Olive Rush Diary, 1886

Olive Rush (1873-1966) was an illustrator, painter, and sought-after muralist. A Quaker born in Indiana, she eventually moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she worked with young pueblo artists during the 1930s. Her work there has been credited with helping to bring about a flourishing of Native American visual art in New Mexico, and many of her associates went on to gain national reputations.
But long before that, Olive Rush gained early recognition for her own talent while completing her art studies. This diary, dated 1886, was written when Ollie Rush was just 13, and struggling to understand her lessons and go sledding in the deep snow of Indiana winters. Explore Olive Rush's life and work by visiting through her fully digitized papers on the Archives of American Art website! Rush's diary from her time working with young pueblo artists has also been transcribed here.