Collections : [Virginia Museum of Fine Arts]

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

VMFA Archives
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Margaret R. and Robert M. Freeman Library
200 N. Arthur Ashe Boulevard
Richmond, VA 23220-4007
Primary Collecting Areas:
VMFA institutional records, Donor papers, Virginia Artists Archives, Oral histories, Artist subject files, Analog, and digital audiovisual collections
Description:

The Margaret R. and Robert M. Freeman Library provides access to a wealth of rare and unique primary source materials for scholars, researchers, and the public.

The Archives consists of a diverse and growing collection of permanent materials, covering museum history from its beginnings in the 1930s until today. The Archives includes institutional records from over 25 museum departments, thousands of artist and subject files, as well as donated collections related to the museum and the history of art in Virginia. The Archives also recently launched the Virginia Artists Archives, a collecting initiative that aims to create a rich, diverse, and unprecedented collection of Virginia artists’ papers to increase awareness about the contributions of Virginia artists, both past and present.

POC: Roxanne Winfield
Phone: (804) 340-1497
Phone: (804) 340-1495
Start Over Repository Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Date range 1952

Louis H. Draper Artist Archives (VA-04), 1945/2005 37.5 Linear Feet 170 boxes; 6,605 items

Draper, Louis H., 1935-2002
The extensive collection documents the life and work of Richmond-born photographer and educator Louis Draper (1935–2002). Manuscript and photographic materials document Draper's experience and work as an African American photographer, including his recognition of his photography as a form of "engaged resistance" that not only bore witness to leaders of the civil rights movement, but also offered a richer and more diverse perspective of African American life than provided by the mainstream media. In 1963, he was a founding member of the Kamoinge Workshop, a collective of African American photographers, and the collection includes significant materials from the early years of the Kamoinge Workshop and document his perspective on the professional challenges that he and the collective confronted in the process of finding publications that would publish photographs of African Americans made by African Americans. His photographs of significant 20th-century artists, writers, musicians, and performers reflect the wide array of personal connections that Draper made after moving to New York from Richmond, Virginia in 1957. Printed photographs and contact sheets in Draper's archive show a broad view of city life and the everyday interactions between people and also offer a unique vision of African American neighborhoods in the 1960s and 1970s.
  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Marsh, Robert T., Jr., 1952/1967 Box 33863 Box 40, Folder 46, Item RG01.01.1.2010

Correspondence from L. Cheek and W. Robertson. Subject- His Service as a Trustee, Fellow, and chair of Trustee Budget Committee. Biographical info, Artmobile, 25th Anniversary of VMFA, museum business, financial statements, Education In The Arts. Dates- 12/56 - 5/67 [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Mary Washington College, 1949/1964 Box 33863 Box 40, Folder 51, Item RG01.01.1.2017

Correspondence from L. Cheek and Julien Binford. Subject- Mary Washington Arts Center, invitations, VMT, loans of art works, newspaper clippings. Dates- 11/49 - 10/64 [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Meeks, Caroll L.V., 1950/1953 Box 33863 Box 41, Folder 14, Item RG01.01.1.2038

Correspondence between L. Cheek, Jr. and Carroll L.V. Meeks. Subject- thank you notes for visit to New England personal friendly letters, etc. Dates- 4/50-6/53. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

Melchers, Mrs. Gari, 1935/1955 Box 33863 Box 41, Folder 15, Item RG01.01.1.2039

Correspondence between Mrs. J.G. Pollard, Mrs. Pennell (Membership Secretary) and Mrs. Gari Melchers. Subject- VMFA members in Fredericksburg, postcards, gift to Museum , etc. Dates- 12/35-4/55. [These notes were taken by VMFA staff in the 1990s before the collection was processed by LVA staff in the 2000s, so the contents of the file may no longer match this description.]

  1. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
  2. Director's Correspondence (RG-01), 1927/2009
  3. Series 1: Director's Correspondence, 1927/2006
  4. Series 1.1: Early Directors, 1927/1976

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