Guide to the Virgil Cantini Papers and Photographs c1935-2009
- Repository
- Heinz History Center
- Title
- Virgil Cantini, Papers and Photographs
- Creator
- Cantini, Virgil
- Collection Number
- MSS 0722
- Extent
- 26 linear feet (29 boxes + O/S)
- Date
- c1935-2009
- Abstract
- Virgil Cantini (1919-2009) was a prominent public artist and studio arts professor, primarily known for his sculpture and enamel work. Throughout his years of residency in Pittsburgh, Cantini crafted a number of public sculptures that adorn buildings and decorate public spaces throughout the city. Cantini participated in many Pittsburgh art exhibitions, contributed to contemporary religious art shows, and was involved in festivals across the country. The Virgil Cantini Papers and Photographs primarily document his life as an artist and include correspondence, commissions, slides, photographs, and publications. There are also family and military materials including photographs, correspondence, and yearbooks.
- Language
- The material in this collection is in English.
- Sponsor
- This collection has been made accessible as part of an NHPRC-funded Basic Processing grant.
- Publisher
- Heinz History Center
- Address
- 1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org
History
Virgil David Cantini was born February 28, 1919 in Roccaroso, Italy. His family emigrated in 1930 from Italy to Weirton, West Virginia, when Cantini was 11 years old. Although the grandson of an artist, Cantini was discouraged from youth to practice art because of the hardship it brought upon his mother's family. Nevertheless, Cantini retained a passion for art, and sought an artistic education at Carnegie Technical Institute (now Carnegie Mellon University). He subsidized his education by playing football for the school, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in painting and design in 1946. Cantini's studies were briefly interrupted due to his service in World War II. As a technical sergeant in the Engineer Corps from 1943 to 1945, Cantini served the U.S. Army by making topographical maps and models of North Africa. When he returned from the war with an honorable discharge in 1945, Virgil Cantini married a fellow Carnegie Tech classmate, Lucille, née Kleber. In 1948, Cantini received his master's degree in studio arts from the University of Pittsburgh. That same year, Cantini had his first public art exhibition through the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh. In addition, Cantini also received commissions from the Bellefield Presbyterian Church and St. Michael's Catholic Church in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Cantini was influential in the formation of the Department of Studio Arts at the University of Pittsburgh. Beginning in 1952, Cantini taught studio arts at the University of Pittsburgh as a full professor. During his professorship, Cantini continued to cultivate his career as a public artist. As a result, Cantini was named Artist of the Year in 1956 by the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and received a Guggenheim Fellowship for travel and study in Europe in 1958.
Cantini received an honorary doctorate in fine arts from Duquesne University in 1981. In 1982, Cantini was commissioned to create 25 bronze and steel sculptures commemorating a selection of all-time great Pittsburgh Steelers football players. This was the first of many public art works for which Cantini was commissioned in Pittsburgh. Cantini would go on to craft metal sculptures for the downtown area and throughout the University of Pittsburgh's campus. These include: The Man, which is displayed on the University of Pittsburgh's School of Public Health building, New Horizons, Skyscape, which hangs from the ceiling in Posvar Hall, and Ode to Space, which stands outside David Lawrence Hall. In addition, Cantini also created the Joy of Life statue, which is positioned near the East Liberty Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Cantini is known for the manner in which his artwork reflects the tradition of the artist-craftsmanship from the Italian Renaissance. From his studio on South Craig Street in Pittsburgh, Cantini created various forms of art, including mobiles, enamels, and sculptures as well as oil paintings and sketches.
Cantini and his wife had two daughters, Maria and Lisa.
Scope and Content Notes
The Virgil Cantini Papers and Photographs are contained in 29 boxes, and have been arranged into two series. Series I (boxes 1-22) consists of materials relating to Cantini's career as an artist, including correspondence and commissions, as well as publications, photographs, and color slides depicting himself and his artwork. Boxes 1-11 primarily contain correspondence, commission materials, project documentation, and exhibitions gallery materials. Boxes 13-22 contain contact prints, photographs, 35 mm slides, several reels of film, newsprint and magazines all centered on Cantini himself or his artwork. Series II (boxes 19-24) primarily contains documentation and photographs of Cantini's immediate family and their homes. Boxes 23-29 contain yearbooks from schools Cantini attended, photographs from his WWII service, letters to and from his daughters Maria and Lisa, and hundreds of photographs depicting the Cantini family, mostly at their farm in Somerset, Pa.
Series I: Professional, 1948-c2009 (bulk c1950-c1975)
Box 1 contains correspondence and other documentation relating to the establishment of a graduate program in Art Education at the University of Pittsburgh, as well his position as a professor of studio arts at the University of Pittsburgh. It is arranged alphabetically based on the existing letter filing dividers.
Box 2 primarily contains biographical materials on Virgil Cantini, as well as correspondence from his time as an educator at the University of Pittsburgh.
Box 3 contains records pertaining to commissions and projects Cantini completed throughout the 1970s. This box also contains correspondence and materials on various art exhibits with which Cantini was involved. The materials are divided by existing file dividers and titles.
Box 4 primarily contains Studio Arts and University of Pittsburgh materials. In addition, this box also contains correspondence relating to Cantini's commission to create The Man sculpture for Parran Hall, the University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public Health building, and other artworks like his Weirton, W.Va. sculpture.
Box 5 consists of records detailing the individual art sales Cantini made from ca. 1964 to ca. 1976. Similar to Box 4, this box also contains records about the relocation and rededication of Cantini's Joy of Life sculpture in 1985. Also included is installation documentation, such as the one man exhibit he completed for the Pittsburgh Art Plan.
Box 6 is primarily comprised of assorted correspondence between Cantini and commissioning bodies, like the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, regarding the construction and installation of artwork. Commission materials include blueprints and design layouts for proposed jobs.
Box 7 contains small programs and publications, including Associated Artists of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh materials primarily focused on Cantini, as well as art exhibition catalogs and pamphlets from installations in private galleries.
Box 8 is primarily comprised of correspondence and other materials regarding pieces of artwork Cantini created for various entities, including the University of Pittsburgh's Hillman Library. This box also contains documents concerning the 1964 Diocese of Pittsburgh Liturgical Week, his honorary doctorate from Duquesne University in 1981, and honors Cantini received from Pope Paul IV in 1964, and correspondence relating to his Guggenheim Fellowship in 1958.
Box 9 contains materials pertaining to a William Penn Memorial Museum exhibit held to honor Cantini's artwork. Images and collages have been maintained and framed with a plastic cover and cardboard backing, which display examples of his work primarily focused on enamels of steel.
Box 10 contains magazine-type publications (American Artist, Pittsburgh Magazine, Pitt: a Quarterly of Fact and Thought at the University of Pittsburgh) which have stories covering Cantini's work.
Box 11 contains newspaper clippings focused on Cantini as an artist, professor, and father, primarily from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and university publications like the Pitt News.
Box 12 contains various pieces of artwork created by Cantini, including preliminary sketches of his The Man sculpture and various sketches drawn during his service in World War II, as well as small sketch books and small personal advertisements with his artwork on them. There are sketches that may not be his work.
Box 13 contains 35mm slides of Virgil Cantini's art making processes as well as the artwork, including sculptures and enamels. Slides remain in original containers with varied identification, often wooden or cardboard, and some bundles are bound by rubber bands.
Box 14 houses 35mm slides; 2 carousels, 3 envelopes, and hundreds of other slides in containers within the box.
Box 15 contains additional 35mm slides and Films; 4 carousels and 8 small reels of films presumed to contain footage of artwork and art viewings.
Box 16 contains hundreds of loose, unidentified slides.
Box 17 holds photographs. There are two large portfolio cases containing images for religious centered pieces and commissioned works by Virgil Cantini, as well as a photograph album containing images primarily of religious works, but also other pieces Cantini created. There is one wrapped item, as well as photos nailed on wood.
Box 18 consists of three scrapbooks all containing newspaper clippings, magazine articles, and exhibit reviews or promotions centered on Cantini and his artwork. Additionally, large photos of Cantini creating artwork, or images of the works themselves, are included.
Boxes 19-20 hold boxes of photographs which contain images of Cantini creating sculptures, mosaics, enamels, and other pieces of art. The images depict the pieces themselves, as well as in exhibits formats.
Box 21 houses a number of text books with Cantini's artwork published on the covers.
Box 22 is an oversized container housing newsprint and magazine publications that feature Cantini or his artwork.
Assorted oversized records include promotional materials featuring Cantini's artwork in addition to an oversized drawing by Cantini.
Series II: Family, c1935 – c2000
Series II is housed in 7 boxes. These boxes focus on Cantini's experiences prior to his career as an artist as well as various materials related to the Cantini family. There are yearbooks from schools Cantini attended, photographs from his WWII service, letters to and from his daughters Maria and Lisa, and hundreds of photographs depicting the Cantini family, mostly at their farm in Somerset, Pa.
Box 23 contains several yearbooks from schools Cantini attended, including Weir High School (1939) and Carnegie Technical Institute (1942, '43). There are also ceramics class notebooks from Alfred University (1946), and a football playbook from Carnegie Tech.
Box 24 is primarily comprised of photographs depicting Cantini's service in North Africa and Italy during World War II. Other images document the making of tactical models and topographical maps Cantini helped produce for the Army. There are also topographical sketch manuals and passports.
Box 25 contains letters from and addressed to Cantini's daughters Maria and Lisa, a manuscript titled "Virgil Cantini: A Daughter's Impression" by Maria Cantini. There are numerous photographs of the family, primarily taken at their farm in Somerset, Pa. The remaining boxes are comprised of family photographs that chronicle trips abroad and recreational time at the family farm in Somerset, Pa.
Boxes 26 and 27 contain hundreds of 4"x6" photographic images, still housed in original photograph envelopes, with some identification. These photographs primarily depict the family farm in Somerset, Pa., as well as Cantini's sculptures and other art works at the farm.
Box 28 contains hundreds of 35mm slides housed in a variety of original containers, as well as a VHS tape containing footage from Weir High School's class of 1939 reunion in 2000.
Box 29 consists of eight photograph albums containing images of the Cantini family, Maria and Lisa Cantini, and other friends and relatives. A large portion of the images were taken at the family's farm in Somerset, Pa.
Arrangement
The Virgil Cantini Papers and Photographs are housed in 29 boxes and have been arranged into two series:
Boxes 1-22; Series I: Professional, 1948-c2009 (bulk c1950-c1975)
Boxes 23-29; Series II: Family, c1935-c2000
Conditions Governing Access
None.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift from Jim and Lisa Seguin in 2011.
Archives accession # 2011.0272
Preferred Citation
Virgil Cantini Papers and Photographs, c1935-2009, MSS 0722, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Sierra Green and Sarah Ecklund on 1/25/2012.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Separated Materials
Virgil Cantini Collection, acc #2011.65, Museum Division, Senator John Heinz Hitory Center
Consists of 44 objects related to Cantini's artwork, including tools and pieces of art.
Subjects
- University of Pittsburgh – Department of Studio Arts (Pittsbugh,Pa.)
- Associated Artists of Pittsburgh
- Pittsburgh Public Artists
- Cantini, Virgil (1919 – 2009)
- Cantini, Lucille (1921 - 2008)
- Pittsburgh (Pa.)
- Somerset (Pa.)
- Enamel and enameling
- Art, Modern--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
- Art societies--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
- Exhibitions--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
- Artists -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
- World War, 1939-1945 – Africa