Collections : [Virginia Museum of Fine Arts]

Willie Anne Wright Artist Archives (VA-02)

Abstract Or Scope

The collection documents the career of renowned lensless photographer Willie Anne Wright. Wright's paintings, serigraphs and drawings were her professional focus until 1972 when pinhole photography became her primary creative medium. Comprised mainly of the exhibition files Wright maintained, as well as information about gallery representation and art sales, the collection traces the evolution of her artistic journey over four decades.

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Records of the Exhibitions Department (RG-23)

Abstract Or Scope

The collection's inclusive dates are 1936-2015, with the bulk of the material dating from 1979-2004. The collection is comprised of correspondence, exhibition schedules, budgets, grant applications, photographs, object lists, notes, collection statements, planning documents, project files, policies, loan arrangements and decisions, and other materials.

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Records of the Statewide Partnerships Department (RG-15)

Abstract Or Scope

This series includes annual reports, program files, project files, BRAVO files, and others. Most date from the late 1970s to the early 1980s.

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Records of the Collectors' Circle (RG-19)

Records of Fast/Forward (RG-25)

Louis H. Draper Artist Archives (VA-04)

Abstract Or Scope

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.

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Records of the Richmond Artists Association (SC-09)

Abstract Or Scope

The collection documents the history of the Richmond Artists Association (RAA), from its founding in 1955 by artist Westwood Winfree, to 2005 when the group joined with another Richmond art organization to form the Metropolitan Richmond Artists Association. The material highlights RAA's growth and achievements over five decades, including early annual exhibitions at the Carillon and Miller and Rhoads, as well as numerous other exhibitions. Meeting minutes, officer files, and membership materials detail RAA's administration over the years, while the newsletters provide an overview of all RAA activities. Several files highlight the RAA's relationship with other arts organizations, especially the Federated Arts Council of Richmond.

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Director's Correspondence (RG-01)

Abstract Or Scope

This series is comprised of correspondence of all of the various Directors of the museum. Files were arranged alphabetically by subject, and there is a lot of overlap between different Director's as the files often contained pertinent items from a predecessor. In the case of the first sub-series (1.1), until 1976, the entire museum's files were maintained centrally as one unit in the Director's Office.

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Records of the Aaron Siskind Foundation (SC-38)

Abstract Or Scope

The collection documents the activities of the Aaron Siskind Foundation during its years of operation, from 1984 to 2020. Aaron Siskind directed that his estate become a resource that would support contemporary photography and reward and encourage excellence in its practitioners. Since his death in 1991, the Aaron Siskind Foundation provided cash grants to individual photographic artists on a yearly basis until disbanding in 2020.

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Records of the Curatorial Department (RG-03)