Articulated: Dispatches from the Archives of American Art
Since 1958, the Archives of American Art’s oral history program has preserved the distinct voices and human memory of the American art world in more than 2,600 interviews. Articulated draws on those interviews of the famous and the forgotten, featuring firsthand accounts from artists, dealers, writers, and other key figures, in dialogue with today’s thought leaders. Their expansive conversations and often surprising memories challenge us to see the world and our shared history in new and unimagined ways.
Credits:
Ben Gillespie, oral historian
Carlos Morales, producer
Deanna Luu, graphic designer
Musical Theme: “Sound and Smoke," composed by Viet Cuong and performed by the Peabody Wind Ensemble with Harlan Parker conducting
Articulated is sponsored by Next50, the Denver based national foundation that works towards creating a world that values aging.
Pat Steir (b. 1938) is synonymous with bold painting, and she has been shaping the arts in the United States and beyond since the 1970s. Through exhilarating material experimentation in paint and cutting-edge work in print, Steir continues to cultivate new expression and generations of art. Hear about the paths she has taken and forged in her own words.
Oral histories featured
Hear from Lenore Chinn (b. 1949), a painter, photographer, activist, and legacy steward who has preserved the memories of multiple San Francisco communities for decades. Through her work, Chinn records the triumphs and challenges facing Asian and LGBTQ Americans and more based on the principle that we are all implicated in each other's lives and that we should enjoy our journeys together.
Oral histories featured
Leo Tanguma (b. 1941) is a Chicano muralist and activist whose work in Texas and Colorado have spurred new generations of creativity and social awareness. Hear his story, the heritage he makes visible, and about the importance of art that belongs to everyone.
Oral history interviews featured:
Additional resources:
Anita Fields (Osage | b. 1951) is an artist who makes history palpable through ceramics, textiles, and more. Hear her journey in her own words and how she continues to innovate after decades of work in clay and cloth.
Hear about the lives and work of ceramicist and textile artist Anita Fields (Osage), muralist Leo Tanguma, painter and photographer Lenore Chinn, and painter Pat Steir as they've navigated their careers over the decades.
This trailer was narrated by Susan Cary, our registrar and collections manager.
This podcast is sponsored by Next50, the Denver based national foundation that works towards creating a world that values aging.
The Archives of American Art collects primary source materials—original letters, writings, preliminary sketches, scrapbooks, photographs, financial records and the like—that have significant research value for the study of art in America.
Find out how to give your papers, records, recordings, or other primary source material to the Archives of American Art.
Internship, fellowship, and volunteer opportunities provide students and lifelong learners with the ability to contribute to the study and preservation of visual arts records in America.
Original material can be consulted by appointment in our Washington, D.C. Headquarters.
Copies of unrestricted microfilm materials can be obtained through one of our affiliated research centers.
