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Melinda Wortz papers

Creator:
Wortz, Melinda  Search this
Names:
University of California, Irvine -- Faculty  Search this
University of California, Irvine. Department of Studo Art  Search this
University of California, Irvine. Fine Arts Gallery  Search this
Antin, Eleanor  Search this
Baca, Judith Francisca  Search this
Ballatore-Nelson, Sandy  Search this
Barber, Daniel  Search this
Bell, Larry, 1939-  Search this
Christo, 1935-  Search this
DeLap, Tony, 1927-2019  Search this
Dine, Jim, 1935-  Search this
Eversley, Frederick, 1941-  Search this
Harding, Bill  Search this
Irwin, Robert, 1928-  Search this
Johns, Jasper, 1930-  Search this
Kauffman, Craig, 1932-2010  Search this
Livkin, Rena  Search this
Lodato, Peter  Search this
Marchesi, Cork  Search this
Marck, Marc van der  Search this
McCafferty, Jay David, 1948-  Search this
Moses, Ed, 1926-  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu, 1904-1988  Search this
Ox, Jack, 1948-  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert, 1925-2008  Search this
Rinke, Klaus, 1939-  Search this
Rosler, Martha  Search this
Schwartz, Beth Ames  Search this
Small, Rena  Search this
Sonneman, Eve  Search this
Taylor, Elizabeth, 1932-2011  Search this
Tivey, Hap  Search this
Todd, Liza  Search this
Turrell, James  Search this
Valentine, DeWain, 1936-  Search this
Warner, Elsa  Search this
Wiener, Nina  Search this
Zaimo, Stephen  Search this
Extent:
17.45 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Interviews
Photographs
Transcripts
Sound recordings
Travel diaries
Place:
Paris (France) -- description and travel
Soviet Union -- description and travel
Date:
1958-1992
Summary:
The papers of California art historian, writer, instructor, and curator, Melinda Wortz (1940-2002) date from 1958-1992, and measure 17.45 linear feet. The collection includes documentation of Wortz's tenure at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), where she specialized in collecting and presenting the California "light and space" artists during the 1970s and 1980s. Wortz's papers include biographical information, personal and professional correspondence, interview transcripts and sound recordings, professional and student writings and notes, diaries of five trips abroad, UCI administrative, dossier, and teaching files, general subject and artist files, printed material, several pieces of artwork; and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of California art historian, writer, instructor, and curator, Melinda Wortz (1940-2002) date from 1958-1992, and measure 17.45 linear feet. The collection includes documentation of Wortz's tenure at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), where she specialized in collecting and presenting the California Light and Space artists during the 1970s and 1980s. Wortz's papers include biographical information, personal and professional correspondence, interview transcripts and sound recordings, professional and student writings and notes, diaries of five trips abroad, UCI administrative, dossier, and teaching files, general subject and artist files, printed material, several pieces of artwork; and photographs.

Wortz's biographical material includes annotated appointment books and calendars, resumes, and some family, financial, and legal records.

Correspondence files document Wortz's activities beyond her work at UCI, including scattered correspondence with artists such as Eleanor Antin, Daniel Barber, Christo, Craig Kauffman, Cork Marchesi, Martha Rosler, Eve Sonneman, Hap Tivey, and Elsa Warner. Correspondence also relates to arrangements for lectures, juries, panels, symposiums, and other professional activities in which Wortz participated.

Interviews include transcripts of four interviews conducted by Wortz with subjects including Peter Lodato and Dewain Valentine, and a sound recording of an interview with Nina Wiener.

Writings and notes include drafts, and some published copies, of articles and essays written for journals, magazines, and exhibition catalogs; Wortz's dissertation and thesis; notes; student essays and class notes; and scattered writings by others. Included in the published works are copies of Artweek containing articles by Wortz, and drafts and published copies of essays on Larry Bell, Robert Irwin, Jasper Johns, Jay McCafferty, Isamu Noguchi, Robert Rauschenberg, Klaus Rinke, Beth Ames Schwartz, and James Turrell.

Diaries document five separate overseas trips to locations including Asia in 1977, Paris in 1978, and the U.S.S.R., where Wortz delivered a paper on Robert Irwin, in 1989.

University of California, Irvine, records include Wortz's administrative files documenting her work on various committees, her directorship of the Fine Arts Gallery, including budget and exhibition records, her work as Chair of Studio Art, and her collaborations with other faculty, including Judy Baca, Sandy Ballatore, Tony Delap, Craig Kauffman, and Rena Small. Wortz's dossier files provide a thorough record of her accomplishments from the late 1970s-1990, and her UCI teaching files document the content of core art courses which she taught at UCI in the 1970s and 1980s.

Subject files provide additional documentation of Wortz's interest in particular artists and subjects, and include scattered correspondence with artists, as well as additional correspondence, reports, printed material, index card files, sound cassettes, and photographs, documenting her interests in art and politics, feminism, religion and spirituality, museum management and training, and other subjects.

Printed material includes announcements, catalogs, journals, newsletters, and material specifically documenting Wortz's activities.

Artwork includes a piece of floor covering from a Jim Dine exhibition, a booklet by Daniel Barber, Flams by Rena Livkin, and several pieces of unidentified artwork.

Photographs include photos of Wortz with her family and with UCI faculty including Tony DeLap, Craig Kauffman, and Ed Moses; photos of events with friends and family, including Hap Tivey's wedding to Liza Todd with Elizabeth Taylor in attendance; photos of artists including Frederick Eversley, Bill Harding, Jack Ox, and Stephen Zaimo; and photos of artwork by artists including Tony DeLap, Barbara Smith, Marc Van Der Marck, and others.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as ten series.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1966-1988 (0.25 linear feet; Boxes 1, 19)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1967-1992 (1.25 linear feet; Boxes 1-2, 18)

Series 3: Interviews, 1971-circa 1980s (6 folders; Boxes 2, 18)

Series 4: Writings and Notes, 1958-circa 1990 (4.25 linear feet; Boxes 2-6, 19)

Series 5: Diaries, 1977-1989 (6 folders; Box 6)

Series 6: University of California, Irvine, 1960-1991 (4.8 linear feet; Boxes 6-11, OV 20)

Series 7: Subject Files, circa 1960-1990 (4.25 linear feet; Boxes 11-15, 18)

Series 8: Printed Material, 1960s-1980s (1.8 linear feet; Boxes 15-16, 19)

Series 9: Artwork, circa 1960s-circa 1980s (3 folders; Boxes 17, 19)

Series 10: Photographs, 1960s-1980s (0.6 linear feet; Boxes 17, 19)
Biographical / Historical:
California art historian, writer, instructor, and curator, Melinda Wortz (1940-2002), taught at the University of California, Irvine, from 1975, serving as Director of UCI's Fine Arts Gallery and Chair of the Department of Studio Art. Wortz's special area of interest was the work of the California "light and space" artists emerging in Los Angeles in the 1970s.

After attending Stanford University and graduating from Radcliffe College with a bachelors degree in art history, Wortz received her masters degree in art history from the University of California, Los Angeles, and her doctorate in theology and the arts from the Graduate Theological Union at Berkeley. Wortz taught at California State University and the University of California Extension in the early 1970s. At UCI her colleagues included Judy Baca, Sandy Ballatore, Tony Delap, Craig Kauffman, and Rena Small.

Wortz married Edward C. Wortz in the early 1970s, following her divorce from her first husband, Thomas G. Terbell, Jr. Edward Wortz's first career was as a research scientist working on NASA contracts in the air research industry in Colorado and California. Later he was involved in the arts and participated in collaborations with artists including Robert Irwin, Coy Howard, and James Turrell. He worked with Melinda Wortz to develop their personal collection of contemporary art.

Melinda Wortz was a prolific writer who wrote extensively for national art periodicals, including Arts Magazine, and Art News. She also wrote, and served as editor, for the California periodical Artweek from the 1960s to 1990s. She wrote numerous catalogs for artists including Larry Bell, Cork Marchesi, Doug Moran, Beth Ames Schwartz, and James Turrell; and published articles on Dan Flavin, Robert Irwin, Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella, and others. She lectured at Brown University, the Center for Art, Salt Lake City, Contemporary Art Museum, La Jolla, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the San Diego Museum, Wellesley College, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and many other institutions. In 1989 she traveled to the U.S.S.R. to deliver a paper on Robert Irwin at the International Art Critics Association annual meeting.

In addition to her curatorial work at the UCI Fine Arts Gallery, where she organized exhibitions for artists including Alice Aycock, Jonathan Borofsky, Audrey Flack, Jack Ox, and Dennis Oppenheim, Wortz curated exhibitions for University of California sister colleges, Pasadena Art Museum, and others.

Wortz received UCI and National Endowment for the Arts grants in support of her writing, and served on advisory boards of the Contemporary Arts Forum, Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art, Santa Barbara, Robert Rauschenberg's foundation, Advisory Board of Change, Inc., the Pasadena Art Museum, and others.

Wortz was diagnosed with Alzheimers disease at the age of 50 and died in 2002.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Edward C. Wortz, Melinda Wortz's husband, in 1994.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers 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.
Occupation:
Art historians -- California -- Los Angeles  Search this
Authors -- California -- Los Angeles  Search this
Educators -- California -- Los Angeles  Search this
Art museum curators -- California -- Los Angeles  Search this
Gallery directors -- California -- Irvine  Search this
Topic:
Art, American -- California  Search this
Art -- Study and teaching  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- California  Search this
Women art historians  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Photographs
Transcripts
Sound recordings
Travel diaries
Citation:
Melinda Wortz papers, 1958-1992. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.wortmeli
See more items in:
Melinda Wortz papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw905985e8b-dfa4-4162-a8bb-952942187c9f
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-wortmeli
Online Media:

Melinda Wortz papers, 1958-1992

Creator:
Wortz, Melinda, 1940-2002  Search this
Subject:
Eversley, Frederick  Search this
Taylor, Elizabeth  Search this
Livkin, Rena  Search this
Turrell, James  Search this
Tivey, Hap  Search this
Baca, Judith Francisca  Search this
DeLap, Tony  Search this
Antin, Eleanor  Search this
Christo  Search this
Dine, Jim  Search this
McCafferty, Jay David  Search this
Sonneman, Eve  Search this
Ox, Jack  Search this
Todd, Liza  Search this
Marck, Marc van der  Search this
Rinke, Klaus  Search this
Rosler, Martha  Search this
Irwin, Robert  Search this
Johns, Jasper  Search this
Valentine, DeWain  Search this
Kauffman, Craig  Search this
Zaimo, Stephen  Search this
Small, Rena  Search this
Warner, Elsa  Search this
Bell, Larry  Search this
Moses, Ed  Search this
Lodato, Peter  Search this
Wiener, Nina  Search this
Schwartz, Beth Ames  Search this
Barber, Daniel  Search this
Noguchi, Isamu  Search this
Rauschenberg, Robert  Search this
Harding, Bill  Search this
Marchesi, Cork  Search this
Ballatore-Nelson, Sandy  Search this
University of California, Irvine. Fine Arts Gallery  Search this
University of California, Irvine. Department of Studo Art  Search this
University of California, Irvine  Search this
Type:
Interviews
Photographs
Transcripts
Sound recordings
Travel diaries
Place:
Paris (France) -- description and travel
Soviet Union -- description and travel
Citation:
Melinda Wortz papers, 1958-1992. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art, American -- California  Search this
Art -- Study and teaching  Search this
Art, Modern -- 20th century -- California  Search this
Women art historians  Search this
Theme:
Research and writing about art  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)6475
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)215662
AAA_collcode_wortmeli
Theme:
Research and writing about art
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_215662
Online Media:

Festival Recordings: NASA Exploration Stage: Astronaut Adventures Cont'd (Mike Green, Charlie Walker, Loren Shriver); Probing the Planets (Debbie Rivera, Kevin Grazier, Todd Barber, Daniel Hurley); Technological Benefits for Society (Kathy Needham, Fra...

Collection Creator:
Smithsonian Institution. Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage  Search this
Extent:
1 Sound recording (compact audio cassette)
Type:
Archival materials
Sound recordings
Date:
2008 July 6
Collection Restrictions:
Access to the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections is by appointment only. Visit our website for more information on scheduling a visit or making a digitization request. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from the Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections. Please visit our website to learn more about submitting a request. The Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections make no guarantees concerning copyright or other intellectual property restrictions. Other usage conditions may apply; please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for more information.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
CFCH.SFF.2008, Item FP-2008-CT-0038
See more items in:
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival
Smithsonian Folklife Festival records: 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival / Series 3: NASA: Fifty Years and Beyond / 3.3: Audio
Archival Repository:
Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/bk52b07e35a-1ff0-4a10-9e3d-37b985f327e0
EDAN-URL:
ead_component:sova-cfch-sff-2008-ref582

A new culture area exhibit / by Daniel M. Barber

Author:
Barber, Daniel M  Search this
Rochester Museum of Arts and Sciences  Search this
Physical description:
[4] p. : ill. ; 23 cm
Type:
Exhibitions
Place:
Southern States
Date:
1966
1966]
Topic:
Human geography  Search this
Antiquities  Search this
Call number:
E78.S65 B27 1966
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_684903

Modern architecture and climate design before air conditioning Daniel A. Barber

Author:
Barber, Daniel A  Search this
Physical description:
1 online resource (316 pages) illustrations (chiefly color)
Type:
Electronic resources
Electronic books
Date:
2020
20th century
Topic:
Architecture and climate  Search this
Architecture, Modern--Themes, motives  Search this
ARCHITECTURE / Sustainability & Green Design  Search this
Call number:
NA2541 .B37 2020 (Internet)
Restrictions & Rights:
1-user
Data Source:
Smithsonian Libraries
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:siris_sil_1145662

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