The Eldzier Cortor papers are organized into 8 series. Series 1: Biographical Material, 1947-2012 (Box 1; 5 folders) Series 2: Correspondence, 1970-2015 (Box 1; 8 folders) Series 3: Professional Files, 1960, 1972-2015 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet, OV 4) Series 4: Exhibition and Gallery Files, 1972-2015 (Boxes 1-2; 0.7 linear feet) Series 5: Writings, circa 1970s-2006 (Box 2; 8 folders) Series 6: Printed Material, 1940-1976, 1996-2015 (Boxes 2-3; 0.8 linear feet, OV 4) Series 7: Artwork, circa 1930s, circa 1970s-circa 1990s (Box 3; 0.2 linear feet) Series 8: Photographs, 1939-2002, 2014 (Box 3; 0.5 linear feet)
Access Note / Rights:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center.
Summary:
The papers of painter and printmaker Eldzier Cortor measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1930s to 2015, with the bulk of the papers dating from 1972 to 2015. The papers contain biographical material, correspondence, professional files, exhibition and gallery files, writings, printed material, artwork, and photographs.
Citation:
Eldzier Cortor Papers, circa 1930s-2015, bulk 1972-2015. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
Portions of the collection lent for microfilming are available on 35mm microfilm reel N70-47 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
Funding:
Funding for the 2017 processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Use Note:
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.
Related Materials:
The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of materials lent for microfilming on reel N70-47, including biographical material, correspondence, printed material, papers related to exhibitions, photographs, and sketchbooks. Except for three photographs that appear in this collection (Box 3, Folder 19), loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.
Biography Note:
Eldzier Cortor (1916-2015) spent his professional career as a painter and printmaker in Chicago and New York. He was born in Richmond Virginia to John and Ophelia Cortor. In 1917, the family moved to Chicago along with countless other African Americans as part of the Great Migration.
Language Note:
The collection is in English.
Provenance:
Eldzier Cortor loaned materials to the Archives of American Art for microfilming in 1970 and donated papers in 2009. His son, Michael Cortor, gave additional materials in 2016.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
