Archiving Artist Papers

NOTE: This is the second entry on archiving creative materials. Please be sure to read the first and third entries in this series

Archiving Paperwork and Correspondence

This client is very lucky, and we had a clear destination for his archives. He’d maintained relationships with the University of Washington, his alma mater. The UW wanted his papers for their Special Collections.

What we included in the archival papers

• Letters to and from friends, patrons, collaborators, other artists, writers, and creatives

• Magazine and newspaper articles about the artist, and by the artist (he is an avid Letter to the Editor contributor to the Seattle Times!) 

• Photos of artwork and the artist working, or standing with his artwork

• Marketing materials and correspondence with galleries, institutions, organizations, and museums

• Records and sketches from proposals, commissions, and work, complete and incomplete

• Influences–materials collected by the artist on other artists who influenced his work

• Humanities and Environmental Service Awards, other volunteer history

Deciding what to keep and what to toss
We handled and evaluated each piece of material for its resonance with the artist’s development and career. It involved the heartbreaking decision to dispose of items that hadn’t weathered time well (foxing, disintegration, or pounds of printout research material no longer needed for finished books), and surplussing items that took up space but went unused (dozens of books, large furniture, a concrete chainsaw). We also retained personal family letters, photos, and estate-related papers.

How long did this take?
4 months at 10 hours/week, mostly working alone and categorizing items (letters by name, galleries by name, newspaper articles by decade, etc). In the case of this artist, he trusted me to sort papers appropriately, set aside duplicates, and consolidate categories for his final review.

UW Library Delivery
26 banker's boxes