Paul Alexander Bartlett (13 July 1909 – 19 April 1990) was an American writer, artist, and poet. He made a large-scale study of more than 350 Mexican haciendas, published novels, short stories, and poetry, and worked as a fine artist in a variety of media.

Life

Bartlett was born in

Moberly, Missouri Moberly is a city in Randolph County, Missouri, United States. The population was 13,974 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Columbia, Missouri metropolitan area. History Moberly was founded in 1866, and named after Colonel William E. Moberly ...

. He was the son of Robert Alexander Bartlett and his wife, Minnie Lou Dobson. Paul Alexander Bartlett studied at

Western Reserve Academy , motto_translation = Light and Truth , address = 115 College Street , city = Hudson , state = Ohio , zipcode = 44236-2999 , country = United S ...

,Biographical information fro
Western Reserve Academy

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

Academia de San Carlos The Academy of San Carlos ( es, Academia de San Carlos) is located at 22 Academia Street in just northeast of the main plaza of Mexico City. It was the first major art academy and the first art museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1781 as th ...

Universidad de Guadalajara The University of Guadalajara ( es, Universidad de Guadalajara) is a public higher education institution in the Mexican city of Guadalajara. The university has several high schools as well as graduate and undergraduate campuses, which are dis ...

, Escuela de Bellas Artes de Guadalajara, and the

National University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigges ...

.Biographical and other information from "Paul Alexander Bartlett" entry in ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Literature Resource Center. Gale Document Number: GALE H1000005836. Detroit: Gale, 2013. His professional life was devoted to writing, fine art, and poetry. In 1941, he met American poet Elizabeth Bartlett in

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

; they were married in 1943 in Sayula, Mexico. Elizabeth Bartlett (1911–1994) is the author of many published books of poetry, anthologized poetry, individually published poems in leading literary journals, short stories, and founder of the international non-profit organization, Literary Olympics, Inc.Biographical and other information from "Elizabeth Bartlett" entry in ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Literature Resource Center. Gale Document Number: GALE H1000005815. Detroit: Gale, 2013. They had one child,

Steven James Bartlett Steven James Bartlett (born 1945) is an American philosopher and psychologist notable for his studies in epistemology and the theory of reflexivity, and for his work on the psychology of human aggression and destructiveness, and the shortcoming ...

(b. 1945), a published author in the fields of psychology and philosophy.Biographical and other information from "Steven James Bartlett" entry in ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Literature Resource Center. Gale Document Number: GALE H1000305527. Detroit: Gale, 2013. Over a period of more than four decades, Paul Alexander Bartlett lived in numerous areas of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

while he undertook a lifelong extensive study of more than 350 haciendas throughout the country, documented in art and photographs.Data and other information from th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the American Heritage Center of the University of Wyoming
This collection contains 78 original pen-and-ink hacienda illustrations by Bartlett as well as 1,271 prints and 799 negatives of photographs taken by Bartlett of the Mexican haciendas (these are in addition to those included in the collection of his hacienda illustrations and photographs held by the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

described under "Permanent Collections"); works of fine art by Bartlett, consisting of more than 1,000 of his paintings in multiple media, drawings, and sketches; literary and publishing correspondence; personal records and journals; notes; newspaper clippings; program and exhibit announcements; book reviews and commendations by others of Bartlett's work; original manuscripts by Bartlett; a collection of his published books, short stories, essays, poetry, and book reviews; a collection of his publications in literary reviews, journals, and newspapers; and anthologies in which his work was published. Also included in the collection are original copies of a wide variety of as yet unpublished manuscripts consisting of books, short stories, and poetry (see under "Unpublished Manuscripts")
An online inventory of this collection is available
Data fro

. This collection includes 294 original pen-and-ink illustrations of the haciendas of Mexico by Paul Alexander Bartlett, and 903 hacienda photographs, 279 negatives, and 69 slides taken by him.Information from Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record.'' Foreword by James Michener. Introduction by historian of the Mexican haciendas, Gisela von Wobeser, trans. by Steven James Bartlett. Niwot, CO: University Press of Colorado, 1990. Illustrations and photographs reproduced in this book were selected from the collectio

. Periodically he, his wife, and son returned to the U.S. where Bartlett worked as a free-lance writer, editor, book reviewer, and fine artist. In 1942, he served as Editor of ''Workshop'' (an annual of creative writing based in

Ciudad Guzmán Ciudad Guzmán (also known as simply Guzmán) is a city in the Mexico, Mexican States of Mexico, state of Jalisco. It is south of Guadalajara, at a height of above sea level. Its population totaled 97,750 in the 2010 census, ranking as the eig ...

, Mexico).Finding aid for the Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection of Submissions to the Literary Annual, ''Workshop'', 1940-45, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles
He taught creative writing at Georgia State College (now

Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the ...

) in 1955. He was Editor of Publications for the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduate ...

, 1964–70. After purchasing a home in

Comala Comala () is a town and municipality located in the Mexican state of Colima, near the state capital of Colima. It has been nicknamed the “White Village of America” as the facades of the buildings in town have all been painted white since the 1 ...

, Mexico, his health failed in 1975; he and his wife then settled in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

where Bartlett continued to write and create works of art until his death in 1990.

Study of the haciendas of Mexico

Bartlett made a large-scale study of the Mexican haciendas, realized between 1943 and 1985; during this period he visited more than 350 haciendas located throughout Mexico.News release written by Gene M. Gressley, former Director of the Western Research Center (now the

American Heritage Center The American Heritage Center is the University of Wyoming's repository of manuscripts, rare books, and the university archives. Its collections focus on Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain West (including politics, settlement, and western trails) and ...

), Dec. 21, 1979. He was drawn by their architectural variety, by an interest in the life of both privilege and oppression they represented, and by their physical remoteness; as a result he devoted the majority of his life to their study. Often accompanied by his young son, Steven, he visited haciendas throughout Mexico, reaching them on horseback, or by mule, car, train, boat, and sometimes on foot.Information from Bartlett, Steven James. "Introduction." In th
Project Gutenberg edition of Paul Alexander Bartlett's ''When the Owl Cries''
Bartlett made a record of the haciendas he visited through some 370 original pen-and-ink illustrations and more than 1,000 photographs taken on location by him, resulting in the publication in 1990 of ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Mexico's historian of the haciendas, Gisela von Wobeser, provided the Introduction, while

James Michener James Albert Michener ( or ; February 3, 1907 – October 16, 1997) was an American writer. He wrote more than 40 books, most of which were long, fictional family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and ...

, who became aware of Bartlett's hacienda study in 1968, and commended his work,Michener, James. "Foreword." In Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Niwot, CO: University Press of Colorado, 1990, p. xv.Documents and other materials on file in th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the Department of Special Collections of the Charles E. Young Research Library of the University of California in Los Angeles
contributed the foreword to the book. Paul Alexander Bartlett sketching a Mexican hacienda, photo circa 1974

Paul Alexander Bartlett sketching a Mexican hacienda, photo circa 1974

The hacienda system played a fundamental role in Mexican history parallel to that of America's

plantations A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...

in the South.Information relating to the history of the Mexican haciendas, hacienda life, and the often deteriorating condition of the haciendas when Bartlett visited them is taken from Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Niwot, CO: University Press of Colorado, 1990. After the

Mexican revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

of 1910, a great many of the haciendas have become ruins and many that Bartlett visited early in his study have ceased to exist; especially for these, Bartlett's record in art and photography is in many cases the only surviving testimony to their historical, architectural, and economic importance.Bartlett, Paul Alexander, ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Niwot, CO: University Press of Colorado, 1990, p. xvii. Collections of Bartlett's original art, photography, notes, and other materials are preserved by the

Benson Latin American Collection The Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection is part of the University of Texas Library system in partnership with the Teresa Lozano Long Institute for Latin American Studies (LLILAS), located in Austin, Texas, and named for the historian and ...

of the

, by the

of the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

, by the Charles E. Young Research Library of the

University of California at Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

, by

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

, and by the

Toledo Museum of Art The Toledo Museum of Art is an internationally known art museum located in the Old West End neighborhood of Toledo, Ohio. It houses a collection of more than 30,000 objects. With 45 galleries, it covers 280,000 square feet and is currently in th ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. (For online finding aids to these collections and descriptions of their contents, see below under "Permanent Collections.") Bartlett's lifelong study of the Mexican haciendas has received recognition by historians and art critics: Early in Bartlett's study Mexican historian Ricardo Lancaster-Jones learned of Bartlett's project and contributed a group of hacienda photographs. Critical assessments of Bartlett's hacienda study include: "Work of indubitable historic and artistic interest... nce these edifices are fast disappearing, his work has great value for the history and monumental art of Mexico" (

Silvio Zavala Silvio Arturo Zavala Vallado (February 7, 1909 – December 4, 2014) was a Mexican historian who was considered to be a pioneer in law history studies and Mexico’s institutions. Biography Early life Silvio Zavala was born on February 7, 1909 i ...

, historian of Mexico and former Ambassador of Mexico to France);From University Press of Colorado, publisher's printed book publication announcement of ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record'', 1990.Quotation from Silvio Zavala's letter dated Dec. 12, 1966, copy in th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the Department of Special Collections of the Charles E. Young Research Library of the University of California in Los Angeles
/ref> "extraordinarily worthwhile collection" (Donald B. Goodall, former Director,

Blanton Museum of Art The Jack S. Blanton Museum of Art (often referred to as the Blanton or the BMA) at the University of Texas at Austin is one of the largest university art museums in the U.S. with 189,340 square feet devoted to temporary exhibitions, permanent coll ...

of the

).Literary and art correspondence in th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection, American Heritage Center
"These en-and-ink illustrations of the haciendasare interpretations by a strong personality. The themes are projected as though by a creator of the theatre. artlett'stechnic, or better still, his technics, are full of wisdom and experience. They express not only the true character of the places represented, but also a personal atmosphere that is decorative and imaginative. There is always mystery in his drawings. He evokes this mystery in black and white, and there is no doubt that his work expresses the qualities of a magnificent poet artist" (

Roberto Montenegro Roberto Montenegro Nervo (February 19, 1885 in Guadalajara – October 13, 1968 in Mexico City) was a painter, muralist and illustrator, who was one of the first to be involved in the Mexican muralism movement after the Mexican Revolution. His m ...

, Mexican artist).

Frank Tannenbaum Frank Tannenbaum (1893–1969) was an Austrian-American historian, sociologist and criminologist, who made significant contributions to modern Mexican history during his career at Columbia University. Early life Tannenbaum was born in Austria on ...

, Professor of History at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, wrote: " u really have something which is beautiful and permanent, and something which is the result of long and devoted interest to a phase of Mexican history which is passing away.".From

's letter dated May 21, 1968, copy in th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection, American Heritage Center
/ref> Writing about the single-artist exhibition of Bartlett's pen-and-ink hacienda illustrations hosted by the Los Angeles County Museum, Gerald Nordland, former Dean of the Chouinard Art School, described the exhibit in the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

: "In a valuable art exhibit, Mr. Bartlett documents the architecture, sculpture, and utilitarian objects related to the life of the hacienda, in sensitively descriptive drawings of the feudal villas of the Mexican past. This exhibition material... ffersa record of the vanishing architectural-social-economic history of Mexico." Hacienda de Mediñero, Jalisco, Mexico, pen-and-ink by Paul Alexander Bartlett

Hacienda de Mediñero, Jalisco, Mexico, pen-and-ink by Paul Alexander Bartlett

About Bartlett's ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record'', Oakah L. Jones, Professor of History,

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, wrote: "This publication will aid scholars as a reference work for illustrative material and descriptions of decaying or lost haciendas. At the same time, the work will be of great interest to the general reader interested in Mexico and its history." Historian Barbara A. Tenenbaum of the Hispanic Division of the Library of Congress described ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record'' as "a remarkable book in many ways, and one whose virtues can only grow with time. Paul Alexander Bartlett began sketching and photographing Mexican haciendas in the 1940s, and although his works reflect a considerably different style, they are comparable with

Frederick Catherwood Frederick Catherwood (27 February 1799 – 27 September 1854) was an English artist, architect and explorer, best remembered for his meticulously detailed drawings of the ruins of the Maya civilization. He explored Mesoamerica in the mid 19th ...

's historic renderings of the Maya ruins found by

John Lloyd Stephens John Lloyd Stephens (November 28, 1805October 13, 1852) was an American explorer, writer, and diplomat. Stephens was a pivotal figure in the rediscovery of Maya civilization throughout Middle America and in the planning of the Panama railroad. ...

a century before."Tenenbaum, Barbara A. "Mexico, So Close to the United States." ''Latin American Research Review'', Vol. 30, No. 1, 1995, pp. 226-236.

Works of fiction and critical response

Paul Alexander Bartlett's published book-length works of fiction include:

''When the Owl Cries''

''When the Owl Cries'' (Macmillan, 1960). The book's title is from the Mexican-Indian superstitious saying, "''Cuando el tecolote llora, se muere el indio''" – "When the owl cries, an Indian dies." The work was listed by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' in its Best-seller/Recommended column for several weeks after its release. The dramatic setting of the novel is an hacienda caught up in the violence of the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

of 1910. The story recounts the life of the ''hacendado'', the owner of the hacienda, the love he feels for a beautiful young woman, and the ordeals they share as the turmoil and violence of the Mexican Revolution encompass them. The novel closely follows the history of the Revolution, and gives the reader a first-hand feeling for hacienda life. Reviews of the book appeared in newspapers in the U.S. and abroad (see below under "Recognition and Importance"). The novel was described in the ''Library Journal'' as "A ''Gone with the Wind'' of Mexico."Book reviews on file in th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection, American Heritage Center
/ref> Charles Poore, reviewing the book in ''

'', wrote: "As you turn the pages you ask, what next? That is the immemorial appeal of the thriller. But what gives the story stature as a work of creative art is that Mr. Bartlett has been at pains to populate it with believable characters who are stirred by intensely personal concerns."

Paul Engle Paul Engle (October 12, 1908 – March 22, 1991), was an American poet, editor, teacher, literary critic, novelist, and playwright. He is remembered as the long-time director of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and as co-founder of the International W ...

, in the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'', wrote: "The book charms with its expert knowledge of place and people."

Lon Tinkle Julien Lon Tinkle (March 20, 1906 – January 11, 1980) was a historian, writer, book critic, and professor who specialized in the history of Texas. Tinkle spent most of his life in Dallas, Texas, where he graduated from and later taught at S ...

, writing in the ''

Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...

'', commented: "Vivid, impressive, highly pictorial. What makes it a pleasure to read are its marvelous vignettes of Mexican ways of life." The ''

Florida Times-Union ''The Florida Times-Union'' is a daily newspaper in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Widely known as the oldest newspaper in the state, it began publication as the ''Florida Union'' in 1864. Its current incarnation started in 1883, when th ...

'' reviewed the book with the comment: "This is a book the reader can see in his mind — on a wide screen in technicolor with stereophonic sound. It doesn't need Hollywood but it's the kind of story that wouldn't do the movies any harm."

''Adiós, Mi México''

''When the Owl Cries'' was followed in 1979 by Bartlett's novelette, ''Adiós, Mi México'' (Autograph Editions). Like ''When the Owl Cries'', the novelette takes place on an hacienda; it recounts the struggle of an hacienda-owning family during the

. About the book, Evelyn Eaton wrote: "The novelette has a wonderful flavor of its own. It is a classic."Reviews quoted in Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''Adiós, Mi México''. San Diego, CA: Autograph Editions, 1979, p. 1.

James Purdy James Otis Purdy (July 17, 1914 March 13, 2009) was an American novelist, short-story writer, poet, and playwright who, from his debut in 1956, published over a dozen novels, and many collections of poetry, short stories, and plays. His work ha ...

added: "I read ''Adiós, Mi México'' with great pleasure. Bartlett really does the Mexican ''ambiente'' well. The novelette is very good indeed and most distinguished."Documents and other materials on file in th
Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection, American Heritage Center
Grace Flandrau commented: "''Adiós, Mi México'' rings so true; characters and scenes are so right and living. It is so beautifully done, one finds oneself feeling it is not fiction but actual experienced fact."

commented: "The novelette shows a true sense of both the character of the hacienda and the tragedy that overtook it; it is written with great sensibility."

Ralph Roeder Ralph Edmund LeClercq Roeder (April 7, 1890 – October 22, 1969) was an American writer. He wrote the first major work in English on Mexican President, Benito Juárez. Biography Ralph Edmund LeClercq Roeder was born in New York City, a son of G ...

noted: "Bartlett's gifts, his pungent sense of language, his style, his poignant sympathy for and intimate knowledge of Mexican life mark his work as outstanding."

Josephine Jacobsen Josephine Jacobsen (19 August 1908 – 9 July 2003) was a Canadian-born American poet, short story writer, essayist, and critic. She was appointed the twenty-first Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1971. In 1997, sh ...

observed: "I became so fascinated with this book that I sat down and read it straight through. Since I have been to Mexico five times, it seemed especially real to me, and most moving. It is certainly beautifully written and so vivid that one feels oneself inside it."

''Forward, Children!''

Several of Bartlett's novels were published following his death. ''Forward, Children!'' (My Friend Publisher, 1998) is an anti-war novel that received recognition from well-known authors who included

Pearl Buck Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (June 26, 1892 – March 6, 1973) was an American writer and novelist. She is best known for ''The Good Earth'' a bestselling novel in the United States in 1931 and 1932 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932. In 1938, Buck ...

Upton Sinclair Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878 – November 25, 1968) was an American writer, muckraker, political activist and the 1934 Democratic Party nominee for governor of California who wrote nearly 100 books and other works in seve ...

John Dos Passos John Roderigo Dos Passos (; January 14, 1896 – September 28, 1970) was an American novelist, most notable for his ''U.S.A.'' trilogy. Born in Chicago, Dos Passos graduated from Harvard College in 1916. He traveled widely as a young man, visit ...

, and

Ford Madox Ford Ford Madox Ford (né Joseph Leopold Ford Hermann Madox Hueffer ( ); 17 December 1873 – 26 June 1939) was an English novelist, poet, critic and editor whose journals ''The English Review'' and ''The Transatlantic Review'' were instrumental in ...

.Information from Bartlett, Steven James. "Introduction." In th
Project Gutenberg edition of ''Forward, Children!''
The title comes from the opening line of the French national anthem, "La Marseillaise": "''Allons, enfants de la patrie / Le jour de la gloire est arrivé''" — "Forward, children of our country / The day of glory is at hand." The novel describes

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as experienced by a group of U.S. soldiers in the tank corps during battles in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

. At the same time, ''Forward, Children!'' is a love story that unfolds in

Ermenonville Ermenonville () is a commune in the Oise department, northern France. Ermenonville is notable for its park named for Jean-Jacques Rousseau by René Louis de Girardin. Rousseau's tomb was designed by the painter Hubert Robert, and sits on the Isl ...

, France, where

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

lived during the last period of his life and was buried. About the novel, literary critic and novelist

Russell Kirk Russell Amos Kirk (October 19, 1918 – April 29, 1994) was an American political theorist, moralist, historian, social critic, and literary critic, known for his influence on 20th-century American conservatism. His 1953 book ''The Conservative ...

wrote: "Permit me to commend ''Forward, Children!'' The novel attains a pathos rare in war novels. The scenes of battle are drawn with power. Bartlett is an accomplished writer."

, Nobel Laureate in Literature, wrote: "He artlettis an excellent writer. ''Forward, Children!'' is an excellent piece of work, with fine characterizations."

commented: "This is a very, very good novel."

wrote: "I found ''Forward, Children!'' extremely interesting and convincing. I think it is one of the best descriptions of fighting I have ever read. In fact, I can't remember any account of tank fighting in such detail and hat is soconvincing."

remarked: "''Forward, Children!'' ranks with the best books — its anti-war message is inescapable. It is an important book and artlett isan important writer."

wrote at length about the novel in an essay in the ''Saturday Review of Literature'': "''Forward, Children!'' ... is the projection of the life of a fighting soldier in the A. E. Tank Corps in France. It is so to the life that for some days after reading it, the writer's nights were rendered heavy by the return of the lugubrious dreams that for years after the signing of the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

attended on his slumbers. When you read ''Forward, Children!'' you are in a tank crawling amidst unspeakable din and unthinkable pressure up the sides of houses, and down the banks of dried-up canals, crashing through the walls of factories. ... not on artistic grounds then at least for the public weal this book should be published and widely circulated."Ford, Ford Madox. "Travel Notes, I. Return to Olivet," ''Saturday Review of Literature'', Vol. XX, No. 7, June 10, 1939, pp. 13-14.

remarked: "Praise from Ford Madox Ford is praise indeed. The descriptions of tank warfare are vivid and as far as I know unique."

''Voices from the Past''

Bartlett's quintet of novels, a format rarely found in literature,Information from Bartlett, Steven James. "Preface." In Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''Voices from the Past—A Quintet''. Salem, OR: Autograph Editions, 2007, pp. xiii-xiv. was published in 2007. The five novels that comprise ''Voices from the Past'' include ''Sappho's Journal'', ''Christ's Journal'', ''Leonardo da Vinci's Journal'', ''Shakespeare's Journal'', and ''Lincoln's Journal''. Based on historical research, Bartlett sought to bring to life the inner experience of these "voices from the past" in the form of intimate, personal journals, incorporating into each novel passages from their original writings as well as quotations from others who knew them. Each novel is illustrated with Bartlett's pen-and-ink illustrations. Also in 2007, ''Sappho's Journal'', with a preface by Sappho scholar and translator

Willis Barnstone Willis Barnstone (born November 13, 1927) is an American poet, religious scholar, and translator. He was born in Lewiston, Maine and lives in Oakland, California. He has translated works by Jorge Luis Borges, Antonio Machado, Rainer Maria Rilke, ...

, and ''Christ's Journal'' were published as separate volumes. About ''Sappho's Journal'', Barnstone wrote: "Paul Bartlett's journal of Sappho is a masterful work..., at once poetic, dramatic and powerful. In his ''Journal'' he does more than create a vague illusion of the past. He conveys the character of real people, their interior life and outer world. A mature artist, he writes with ease and taste."Barnstone, Willis. "Foreword." In Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''Sappho's Journal''. Salem: OR. Autograph Editions, 2007, p. xi. Between 2012 and 2015, with the consent of Bartlett's son and literary executor,

''Voices from the Past'', ''Sappho's Journal'', ''Christ's Journal'', ''Forward, Children!'', ''When the Owl Cries'', and ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Journal'' were made freely available to readers for non-commercial use through Project Gutenberg
Audio recordings o
''Christ's Journal''
an
''Lincoln's Journal''
have also been made freely available.

Paul Alexander Bartlett's fine art

Bartlett's fine art has been exhibited in more than 40 single-artist shows in many leading galleries and museums in the United States and in Mexico, including the Los Angeles County Museum; the

High Museum of Art The High Museum of Art (colloquially the High) is the largest museum for visual art in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta, Georgia (on Peachtree Street in Midtown, the city's arts district), the High is 312,000 square feet (28, ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

; the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress ...

, the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

, the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

, the Richmond Art Institute, the

Memphis Brooks Museum of Art Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is an art museum in Memphis, Tennessee. The Brooks Museum, which was founded in 1916, is the oldest and largest art museum in the state of Tennessee. The museum is a privately funded nonprofit institution located in ...

, the Huntington Hartford Foundation, the Instituto Méxicano Norteamericano (

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

), the

Bancroft Library The Bancroft Library in the center of the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, is the university's primary special-collections library. It was acquired from its founder, Hubert Howe Bancroft, in 1905, with the proviso that it retai ...

, and others. In addition to his series of pen-and-ink illustrations of the Mexican haciendas, Bartlett's fine art employs a variety of media including acrylics, casein, watercolor, oils, and collages that make use of such innovative materials as fur and leather. Many of his paintings and drawings reflect his love for Mexico's tropical climate and indigenous people, for the country's richly varying landscape, and for the uncomplicated life of the Mexican peasant.

Recognition and importance

Bartlett has received recognition as a writer, artist, and poet. His writing has received recognition by well-known authors and critics including

, Evelyn Eaton,

, Grace Flandrau,

, David Weiss, and others. His novel ''When the Owl Cries'' was widely reviewed in the United States and England: The book's reviewers included Charles Poore in ''

'',

in the ''

'', Joe Knefler in the ''

'', Clifford Gessler in the ''

Oakland Tribune The ''Oakland Tribune'' is a weekly newspaper published in Oakland, California, by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group. Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' rose to become an influential daily newspaper. With the declin ...

'', Lon Tinkle in the ''

''; other book reviews appeared in the ''

Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...

'', ''

London Free Press ''The London Free Press'' is a daily newspaper based in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. It has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Southwestern Ontario. History ''The London Free Press'' began as the ''Canadian Free Press'', ...

'', ''Los Angeles Mirror News'', ''

Los Angeles Examiner The ''Los Angeles Examiner'' was a newspaper founded in 1903 by William Randolph Hearst in Los Angeles, California. The afternoon ''Los Angeles Herald-Express'' and the morning ''Los Angeles Examiner'', both of which had been publishing in the ...

'', ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', ''

Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger between ...

'', and ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

''. Bartlett's art has been exhibited in more than 40 major galleries and libraries in the United States and Mexico.Information from "About the Author." I
Bartlett, Paul Alexander. ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Project Gutenberg edition, 2015
His poetry has been published in many literary journals, poetry anthologies, and as separate collections of his poetry.

Grants and fellowships

Bartlett was awarded these grants and fellowships: *

New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR) is a graduate-level educational institution that is one of the divisions of The New School in New York City, United States. The university was founded in 1919 as a home for progressive era thinkers. NSSR ...

Fellowship, 1955 * Huntington Hartford Foundation writing fellowship, 1960-1961 * Montalvo Foundation writing fellowship, 1961–62 * Carnegie Foundation author's grant, 1961 and 1971 *

Yaddo Yaddo is an artists' community located on a estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment.". On March ...

and

MacDowell Colony MacDowell is an artist's residency program in Peterborough, New Hampshire, United States, founded in 1907 by composer Edward MacDowell and his wife, pianist and philanthropist Marian MacDowell. Prior to July 2020, it was known as the MacDowell ...

fellowships, 1970 * Dorland Mountain Arts Colony fellowship, 1979

Selected works by Paul Alexander Bartlett

Books

''When the Owl Cries''
(novel). Macmillan, 1960. * ''Wherehill'' (collection of poems). Autograph Editions, 1975. * ''Adiós, Mi México'' (novelette). Autograph Editions, 1979. * ''Spokes for Memory'' (collection of poems). Icarus Press, 1979.
''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''
University Press of Colorado, 1990.
''Forward, Children!''
My Friend Publisher, 1998.
''Voices from the Past – A Quintet: Sappho's Journal, Christ's Journal, Leonardo da Vinci's Journal, Shakespeare's Journal, and Lincoln's Journal''
Autograph Editions, 2007.
''Sappho's Journal''
Autograph Editions, 2007.
''Christ's Journal''
Autograph Editions, 2007.

Selected short stories

* "Grilled Windows." ''Accent Magazine'', Autumn, 1944. * "World's End," with Elizabeth Bartlett. ''Kenyon Review'', Winter, 1945. * "Mary's Carpenter." ''Chicago Review'', Vol. 1, No. 1, 1946. * "Barley Water." ''Southwest Review'', Autumn, 1947. * "Fireflies." ''Arizona Quarterly'', Vol. 4, No. 3, 1948. * "Maker of Dreams." ''The Literary Review'', Autumn, 1958. * "The Old Explorer." ''Southwest Review'', Winter, 1962. * "Diosbotic." ''Mexican Life Magazine'', Vol. 45, No. 3, 1969. * "Chickering." ''The Greyledge Review'', Fall, 1979. * "Virgin of the Bees." ''Crosscurrents'', Spring, 1983. * "Against the Wall." ''Dalhousie Review'', Winter, 1983. * "Journey to Chilam." ''Antigonish Review'', Spring, 1983. * "A Special Place," with Elizabeth Bartlett. ''Queen's Quarterly'', Autumn, 1984. * "A Matter of Lineage." ''Stone Drum'', Spring, 1989.

Selected non-fiction articles

* "Some Letters of Ford Madox Ford." ''Saturday Review of Literature'', Aug. 2, 1941. * "Mexican Letter." ''Briarcliff Quarterly'', April, 1946. * "Mexican Art Status." ''American Artist'', Jan., 1951. * "Haciendas of Mexico." ''Los Angeles Museum Quarterly'', Vol. 1, Nos. 3/4, 1962–63. * "The Hacienda Mansions." ''Mexican Life Magazine'', Vol. 4, No. 46, 1970. * "Life on the Hacienda," with illustrations by the author. ''Americas (OAS)'', May/June, 1982.

Selected poems

* "Open and Close." ''New Mexico Quarterly'', Nov., 1939. * "Mountain Village." ''Mexican Life Magazine'', Vol. 19, No. 12, 1943. * "Manzanillo." ''Mexican Life Magazine'', Vol. 20, No. 3, 1944. * "North Country." ''Prairie Schooner'', Vol. 20, No. 4, 1946. * "On Walking Wings." ''Poet Lore'', Vol. XVII, No. 3, 1946. * "The Secret." ''Georgia Review'', Vol. 1, No. 4, 1948. * "Biblio." ''ETC: A Review of General Semantics'', June, 1966. * "Measurement" and "Rain." ''Ululatus'', Vol. 1, No. 1, 1978. * "E." ''Blue Unicorn'', June, 1989.

Permanent collections of Paul Alexander Bartlett's work

Collections of Bartlett's original hacienda illustrations and photographs, works of fine art by him, and his literary papers and manuscripts have been established at the

of the

, the

of the

, the

, the Latin American Library at

, and the

Reference Library. * The Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection at the American Heritage Center of the University of Wyoming. This collection contains 78 of Bartlett's original Mexican hacienda pen-and-ink illustrations, as well as 1,271 prints and 799 negatives of photographs taken by him of the Mexican haciendas (in addition to those included in the collection of these at the University of Texas, see below); works of fine art by him, consisting of his original paintings in multiple media, drawings, and sketches; literary and publishing correspondence; personal records; notes; newspaper clippings; program and exhibit announcements; reviews of Bartlett's published work; Bartlett's original manuscripts; collected publications by Bartlett, including short stories, essays, poetry, and reviews; and literary reviews, journals, newspapers, and anthologies in which his work was published. The collection includes Bartlett's annual personal/literary journals for the years 1941, 1971, 1974–76, 1984–89. Also forming part of the collection are original manuscripts of a wide variety of as yet unpublished books, short stories, and poetry
Finding aid for the Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the American Heritage Center of the University of Wyoming
* Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the Benson Latin American Collection of the University of Texas. The collection includes 294 original pen-and-ink illustrations by Bartlett of the haciendas of Mexico, 903 hacienda photographs, 279 negatives, and 69 slides

* The Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the Department of Special Collections of the Charles E. Young Research Library of the University of California in Los Angeles. This collection includes a variety of published and unpublished manuscripts of works by Bartlett, literary correspondence, short story publications, and the majority of Bartlett's annual personal and literary journals spanning the years from 1919 to the end of his life
Finding aid for the collectionOnline PDF inventory of this collection
* Paul Bartlett Photograph Collection of Mexican Haciendas held by the Latin American Library of Tulane University. This collection consists of 198 Mexican hacienda photographs, spanning 18 states in Mexico, taken by Bartlett
Finding aid for the collection
* The Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection of Submissions to the Literary Annual, ''Workshop'', 1940–45, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.''
Finding aid for this collection.
* Paul Alexander Bartlett Archival Materials, Toledo Museum of Art Reference Library, a limited group of materials consisting of one folder that "may include announcements, clippings, press releases, brochures, reviews, invitations, small exhibition catalogs, resumes, slides, and other ephemeral material.
Catalog link to this collection

Unpublished manuscripts

Bartlett's writing includes as yet unpublished manuscripts of books, short stories, and narrative and other poems. These manuscripts are included in Bartlett's collected papers held by the

of the

and by the Department of Special Collections of the Charles E. Young Research Library of the

University of California in Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. The book manuscripts include: * ''Maker of Dreams'', a novel situated in tropical Mexico * ''Black Aspirins'', the story of a young man made desperate by his family's poverty in Mexico City * ''The White Cactus'', a novel set in the Arizona of nearly a century ago that recounts a young writer's search for his identity * ''Wherehill'', a full-length novel (not to be confused with Bartlett's book of poetry bearing the same title), the story of a minister's caring commitment to his parishioners during snowbound winters in the north country of Sault Ste. Marie * ''Mexican Footprints'', a collection of 25 short stories about Mexican life, accompanied by letters of commendation from numerous well-known writers and critics, including

, Michael Fraenkel, J. Donald Adams, David Weiss,

, Don M. Wolfe, and others * ''Theater of Color'', a long narrative poem about the

Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon (, yuf-x-yav, Wi:kaʼi:la, , Southern Paiute language: Paxa’uipi, ) is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a m ...

* ''Tropic Notebook'', lyrics about village life and village people in a remote area of the Mexican tropics * ''Droom'', a long experimental poetic narrative that seeks to capture the life and sounds of the African genesis of humanity

References

External links and resources

Collections of Paul Alexander Bartlett's work

Finding aid for the Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the American Heritage Center of the University of Wyoming

Inventory of the Paul A. Bartlett Drawings and Photographs of Mexican Haciendas held by the Benson Latin American Collection of the University of Texas

Finding aid for the Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection held by the Department of Special Collections of the Charles E. Young Research Library of the University of California in Los Angeles

Finding aid for the Bartlett Photograph Collection of Mexican Haciendas held by the Latin American Library of Tulane University

Finding aid for the Paul Alexander Bartlett Collection of Submissions to the Literary Annual, ''Workshop'', 1940-45, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles

Paul Bartlett (vertical file), Toledo Museum of Art Reference Library

Biographical resources

* "Paul Alexander Bartlett" entry in ''Contemporary Authors Online''. Literature Resource Center. Gale Document Number: GALE H1000005836. Detroit: Gale, 2013. * "Paul Alexander Bartlett" entry in ''A Directory of American Fiction Writers, Poets & Writers''. Publishing Center for Cultural Resources, 1976, p. 47. * David Harpster. "There's No Mañana." Interview with Paul Alexander Bartlett. ''San Diego Sentinel'', Sept. 21, 1981.
"About the Author" in Paul Alexander Bartlett, ''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Project Gutenberg edition, 2015.

Steven James Bartlett, "Introduction" in Paul Alexander Bartlett, ''When the Owl Cries." Project Gutenberg edition, 2012.

Steven James Bartlett, "Introduction" in Paul Alexander Bartlett, ''Forward, Children!''. Project Gutenberg edition, 2014.

Steven James Bartlett, "Elizabeth Bartlett and Paul Alexander Bartlett: Two Portraits." PhilPapers, 2021.

Books by Paul Alexander Bartlett available through Project Gutenberg

*
''The Haciendas of Mexico: An Artist's Record''. Foreword by James Michener. Introduction by Gisela von Wobeser, trans. by Steven James Bartlett

''Voices from the Past—A Quintet of Novels: Sappho's Journal, Christ's Journal, Leonardo da Vinci's Journal, Shakespeare's Journal, and Lincoln's Journal''. Illustrated by the author

''Sappho's Journal''. Illustrated by the author

''Christ's Journal''. Illustrated by the author

''When the Owl Cries'', with an Introduction by Steven James Bartlett with photographs

''Forward, Children!'', with an Introduction by Steven James Bartlett

Audio recordings of books by Paul Alexander Bartlett

''Christ's Journal'', from ''Voices from the Past—A Quintet of Novels''

''Lincoln's Journal'', from ''Voices from the Past—A Quintet of Novels''

Library cataloguing information

Works by Paul Alexander Bartlett in the Library of Congress

Works by Paul Alexander Bartlett in libraries catalogued by WorldCat

Works by Paul Alexander Bartlett held by University of California libraries
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bartlett, Paul Alexander 1909 births 1990 deaths 20th-century American artists 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American poets Historians of Mexico Mexican Revolution 20th-century American historians People from Moberly, Missouri American male non-fiction writers