Restrictions on access. No duplication allowed listening and viewing for research purposes only.
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 of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Contributed in memory of Professor Sarah Webster Fabio (1928-1979), poet, educator, Black Arts Movement icon, and one of the Literary Corner's analysts.
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Contributed in memory of Professor Sarah Webster Fabio (1928-1979), poet, educator, Black Arts Movement icon, and one of the Literary Corner's analysts.
An audio recording of an interview with co-founder of AfriCOBRA, Gerald Williams, conducted by Phillip Barcio on August 2-3, 2017 as part of his research on Williams and the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s for the Kavi Gupta Gallery in Chicago, Ill. The interview was also used as a basis for an article by Barcio on Williams appearing in Hyperallergic 2017 November 13 and a Wikipedia page on Gerald Williams.
Biographical / Historical:
Phillip Barcio is an art journalist, fiction writer and filmmaker in Evanston, Ill. Gerald Williams (born 1941) is an artist from Chicago, Ill.. Williams, along with Jeff Donaldson, Wadsworth Jarrell, Jae Jarrell and Barbara J. Jones, formed the nucleus of the artists' group AfriCOBRA, or African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists.
Provenance:
Donated 2017 by Phillip Barcio.
Restrictions:
Use of archival electronic records requires advanced notice and an appointment for use in AAA's Washington, D.C. or New York Research Centers.
Waddy, Ruth G. (Ruth Gilliam), 1909-2003 Search this
Extent:
26.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Drawings
Interviews
Scrapbooks
Sketchbooks
Sound recordings
Video recordings
Date:
1928-2018
Summary:
The papers of African American artist, curator, and arts administrator Evangeline "EJ" Montgomery measure 26.1 linear feet and date from 1929-2019. The papers relate to Montgomery's career and involvement in the African American art scene in California and Washington, D.C. The collection includes biographical materials consisting of calendars and appointment books, certificates and awards, records regarding Montgomery's personal art collection, resumes and biographies, and other personal records; correspondence with colleagues and friends such as Benny Andrews, Willis Bing Davis, Edmund Barry Gaither, Eugene Grigsby, Dele Jegede, Samella Lewis, Nzegwu Nkiru, and A.M. Weaver; professional activity files documenting Montgomery's career as a consultant, curator, member, and volunteer for a myriad of organizations including the American Association for State and Local History, National Conference of Artists, and the Oakland Museum; and research files and notes on African and African American arts and history, Black media, Black photographers, the museum profession, and the artists Betye Saar, Lois Mailou Jones, Nike Davies-Okundaye, Romare Bearden, Ruth Waddy, Sam Gilliam, and Sargent Johnson. Also included are files regarding Montgomery's career as an artist containing material on the Brandywine Workshop, interviews with Floyd Coleman and for The Historymakers, sales and consignment records, and other material; printed and documentary material consisting of art reproductions, clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, and posters regarding Montgomery and other African American artists; artwork by Montgomery, including student sketchbooks, and others; photographic material of Montgomery, friends and colleagues, events, personal snapshots, and works of art; and unidentified audiovisual material.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of artist, curator, and arts administrator Evangeline "EJ" Montgomery measure 26.1 linear feet and date from 1929-2019. The papers relate to Montgomery's career and involvement in the African American art scene in California and Washington, D.C. The collection includes biographical materials consisting of calendars and appointment books, certificates and awards, records regarding Montgomery's personal art collection, resumes and biographies, and other personal records; correspondence with colleagues and friends such as Benny Andrews, Willis Bing Davis, Edmund Barry Gaither, Eugene Grigsby, Dele Jegede, Samella Lewis, Nzegwu Nkiru, and A.M. Weaver; professional activity files documenting Montgomery's career as a consultant, curator, member, and volunteer for a myriad of organizations including the American Association for State and Local History, National Conference of Artists, and the Oakland Museum; and research files and notes on African and African American arts and history, Black media, Black photographers, the museum profession, and the artists Betye Saar, Lois Mailou Jones, Nike Davies-Okundaye, Romare Bearden, Ruth Waddy, Sam Gilliam, and Sargent Johnson. Also included are files regarding Montgomery's career as an artist containing material on the Brandywine Workshop, interviews with Floyd Coleman and for The Historymakers, sales and consignment records, and other material; printed and documentary material consisting of art reproductions, clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, and posters regarding Montgomery and other African American artists; artwork by Montgomery, including student sketchbooks, and others; photographic material of Montgomery, friends and colleagues, events, personal snapshots, and works of art; and unidentified audiovisual material.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 9 series.
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1967-2015 (1.0 linear feet; Box 1, OV 27)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1963-2014 (2.0 linear feet; Boxes 2-4)
Series 3: Professional Activity Files, 1963-2017 (7.6 linear feet; Boxes 4-11)
Series 4: Research Files and Notes, 1928-2018 (4.0 linear feet; Boxes 11-16)
Series 5: Files Regarding Montgomery's Career as an Artist, 1970-2016 (1.5 linear feet; Boxes 16-17)
Series 6: Printed and Documentary Materials, 1964-2018 (7.2 linear feet; Boxes 17-23, 26, OVs 27-29, 31-34
Series 7: Artwork, circa 1957-2006 (0.2 linear feet; Boxes 23, 26, OV 30)
Series 8: Photographic Materials and Moving Images, circa 1965-2017 (3.0 linear feet; Boxes 23-27, OV 27)
Series 9: Unidentified Audiovisual Materials, circa 1990s (1 folder; Box 25)
Biographical / Historical:
Evangeline "EJ" Montgomery (1930- ) is an African American artist, curator, and arts administrator in California and Washington, D.C.
Montgomery was born in New York and moved to Harlem in New York City after the divorce of her parents, Oliver and Carmelite Thompson. Upon graduating from Seward Park High School in 1951, Montgomery worked painting faces on dolls and statues. In 1955, she married Ulysses "Jim" Montgomery and moved to Los Angeles. In California she began working for jewelry designer Thomas Usher while attending Los Angeles City College. She continued her education at California College of the Arts (California College of Arts and Crafts) where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1969. During the late 1960s, Montgomery began curating exhibitions. From 1971 to 1976, she was curator for Rainbow Sign Gallery in Berkeley. Other roles Montgomery held were as the national exhibits workshop coordinator at the American Association for State and Local History and as program development consultant at the African American Museums Association. From 1976 to 1979, she was art commissioner for the city of San Francisco.
Montgomery moved to Washington, D.C. in 1980 to serve as the community affairs director for Howard University's WHMM-TV station. She then began working for the United States Information Agency (USIA) as a program officer in their Arts America program in the early 1980s. In her role, she worked to promote cross-cultural exchanges through art, specializing in American exhibitions touring abroad. Montgomery retired from the USIA in 2008.
As an artist, Montgomery gained recognition for her work in printmaking and metalworking. She was the recipient of the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities fellowship in 2012 and an Excellence in the Arts Award from the Brandywine Print Workshop in 2004. Due to her diagnosis of Parkinson's disease in the 1990s, Montgomery had to stop working with metal but continued her printmaking work.
Provenance:
The Evangeline J. Montgomery papers were donated in 2019 by Evangeline J. Montgomery, 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. 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:
Art museum curators -- Washington (D.C.) Search this
Lois Mailou Jones discusses achievements of black artists and shows slides of their work. She also provides a history of black artists and their work. Zora Martin-Felton introduces Lois Mailou Jones.
Lecture. AV003201: lecture begins at 000745 and recording does not include complete lecture [beginning of recording consists of Black Perspective Series: Dr. Alyce Gullattee]. Part of ACM Museum Events, PR, and Ceremonies Recordings. Dated 19720301.
Collection Restrictions:
Use of the materials requires an appointment. Some items are not accessible due to obsolete format and playback machinery restrictions. Please contact the archivist at acmarchives@si.edu.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual recordings with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Collection 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.
Collection Citation:
Sharon Frances Patton research material regarding Vincent Smith, 1968-2005. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Organization of Black American Culture Search this
World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture Search this
Extent:
12.5 Linear feet
0.003 Gigabytes
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Sound recordings
Photographs
Interviews
Date:
1918-2005
bulk 1960s-2005
Summary:
The papers of African American artist and educator Jeff Donaldson measure 12.5 linear feet and 0.003 GB and date from 1918 to 2005, with the bulk of the records dating from the 1960s to 2005. The collection documents Donaldson's work as a professional artist, his academic career at Howard University, and his leadership role in the Black Arts Movement through biographical material, a small amount of professional and personal correspondence, personal business records, writings by Donaldson and others, research files, artist files, sound recordings of interviews Donaldson conducted with over 40 artists, teaching files, exhibition files, printed and digital material, and photographs. Also found are detailed records of his professional activities and leadership roles in AfriCOBRA, CONFABA, FESTAC, and the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC), including documentation on the Wall of Respect mural.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of African American artist and educator Jeff Donaldson measure 12.5 linear feet and 0.003 GB and date from 1918 to 2005, with the bulk of the records dating from the 1960s to 2005. The collection documents Donaldson's work as a professional artist, his academic career at Howard University, and his leadership role in the Black Arts Movement through biographical material, a small amount of professional and personal correspondence, personal business records, writings by Donaldson and others, research files, artist files, sound recordings of interviews Donaldson conducted with over 40 artists, teaching files, exhibition files, printed and digital material, and photographs. Also found are detailed records of his professional activities and leadership roles in AfriCOBRA, CONFABA, FESTAC, and the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC), including documentation on the Wall of Respect mural.
Biographical material includes biographical summaries and resumes detailing Donaldson's career, and documents such as his birth certificate, veteran and education records, and passports.
The correspondence series includes 0.3 linear feet of letters to and from colleagues, friends, and educational and art organizations. This correspondence relates primarily to Donaldson's professional activities. Also found are one folder of letters each from Gwendolyn Brooks and Hoyt Fuller. The bulk of Donaldson's professional correspondence can be found in other series.
Interviews consist of transcripts and sound recordings of interviews conducted by Donaldson for research for his dissertation on the Harlem Renaissance, with more than forty artists including Charles Alston, Romare Bearden, Bob Blackburn, Nancy Cox, Mildred Howard, Suzanne Jackson, Senga Nengudi, Mary Lovelace O'Neal, James Phillips, and Lamonte Westmoreland. This series also includes two transcripts of interviews with Donaldson.
Writings by Donaldson include articles, catalog essays, notes and draft excerpts from his dissertation, and draft lectures on TransAfrican art.
Artist files were compiled by Donaldson and relate to various projects including his dissertation, his teaching, and his involvement with FESTAC and other projects. Artists represented include Romare Bearden, John Howard, Jacob Lawrence, Archibald Motley, James Phillips, Hale Woodruff, and others. The files contain scattered correspondence, writings and notes, printed material, and photos of artists and artwork.
Exhibition files document Donaldson's involvement with the TransAfrican Art Invitational Exhibition (1997-1988) at the Orlando Museum of Art through correspondence and other planning documents, catalog essays, artist records, printed and digital material, and photographs. The series also documents solo and group exhibitions of Donaldson's artwork from 1980-2000, and includes correspondence, printed material, and photographs.
Professional files provide a rich and substantial record of Donaldson's leadership roles in the African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists (AfriCOBRA), the Conference on the Functional Aspects of Black Art (CONFABA), the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC), and the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC). The records are particularly extensive for AfriCOBRA and FESTAC, and include correspondence, planning documents, financial records, meeting records, printed and digital material, and photographs. Additional professional files document Donaldson's involvement with other committees and conferences, including his role as guest editor for the International Review of African American Art.
Research files provide additional material related to Donaldson's dissertation and his teaching career. Of particular note is correspondence from the 1940s-1950s between the Harmon Foundation and the Department of Art at Howard University, as well as notes and a photograph of Harlem Renaissance artists outside 306 West 41st Street where Charles Alston taught art classes.
Teaching files document Donaldson's role as art department chairman and subsequently dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University, through correspondence and employment records. The files also include his lecture notebooks and other course documentation.
Personal business records document Donaldson's personal art collection, as well as appraisals, sales, and consignments of his own artwork. Printed material includes announcements and catalogs for exhibitions of Donaldson's artwork and the artwork of others, as well as news clippings compiled by him on subjects of interest, particularly African American artists and racial injustice.
Photographs are primarily slides of Donaldson's artwork produced from the 1950s to 2000, but also include some photos of Donaldson, including contact sheets and photographs of late career portraits, and photos of Donaldson with his wife, Arnicia. One set of photos documents a visit to Uganda in 1974, where Donaldson and his travel companions met with Idi Amin.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 12 series.
Missing Title
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1954-2004 (0.3 Linear feet; Box 1, OV 14)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1957-2004 (0.3 Linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Interviews, 1959-1997 (1.7 Linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
Series 4: Writings, 1963-2003 (0.5 Linear feet; Box 3)
Series 5: Artist Files, 1928-2003 (1.1 Linear feet; Boxes 3-4)
Series 6: Exhibition Files, circa 1966-2000 (1.3 Linear feet; Boxes 4-6, 0.002 GB: ER01-ER02)
Series 7: Professional Files, 1960s-2005 (5.2 Linear feet; Boxes 6-11, OV 14, 0.001 GB; ER03)
Series 8: Research Files, 1930-2001 (0.4 Linear feet; Box 11)
Series 9: Teaching Files, 1961-2002 (0.6 Linear feet; Boxes 11-12)
Series 10: Personal Business Records, 1966-2001 (0.2 Linear feet; Box 12)
Series 11: Printed Material, 1918-2003 (0.5 linear feet; Box 12)
Series 12: Photographs and Personal Sound Recordings, 1956-2003 (0.4 Linear feet; Box 13)
Biographical / Historical:
Jeff Donaldson (1932-2004) was an African American artist and educator who worked in Chicago and Washington, D.C. He was a leading figure in the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s and promoted the "TransAfrican" aesthetic.
Donaldson was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and graduated from the University of Arkansas with a B.A. in studio art in 1954. He briefly served in the U.S. Army and taught art in a Chicago high school from 1957 to 1965. In 1963, he received his M.S. in Art Education from Illinois Institute of Technology, and taught at Northwestern University while pursuing his Ph.D. there. He received his Ph.D. in art history in 1974 with a dissertation on young African American artists working in Harlem during the 1930s. In 1970, Donaldson became director of the Howard University Art Gallery and chairman of the art department. From 1985 to 1998, he served first as associate dean and then dean of the Howard University, College of Fine Arts.
As a leading member of the Black Arts Movement, Donaldson co-founded the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC) Visual Art Workshop which created the influential Wall of Respect mural in 1967 on the southside of Chicago. He also co-founded the AfriCOBRA artist collaborative in 1968 of which he was a lifelong member. Donaldson promoted the TransAfrican art aesthetic through his leadership role in FESTAC, the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, held in Lagos, Nigeria in 1977. He was guest editor for a TransAfrican focused issue of the International Review of African American Art which coincided with the TransAfrican Art Invitation Exhibition he curated at the Orlando Museum of Art in 1997.
Donaldson also worked as a professional painter, exhibiting in over a hundred and fifty group and solo exhibitions, and wrote critical essays for several arts publications. He regularly served as an exhibition juror, conference presenter, and served on advisory committees and as a board member for many arts and African American organizations.
Provenance:
Donated 2015 by Jameela Donaldson, Jeff Donaldson's daughter.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information. Use of archival audiovisual recordings and born-digital records with no duplicate access copies 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.
