Clifford A. Harvey, Graphic Designer, Papers
Collection
Collection Number: A&M 4323
Prints, correspondence, research notes, and graphic design projects of Clifford A. Harvey, professor of art and founder of the graphic design program at West Virginia University. The majority of the material pertains to Harvey's involvement with the GramLee Collection of Early American Commercial Wood Engravings made up of wood blocks originally used by the S. George Company of Wellsburg, W. Va., and the book that he published as a result of his research titled "Before Rosebud Was a Sled." Other material is connected to Permutation Press, a private printing press operated by Harvey. A substantial number of exemplars of Harvey's professional work can be found in boxes 10-12.
English
No special access restriction applies.
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.
Clifford A. Harvey was born in St. Paul, MN in 1937, the son of Clifford Harvey and Truen (King) Harvey. He earned his bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and in 1973, established the Graphic Design program at West Virginia University. He continued to lead the program for over thirty years, retiring as Professor Emeritus in 2007.
Though he led the way in setting up a thoroughly modern graphic design studio in the Creative Arts Center in the 1980s, Harvey remained committed to teaching his students traditional printing and book arts as well. Bookbinding and fine printing were hallmarks of his own artistic work as well. In 2002, Harvey established an exchange program in graphic design with the Universdad de Guanajuato in Mexico.
Harvey became nationally known for his work with the GramLee Collection of Early American Commercial Wood Engravings. Currently owned by the WVU Division of Art, this compilation of printing blocks is one of the largest single collections of 19th century American wood engravings known in the United States today.
Based on his research and experience, Harvey wrote and published a private press book about the GramLee Collection entitled “Before Rosebud was a Sled,” which is in rare book collections in many universities and numerous private collections. He has also lectured across the United States and internationally.
Harvey was also known for his love of dogs and was instrumental in the development of two dog parks in Morgantown, WV, Stanley's Spot and Krepps Dog Park. With his wife, Carol, he established Dog Tags Training School in 1994.
Cliff Harvey passed away in 2013.
8 Linear Feet (8 ft. (5 record cartons, 15 in. each); (2 document cases, 5 in. each); (2 flat storage boxes, 1 in. each); (3 flat storage boxes, 3 in. each))
Part of the West Virginia and Regional History Center Repository