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Creator:
Evans, John, 1932-  Search this
Names:
Ackerman, Blaster Al, 1939-2013  Search this
Arenella, Roy  Search this
Banana, Anna, 1940-  Search this
Behmenburg, Christa  Search this
Bleus, Guy  Search this
Caldera, Leslie  Search this
Chew, C. T. (Carl T.), 1948-  Search this
Cleveland, Buster, -1998  Search this
Cohen, Ryosuke, 1948-  Search this
Crozier, Robin  Search this
D'Angelo, Jerome, D.  Search this
Dorenfeld, Morris David  Search this
Dreva, Jerry, 1945-1997  Search this
Evans, Donald  Search this
Evans, James  Search this
Evans, Walt  Search this
Gaglione, Bill  Search this
Held, John  Search this
Higgins, E. F., 1949-  Search this
Janssen, Ruud, 1959-  Search this
Johnson, Ray, 1927-  Search this
Jorgenssen, Tod  Search this
Kasnowski, Chester  Search this
Kaufmann, Peter W.  Search this
Küstermann, Peter, 1950-  Search this
Leigh, Michael  Search this
Miller, David M.  Search this
Morilla, Robert  Search this
Pittore, Carlo  Search this
Plunkett, Edward M. (1922-2011)  Search this
Random, S. (Steven), 1954-  Search this
Rocola, Robert  Search this
Rosenberg, Marilyn K.  Search this
Senser, Andreas, 1942-1989  Search this
Spiegelman, Lon  Search this
Tavenner, Pat  Search this
Tisa, Benedict J.  Search this
Tostada, John  Search this
Trianfellos, Marya  Search this
Von der Burg, Sonja  Search this
Warren, Robert Penn, 1905-  Search this
Artist:
Kawara, K. (Japanese)  Search this
Extent:
7.1 Linear feet
1 Gigabyte
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Illustrated letters
Date:
1957-2012
bulk 1970-2012
Summary:
The papers of John Evans, 1957-2012, bulk 1970s-2000, measure 7.1 linear feet and 1.00 GB and document the collage artist's involvement with mail art. The vast majority of letters are from mail artists, often with embellished envelopes and include and a digital version of Collected Essays by John Held, Jr. Writings include a thesis about mail art by Marya Trianfellos. Subject files concern art stamps, mail art shows and events, Ray Johnson's death and memorial tributes to him. The most thoroughly documented mail art project, "John Evans Fake Collages," is of unknown origin. In addition, there are a few items relating to projects conceived by Evans and more substantial documentation of projects initiated by Christina Behmenburg, Leslie Caldera, Ryosuke Cohen, Peter W. Kaufmann, Angela and Peter Netmail.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of John Evans, 1957-2012, bulk 1970s-2000, measure 7.1 linear feet and 1.00 GB and document the collage artist's involvement with mail art. The vast majority of letters - many with embelllished envelopes - are from mail artists. There is also a digital version of Collected Essays by John Held, Jr. Writings include a thesis about mail art by Marya Trianfellos. Subject files concern art stamps, Ray Johnson's death and subsequent memorial tributes, mail art shows and other events. The most thoroughly documented mail art project, "John Evans Fake Collages," is of unknown origin. In addition, there are a few items relating to projects conceived by Evans, and more substantial documentation of projects initiated by Christina Behmenburg, Leslie Caldera, Ryosuke Cohen, Peter W. Kaufmann, Angela and Peter Netmail. Evans's mail art correspondents include: Dr. Al Ackerman (Blaster), Anna Banana (Banana Productions), Roy Arenella, Guy Bleus (The Administration Centre 42.292), buZ blurr, Richard C., Leslie Caldera (Creative Thing), Carl T. Chew, Buster Cleveland, Ryosuke Cohen, Chuck Welch (Cracker Jack Kid), Robin Crozier, Jerome D'Angelo, Irene Dogmatic (Dogmmystique/Dogmatique Misticky), Morris David Dorenfeld, Jerry Dreva, Donald Evans, James Evans, Walt Evans, Fa Ga Ga Ga, A. M. Fine, Bill Gaglione (Picasso Gaglione), John Held, Jr., HICO, E. F. Higgins, III, Rudd Janssen, Dianne Jenkins, Ray Johnson, Tod Jorgenssen, Chester Kasnowski, On Kawara, Gene Laughter, Michael Leigh (A.1. Waste Paper Co., Ltd.), David M. Miller, Minoy, Mohammed, Robert Morilla, Art Nahpro (Paul Jackson), Carlo Pittore, E. M. Plunkett, Steve Random, Robert Rocola, Marilyn K. Rosenberg, Andreas Senser, Skooter, Smegma (Scarlatina Lust, Alex Torrid Zone Igloo, Pardon My Myrth, Alexander Josef Hirka), D. C. spaulding, Lon Spiegelman, John Tostada (Tostdada, Oh Boy Mailart!), Pat Tavenner (Mail Queen), Third Story, Benedict J. Tisa, Sonja Van der Burg (Afzed), Whitson (Peter Whitson Warren), and Robert Warren.
Arrangement:
The collectionis arranged as 4 series: Missing Title Series 1: Letters, 1957-2012 (Boxes 1-6, OV 8; 5.3 linear feet, ER01; 0.111 GB) Series 2: Writings, 1983-1991 (Box 6; 0.2 linear feet) Series 3: Subject Files, 1970s-2012 (Boxes 6-7; 0.8 linear feet, ER02-ER03; 0.889 GB) Series 4: Mail Art Projects, 1986-2012 (Box 7, OV 8; 0.8 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
John Evans (1932-2012), a collage artist in New York City, was an active participant in mail art. After attending the Art Institute of Chicago, Evans moved to New York in 1963. He was a member of the Neo-Dada community and interested in Fluxus events. Meeting Ray Johnson and a few other mail artists at a party introduced Evans to mail art and led to many long term friendships. Between 1964 and 2000, Evans produced a daily collage of found objects collected from the street, pasted onto a sketchbook page, enhanced with watercolor, and stamped with the date. Each collage included the image of a duck's head known as "Ursuline Duck," a reference to his friend Ursule Molinaro (1914-2000). The collages were, in effect, a diary that recorded everyday life and referenced his exhibition activities. John Evans: Collages, a monograph published in 2004, reproduced 364 collages representative of his style over time. His largest mail art project, "Fake John Evans Collages," spanned several years and was in progress at the time of his death. John Evans died on October 5, 2012 following a heart attack.
Provenance:
Donated by Margaret Evans, widow of John Evans, in 2013.
Restrictions:
Use of original material requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Topic:
Mail art  Search this
Collage  Search this
Genre/Form:
Illustrated letters
Citation:
John Evans papers, 1957-2012, bulk 1970s-2012. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.evanjohn
See more items in:
John Evans papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw95840ac3f-0fde-4764-affe-a809cfb31ba4
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-evanjohn