Corita collection
Finding aid created by Corita Art Center staff using RecordEXPRESS
Corita Art Center
2020
5515 Franklin Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90028
(323) 450–4650
info@corita.org
http://corita.org/
Title: Corita collection
Dates: ca.1950s to present
Collection Number: CorColl
Creator/Collector:
Extent: 46 boxes; 6 flat file drawers
Repository:
Corita Art Center
Los Angeles, California 90028
Abstract: The Corita collection includes exhibition materials from Corita’s group and solo art shows, in addition to materials relating
to various design projects and public and private commissions. The collection also includes personal and business-related
correspondence, press clippings, and photographic and audiovisual materials that were produced during her time as a teacher
and head of the art department of the Immaculate Heart College (Los Angeles). Additional ephemera and materials related to
Corita’s life and legacy have been acquired and added to the collection posthumously by the Corita Art Center.
Language of Material: English
Due to outstanding restrictions brought about by Covid-19, the collection is currently not accessible for research use.
The Corita Art Center, Immaculate Heart Community holds copyright for a portion of the materials in its collection. The Corita
Art Center provides access to the materials for educational and research purposes. Users are responsible for obtaining all
necessary permissions for use.
Corita collection. Corita Art Center
The Corita collection is ongoing and consists of materials donated from Corita’s estate through the Immaculate Heart Community
and the Immaculate Heart College before its closure. Additional materials have been donated to, acquired, or produced by
the Corita Art Center.
Biography/Administrative History
Corita Kent was an artist, educator, and advocate for social justice who worked primarily in serigraphy. Born Frances Elizabeth
Kent on November 20, 1918 in Fort Dodge, Iowa and raised mainly in Los Angeles, California, Corita entered Immaculate Heart
of Mary, a religious order in Hollywood, at age 18. She received her BA from Immaculate Heart College in 1941 and her MA in
Art History from USC in 1951. Eventually, she became a professor and later, chair of the art department at Immaculate Heart
College and was partially responsible for its reputation and recognizable style.
In the early ‘50s, Corita began printmaking. Her work evolved from figurative and religious to incorporating advertising images
and slogans, popular song lyrics, biblical verses, and literature. Throughout the ‘60s, her work became increasingly political,
urging viewers to consider poverty, racism, and injustice. Corita also accepted a large number of diverse commissions, everything
from billboards to a US postage stamp. Corita left the order in 1968. After 1970, her work evolved into a sparser, introspective
style, influenced by living in a new environment, a secular life, and her battles with cancer. She remained active in social
causes until her death in 1986.
At the time of her death, she had created almost 800 serigraph editions, hundreds of watercolors, and innumerable public and
private commissions.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Corita collection materials range in date from the 1950s to the present day.
The collection covers aspects of Corita’s life as a nun, her teaching career with the art department at Immaculate Heart College,
and as her career as a serigraph and watercolor artist. The collection includes exhibition materials from Corita’s group and
solo art shows, both during her lifetime and posthumously. Additionally, there is a significant amount of material relating
to her various projects and commissions, which include her “Love” postage stamp, Boston Gas mural project, and Billboard Peace
Project, as well as her greeting cards, books, and numerous design commissions. The collection includes personal and business-related
correspondence, papers and publications both written by and about Corita, a large amount of newspaper clippings and articles,
photographic and audiovisual materials, and assorted ephemera related to Corita’s life and legacy. Also included in the collection
are licensed materials and merchandise created posthumously by the Corita Art Center.
The collection is a valuable source for research pertaining to Corita’s art and teaching career, in terms of style, methods,
and business.
The collection is arranged in the following series: Exhibits and Galleries, Projects and Commissions, Publications and Writings,
Correspondence, Immaculate Heart, Biographical Personal, Photographic Materials, Audiovisual Materials, Corita Art Center.