Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Eduardo Carrillo Papers, circa 1953-1999, bulk 1975-1997, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.carredua
Creators:
Carrillo, Eduardo, 1937-1997
Dates:
circa 1953-1999
bulk 1975-1997
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
3.8 Linear feet
1.75 Gigabytes
Repository:
The papers of Chicano painter, printmaker, and educator Eduardo Carrillo measure 3.8 linear feet and date from circa 1953-1999, with the bulk from 1975-1997. The collection is comprised primarily of artwork and teaching materials, along with some biographical material. Biographical material includes birth and marriage certificates, writings by Carrillo and others, a portrait photograph, documentation of properties and building projects in Mexico, and some miscellaneous correspondence. Also included are obituary and memorial materials including a digital video recording documentary about Carrillo. Professional files include documentation of courses taught by Carrillo on Mexican art history, as well as educational exhibitions and films he produced, and studio documentation. Subject files on various topics in Mesoamerican Art support Carrillo's teaching of Mexican Art History. Printed materials include invitations catalogs and posters for exhibitions of Carrillo's work as well as his extended community of artist friends. The Artwork series includes early career and student artwork by Carrillo, along with original posters and a printing plate by Carlos Cortez, and artwork by friends and students.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of Chicano painter, printmaker, and educator Eduardo Carrillo measure 3.8 linear feet and date from circa 1953-1999, with the bulk from 1975-1997. The collection is comprised primarily of artwork and teaching materials, along with some biographical material. Biographical material includes birth and marriage certificates, writings by Carrillo and others, a portrait photograph, documentation of properties and building projects in Mexico, and some miscellaneous correspondence. Also included are obituary and memorial materials including a digital video recording documentary about Carrillo. Professional files include documentation of courses taught by Carrillo on Mexican art history, as well as educational exhibitions and films he produced, and studio documentation. Subject files on various topics in Mesoamerican Art support Carrillo's teaching of Mexican Art History. Printed materials include invitations catalogs and posters for exhibitions of Carrillo's work as well as his extended community of artist friends. The Artwork series includes early career and student artwork by Carrillo, along with original posters and a printing plate by Carlos Cortez, and artwork by friends and students.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged in 5 series:
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1953-1999 (0.3 Linear Feet; Box 1, Oversize 3, ER01)
  • Series 2: Project Files, circa 1972-1993 (0.6 Linear Feet; Box 1)
  • Series 3: Subject Files, circa 1980s-1990s (0.6 Linear Feet; Boxes 1-2)
  • Series 4: Printed Material, circa 1960-1990s (0.8 Linear Feet; Box 2, Oversize 4-6)
  • Series 5: Artwork, circa 1950s-1990s (1.7 Linear Feet; Box 2, Oversize 7-21)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Eduardo Carrillo (1937-1997) was a painter, muralist, printmaker, and professor in Santa Cruz, California. Carrillo was a key member of the Chicano art movement in the 1960s and 1970s. He was a founding faculty member of Oakes College at the University of California, Santa Cruz, where he was an instructor at for over twenty-five years. Carrillo received his BA in fine arts from UCLA and later spent a year studying abroad at the Prado Museum in Madrid with his first wife Sheila. Together they moved to Carrillo's ancestral home of La Paz in Baja California Sur, Mexico in 1966, where he founded and directed the El Centro de Arte Regional. The school focused on reviving traditional crafts of the region. In 1969 he returned to California where he continued to exhibit artwork and work as an educator. He taught various disciplines including native traditional pottery, painting, and Mexican Art History, all of which resonated with his own artistic practice.
Carrillo is known primarily as a painter working in oils and watercolors, with images referencing history, religion, and mythology. Increasingly in the 1970s, political subjects entered Carrillo's paintings and mural projects. One of Carrillo's most well-known works is "El Grito," a large scale ceramic tile mural completed in 1979 for the city of Los Angeles. Carrillo died in 1997 following a brief battle with cancer. The Museo Eduardo Carrillo was founded by Carrillo's wife Alison to promote Carrillo's art as well as perform various outreach initiatives including a scholarship program. In 2010 a gallery was dedicated at the Crocker Museum of Art in Sacramento to the paintings of Eduardo Carrillo and his peers.

Administration

Author
Ryan Evans
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated 2018 by Eduardo Carrillo estate via Alison Carrillo, executor and widow of Eduardo Carrillo.
Processing Information
The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Ryan Evans in 2019.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
Eduardo Carrillo Papers, circa 1953-1999. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Terms of Use
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.
Conditions Governing Access
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Mexican American artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Educators -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Printmakers -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Muralists -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Latino and Latin American artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Chicano art movement Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Oakes College (University of California, Santa Cruz) -- Faculty Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
University of California, Santa Cruz -- Faculty Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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