Joseph, Cliff, b. 1922

Educator, Painter
New York, N.Y. (Show Bio)

Oral history interview with Cliff Joseph, 1972

Transcript: 9 p.

Interview of Cliff Joseph conducted in 1972, by Doloris Holmes for the Archives of American Art "Art World in Turmoil" oral history project. Joseph discusses the formation of the Black Emergency Cultural Coalition, which he co-chaired, in response to a show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art called "Harlem on My Mind." He talks about the impact of the black experience in art, his own art, and his affiliation with social protest artists. He describes the Coalition's attempts to persuade the Whitney to produce a show of black artists with a black curator.

Location of Originals: Location of original tape unknown.

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 the interview was provided by the New York State Council on the Arts, as part of AAA's "Art World in Turmoil" project.

How to Use this Interview

• Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
• Transcript available on line at http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/oralhistories/transcripts/joseph72.htm
• A transcript of this interview is available online.
• For more information on using resources at the Archives of American Art, please visit our Ask Us page