives / Cleveland Museum of Art May Show records.

Greene, Edward Belden 1931-1957

File — Box: 19, Folder: 1

Scope and Contents note From the Series: This is the central correspondence file from Milliken's tenure as director, dating from 1930-1958. When Milliken became director, he apparently continued Whiting's numerical filing scheme for awhile, but at some point he (or someone on his support staff) decided to establish a new central file of director's correspondence in an alphabetical sequence by correspondent names and subject terms. Materials in each file are usually arranged chronologically, although general files, such as those...

Dates: 1930-1958

Found in: Cleveland Museum of Art Archives / 1111.072, William Mathewson Milliken records / Alphabetical Administrative Correspondence

WTAM: Henry Francis, Louise Burchfield, 20-March-1948

File — Reel: 2

Scope and Contents note From the Collection:

This small collection on microfilm consists of transcripts of radio talks presented by museum staff on local radio stations on various topics including the May Show, the Museum's twentieth anniversary, exhibitions, collections, and programs. Regretfully, there are no audio files to accompany the transcripts.

Dates: 20-March-1948

Found in: Cleveland Museum of Art Archives / 1111.107, Cleveland Museum of Art Radio Talks