Netherlands -- Amsterdam -- Description and Travel
New York (N.Y.) -- Description and Travel
Tanzania -- Description and Travel
Date:
2017 March 27-29
Scope and Contents:
An interview with Lyle Ashton Harris, conducted 2017 March 27 and 29, by Alex Fialho, for the Archives of American Art's Visual Arts and the AIDS Epidemic: An Oral History Project, at Harris's studio and home in New York, New York.
Harris speaks of his childhood in the Bronx; his family's influence on his race-consciousness; living in Tanzania for two years as a child and the effects on his understanding of race and sexuality; his grandfather's extensive photographic archive; contact with the South African diaspora through his step-father; attending Wesleyan University; formative experiences in London, Amsterdam, and New York in the mid-1980s; his education and development as a photographer; attending CalArts and encountering West Coast AIDS activism; encountering systemic racism in Los Angeles; close friendships with Marlon Riggs and Essex Hemphill; exhibitions of his work in New York in the early 1990s; the production of his Ektachrome Archive and his impulse to photograph daily life; his work on the Black Community AIDS Research and Education (Black C.A.R.E.) project in Los Angeles; participating in the Whitney Museum's Independent Study Program; being diagnosed with HIV and remaining asymptomatic; attending the Dia Black Popular Culture Conference in 1992; photographing and mounting "The Good Life" in 1994 and "The Watering Hole" in 1996; issues of blackness and queerness in his photographic work; his residency at the American Academy in Rome in 2000; moving to Accra, Ghana for seven years in 2005; his pedagogy as an art professor; his thoughts on the lack of voices of color in the Visual Arts and the AIDS Epidemic Oral History Project and in the larger power structures of the art world; and his hope that his artistic legacy will be evaluated in its proper context. Harris also recalls Jackie and Robert O'Meally, Jay Seeley, Ellen O'Dench, Francesca Woodman, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Jim Collier, Robert Mapplethorpe, Allan Sekula, Hazel Carby, Isaac Julien, Catherine Lord, Millie Wilson, Todd Gray, John Grayson, Tommy Gear, Marlon Riggs, Essex Hemphill, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Nancy Barton, Vickie Mays, Connie Butler, Greg Tate, Henry Louis Gates, Houston Baker, Nan Goldin, Jack Tilton, Simon Watson, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Lyle Ashton Harris (1965- ) is an artist who works in video, photography, and performance in New York, New York. Alex Fialho (1989- ) is a curator and arts writer and works as Programs Director for Visual AIDS in New York, New York.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Performance artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Video artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Smith, Mary T. (Mary Tillman), 1904-1995 Search this
Extent:
0.4 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Interviews
Slides (photographs)
Video recordings
Date:
circa 1984-1986
Summary:
The videos and slides on African American folk artists Dilmus Hall, Mary T. Smith, and J.B. Murry measure 0.4 linear feet and date from circa 1984 to 1986. The collection includes recorded interviews conducted by art historian Judith McWillie with the artists about their lives and work, and color slides of Dilmus Hall and Mary T. Smith with their work.
Scope and Contents:
The videos and slides on African American folk artists Dilmus Hall, Mary T. Smith, and J.B. Murry measure 0.4 linear feet and date from circa 1984 to 1986. The collection includes recorded interviews conducted by art historian Judith McWillie with the artists about their lives and work, and color slides of Dilmus Hall and Mary T. Smith with their work.
The materials related to Dilmus Hall include a 1984 interview (dubbed in 1986) in which Hall covers many topics ranging from his childhood to religious influences in his work, as well as 41 color slides of Hall, his home, and his work.
Materials related to Mary T. Smith and J.B. Murry include an interview with Mary T. Smith in December 1986 and one with J.B. Murry in May 1986, both dubbed onto the same tape. Also included are 10 color slides of Mary T. Smith and her artwork.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in two series.
Series 1: Material Related to Dilmus Hall, circa 1984-1986 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 2: Material Related to Mary T. Smith and J.B. Murry, 1986 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Judith McWillie is an artist, art historian, and professor emeritus of drawing and painting at the Lamar Dodd School of Art of the University of Georgia. Much of her work focuses on African American artists.
Dilmus Hall (1900-1987) was a self-taught African American artist. Born in Georgia in 1900, he joined the United States Army Medical Corps in 1917 and served in Europe as a stretcher-bearer during World War I. After he returned to Georgia, he worked as a waiter and a fabricator of concrete blocks, retiring in 1961 to devote himself to art. Hall decorated his house and yard in Athens, Georgia with sculpted animals, devils, and humans, often based on biblical themes. He has also produced hundreds of drawings in a cartoon-like style.
Mary Tillman Smith (1904-1995) was an African American self-taught painter in Mississippi. Her work was often created on readily-available materials such as plywood and corrugated tin. Her work is included in collections at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
J.B. (John Bunion) Murry (also Murray) (1908-1988) was a self-taught African American artist in Georgia. He worked as a sharecropper for the majority of his life. At the age of 70 he experienced a religious vision and began painting, producing an extensive body of work in ten years. Murry was illiterate, but developed his own script, which he incorporated into his paintings. His work is included in collections at the American Folk Art Museum and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Related Materials:
Also found in the Archives of American Art are J.B. Murray drawings, 1985 on microfilm reel 3667.
Provenance:
Videos and slides on Dilmus Hall, Mary T. Smith, and J.B. Murry were donated to the Archives of American Art by Judith McWillie in 1986 and 1987.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Use of audiovisual recordings with no duplicate copies requires advance notice.
Rights:
Authorization to publish, quote, or reproduce requires written permission from Judith McWillie. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture Search this
Extent:
22.6 Linear feet
6.36 Gigabytes
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Sketchbooks
Scrapbooks
Date:
circa 1940-2019
Summary:
The papers of African American abstract expressionist painter, arts administrator and educator Arthur Monroe measure 22.6 linear feet and 6.3 gigabytes and date from circa 1940 to 2019. Monroe was the registrar at the Oakland Museum and American Studies professor at University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. This collection documents his career through biographical material, correspondence, writings, FESTAC records, professional files, research files, teaching files, printed material, and photographic material.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of African American abstract expressionist painter, arts administrator and educator Arthur Monroe measure 22.6 linear feet and 6.3 gigabytes and date from circa 1949 to 2019. Monroe was the registrar at the Oakland Museum and American Studies professor at University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. This collection documents his career through biographical material, correspondence, writings, FESTAC records, professional files, research files, teaching files, printed material, and photographic material.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as 9 series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1970-circa 2013 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1971-cira 2015 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 3: Writings, 1974-circa 2019 (3.7 linear feet; Boxes 3-6)
Series 4: FESTAC Records, 1973-1993, bulk 1974-1978 (4.5 linear feet; Boxes 6-11, 23)
Series 5: Professional Files, 1957-2019 (4 linear feet; Boxes 11-15)
Series 6: Research Files, 1951-2010 (4.5 linear feet; Boxes 15-19, 23)
Series 7: Teaching Files, 1970-circa 2010 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 19-20)
Series 8: Printed Material, 1955-2014 (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 20-21, 24)
Series 9: Photographic Material, circa 1940-circa 2019 (1.4 linear feet; Boxes 21-22)
Biographical / Historical:
Arthur Monroe (1935-2019) was an African American abstract expressionist painter, arts administrator, and educator in Oakland, California. Monroe was the Chief Registrar at the Oakland Museum for over 30 years and also taught African American Studies as a professor at the University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. Arthur Monroe was the Chair of the Far West Region North Committee for FESTAC (1977), also known as the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, as well as an organizer for the First Statewide Conference of Black Artists held in 1978.
Provenance:
The collection was donated in 2019 by Arthur Monroe as part of the Archives' African American Collecting Initiative funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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.
An interview of Frank E. Cummings, III conducted 2006 December 28 and 2007 January 5, by Jo Lauria, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in the artist's home, in Long Beach, California.
Cummings speaks of his childhood in Los Angeles and the challenges he faced in school; receiving a B.A. from California State University, Long Beach; working with troubled youth as a social worker with Neighborhood Youth Association; teaching at California State University, Long Beach while earning his M.F.A. at California State University, Fullerton through the Black Faculty Teaching Program; the invitation by Eudorah Moore to show in "California Design XI"; the importance of having his and his students' work published in Dona Meilach's book, "Creating Modern Furniture: Trends, Techniques, Appreciation"; the role of reflective surfaces in his work to capture the viewer's attention; using a diamond stylus to draw on glass; serving as the first M.F.A. graduate program coordinator at California State University, Long Beach; the development and creation of his famed clock, It's About Time, now in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; working as a gofer for Sam Maloof during a three day seminar at Yosemite National Park; receiving an invitation from Maloof to teach at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina; his experiences at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine.; the consistent drive throughout his career to continue working, exhibiting, and publishing; his love of teaching; the honor of receiving the Outstanding Professor Award at California State University, Fullerton, in 1997; receiving a National Endowment of Arts grant in 1973 to spend two months in Ghana, Africa examining connections between the African American struggle for identity in the ghettoes of the United States and struggles faced in Africa; returning to various regions in Africa in 1981 at the request of the State Department to evaluate and help increase object making productivity in villages while exhibiting his art in museums throughout the continent; his deliberate selection of materials; the role race has played in his career; his reverence of nature; designing furniture for the set of the movie, "How Stella Got Her Groove Back;" the development and creative process of the Carousel series; finding inspiration in his wife, C.C.; and plans for the future. Cummings also recalls Raymond Hein, Thomas Ferreira, James Prestini, Wendell Castle, William Hunter, Edward Cooke, Gerald W.R. Ward, Kelly H. L'Ecuyer, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Frank E. Cummings III (1938- ) is a furniture maker and woodworker of Long Beach, California. Jo Lauria ( 1954- ) is a curator and art writer of Los Angeles, California.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hr., 28 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Biographical material includes appointment and address books; education and personal identification certificates and documents; awards, certificates, curriculum vitae, and chronologies; biographical material related to other individuals, including identification documents and memorial programs; and transcripts of interviews with Jacob Lawrence and Gwendolyn Knight.
The correspondence series includes extensive personal and professional correspondence with family, friends, artists, admirers (including students in a number of elementary and middle schools), university students, government agencies, art schools, galleries, museums, publishing houses, and others. Included in this series are condolence letters received by Gwendolyn Knight after Jacob Lawrence's death in 2000.
Writings include published and unpublished writings by and about Jacob Lawrence, as well as writings by others. These writings include speeches, notes, essays, articles, lists, and short stories. Also included is a visitor comment book from the Los Angeles County Museum exhibition of Jacob Lawrence's Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass series.
Printed material includes books; brochures; business cards; clippings; exhibition and event announcements, invitations, catalogs, and programs; magazines; newsletters; posters; post cards; and press releases. Books in this collection may include illustrations by Jacob Lawrence or have personal inscriptions from the author to Jacob Lawrence and Gwendolyn Knight.
Photographs include photographs of Jacob Lawrence artwork, photographs and reproductions of Gwendolyn Knight artwork, and photographs of Jacob Lawrence, Gwendolyn Knight, and other individuals. Also included in this series are photographs and reproductions of work by others.
Personal business records include a ledger; consignment, financial, and shipping records related to the Terry Dintenfass Gallery; contracts and agreements; and estate documents.
Artwork includes sketches by Jacob Lawrence, a blank sketchbook inscribed by Jacob Lawrence to Gwendolyn Knight, and artwork by other artists.
The Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation and Related Material series includes founding documents and foundation bylaws, correspondence, financial documents, reports, and proposals. Found within this series are materials related to the Lawrence Center for the Visual Arts, a subsidiary foundation of the Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation.
Professional files include material related to projects and exhibitions, teaching files and inclusion in curricula, files regarding possible fake Jacob Lawrence works, and gallery files.
The honors series is divided into two subseries: awards and certificates, and government honors. Awards and certificates includes honorary degrees, arts prizes, and any other honors awarded to Jacob Lawrence or Gwendolyn Knight. Government honors include resolutions, proclamations, and keys to cities. Also included in this series are correspondence related to awards and honorary degrees, commencement programs, plaques, and medals.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged in 11 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1914-2005 (Boxes 1, 11, 26, OV 10; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1943, 1952-2005 (Boxes 1-5, 12-14, 26; 7.7 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, 1954-1959, 1973-2005, undated (Boxes 5-6, 14-15; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 4: Printed Material, 1816, 1926, 1937, 1945-2008 (Boxes 6-9, 15-17, 26, OV 30, OV 31; 6.8 linear feet)
Series 5: Photographs, circa 1970-1997, undated (Boxes 9, 17, OV 10; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1962-2005 (Boxes 9, 17; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 7: Artwork, 1984, 1990-1994, undated (Boxes 9, 18, 26; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 8: Jacob Lawrence Catalogue Raisonne Project Records, 1982-2002 (Boxes 18-23, Box 26; 5.1 linear feet, ER01; 0.001 GB)
Series 9: Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation and Related Material, 1997-2005 (Box 23; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 10: Professional Files, 1964-2004 (Boxes 23-24; 1.2 linear feet)
Series 11: Honors, 1948, 1966-2005 (Boxes 24-25, 27-29, OV 30; 2.3 linear feet)
Biographical Note:
Modernist painter and educator Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000) was born in 1917 as Jacob Armstead Lawrence in Atlantic City, New Jersey. He began his art studies at the Utopia Children's Center in New York City's Harlem district where he studied under the painter Charles Alston. Lawrence dropped out of high school at the age of sixteen to continue his art instruction with Alston, this time at the Harlem Art Workshop, where he met several artists associated with the Harlem Renaissance including the sculptor Augusta Savage.
Gwendolyn Knight (1913-2005) was born in Barbados and moved to New York City with her adoptive parents when she was seven. She attended New York's Wadleigh High School and later Howard University in Washington, D.C. where she studied fine arts with Lois Mailou Jones and James Porter. Forced to leave her studies at Howard because of the Depression, Knight returned to Harlem and continued her artistic pursuits in Augusta Savage's workshop. In 1935, Knight joined the Harlem Mural Project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) working under Selma Day and Charles Alston. Lawrence and Knight met in Savage's workshop and married in the summer of 1941.
During the Depression, Lawrence also joined the WPA Federal Arts Project in Harlem. Finding WPA murals overwhelming, Lawrence concentrated on traditional painting instead. He produced his first major works in the late 1930s, most notably the Toussaint L'Ouverture series, images that document the life of the revolutionary hero and Haiti's struggle for independence. Other significant works include visual narratives of the lives of abolitionists Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass. In 1940, Lawrence received the prestigious Julius Rosenwald Fellowship, which made it possible for him to purchase his first art studio on 125th Street in the heart of Harlem. He soon portrayed Harlem street life in paintings that became commentaries on the role of African Americans in United States society with highly developed themes of resistance and social opposition. That same year, Lawrence began his most celebrated series, The Migration of the American Negro, multiple tempera panels depicting the exodus of African American sharecroppers in the south to northern industrial cities in search of better employment and social opportunities. Edith Halpert exhibited the works in their entirety at her Downtown Gallery in 1941, establishing Lawrence as the first African American artist to exhibit in a top New York gallery. The following year, New York's Museum of Modern Art and the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC each bought half of the sixty panels in the series, helping to further Lawrence's career within the larger world of American art.
In the summer of 1946, the artist Joseph Albers invited Lawrence to teach at North Carolina's Black Mountain College. It was the first in a series of teaching positions in prestigious art schools including Pratt Institute (1956-1971), Brandeis University (1965), The New School (1966), the Art Students League (1967), and others. During the 1950s and 1960s, Lawrence's work continued to focus on racism and political activism but in the late 1960s shifted to themes of racial harmony.
Both Lawrence and Knight continued independent careers in art. Knight pursued her art studies at the New School in New York and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine. In the mid-1960s, she collaborated with other female artists to form the Studio Gallery in New York City. Knight's main body of work consists of portraits and still-lifes that incorporate expressions of African sculpture, Impressionism, dance, and theater. Focusing on gesture, her art is described as light and airy with a minimum of lines allowing empty space to define the work. In 1970, Lawrence traveled to Seattle to teach as a visiting artist at the University of Washington. He was hired on a permanent basis the following year and remained on staff until his retirement in 1986.
Jacob Lawrence died June 9, 2000, in Seattle, Washington at the age of 83. Gwendolyn Knight continued to paint and exhibit her work around the country until her death on February 18, 2005 in Seattle, Washington at the age of 92.
Related Material:
Also found at the Archives of American Art are an oral history interview with Jacob Lawrence conducted by Carroll Greene (1968 October 26), interviews conducted by Avis Berman (1982 July 20-August 4), and an oral history interview with Jacob Lawrence and Gwendolyn Knight conducted by Paul Karlstrom (1998 November 18). The Archives of American Art also holds a collection of Jacob Lawrence papers, available on microfilm only, reels D286 and 4571-4573. Originals reside at Syracuse University Library, Special Collections.
Provenance:
The Jacob Lawrence and Gwendolyn Knight papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in five accretions between 1979 and 1997. Additional papers were donated in 2012 by the Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation via Barbara Earl Thomas, representative.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
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.
Occupation:
Painters -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Educators -- Washington (State) -- Seattle Search this
Topic:
Painting, Modern -- 20th century -- United States Search this
Jacob Lawrence and Gwendolyn Knight papers, 1816, 1914-2008, bulk 1973-2001. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the 2007 processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art. Funding for the 2018 processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Interview of Faith Ringgold conducted in 1972, by Doloris Holmes, for the Archives of American Art's "Art World in Turmoil" oral history project.
Ringgold speaks of her involvement and the origins of WSABAL (Women, Students, and Artists for Black Artist Liberation); her attempts to raise awareness of the under-representation of women in art (writing to the Times/ performing surveys); her hopes for the upcoming WSABAL show on June 22 (the first Black female show in New York); her feelings towards the NYUNBAYAASANAA (the male neo-African Harlem group); her reaction to the '68 Venice Biennale which excluded women and Black artists; her subsequent show named the Liberated Venice Biennale which consisted of 50% women; the She Show and the Flag Show which instigated three arrests; the He Show and upcoming Where Are We At? Show; the importance of conducting open shows; her feelings towards historical African art and its conceptual confronting nature; the influence of Augusta Savage; the influence of African art upon Minimalism and Surrealism.
Biographical / Historical:
Faith Ringgold (1930- ) is a painter, sculptor, and performance artist in New York, New York.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
This transcript is open for research. No recording exists. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
The papers of African American conceptual and performance artist Senga Nengudi measure 12.8 linear feet and 11.24 gigabytes and date from circa 1962 to 2017, with a folder of printed material dating from 1947. The collection contains biographical material including education and family records, the kimono Nengudi wore during her wedding to Ellioutt Fittz, certificates, interview transcripts, and address books; calendars and journals chronicling Nengudi's appointments, thoughts, and artistic practice; and correspondence with friends and other artists including Maren Hassinger, Cheryl Banks, and David Hammons. Also included is family correspondence, including letters between Senga Nengudi (then Sue Irons) and her mother when Nengudi was living in Japan. The collection also contains writings by Senga Nengudi and others; material related to professional activities including teaching files, gallery files, and files related to exhibitions, projects, and performances; printed material including exhibition and event announcements and catalogs, clippings, magazines, and other published material; a scrapbook primarily containing photographs and printed material; photographic material depicting Senga Nengudi, works of art, and other individuals; artwork by Nengudi and others, including Maren Hassinger; and audio and video recordings, including recordings of performances.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of African American conceptual and performance artist Senga Nengudi measure 12.8 linear feet and 11.24 gigabytes and date from circa 1962 to 2017, with a folder of printed material dating from 1947. The collection contains biographical material, including education and family records, the kimono Nengudi wore during her wedding to Ellioutt Fittz, certificates, interview transcripts, and address books; calendars and journals chronicling Nengudi's appointments, thoughts, and artistic practice; and correspondence with friends and other artists including Maren Hassinger, Cheryl Banks, and David Hammons. Also included is family correspondence, including letters between Senga Nengudi (then Sue Irons) and her mother when Nengudi was living in Japan. The collection also contains writings by Senga Nengudi and others; material related to professional activities including teaching files, gallery files, and files related to exhibitions, projects, and performances; printed material including exhibition and event announcements and catalogs, clippings, magazines, and other published material; a scrapbook primarily containing photographs and printed material; photographic material depicting Senga Nengudi, works of art, and other individuals; artwork by Nengudi and others, including Maren Hassinger and Barbara McCullough; and audio and video recordings, including recordings of performances.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as ten series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1962-2006, 2017 (Box 1, Box 14; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 2: Calendars and Journals, 1967-2016 (Boxes 1-6; Box 15; 5.7 linear feet)
Series 3: Correspondence, 1966-2017 (Boxes 6-8; 1.7 linear feet)
Series 4: Writings, 1964-2010 (Box 8; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 5: Professional Activities, 1966-2017 (Boxes 8-10, Box 15; 1.9 linear feet, ER01-ER06; 11.10 GB)
Series 6: Printed Material, 1947, 1963-2017 (Boxes 10-12, Box 15; 1.4 linear feet, ER07; 0.143 GB)
Series 7: Scrapbook, 1974-1976 (Box 15; 1 folder)
Series 8: Photographic Material, circa 1962-2007 (Box 12, Box 15; 0.1 linear feet)
Series 9: Artwork, circa 1960s-2004, 2014, undated (Box 12, Box 15; 0.5 linear feet)
Series 10: Audio and Video Recordings, circa 1974-1998 (Boxes 12-13; 0.4 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Senga Nengudi (1943- ) is an African American conceptual and performance artist in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Born Sue Irons in Chicago, Illinois, she earned a bachelor's degree in art with a minor in dance from California State University, Los Angeles. From 1966 to 1967 she studied Japanese culture at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. This study deeply influenced her artistic practice. Upon her return from Japan in 1967, she pursued her master's degree in sculpture at California State University, which she received in 1971.
After receiving her master's degree, she moved to New York to continue her career as an artist, showing at Just Above Midtown Gallery and teaching at the Children's Art Carnival in Harlem. Throughout her career, Nengudi has collaborated and shown with Maren Hassinger, David Hammons, Barbara McCullough, Suzanne Jackson, John Outterbridge, and Bettye Saar. Nengudi is best known for "stationary performance objects," particularly her RSVP series, objects composed of nylon mesh and sand that refer to the flexibility of the female figure. The series debuted in the 1970s and Nengudi returned to it, adding on A.C.Q. to exhibit it at the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017. Also in 2017, Senga Nengudi: Improvisational Gestures opened at the DePaul Art Museum. This was the first solo museum survey for the artist and featured work from the 1970s to 2017.
Related Materials:
The Amistad Research Center also holds 4.5 linear feet of the Senga Nengudi papers, 1966-2017.
Provenance:
The Senga Nengudi papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2018 and 2019 by Senga Nengudi.
Restrictions:
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 born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
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.
Occupation:
Conceptual artists -- Colorado -- Colorado Springs Search this
Performance artists -- Colorado -- Colorado Springs Search this
An interview of Frederick D. Jones conducted 1988 Nov. 8-10, by Arlene E. Williams, for the Archives of American Art African-American Artists in Chicago oral history project (1988-1989).
Jones speaks of his early life and training, and of the influence of Hale Woodrufff, Louis Ritman, and Eldzier Cortor. He recalls his involvement with the South Side Community Art Center. He discusses some of his early exhibitions, the influences of African and European art, and changes in the art scene after World War II. He compares Chicago and New York art schools, and speaks about the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Finally, he discusses the civil rights movement and its relationship to the art of the times.
Biographical / Historical:
Frederick D. Jones (1913-1996) was a painter in Chicago, Ill.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
An interview of Merton D. Simpson conducted 1968 November, by Al Murray, for the Archives of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Merton D. Simpson (1928-2013) was a painter and art dealer from New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 1 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 4 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others. Funding for this interview provided by the New York State Council on the Arts.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Art dealers -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Charles Robert Searles (1937-2004) was a sculptor, painter and muralist in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 52 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics, and administrators.
Occupation:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Muralists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Muralists -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Search this
Topic:
African American art -- African influences Search this
An interview of Carolyn Mazloomi conducted 2002 September 17 and 30, by Joanne Cubbs, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in West Chester, Ohio. Mazloomi speaks of growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with a family of self-taught artists; the positive influence of her aunt and teacher Dr. Carter; the generation of African American quilt-makers who followed a gap in quilt-making post-slavery; she describes her previous career as an aeronautical engineer and her transition to quilt-making; how she identifies herself as a craftsperson, not an artist; her experience with Baltimore album and Appalachian quilts; learning to quilt; the Women of Color Quilter's Network and its economic and social development programs; her book, "Spirits of the Cloth"; the positive and negative aspects of travel; the false generalizations of African American quilts in academic circles; the importance of gender, race, and ethnicity in her work; her connection to "praise songs"; she discusses functional vs. nonfunctional quilts; the market for "hand-crafted" quilts; agents and galleries; she describes her working environment; adopting the use of a sewing machine in her work; the importance of community; her technique; her accomplishment of placing African-American quilts in the Renwick Gallery; the influence of magazines, including "Raw Vision;" her aversion to commissions; expanding her use of materials and technology; her exhibitions; her role as an advocate and dealer; finding inspiration in black and white linocuts and her use of color in quilts; and making a connection with her audience. Mazloomi also recalls Marie Wilson, Cuesta Benberry, Edjohnetta Miller, Roland Freeman, Robert Cargo, Martha Connell, Penny Sisto, Minnie Adkins, Nkosi Johnson, and Lauryn Hill.
Biographical / Historical:
Carolyn Mazloomi (1948- ) is a quilt maker from West Chester, Ohio.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 16 digital wav files. Duration is 4 hrs., 33 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Interview of Hale Woodruff conducted 1968 November 18, by Al Murray, for the Archives of American Art.
Biographical / Historical:
Hale Woodruff (1900-1980) was a painter and educator in New York, New York.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives' Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others. Funding for this interview provided by the New York State Council on the Arts.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Educators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of Senga Nengudi conducted 2013 July 9-11, by Elissa Auther, for the Archives of American Art's, Stoddard-Fleischman Fund for the History of Rocky Mountain Area Artists, at the University of Colorado and at RedLine Denver in Denver, Colorado.
Biographical / Historical:
Senga Nengudi (1943- ) is a performance artist, installation artist and sculptor in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Elissa Auther (1966- ) is an associate professor of contemporary art in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
General:
Originally recorded as 9 sound files. Duration is 2 hr., 45 min. Due to a problem with the recorder, the interview for the second session on July 11, 2013 was conducted on an iPhone.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Performance artists -- Colorado -- Colorado Springs Search this
Conceptual artists -- Colorado -- Colorado Springs Search this
An interview of Howardena Pindell conducted 2012 Dec. 1-4, by Judith Olch Richards, for the Archives of American Art, at Pindell's home and studio, in New York, N.Y.
Biographical / Historical:
Howardena Pindell (1943- ) is an abstract artist in New York, N.Y. Judith Olch Richards (1947- ) is former director of iCI in New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded as 5 sound digital wav files. Duration is 4 hrs., 31 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of David C. Driskell conducted 2009 March 18-April 7, by Cynthia Mills, for the Archives of American Art, at Driskell's home, in Hyattsville, Maryland.
Biographical / Historical:
David C. Driskell (1931-2020) was a painter, curator, and educator in Washington, D.C. Cynthia Mills (1947-2014) was an art historian in Washington, D.C.
General:
Originally recorded as 7 sound files. Duration is 5 hr., 7 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
An interview with James Lesesne Wells conducted 1989 November 16, by Jock Reynolds and Richard Powell, for the Archives of American Art.
Wells speaks of his early childhood in Atlanta, Georgia and Florida; his education; his interest in drawing; symbolic storytelling; mythological subject matter; and African influence.
Biographical / Historical:
James Lesesne Wells (1902-1993) was a printmaker from Washington, D.C.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 45 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
This transcript is open for research. Access to the entire recording is restricted. Contact Reference Services for more information.
The papers of African American artist and educator Maren Hassinger measure 11.3 linear feet and 4.55 gigabytes, dating from 1955 to 2018. The collection contains biographical material; personal and professional correspondence; and writings; as well as project and exhibition files; material related to Hassinger's tenure at the Rinehart School of Graduate Sculpture at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA); material related to other professional activities, including teaching files; photographic material; and artwork and artifacts.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of African American artist and educator Maren Hassinger measure 11.3 linear feet and 4.55 gigabytes, dating from 1955 to 2018. The collection contains biographical material including appointment and address books, education records, family and other home movie recordings, interview transcripts, and resumes; personal and professional correspondence; and writings including diaries, notebooks, notes, and writings by others. Also included are project and exhibition files, including accompanying audiovisual material and performance recordings; material related to Hassinger's tenure at the Rinehart School of Graduate Sculpture at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA); material related to other professional activities, including other teaching files, panels, and grants; printed material; photographic material depicting Maren Hassinger, other individuals, and works of art, including student work; and artwork and artifacts.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as nine series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1959-2001, 2013-circa 2015 (Box 1; 0.5 linear feet, ER01; 0.001 GB)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1961-2018 (Boxes 1-2; 1 linear foot, ER02; 3.01 GB)
Series 3: Writings, 1955-2017 (Boxes 2-3; 0.7 linear feet)
Series 4: Project and Exhibition Files, 1966, 1982-2015 (Boxes 3-4, OV 12; 1.5 linear feet, ER03-ER04; 1.31 GB)
Series 5: Rinehart School of Graduate Sculpture/MICA Files, circa 1960s-2018 (Boxes 4-5; 1.4 linear feet)
Series 6: Professional Activities, circa 1969-2017 (Boxes 5-6; 0.8 linear feet, ER05; 0.006 GB)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1960-2018 (Boxes 6-9, OVs 12-15; 2.9 linear feet)
Series 8: Photographic Material, 1969-2010s (Boxes 9-10, OV 12, Box 16; 2.2 linear feet, ER06; 0.224 GB)
Series 9: Artwork and Artifacts, circa 1960s-2010s (Box 11; 0.3 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Maren Hassinger (1947- ) is an African American artist in New York known for sculpture, performance, and public art in which she uses natural and industrial materials. She was also an educator and is the director emeritus of the Rinehart School of Graduate Sculpture at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD.
Born Maren Jenkins in Los Angeles, California in 1947, Hassinger studied dance and sculpture at Bennington College, earning a Bachelor of Arts in sculpture in 1969. In 1973 she completed a Master of Fine Arts in fiber structure at UCLA.
During her time in Los Angeles, Hassinger began to collaborate with Senga Nengudi — a collaborative relationship that has continued throughout their careers. She also participated in the Studio Z collective with Nengudi, Ulysses Jenkins, David Hammons, and Houston Conwill.
Hassinger taught at the State University of New York, Stony Brook from 1992 to 1997 and was the director of the Rinehart School of Graduate Sculpture at the Maryland Institute College of Art from 1997 to 2018. Throughout her career, she has been awarded numerous residencies, awards, and grants. Her work is held in many collections including the Baltimore Museum of Art, the California African American Museum, the Hammer Museum, and the Studio Museum in Harlem.
Provenance:
The Maren Hassinger papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2018 by Maren Hassinger.
Restrictions:
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 born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact Reference Services for more information.
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.
Occupation:
Performance artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of Ernest Crichlow conducted 1968 July 20, by Henri Ghent, for the Archives of American Art in Brooklyn, New York.
Crichlow discusses his childhood in Brooklyn as the son of immigrants from Barbados, the ethnic mix of his community, and visiting black artists in Harlem. He speaks of meeting other black artists on the WPA and their efforts to get work during the Depression. Crichlow describes the intentions of his art and his interest in black subject matter, discrimination in the art world, and the political climate of the time.
Biographical / Historical:
Ernest T. Crichlow (1914-2005) was a painter from Brooklyn, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 11 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others. Funding for the interview was provided by the New York State Council on the Arts.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview of William McBride conducted 1988 Oct. 30-31, by Carol Adams, for the Archives of American Art African-American artists in Chicago oral history project (1988-1989).
McBride speaks of his early interest in art, the importance of George Neal to the education of young Chicago artists, and the camaraderie among Black artists in Chicago in the 1930s. He discusses working for the WPA Federal Art Project and saving WPA works from destruction. Carter reminisces about the formation of the South Side Community Art Center as a place where Black artists could exhibit, the Black Renaissance in Chicago in the 1930s, and post-WPA survival. He recalls working for Goldblatt's department store, the impact of the civil rights movement on Black art, and the influence of African art.
Biographical / Historical:
William McBride (1912-2000) was a painter in Chicago, Ill.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hrs., 10 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
5 Microfilm reels (27 volumes on 5 microfilm reels)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Microfilm reels
Scrapbooks
Place:
Africa, French-speaking West -- Description and Travel
Date:
1922-1992
Scope and Contents:
This microfilm collection contains Lois Mailou Jones' scrapbooks documenting her career as an African American artist and educator. Scrapbooks contain correspondence (1928-1992) primarily regarding Jones' exhibitions, Howard University, and her art education in Paris, and include a letter and photograph from Emile Bernard; photographs of Jones in her Washington, D.C. and Paris studios, her work, and her extensive travels through Africa and Haiti; and printed material including exhibition announcements, catalogs, and clippings (1922-1992) of reviews, interviews, and articles on the European and African influences in her work. Also included are her resume, materials submitted for the Rosenwald Fellowship, and notes related to her coordination of the 1974 exhibition Paintings by Women Artists of the Caribbean and Afro-American Women Artists.
Biographical / Historical:
Lois Mailou Jones (1905-1998) was an African American painter, designer, and educator in Washington, DC. Jones studied at the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts and at the Academie Julian in Paris. She was professor of design and watercolor at Howard University from 1930-1977. She married Haitian graphic designer Vergniaud Pierre-Noel in 1953 and the couple frequently returned to Haiti. In 1970 she served as cultural ambassador to Africa for the United States Information Agency.
Provenance:
Lent for microfilming by Lois Mailou Jones, 1990 and 1992.
Restrictions:
The Archives of American art does not own the original papers. Use is limited to the microfilm copy.
