The collection is arranged as 11 series. Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1977-2021 (0.5 linear feet; Box 1, 15.89 GB; ER01-ER13 Series 2: Correspondence, 1953-2020 (2.5 linear feet; Boxes 1-3) Series 3: Writings, 1978-2021 (0.2 linear feet; Box 4) Series 4: Project Files, 1979-2020 (2.1 linear feet; Boxes 4-6, OV 14, 2.01 GB; ER14-ER20) Series 5: Professional Records, 1971-2019 (1.6 linear feet; Boxes 6-7, OV 14, 0.941 GB; ER21-ER22) Series 6: Exhibition Files, 1972-2018 (3.2 linear feet; Boxes 7-10, OV 15, 54.34 GB; ER23-ER49) Series 7: Artists' Files, 1979-2015 (0.3 linear feet; Boxes 10-11, 4.47 GB; ER50-ER55) Series 8: Personal Business Records, 1977-2007 (0.2 linear feet; Box 11) Series 9: Printed Materials, 1970-2018 (1 linear feet; Boxes 11-12, OV 15-16, 1.01 GB; ER56-ER58) Series 10: Photographic Materials, circa 1963-2017 (0.5 linear feet; Boxes 12-13, 5.18 GB; ER59-ER66) Series 11: Unidentified Audiovisual Materials, 1980s-1990s (1 folder; Box 19)
Access Note / Rights:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing audiovisual recordings and born-digital records in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
This collection is temporarily closed to researchers due to archival processing. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Summary:
The papers of California artist, curator, and educator Bruria Finkel measure 14.7 linear feet and 83.815 GB, and date from 1953 to 2021. This collection includes biographical materials, correspondence, writings, project files, professional records, exhibition files, artists' files, personal business records, printed and digital materials, photographic materials, and unidentified audiovisual material.
Citation:
Bruria Finkel papers, 1953-2021. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
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.
Biography Note:
Bruria Finkel (1932-) is an artist, curator and teacher based in Santa Monica, California.
Bruria Finkel was born in Jerusalem in 1932. She studied animal husbandry at Ayanot Agriculture School and received a teaching degree from Seminar Hakibutzim in Tel Aviv, Israel. In 1953, she married a musician and immigrated to the U.S. Their two daughters were born in New York City. In 1959, she divorced and moved to Santa Monica, California with her children. She later married David Finkel, a civil rights lawyer who went on to become a Superior Court judge, with whom she had a son and daughter.
Finkel works with a variety of mediums including pottery, paper, painting, porcelain, and sculpture. She has exhibited widely and her work has been featured in galleries and museums in California, across the country, and abroad. Major exhibitions include Across Time, Space and The Ages (1992-1993) at the Dusseldorf Stadtmuseum in Germany, On Xenophobia and Walls (1997) at the Mill Gallery in England, and The Complete Aleph Series (2009) at Track 16 Gallery in California.
In addition to being a prolific artist, Finkel also has a successful career as a curator. She has curated major exhibitions featuring artists such as Lita Albuquerque, John Baldessari, and Frank Gehry. Santa Monica Originals (2004-2005), Women Artists of Southern California Then and Now (2007), and Breaking in Two: Provocative Images of Motherhood (2012) are a few of the exhibitions she has curated.
Finkel has a long history of political activism and advocating for women. She helped establish the Santa Monica Arts Commission which is dedicated to creating city art programs. She is also a founding member of the Los Angeles County of Women Artists and Womenspace Gallery in Los Angeles. She continues to be actively involved in the Santa Monica community and art scene.
Language Note:
Collection is in English.
Provenance:
The Bruria Finkel papers were donated in 2015 and 2020-2022 by Bruria Finkel.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
