The Yale University Press is pleased to announce the publication of “Drawn with Spirit: Pennsylvania German Fraktur from the Joan and Victor Johnson Collection” by Lisa Minardi. Published in association with the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA), the book features an interview by Ann Percy nd is the companion to an exhibition of the collection open at the PMA through Sunday, April 26.
Among the most beloved forms of American folk art, fraktur is a Germanic tradition of decorated manuscripts and printed documents noted for its use of bold colors and whimsical motifs. The PMA makes a landmark contribution to the study of Pennsylvania German fraktur with the publication of “Drawn with Spirit.”
This catalog and the associated exhibition offer the most comprehensive study of the topic in over 50 years. The featured objects, most of which have never been published, accompany significant new information about the artists who made these works and the people who owned them. An introductory essay sets the renowned Johnson collection within the context of collecting and scholarship on Pennsylvania German folk art and then highlights major new discoveries, including connections between fraktur and related examples of furniture and prints.
An interview with the collectors offers valuable insights into the formation of this special group of objects, which includes birth and baptismal certificates, bookplates, religious texts, writing samples, house blessings, cutworks, and printed broadsides. The color illustrations reveal schools of artistic and regional influence, giving a nuanced understanding of how artists took inspiration from one another and how designs were transferred to new locations.
Detailed catalog entries include extensive information about each piece as well as useful translations.
About the author
Lisa Minardi is an assistant curator at Winterthur Museum in Delware and a specialist in Pennsylvania German art
and culture. A Pennsylvania native, she earned a B.A. in history and museum studies from Ursinus
College and an M.A. from the Winterthur Program in Early American Culture. She is currently a Ph.D.
candidate in the History of American Civilization Program at the University of Delaware.
The publication date is Tuesday, Feb 17. The hard-cover book is $65.
To order, visit www.yalebooks.com.