The Archives of American Art is the world’s preeminent and most widely used research center dedicated to collecting, preserving, and providing access to primary sources that document the history of the visual arts in America.
Founded in Detroit in 1954 by Edgar P. Richardson, then Director of the Detroit Institute of Arts, and Lawrence A. Fleischman, a Detroit executive and active young collector, the initial goal of the Archives was to serve as microfilm repository; this mission expanded quickly to collecting and preserving original material and in 1970, the Archives joined the Smithsonian Institution, sharing its mandate: the increase and diffusion of knowledge.
Explore the categories and images below to learn more about the Archives’ collections, oral histories, and other materials and the many ways that they document the history of the visual arts in America. To find out further information, visit us at https://www.aaa.si.edu. For Rights and Reproductions contact AAARepros@si.edu