The World of Charlotte Moorman Collection, |
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Ryerson and Burnham Archives, Ryerson and Burnham Libraries |
COLLECTION SUMMARY: | |
TITLE: | The World of Charlotte Moorman Collection, 1957-2000 |
EXTENT: | .7 linear foot (2 boxes), 1 oversize portfolio, and flatfile material |
REPOSITORY: | Ryerson and Burnham Archives, Ryerson and Burnham Libraries, The Art Institute of Chicago 111 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60603-6110 (312) 443-7292 phone rbarchives@artic.edu http://www.artic.edu/aic/libraries/rbarchives/rbarchives.html |
ABSTRACT: | Papers about avant-garde cellist and performance artist Charlotte Moorman. |
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: | Printed papers and photocopied papers. |
ORIGINATION: |
Moorman, Charlotte (1933-1991) |
ACQUISITION INFORMATION: | This collection was purchased by the Ryerson and Burnham Archives from Bound & Unbound, New York, NY, in September 2000. |
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH:
Madeline Charlotte Moorman was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, on November 18, 1933. She began to study the cello when she was ten and was awarded a scholarship to Centenary College in Shreveport, Louisiana, following graduation from the local public high school. After receiving a B.A. in music from Centenary in 1955, Moorman continued her education at the University of Texas, Austin, where she earned her M.A., and then at the Juilliard School, where she did post-graduate work. Although Moorman began her career in traditional concert halls, she was soon swept up in the mixed-media, performance art world of the 1960s and is best known for her performance pieces and avant-garde festivals. She toured the world with visual artist Nam June Paik, challenging audiences' ideas of music and art. Interested in bringing new artistic experiences to the widest possible audience, Moorman established the Annual Avant Garde Festival in New York, which ran from 1963 to 1980, excluding 1970 and 1976. While Moorman was gaining notoriety through her festivals, a collaboration with Paik thrust her into international renown. During a 1967 performance of Opera Sextronique with Paik, Moorman was arrested for performing topless; she was convicted of indecent exposure but received a suspended sentence. In spite of her arrest and conviction, the festivals continued and became a vital cultural event, although the quality of the new and established artists who participated from year to year varied, and Moorman participated in every festival. Composer Edgard Varèse called Moorman the "Jeanne d'Arc of New Music" for her pioneering work performing pieces by Nam June Paik, John Cage, and others. In 1979 Moorman was diagnosed with breast cancer, had a mastectomy, and began further medical treatment. She continued to perform throughout the 1980s, although her illness brought great physical deterioration and pain. Moorman died of cancer in New York City on November 8, 1991, at the age of fifty-seven.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE:
The World of Charlotte Moorman Collection originated as a publication in conjunction with the archival exhibition "The World of Charlotte Moorman" at Bound & Unbound, a gallery in New York, March 28-June 30, 2000. This collection is part of a limited edition of 100 copies. The collection contains recital announcements and programs from her college years in the 1950s; programs, posters, catalogs, and ephemera from her 30-year career collaborations with Nam June Paik, Joseph Beuys, Yoko Ono, and other vanguardists; posters and programs from each of the fifteen Annual Avant Garde Festivals in New York; and bibliographical and biographical material.
ORGANIZATION AND ARRANGEMENT:
Although the items have been re-housed (the original housing has been retained, but is now restricted from patron access), they have been kept in the order in which they were originally placed. All the materials are in one series, arranged according to the subjects given by editor Barbara Moore and designer Jim McWilliams.
CONTROLLED ACCESS POINTS:
This collection and other related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs:
Moorman, Charlotte (1933-1991)
Moorman, Charlotte--Archives
New York Avant Garde Festival
Avant Garde Festival of New York
Festival of the Avant Garde '64 (1964 : New York (N.Y.))
Festival of the Avant Garde '65 (1965 : New York (N.Y.))
Six Concerts of the Avant Garde (1963 : New York (N.Y.))
Avant-garde (Music)--United States--History--Sources
Performance art--United States--History--Sources
Performance artists--United States--Archives
Violoncellists--United States--Archives
ABBREVIATIONS:
Abbreviation | Definition |
ALS | autograph letter, signed |
BOX.FF | Box #, Folder # |
Flatf. | Flatfile |
OP | Oversize Portfolio |
REST | restricted |
ACCESS RESTRICTIONS:
A portion of this collection is restricted from patron use, as noted in the finding aid. The remainder of the collection may be used by qualified readers in the Reading Room of the Ryerson and Burnham Libraries at The Art Institute of Chicago. Collections maintained on-site are available for patron use without prior arrangement or appointment. Collections maintained in off-site storage will be retrieved with advance notification; please consult the Archivist for the current retrieval schedule. For further information, consult http://www.artic.edu/aic/libraries/rbarchives/rbarchaccess.html
USER RESTRICTIONS:
The Art Institute of Chicago is providing access to the materials in the Libraries' collections solely for noncommercial educational and research purposes. The unauthorized use, including, but not limited to, publication of the materials without the prior written permission of the Art Institute is strictly prohibited. All inquiries regarding permission to publish should be submitted in writing to the Archivist, Ryerson and Burnham Archives, The Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to permission from the Art Institute, permission of the copyright owner (if not the Art Institute) and/or any holder of other rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) may also be required for reproduction, publication, distribution, and other uses. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of any item and securing any necessary permissions rests with the persons desiring to publish the item. The Art Institute makes no warranties as to the accuracy of the materials or their fitness for a particular purpose.
PREFERRED CITATION:
The World of Charlotte Moorman Collection, Ryerson and Burnham Archives, The Art Institute of Chicago.
PROCESSING INFORMATION:
The collection was processed by Natasha Derrickson of the Ryerson and Burnham Archives in 2001. This finding aid was revised and expanded by Annemarie van Roessel in 2003.
ITEM INVENTORY:
LOCATION | CONTENTS | DATES | ITEMS |
---|---|---|---|
"THE WORLD OF CHARLOTTE MOORMAN"
| |||
Box.FF 1.1 | Table of Contents and Colophon.
Typescript papers.
| [2000] | 23 |
CHRONOLOGY, EARLY | |||
Box.FF 1.2 | Flier and programs.
Printed papers.
| 1957-1965 | 12 |
CHRONOLOGY, GENERAL | |||
Box.FF 1.3 | Fliers, programs, and press releases.
Printed papers.
| 1965-1990 | 32 |
OP 1.1 | Performance advertisements: posters and fliers.
Printed papers.
| 1973-1985 | 5 |
CHRONOLOGY, PAIK COLLABORATIONS | |||
Box.FF 1.4 | Fliers, programs, ticket, notes.
Photocopied papers and printed papers.
| 1965-1982 | 44 |
OP 1.2 | Performance advertisements: posters and fliers. | 1965-1982 | 9 |
AVANT GARDE FESTIVALS: GENERAL | |||
Box.FF 1.5 | Letterhead and descriptions of festival. | 1970-1980 | 4 |
1st AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.6 | Fliers and programs. | 1963 | 4 |
2nd AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.7 | Fliers. | 1964 | 1 |
OP 1.3 | Festival poster. | 1964 | 1 |
3rd AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.8 | Schedules. | 1965 | 2 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1965 | 1 |
4th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.9 | Flier. | [1966] | 1 |
OP 1.4 | Festival flier. | 1966 | 1 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival flier. | [1966] | 1 |
5th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.10 | Program. | 1967 | 1 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival flier. | 1967 | 1 |
6th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.11 | Flier. | 1968 | 1 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1968 | 1 |
7th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1969 | 1 |
8th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.12 | Program and press release. | 1971 | 4 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1971 | 1 |
9th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.13 | Program and press release. | 1972 | 4 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1972 | 1 |
10th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.14 | Artists letter of admission and program. | 1973 | 1 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1973 | 1 |
11th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.15 | ALS regarding plans for festival, press release. | 1974 | 4 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1974 | 1 |
12th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.16 | Program and press release. | 1975 | 10 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1975 | 1 |
13th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.17 | Artist's pass and artist list. | 1977 | 5 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1977 | 1 |
14th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.18 | Flier and press releases. | 1978 | 7 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1978 | 1 |
15th AVANT GARDE FESTIVAL | |||
Box.FF 1.19 | Program, press release, and artists information. | 1980 | 13 |
Flatf. 11 | Festival poster. | 1980 | 1 |
BIBLIOGRAPHY | |||
Box.FF 1.20 | Newspaper articles and list of references.
Photocopied papers.
| 1963-[1980] | 17 |
OP 1.5 | Newspaper articles from
EAR: New Music News.
Photocopied papers.
| 1964-1987 | 5 |
Flatf. 11 | Page from
New York Law Journal
Reprint.
| 05/11/1967 | 1 |
BIOGRAPHY | |||
Box.FF 1.21 | Announcement program, city proclamation, and biographical information.
Printed papers and
photocopied papers.
| 1967-1992 | 11 |
MISCELLANEOUS THE FOLLOWING ITEM IS RESTRICTED. PLEASE CONSULT THE ARCHIVIST FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
| |||
REST | Original container, with folders. | 2000 | 1 |