An interview of Robert Smithson conducted 1972 July 14-19, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art at 799 Greenwich Street in New York on July 14 and 19 1972. Smithson speaks of growing up in Passaic, New Jersey; primary and high school; high school art education; going to New York Museums; writing and its impact on art work; the Artists Gallery; the Art Students League; his time in the army; the Cedar Bar; Quicksand; the Museum of Modern Art; art education; Sam Smithson; his father; traveling the U.S.; Brooklyn Museum School; impact of the Museum of Natural History; moving to New York; visiting Europe; psychology; show at the George Lester Gallery; the Broken Circle; Dallas-Fort Worth Airport; crystalline structures; meeting William Carlos Williams; cosmology; Enantiomorphic Chambers; mapping; painting and drawing; the Dwan Gallery; getting married; Aerial Art; earthworks; sculpture; the Cryosphere; Alogon; Rome; stratas; nonsites; When Attitudes Become Form; Attitudes; mining sites and quarries; light and reflection; the Spiral Jetty; coordination of large works; documentation; selection of sites; Gyrostasis; weather's impact and seasonal change of the Spiral Jetty; confines of the gallery and museum; mirrors; landscapes; artist materials; art education; traveling; art and vacations; documenta; Smithson also recalls Federica Beer-Monti , Hugh Stix , Danny Donohue, Joe Levin, Charlie Hasloff, John Cassavetes , Alan Brilliant, Irving Sandler, Barnett Newman, Richard Bellamy,John Groth, Lawrence Alloway, T. S. Elliot, Donald Judd, William Carlos Williams, Jackson Pollock, William Burroughs, Ad Reinhardt, Dan Flavin, Virginia Dwan, Rosalind Krauss, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Smithson (1938-1973) was a sculptor well known for his earthworks.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound tape reels. Reformatted in 2010 as 3 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr.
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:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
An interview of Dennis Oppenheim conducted 2009 June 23-24, by Judith Olch Richards, for the Archives of American Art, at Oppenheim's studio, in New York, N.Y. Oppenheim speaks of his work in the past 15 years; the evolution of his work and its lack of continuity; his use of writing as a catalyst for constructing works and the importance of language in conceptual art; the role of the audience and the effects of positive reaction to one's work; the risks involved in moving away from successful work to find another avenue; experimentation and the ability to exhibit failures; the emotionality and detached qualities of Abstract Expressionism during the 1950s; the experimental side of studio art in comparison to public art; the seniority felt by fine artists over the applied arts, such as architecture, during the 1950s and 1960s; listening to the public opinion, including those that do not come from the art world; the theoretical progression of works such as, "Jump and Twist," [1999], and "Device to Root Out Evil," [1997]; how to react to controversial work; his lack of representation by galleries and dealers; his staff of assistants and his more theoretical role in the operation; his lack of fellowship with other artists and his dislike of collaboration; the Venice Biennale in 1997; the Olymics in Beijing in 2008; his current work and on-going commissions. Oppenheim also recalls Andy Warhol, Pierre Levai, Vito Acconci, Bruce Nauman, Robert Irwin, Richard Serra, Alice Aycock, Keith Sonnier, and Donald Lipski.
Biographical / Historical:
Dennis Oppenheim (1938- ) is a conceptual artist and sculptor in New York, N.Y. Judith Olch Richards (1947- ) is former executive director of iCI in New York, N.Y. Oppenheim was educated at California College of Arts and Crafts and Stanford University.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 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.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Topic:
Sculptors -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
The papers of New York City and Berlin, Germany based multi-media and conceptual artist Matt Mullican measure 27.8 linear feet and date from circa 1968-2017. The collection consists of biographical material, including a few interview transcripts; correspondence; over 100 notebooks; gallery and exhibition files; project and commission files; personal business records; printed material; and photographs. The notebooks document nearly five decades of Mullican's work process and illustrate his material and conceptual explorations. Large sequences of gallery and exhibition files, as well as project and commission files comprise the remaining bulk of the collection, providing detailed documentation of his professional career, particularly from the 1980s-2000s.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of New York City and Berlin, Germany based multi-media and conceptual artist Matt Mullican measure 27.8 linear feet and date from circa 1968-2017. The collection consists of biographical material, including a few interview transcripts; correspondence; over 100 notebooks; gallery and exhibition files; project and commission files; personal business records; printed material; and photographs. The notebooks document nearly five decades of Mullican's work process and illustrate his material and conceptual explorations. Large sequences of gallery and exhibition files, as well as project and commission files comprise the remaining bulk of the collection, providing detailed documentation of his professional career, particularly from the 1980s-2000s.
Biographical material includes address books, high school and college ephemera, papers and photographs relating to Mullican's family, identification cards, interview transcripts, a resume, and a few writings.
The small amount of correspondence arranged in Series 2 is with friends, artists, colleagues, fans, and museum professionals. Notable correspondents include artist Lawrence Weiner and museum director Kasper König. Additional professional correspondence is located in the Gallery and Exhibition Files, as well as the Project and Commission Files.
Over 100 notebooks document nearly five decades of Mullican's work process and artistic explorations from the time he was a student up to the present.
A large sequence of gallery and exhibition files encompass a variety of material documenting Mullican's extensive solo and group exhibition history throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan.
Extensive project and commission files contain documentation of international public and corporate commissions, academic engagements, performances, publishing projects, print editions, illustrations, grants, residencies, and other project based artwork. Public and corporate commissions include artworks and installations for banks, airports, office complexes, university buildings, public transit stations, and other spaces.
Personal business records relate to bookkeeping and sales, donations, inventories, publication, copyright, supplies, invoicing, recommendations, residences, storage of works, and studio administration.
Printed material includes announcements, posters, articles, reviews, exhibition catalogs, and periodicals related to Mullican's career.
One folder of photographs documents Mullican, his family, and installations of his work at various venues and exhibitions.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as eight series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1968-2002 (0.6 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1986-2000s (0.2 linear feet; Box 1)
Series 3: Notebooks, circa 1968-2017 (7.2 linear feet; Box 1-8)
Series 4: Gallery and Exhibition Files, 1985-2000s (6.1 linear feet; Box 9-13, OV and RD 23-25)
Series 5: Project and Commission Files, 1980-2000s (10.3 linear feet; Box 14-19, OV and RD 26-43)
Series 6: Personal Business Records, 1978-2000s (1.7 linear feet; Box 19-21)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1971-2000s (1.5 linear foot; Box 21-22, RD 44)
Series 8: Photographs, 1980s-1990s (1 folder; Box 22)
Biographical / Historical:
Matt Mullican (1951- ) is a multi-media and conceptual artist working in New York City and Berlin, Germany. Born in Santa Monica, he is the son of abstract surrealist painters Lee Mullican and Luchita Hurtado Mullican. Educated at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) in the early 1970s, and mentored by John Baldessari, Mullican moved to New York City after earning his BFA and became associated with the "Pictures Generation" artists, including friends Troy Brauntuch, Jack Goldstein, James Welling, and Robert Longo. His multi-disciplinary practice encompasses drawing, painting, collage, video, installation, and performance under hypnosis as his alter ego, 'That Person.' Through these media, Mullican explores systems of knowledge, the construction of reality, as well as meaning, language, and signs. Throughout his career, Mullican has participated in international solo and group exhibitions, and has undertaken dozens of public and corporate commissions.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives of American Art in 2014-2017 by Matt Mullican.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Use of born-digital records 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:
Conceptual artists -- Germany -- Berlin -- Interviews Search this
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Topic:
Artists -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
The papers of New York-based Argentinian-American conceptual and performance artist Jaime Davidovich, measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1949 to 2014. The collection document's Davidovich's transition from Argentina to the United States, his early artistic career in both countries, specific projects and exhibitions, and the way in which Davidovich's work intersected with audiovisual media and the New York avant-garde in the 1960s and 1970s. Papers include biographical materials, correspondence, writings including memoirs, exhibition and project files, scrapbooks, and printed materials.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of New York-based Argentinian-American conceptual and performance artist Jaime Davidovich, measure 2.3 linear feet and date from 1949 to 2014. The collection document's Davidovich's transition from Argentina to the United States, his early artistic career in both countries, specific projects and exhibitions, and the way in which Davidovich's work intersected with audiovisual media and the New York avant-garde in the 1960s and 1970s. Papers include biographical materials, correspondence, writings including memoirs, exhibition and project files, scrapbooks, and printed materials.
Biographical materials include Davidovich's contacts in address books, a certificate, curriculum vitae, a membership card, and a report card. A photograph album documents his New York apartment and studio after first coming to New York in the 1960s. Also found are records of the Wooster Street Corporation where Davidovich later lived and had his studio. A small amount of correspondence is with museums, galleries, artists, and curators, notably Julieta Hanono, Ilene Segalove, and Julia Herzberg, and includes early correspondence from Argentina during Davidovich's time as a student and a teacher in Buenos Aires.
Writings include artist statements, lecture note cards, a letter of recommendation, memoir drafts, and a manuscript about Davidovich by Carolyn Kinder Carr. Memoirs provide detailed information about Davidovich's childhood, education, and early career. Files for exhibitions consist of correspondence, notes, gallery floor plans, photographic material, lists of artwork, and exhibition announcements. Project files contain bound project books, proposals, correspondence, notes, sketches, photographic and source material for the Artists' Television Network, Wooster Enterprises, and other projects.
Three scrapbooks record Davidovich's career in fine arts and design. Printed material includes art reproductions, books, brochures and booklets, clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, flyers, periodicals, posters, and press releases.
Much of the later correspondence found in the collection is in the form of printed email; later photographic material is in the form of digitially printed photograhs.
The bulk of material related to Davidovich's artworks, especially later ones, and the artworks themselves are located at NYU Fales Library.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as seven series.
Series 1: Biographical Materials, 1949-2007 (Box 1, OVs 3, 5; 0.4 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1958-2012 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, circa 1973, 2001-2009 (Box 1; 0.1 linear feet)
Series 4: Exhibition Files, 2003-2011 (Box 1, OV 3; 0.2 linear feet)
Series 5: Project Files, circa 1960-2014 (Box 1-2, OVs 4-5; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 6: Scrapbooks, 1960s-circa 1971 (Box 2, OVs 3-4; 0.3 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Materials, circa 1950s-2009 (Box 2, OVs 3, 5; 0.5 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Jaime Davidovich (1936-2016) was a conceptual and performance artist in New York, N.Y.
Davidovich was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. As a child, he became ill with rheumatic fever and his parents gave him art materials with which to entertain himself during his months of illness. Davidovich studied at National College in Buenos Aires and graduated from the University of Uruguay in 1961. After graduation, he began teaching in Bahía Blanca, Argentina, and subsequently became the art superintendent at the visual arts school. In 1963 he was given the opportunity to travel to New York by the DiTella Foundation in Buenos Aires, after a grant to study in France fell through at the last minute. In New York he attended the School of Visual Arts and eventually began working as a graphic designer for Random House publishers.
In 1965, Davidovich and his wife, artist Judith Henry, moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he worked as a graphic designer and began working with video. His first video installation was exhibited at the Akron Art Institute in 1972. Davidovich's fascination with video and television continued when he moved back to New York City and created the nonprofit organization, Artists Television Network (ATN). The network produced television shows for Manhattan's public access channel using the name SoHo Television. Davidovich's avant-garde variety show, The Live! Show, was the organization's most well-known production. Davidovich hosted the show as the character Dr. Videovich, and invited guests including Laurie Anderson, Eric Bogosian, and other creatives.
In 1976, Davidovich and Henry established Wooster Enterprises, a design studio and retail outlet that created conceptual stationary in affiliation with the Fluxus movement. The company closed in 1979, but it's most popular stationary continued to be produced and sold at the Museum of Modern Art.
Related Materials:
The bulk of the records related to Davidovich's artworks, especially later ones, and artworks themselves, are located in the Jaime Davidovich Collection, 1952-2000, at New York University's Fales Library.
Provenance:
The papers were donated by Jaime Davidovich in 2016.
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.
Occupation:
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Performance artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Jaime Davidovich papers, 1949-2014. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
The processing and digitization of this collection received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. Additional funding for the digitization of the papers was provided by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.
An interview with Kim Jones conducted 2020 August 15, by Melissa Ho, for the Archives of American Art's Pandemic Oral History Project at Jones' home in New York, New York.
Biographical / Historical:
Kim Jones (1944- ) is a multimedia and performance artist in New York, NY. Jones' alter-ego is Mudman.
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:
This interview is open for research.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its Oral History Program interviews available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. Quotation, reproduction and publication of the audio is governed by restrictions. If an interview has been transcribed, researchers must quote from the transcript. If an interview has not been transcribed, researchers must quote from the audio recording. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Multimedia artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
An interview with Allen Ruppersberg conducted 2017 October 27, November 30, and 2018 January 15, by Avis Berman, for the Archives of American Art, at Ruppersberg's studio in Brooklyn, New York.
Biographical / Historical:
Allen Ruppersberg (1944- ) is a conceptual artist In New York, New York, whose work includes paintings, prints, photographs, sculptures, installations, and books. Avis Berman (1949- ) is an art historian and author 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.
Restrictions:
The transcript and recording are open for research. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Occupation:
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Sponsor:
Funding for this interview was provided by the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation.
An interview of Allan McCollum conducted 2010 February 23-April 9, by Avis Berman, for the Archives of American Art's U.S. General Services Administration, Design Excellence and the Arts oral history project, at the Archives of American Art, in New York, New York.
Biographical / Historical:
Allan McCollum (1944- ) is a contemporary artist in New York, New York. Avis Berman (1949- ) is an independent writer in New York, New York.
General:
Originally recorded on 2 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 4 digital wav files. Duration is 9 hr., 38 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:
This transcript is open for research. Access to audio is restricted. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
Sound recording: Authorization to publish, quote or reproduce must be obtained from: Allan McCollum
Occupation:
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York -- Interviews Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Sponsor:
Funding for this interview was provided by the U.S. General Services Administration, Design Excellence and the Arts.
An interview of Lorraine O'Grady conducted 2010 Apr. 12-15, by Judith Olch Richards, for the Archives of American Art, at O'Grady's home and studio in New York, N.Y.
Biographical / Historical:
Lorraine O'Grady (1934- ) is a conceptual artist in New York, N.Y. Judith Olch Richards (1947- ) is former executive director of iCI in New York, N.Y.
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:
Conceptual artists -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
