Researching and Cataloging the Legacy of American Artist Gwen Frostic

Elsa Hensel

Researching and Cataloging the Legacy of American Artist Gwen Frostic for the Purpose of Academic Research

ISBN 978-3-86821-164-1, 228 S., 38 Abb., Bilddatenbank mit 1366 Abb., € 20,00 (CD-ROM, 2009)

(Cultural Studies in the Heartland of America, Bd. 17)

Gwen Frostic was a gifted artist and poet as well as a successful businesswoman in the state of Michigan. Throughout her long life, her artistic talent was dedicated to creating block prints depicting the regional flora and fauna that were her inspiration. Frostic was the author of numerous volumes of free-verse and she created a vast array of nature motifs in hand-carved block prints. Frostic sold her artistic products directly from her shop at Presscraft Papers in Benzonia, Michigan, and over the years she established a thriving mail-order business as well. Long after her death in 2001, her artwork is in great demand and her artistic reputation has continued to grow. Keeping Gwen Frostic’s legacy alive and accessible involves preserving her personal documents in a modern digital archive for researchers, genealogists, historians and all those who appreciate her life story. This academic work illustrates the process of creating and using such an archive for a variety of purposes. A detailed user-guide assists in managing archived files, and the appendix provides an overview of Gwen Frostic’s legacy.