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Archives of American Art
Les Kerr papers
Summary
- Collection ID:
- AAA.kerrles
- Creators:
-
Kerr, Leslie William, 1934-1992
- Dates:
-
1955-1996
- Languages:
-
Undetermined.
- Physical Description:
-
0.2 Linear feet
- Repository:
Scope and Contents
Scope and Contents
Biographical material, photographs of Kerr, (1957-1969); correspondence (1961); list of artwork (1959-1992); exhibition announcements (1958-1984); clippings (1955-1984); slides of artwork; photocopies from exhibition catalogs (1960-1984); and a video, "The Beach : San Francisco's North Beach, 1950s" directed and produced by Kerr's wife, Mary, c1995 (1 hr.).
Biographical / Historical
Biographical / Historical
Painter; San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York; b. 1934, d. 1992. Les Kerr was an artist active in New York, Los Angeles, and the Bay Area in the 1950s and 1960s. Formally trained as an painter at UCLA, he studied under William Brice and John Paul Jones in the 1950s. His oeuvre included small sculptures and mixed media boxes, however, Kerr referred to himself as an "abstract" painter mainly within the Beat circle, principally in the North Beach area of San Francisco. Despite the fact that Kerr did not actively exhibit within the mainstream galleries, he did exhibit extensively with the Syndall Gallery, Dilexi Galleries (Los Angeles and San Francisco), and the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles, mostly noted for showing the works of Beat and assemblage artists such as Ed Moses and Craig Kauffman.
Administration
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated 1994 and 1996 by Mary Kerr, widow of Les Kerr.
Using the Collection
Conditions Governing Access
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Conditions Governing Access
PUBLICATION RESTRICTION for video "The Beach." written permission required.
Keywords
Keyword Terms | Keyword Types | ||
---|---|---|---|
The Beach: San Francisco's North Beach, 1950s | Title | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
Beat generation | Topical | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
North Beach (San Francisco, Calif.) | Geographic | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
Video recordings | Genre Form | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
Painters -- California -- San Francisco | Occupation | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
Kerr, Mary, 1937- | Personal Name | Search Smithsonian Collections | Search ArchiveGrid |
Archives of American Art
750 9th Street, NW
Victor Building, Suite 2200
Washington, D.C. 20001
https://www.aaa.si.edu/services/questions