The papers of artist Jay DeFeo measure 1.3 linear feet and date from circa 1940s to circa 1970s. The collection documents her career through biographical material, correspondence with friends, personal business records, writings, printed material, artwork, and photographs.

The collection measures 0.5 linear feet, dates from 1920 to 1997, and documents the career of artist's model Florence Allen. Found within the papers are biographical material, letters, notes and writings, art work, and printed material. Of particular interest are a wide variety of photographs, including 19th century photographs of Allen family members, photographs of Florence Allen posing for artists, socializing with famous friends such as Paul Robeson, Harry Belefonte, Paul Newman, Allen Ginsberg, and participating in protest marches. There is also an autographed photo of Bob Hope.

The papers of arts educator James A. McGrath measure 5.3 linear feet and date from 1950-2011. Included are McGrath's papers concerning his artist's residencies and workshops for the United States Information Agency (USIA) in the Yemen Republic, Saudi Arabia, and the Republic of the Congo, 1990-1995. Also found are McGrath's papers concerning artist William Wiley. These papers date from Wiley's high school days and includes correspondence, writings, student files, printed materials, photographs, and artwork.

The Kenjilo Nanao papers measure 11.3 linear feet and date from circa 1885-1887 and circa 1949-2017, with the bulk of the papers dating from 1970 to 2000. Biographical material includes forms of international identification, travel documents, early academic writing on art, and interviews in the form of written typescripts and digital audio recordings. Correspondence is mostly personal between friends and family, in addition to a few folders of professional correspondence spanning Nanao's career. Correspondence drafts also appear as entries in bound journals. The Journals series includes bound journals of mixed content such as thoughts on art, to-do lists, and artwork in various media including watercolors and charcoal. Professional files include various professional portfolios that Nanao produced for the purpose of tenure review, a binder detailing relationships with various galleries, and various teaching materials and studio documents. Printed materials include exhibition catalogs, invitations, and clippings. Photographs are primarily of family and friends, with some images of artwork and exhibitions. Artwork includes sketchbooks, as well as some loose drawings and watercolors.

The San Francisco Women Artists records measure 15.5 linear feet, date from 1925 to 1999, and include administrative records, correspondence, membership files, exhibition files, inventory records, printed material, twenty scrapbooks, photographs, eight photograph albums, and two motion picture film reels.

The papers of California painter, writer, and teacher Erle Loran measure 12.6 linear feet and date from 1912 to 1991. Found are biographical materials; two linear feet of personal and professional correspondence; personal business records; writings which include extensive drafts and notes for Loran's book Cezanne's Composition; over 400 items of artwork that include watercolors, drawings, charcoal, and pastel studies; printed materials; photographs of Loran, family, and friends, and artwork; and one audio recording of a lecture by Loran on Cezanne.

The papers of San Francisco painter and arts instructor Elmer Bischoff measure 4.4 linear feet and date from 1914 to 1990, with the bulk of the material dating from the late 1950s to the mid-1980s. Found within the papers are biographical materials, scattered correspondence, notes and notebooks, teaching and student files, printed materials, artwork and two sketchbooks, and photographs and negatives of Bischoff, his family, post World War II Europe, and artwork studies.

The papers of California conceptual artist and sculptor David Ireland measure 24.8 linear feet and 8.39 GB and date from circa 1910s to circa 2009, with the bulk of the material dating from 1960 to 2005. The papers include biographical material, correspondence, notes and notebooks, installation projects and exhibition files, teaching files, travel files, personal business records, printed and digital material and commercial recordings, photographic materials, artwork, and video and sound recordings.

The papers of Irving and Hela Norman measure 10.0 linear feet and 142.32 GB and date from circa 1920 to 2010. The papers document the career of painter Irving Norman through biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, curators, art galleries, and museums; writings, exhibition records, personal business records, printed material, personal photographs, and photographs of his artwork. Also found are numerous audio and video interviews of Irving and Hela Norman. Some of the materials, interviews and photographs are digital.

The papers of art historian and writer Peter Howard Selz measure 31.5 linear feet and date from 1929 to 2018, with the bulk of the materials from 1950 to 2005. The papers document Selz's long career via correspondence, writings, professional files, project files, membership and association records, artists' research files, exhibition files, personal business records, printed materials, and nine scrapbooks.