Hoie, Helen, "Mirage"

The Papers of Sir Edwin Alfred Grenville Manton, 1927-2007, is comprised of records created and accumulated by Edwin Manton over his lifetime. The collection includes documents such as correspondence; invoices and receipts; and photographs and slides depicting potential acquisitions for his personal art collection. Also in this collection is a series of books and auction catalogs collected by Manton, published between the 1940’s and the early 2000’s, many of which include dog-eared pages and notes on desirable artworks.

Information regarding the Manton family’s 2007 gift to the Clark Art Institute is also included in this collection. The gift included over 300 pieces of 19th-century British artworks and an endowment to the Clark paid over the course of five years. The gift designed to aid in educational efforts at The Clark and to expand the museum's holdings of British art. The details of the gift are bound together and separated into exhibit sections; each holds a different portion of the process of finalizing the gift. This includes the gift agreement form, correspondence, the credentials of people working with the gift, a section detailing each artwork gifted to the Clark, as well as layouts for the proposed Manton gallery.

The correspondence subseries within the collection is comprised of general correspondence between Manton and the various galleries, organizations, art dealers, and companies he worked with in his capacity as an art collector. This includes general inquiries about art and other services, plans for exhibitions and catalogs involving Mantons collected works; personal letters, as well as extensive contact between Manton and Oscar and Peter Johnson Limited. Also included are invoices and receipts for services rendered, such as security or insurance. Each folder within this subseries contains a specific entities correspondence to or from Manton.

Another aspect of this collection is the Private Collection series. The series is comprised of the information regarding specific pieces of art purchased by Manton. Records include correspondence referencing the potential sale of specifc artworks; photographs, slides, or transparencies of the works of art; receipts and invoices for artworks, price lists, and information on the artworks being sold. Each folder within this series contains details of the sale of an artwork or grouping of artworks to Edwin Manton.

Further included in this collection is a subseries of photographs and news clippings. The photographs depict unidentified works of art. The newspaper clippings often capture stories on John Constable, other artists within Manton's purview, and stories prevalent to art at the time.