Joseph Hahn Papers

This collection documents the life and work of Jewish Austrian-born artist and poet, Joseph Hahn. It consists of original drawings and paintings, poetry manuscripts, audio and video recordings, correspondence, personal diaries and narratives, publicity material, and personal records (including notes, biographical records, personal articles, and photographs).

Files retained their original titles, commonly including German. Descriptions of contents were added occasionally, in English, and are presented in square brackets. The content of original folders was not altered.

The Artwork series contains pieces in various stages, formats, and sizes including original works, photographs, copies, negatives, studies for larger works, and rough sketches. Items are listed by format which includes multiple oversize works as well as small prints, framed pieces, and bound reproductions. Stage and format are noted when such information could be determined. Additional notes are included detailing final disposition of the original or exhibition information, when available. Artworks are mainly brush, pen, and ink with a handful of paintings. All works are organized by the subject depicted as the title differed for various exhibitions and some titles were used for more than one subject. Some pieces were not titled or dated; these were also organized by the subject depicted. Documents relating to Hahn's art shows and pieces in museums are collected here as files alongside publicity, reviews, artist's statements, and opening night speeches.

The Correspondence series is personal in nature; professional correspondence regarding displaying or donating artworks is collected in the Artwork series while correspondence about publishing his writing is in the Writing series. Note correspondence with wives Olga Kleinmunz Hahn (including letters written during World War II) and Henriette Lerner-Hahn. There is a sizable amount of correspondence with faculty from the Department of German and Russian at the University of Vermont, namely Wolfgang Mieder, David Scrase, and Dennis Mahoney. Their letters often include research articles which have remained with the correspondence, as received. Books written by UVM faculty are located in the Personal series as their connection to the collection is that of personal friendship with Hahn.

The media series was created based on format and includes video and audio recordings of Joseph, focusing on his artistic output.

Biographical information comprises the majority of the Personal series. Joseph's items include identity documents; education records; information about his parents; reading material on topics of interest (including Jewish issues, Holocaust experiences, Czechoslovakia, art and literature); and funeral records.

The Writing series is divided into two categories by style: Poems and Prose. This series includes works in various stages from ideas to published works. Note especially in the Poems section that fragments and annotations are present, showing various stages in the course of a poem's creation.

Due to the predominance of German, all series have been arranged chronologically, with the exception of the Correspondence, which has been arranged alphabetically by last name.