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Description
California born artist Sam Francis was a second generation Abstract Expressionist painter who incorporated influences of Jungian psychology, Buddhism, and Japanese aesthetics into the urban and angst-ridden painting style of the New York School. After living abroad in Paris and Japan, he settled in Los Angeles, where he founded a fine art print press, the Litho Shop, a book press, Lapis Press, and painted prolifically until his death in 1994. The papers document his exhibitions, business ventures, friendships, five marriages, and childhood.
Background
Sam Francis was born in 1923 in San Mateo, California. He studied botany and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, but dropped out before graduating to enlist in the Army during World War II. Injured in a training flight crash in 1944, he was a convalescent for several years, during which time he began to paint as a form of distraction. When he recovered he returned to college, studying painting under Bay Area artists David Park and Clifford Still.
Extent
238.73 Linear Feet (298 boxes, 58 flatfile folders, 3 rolls, 25 videocassettes, 9 DVDs, 15 films, 4 audio reels)
Restrictions
Contact Library Reproductions and Permissions.
Availability
Open for use by qualified researchers with the following exceptions. Audio visual materials are unavailable until reformatted. Box 193 is sealed until 2086.