West Virginia and Regional History Center
1549 University Ave.P.O. Box 6069
Morgantown, WV 26506-6069
Business Number: 304-293-3536
wvrhcref@westvirginia.libanswers.com
URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu
Staff of the West Virginia & Regional History Center
Administrative Information
Conditions Governing Use
Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.
Conditions Governing Access
No special access condition applies to the archival component of this collection, including scrapbook, photographs, clippings, photographs, etc. An access condition, however, applies to the artwork in this collection.
Researchers may access born digital materials by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.
Preferred Citation
[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Max Hayslette, Artist, Papers and Artwork, A&M 3817, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.
Biographical / Historical
Max Hayslette was born in 1929 in Rupert, West Virginia (WV). He was raised by his mother, Lolita, and father, Ellis, who worked for the Meadow River Lumber Company in Rainelle, WV. He graduated from the American Academy of Art in Chicago in 1951. He then studied briefly with Egon Weiner and Alexander Archipenko at the Art Institute of Chicago, which had a profound impact on his art. He earned an internship with Kenneth Olson, and remained on staff for ten years. In early 1962, he relocated to Seattle, Washington (WA), and was a principal at the Berg, Hayslette, Dupar design firm.
Following art school much of Hayslette's work was in the field of industrial design. He completed a variety of projects, including work with Herbert Bayer on the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia in the late 1950s, the design of four pavilions for World's Fairs from 1962 to 1974, and work with New York design firm Walter Dorwin Teague on a project for the Boeing Company's Design and Developmental Center in Seattle, WA. In 1973, Hayslette founded Olympus Atelier and Olympus Graphics, Inc., a silk screen printing business, on Bainbridge Island, WA.
In the late 2000s, Hayslette was asked by the Rainelle Area Planning Commission to help the town's historical restoration efforts. His resulting painting of the Meadow River Lumber Company mill, donated to the Planning Commission for auction and print sales, helped raise money for the restoration project.
Hayslette is known for his abstract, modernist works as well as his landscapes. He frequently cites the influence of and draws inspiration from Asian masters. He has traveled extensively in Europe to paint, particularly in southern France and northern Italy. Through his longtime partnership with Larry Winn, Hayslette's works have been available through Winn Devon Art Group, and are currently available through Grand Image.
Scope and Contents
Papers of artist Max Hayslette, native West Virginian and longtime resident of Washington, documenting his early life, his travels, and his work in industrial design and painting. There is a scrapbook from his youth in Rupert, West Virginia, prints of his artwork, photographs documenting his travels, and articles and news clippings about him and his work. Also included are items related to his donation of a painting to the Rainelle Area Planning Commission to assist with their town restoration (in West Virginia). These items include an album of Rainelle student artwork given to him, a key to the city of Rainelle, a Distinguished West Virginian Award, and various clippings.
The collection is divided into the following 9 series:
Series 1. Scrapbook (1947-1969), box 1
Series 2. Artwork (1962-2012), boxes 1-2, folders 1-4
Series 3. Photographs (1932-2010), box 2, folders 5-6
Series 4. Printed Materials (1962-2011), box 2, folders 7-8
Series 5. Writings (2007-2011), box 2, folder 9
Series 6. Subject Files (1998-2011), box 2, folders 10-14
Series 7. Artifacts (2011, undated), box 1
Series 8. Miscellaneous (1995-2011), box 2, folder 15
Series 9. Oversize Materials (2001-2019) boxes 3-5 and unboxed material
Series 10. Addendum of 2014 November 20 (ca. 1968-2007), box 6
Series 11. Addendum of 2015 January 22 (2011-2014, undated), box 3 and unboxed material
Series 12. Addendum of 2015 May 29 (2014), unboxed
Series 13. Addendum of 2019 August 27 (2013-2014), box 7 and digital files
Series 14. Addendum of 2020 February 20 (1927), box 8
Series 15. Addendum of 2021 November 4 (undated), digital files
Separated Material
The following books have been separated to the Rare Book Room and the WVU Libraries general collection, respectively, with the pertinent pages photocopied and retained with the collection:
Biennale internazionale dell'arte contemporanea: [catalogo] Citta di Firenze: quarta edizione 2003 . Firenze: Arte studio, 2003.
Wright, John S., and Daniel S. Warner. Advertising . New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
- Art and artists
- Hayslette, Max
- Rainelle (W. Va.)
Container List
- Mixed Materials Box: 1
Album of original artwork by the students of Rainelle Elementary School presented to Max Hayslette2011-04-23T00:00:00.000
- Mixed Materials Box: 2 Folder: 1-4
Photographs and other itemsca. 1962-2012
- Mixed Materials Box: 3
2 screen-printed t-shirts celebrating the "Max at 80" event at the Cooper Galleryca. 2009
- Mixed Materials Box: 4
Portfolio containing 10 prints, each bearing the name of a museum, institution, or gallery2011
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 1-2
Oversize Material from Series 6undated
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 3
Postage stamps bearing Hayslette's artwork2005
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 4
Grand Image clippings advertising Hayslette's workca. 2002
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 5
Poster celebrating Hayslette's 90th birthday2019
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 6
Printed material, mainly clippings2002–2011
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 7
Gallery items2000–2011
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 8
Distinguished West Virginian Award2011
- Mixed Materials Box: 4 Folder: 9
Signed print of the Meadow Lumber Company mill2011
- Mixed Materials Box: 5
Box of prints "Song Without Words," a certified authentic suite of 10 platinum print images released by Olympus Atelier on 2010/01/02 to commemorate Hayslette's 80th year.2010-01-02T00:00:00.000
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Gardens of the Mind No. 76 (HMOC945), oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches2010
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Songs without Words No. 8 (HMOC1041), oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches2010
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Songs without Words No. 3 (HMOC960), oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches2010
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Greenbrier Landscape, (HMOC895), oil on canvas, 26 x 28 inches2012
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Afternoon Solitude II, (HMOC934), oil on canvas, 26 x 30 inches2009
- Mixed Materials Box: 3
Portfolio2011-2014, undated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Study: Gardens of the Mind No. 96 (HMOC 1003), oil and mixed media, 12 x 12 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Gardens of the Mind No. 113 (HMOC 1064), oil and mixed media, 24 x 48 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Study: Gardens of the Mind No. 132 (HMOC 1177), oil and mixed media, 12 x 12 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
The Architect No. 2 (HMOC 1236), oil and mixed media, 30 x 26 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Rugged Coast No. 6 (HMOC 1266), oil and mixed media, 21.5 x 31.5 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Rugged Coast No. 8 (HMOC 1275), oil and mixed media, 40 x 18 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Architectural Suite No. 3 (HMOC 1154), oil and mixed media, 24 x 24 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Gardens of the Mind No. 137 (HMOC 1186), oil and mixed media, 16 x 16 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Gardens of the Mind No. 144 (HMOC 1213), oil and mixed media, 24 x 30 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Study: Autumn Gold (HMOC 1235), oil and mixed media, 22 x 20 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Study: Greenbrier and the Gauley (HMOC 1238), oil and mixed media, 14.5 x 18.5 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Rugged Coast No. 7 (HMOC 1269), oil and mixed media, 21.5 x 21.5 inchesundated
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
East Fork (HMOC 1282), oil on canvas, 20 x 24 inches2014
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Greenbrier Naturally No. 12 After Charmichael (HMOC 1296), oil drawing, 14 x 18 inches2014
- Mixed Materials Unboxed
Greenbrier Naturally No. 17 (HMOC 1302), oil drawing, 18 x 20 inches2014
Researchers may access born digital materials by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.
Audio and transcripts of interviews conducted with and about Max Hayslette and his career.
Rainelle High School Photograph Album. Contains portraits and some group portraits of the "class of '28". There are also narrative histories of the class, and some biographical information regarding many class members.
This series consists of two sets of video files regarding an art installation by Max Hayslette in a home in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. One set includes a short documentary edited by Jacob Young, and the other includes the raw footage used for said documentary, including footage of the creation of the installation, a walkthrough by Hayslette himself, and interviews with the owners of the home in which the installation was built. Also included is a transcript.
Researchers may access born digital materials by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.