Archives of American Art

A Finding Aid to the Arthur Monroe Papers, circa1940-2019, in the Archives of American Art

Summary

Collection ID:
AAA.monrarth
Creators:
Monroe, Arthur
Dates:
circa 1940-2019
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
22.6 Linear feet
6.36 Gigabytes
Repository:
The papers of African American abstract expressionist painter, arts administrator and educator Arthur Monroe measure 22.6 linear feet and 6.3 gigabytes and date from circa 1940 to 2019. Monroe was the registrar at the Oakland Museum and American Studies professor at University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. This collection documents his career through biographical material, correspondence, writings, FESTAC records, professional files, research files, teaching files, printed material, and photographic material.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of African American abstract expressionist painter, arts administrator and educator Arthur Monroe measure 22.6 linear feet and 6.3 gigabytes and date from circa 1949 to 2019. Monroe was the registrar at the Oakland Museum and American Studies professor at University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. This collection documents his career through biographical material, correspondence, writings, FESTAC records, professional files, research files, teaching files, printed material, and photographic material.

Arrangement

Arrangement
This collection is arranged as 9 series.
  • Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1970-circa 2013 (0.4 linear feet; Box 1)
  • Series 2: Correspondence, circa 1971-cira 2015 (1.7 linear feet; Boxes 1-3)
  • Series 3: Writings, 1974-circa 2019 (3.7 linear feet; Boxes 3-6)
  • Series 4: FESTAC Records, 1973-1993, bulk 1974-1978 (4.5 linear feet; Boxes 6-11, 23)
  • Series 5: Professional Files, 1957-2019 (4 linear feet; Boxes 11-15)
  • Series 6: Research Files, 1951-2010 (4.5 linear feet; Boxes 15-19, 23)
  • Series 7: Teaching Files, 1970-circa 2010 (1.1 linear feet; Boxes 19-20)
  • Series 8: Printed Material, 1955-2014 (1.3 linear feet; Boxes 20-21, 24)
  • Series 9: Photographic Material, circa 1940-circa 2019 (1.4 linear feet; Boxes 21-22)

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Arthur Monroe (1935-2019) was an African American abstract expressionist painter, arts administrator, and educator in Oakland, California. Monroe was the Chief Registrar at the Oakland Museum for over 30 years and also taught African American Studies as a professor at the University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. Arthur Monroe was the Chair of the Far West Region North Committee for FESTAC (1977), also known as the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, as well as an organizer for the First Statewide Conference of Black Artists held in 1978.

Administration

Author
Rihoko Ueno
Sponsor
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated in 2019 by Arthur Monroe as part of the Archives' African American Collecting Initiative funded by the Henry Luce Foundation.
Processing Information
The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Rihoko Ueno in 2022. The born-digital materials were processed by George Apodaca in 2022.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Conditions Governing 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.
Preferred Citation
Arthur Monroe papers, circa 1940-2019. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
African American painters Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Painters -- California -- Oakland Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Educators -- California -- Oakland Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
African American artists Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Arts administrators -- California Occupation Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Abstract expressionism Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sketchbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
African American art -- African influences Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scrapbooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
African American educators Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Oakland Museum Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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