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GRAHAM MARTHA: (1894-1991) American Modern Dancer & Choreographer. A fine, long A.L.S.
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Description
GRAHAM MARTHA: (1894-1991) American Modern Dancer & Choreographer. A fine, long A.L.S., Martha, six pages, 4to, Tel Aviv, 11th November 1964, to Vera [Maxwell], on stationery printed in Hebrew and English. Graham commences her letter by asking 'How do you contrive the time to create such rare and beautiful clothes, sustain an industry in such a tumultuous area, and yet still have time to make lovely gestures, such as you made to me before I left?' and continues 'The dresses are so lovely. I kept the fabulous linen…..These dresses are exactly what I needed. London and Zurich where we touched down meant a fur coat and then Tel Aviv was 80 degrees. It is a late summer. The weather is dulcet - like Santa Barbara with the same flowers and prodigality of color. Also it is cool in the evening and can be quite treacherous in late afternoon when the sun drops into the sea with tropical fashion. I have your white coat here. It is a basket weave like wool, lined and piped in satin with one button and no pockets', further remarking 'I wish I could have seen your showings. I was engulfed at the time in a labyrinth of an idea and I felt and I felt almost about to lose my thread to show me the way out. I am not sure I am not still in that twilight interior Gide describes in his “Theseus” with its secret intoxications of color and sound and scent and the high pitched vibration of approaching events. I suppose I hate to leave it as we all do - that secret, lonely, miserable time. But I have to kick myself out of it pretty soon' and also adding 'I hope the beautiful clothes you sent me to wear at Lincoln Center are safe & on view in a museum…..I…..showed it to all the company and knew it was too powerful for me to wear that night, much as I longed to. It was a wonderful, hellish experience, in contemplation before, and I was terribly afraid of the title of the evening, the vastness of the hall and of myself. You were wonderful to have thought I could have worn any of those lovely things. It is a gesture of faith from you that I treasure'. Graham also writes of her current activities, 'I am at work here in a new area, advising, coaching, supervising costumes, make-up…..of course there is the baffling subject of “style” because to most who are new and some not so new it is confused with “stylish”' and concludes 'Please understand, Vera, as I know you will, it is such a privilege to wear any of your things which have an eternal……beauty about them' before remarking in a postscript 'This is Bethsabee's paper as you know. I have no Hebrew except thank you, be quiet and phone numbers'. A letter of good content and interesting association. Annotated in ink in an unidentified hand with Graham's name to the lower edge of the final page. Some very light, extremely minor age wear, otherwise VG Vera Maxwell (1901-1995) American Fashion Designer who designed for Martha Graham and other famous individuals including Lillian Gish, Rosalynn Carter and Pat Nixon. Graham had become close friends with one of her students, Bethsabee de Rothschild, and when the heiress moved to Israel she established the Batsheva Dance Company in 1965. As the present letter illustrates, Graham became the company's first director.
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GRAHAM MARTHA: (1894-1991) American Modern Dancer & Choreographer. A fine, long A.L.S., Martha, six pages, 4to, Tel Aviv, 11th November 1964, to Vera [Maxwell], on stationery printed in Hebrew and English. Graham commences her letter by asking 'How do you contrive the time to create such rare and beautiful clothes, sustain an industry in such a tumultuous area, and yet still have time to make lovely gestures, such as you made to me before I left?' and continues 'The dresses are so lovely. I kept the fabulous linen…..These dresses are exactly what I needed. London and Zurich where we touched down meant a fur coat and then Tel Aviv was 80 degrees. It is a late summer. The weather is dulcet - like Santa Barbara with the same flowers and prodigality of color. Also it is cool in the evening and can be quite treacherous in late afternoon when the sun drops into the sea with tropical fashion. I have your white coat here. It is a basket weave like wool, lined and piped in satin with one button and no pockets', further remarking 'I wish I could have seen your showings. I was engulfed at the time in a labyrinth of an idea and I felt and I felt almost about to lose my thread to show me the way out. I am not sure I am not still in that twilight interior Gide describes in his “Theseus” with its secret intoxications of color and sound and scent and the high pitched vibration of approaching events. I suppose I hate to leave it as we all do - that secret, lonely, miserable time. But I have to kick myself out of it pretty soon' and also adding 'I hope the beautiful clothes you sent me to wear at Lincoln Center are safe & on view in a museum…..I…..showed it to all the company and knew it was too powerful for me to wear that night, much as I longed to. It was a wonderful, hellish experience, in contemplation before, and I was terribly afraid of the title of the evening, the vastness of the hall and of myself. You were wonderful to have thought I could have worn any of those lovely things. It is a gesture of faith from you that I treasure'. Graham also writes of her current activities, 'I am at work here in a new area, advising, coaching, supervising costumes, make-up…..of course there is the baffling subject of “style” because to most who are new and some not so new it is confused with “stylish”' and concludes 'Please understand, Vera, as I know you will, it is such a privilege to wear any of your things which have an eternal……beauty about them' before remarking in a postscript 'This is Bethsabee's paper as you know. I have no Hebrew except thank you, be quiet and phone numbers'. A letter of good content and interesting association. Annotated in ink in an unidentified hand with Graham's name to the lower edge of the final page. Some very light, extremely minor age wear, otherwise VG Vera Maxwell (1901-1995) American Fashion Designer who designed for Martha Graham and other famous individuals including Lillian Gish, Rosalynn Carter and Pat Nixon. Graham had become close friends with one of her students, Bethsabee de Rothschild, and when the heiress moved to Israel she established the Batsheva Dance Company in 1965. As the present letter illustrates, Graham became the company's first director.
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