Robert J. Flaherty John Howard Benson Documentary Film (23.10)

Historical note

16mm footage from an unfinished film by Robert J. Flaherty documenting the calligraphy and stone-carving work of RISD Professor John Howard Benson, commissioned by Gordon Washburn, the Director of the Rhode Island School of Design Museum of Art (RISD Museum). The collection includes 16mm footage from subsequent attempts by Charles Arnold, Jr. (1950s) to augment and complete the unfinished film project. Over time, the films were deposited with the RISD Museum, and subsequently transferred to the RISD Archives in 1998 and 2012.