PRELIMINARY INVENTORY OF THE SAM FRANCIS PAPERS, 1916-2010 (bulk 1950-1994)
Finding aid prepared by Annette Leddy
Descriptive Summary
Title: Sam Francis papers
Date (inclusive): 1916-2010 (bulk 1950-1994)
Number: 2004.M.8
Creator/Collector:
Francis, Sam, 1923-1994
Physical Description:
226.0 linear feet
(280 boxes, 58 flatfile folders, 3 rolls)
Repository:
The Getty Research Institute
Special Collections
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles, California, 90049-1688
(310) 440-7390
Abstract: 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.
Language: Collection material is in
English
Biographical/Historical Note
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.
Francis moved to Paris in the 1950s, where he had his first solo exhibition at the Galerie Nina Dausset. Shortly thereafter,
he joined Martha Jackson Gallery, and was featured in the landmark 1956 12 Americans show at the Museum of Modern Art in New
York. In the late 1950s he painted a mural for the Sogetsu School in Toyko, Japan, initiating a lifelong relationship with
people and art institutions in that country. In the early 1960s he permanently settled in Los Angeles, where he remained a
prolific painter until the end of his life. He founded a fine art printing press, the Litho Shop, in 1970, and a book publishing
business, Lapis Press, in 1984, the latter with Jan Butterfield and Jack Stauffacher. He became a key figure in the incipient
Los Angeles art scene, known for his support of other artists, and was a founding member of the Museum of Contemporary Art.
At the same time, he had frequent exhibitions and major retrospectives at museums in Europe, Japan and the U.S. Both famous
and unusually wealthy for a California painter, he felt also the burden of responsibility his achievement brought and was
known to remark that he was "tired" of being Sam Francis.
A second generation Abstract Expressionist, Francis brought to the New York style of painting the influences of Jungian psychology,
Buddhism and Japanese aesthetics. His work evolved from the monochrome abstractions of the 1950s to color-splattered canvases
with large fields of white. While generally acknowledged as an important post-war painter, critical acclaim focuses on his
1950s paintings, a series titled
Blue Balls (created in response to a bout with renal tuberculosis) and a series painted for his fourth wife, Mako Idemitsu.
Francis was married five times and had four children. He died in 1994 at the age of 71.
Administrative Information
Access
Open for use by qualified researchers with the following exceptions. Audio visual materials are unavailable until reformatted.
Box 193 is sealed until 2086.
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Sam Francis papers, 1916-2010 (bulk 1950-1994), The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, accession no. 2004.M.8.
Acquisition
Gift of the Estate of Samuel L. Francis in 2004.
Processing History
Jan Bender and Annette Leddy processed the Sam Francis papers and Annette Leddy prepared the finding aid in 2011.
Separated Materials
More than 300 books were transferred to the Research Library. They can be found by searchign the library catalog for the Sam
Francis source collection.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Sam Francis papers span the artist's entire life and include family and personal material as well as correspondence with
friends and art institutions around the world. Francis' art-related businesses, the Litho Shop and Lapis Press, are well documented.
There are also numerous prints, products, and art making tools.
Series I includes correspondence with artists, curators and dealers, including Joan Mitchell, Bruce Conner, Pontus Hulten,
and Martha Jackson. There are also letters between Francis and his parents and between Francis and each of his wives. Series
II. Personal includes family photographs of his parents and stepmother, as well as documents and manuscripts belonging to
them. There are photographs of Francis at every stage of his life, as well as numerous photographs of his wives and four children.
There is also some audiovisual documentation of Francis' family, including a video tape by fourth wife Mako Idemitsu, now
an important video artist, of the two sons she had with Francis.
Series III. Lapis Press documents the projects, both realized and unrealized, that engaged the press, including manuscripts
for books of poetry, philosophy, biography and fiction. Awards and reviews, business files, and a selection of unique proofs
and paste-ups are included in this series.
Series IV. Business files includes a range of projects Francis worked on that are not included in Lapis Press files, such
as printing projects for the Litho Shop, the performance piece Single Wing Turquoise Bird, Francis' design for Swatch watches,
and the Jeffrey Perkins documentary, The Painter Sam Francis. There are financial papers and ledgers from intermittent years.
The Sam Francis Estate has added to this series posthumous material particularly related to the Catalog Raisonnee.
Series V concerns Francis's involvement in Jungian philosophy and particularly James Kirsch, one of whose books was published
by Lapis Press. Series VII is a small collection of Artist files, including manuscripts and films.
Series VI. Printed matter comprises a very comprehensive collection of announcements, brochures, and posters from Francis'
exhibitions, while Series VIII. Artwork includes transparencies of etchings, paintings and lithographs, numerous exhibition
installation shots, products Francis designed, and tools he employed in his artmaking.
Arrangement
The papers are arranged in eight series:
Series I. Correspondence, 1937-2008;
Series II. Personal, 1916-2000;
Series III. Lapis Press, 1943-2002;
Series IV. Business files, 1960-2008;
Series V. Jung Institute, 1931-1997;
Series VI. Printed matter, 1950-2010;
Series VII. Artist files, 1960-2002;
Series VIII. Artwork, 1955-2003;
Indexing Terms
Subjects - Topics
Abstract expressionism
Artists--California
Jungian psychology
Small presses--California--Los Angeles
Genres and Forms of Material
Audiotapes
Correspondence
Diaries
Drawings
Photographic prints--California--20th century
Posters--United States--20th century
Prints--20th century
Proofs (printed matter)
Videotapes
Contributors
Conner, Bruce
Hulten, Pontus, 1924-2006
Idemitsu, Mako, 1940-
Lapis Press.
Martha Jackson Gallery
Mitchell, Joan, 1926-
Container List
Series I.
Correspondence,
1937-2008
Physical Description:
20.43 linear feet
(49 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Contains correspondence with Artists and friends, family, museums, and gallery owners.
Arrangement note
This series is arranged in five subseries.Correspondence was divided into subseries by the Sam Francis estate, and that arrangement
has been largely retained. Additional correspondence files are in Series III. Lapis Press, and Series IV. Business files.
Series I.A.
Artists and friends,
1949-2003
Physical Description:
3.75 linear ft.
(9 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Correspondence with friends and colleagues, some of whom were also collectors, or business associates, and range in content
from the professional to the intimate. Files at the end of the subseries contains correspondence pertaining to the end of
Francis' life.
Arrangement note
Files have been kept as they were arranged by Sam Francis, in alphabetical order, with certain individual artists given separate
folders. The repository has called out additional names in folders under each letter, but in no case have all correspondents
been listed.
Box 1, Folder 1
A,
1972-1993
Scope and Content Note
Including Karl Appel and Chuck Arnoldi.
Box 1, Folder 2-3
B,
1970-1996
Scope and Content Note
Including Kurt Blum, John Bennett, Robert Buck, Larry Bell, and J.B. Blunk.
Box 1, Folder 4
Barundun, Silvio,
1962-1991
Box 1, Folder 5
Correspondence
Scope and Content Note
Including William Copley, Ry Cooder, Dan Cytron, Alexandra Christoph, and Helga and Roy Curry.
Box 213, Folder 2
Jane Braswell Crawford photographs,
undated
Box 1, Folder 6-7
Correspondence,
1969-1987
Box 1, Folder 8
D,
1969-1991
Scope and Content Note
Including Jay DeFeo.
Box 1, Folder 9
E,
1961-1986
Scope and Content Note
Including Bill Elliott.
Box 2, Folder 1-2
F,
1965-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including Gordon Onslow-Ford, Gilda Franz, Betty Freeman, Sidney Felsen and Bernard Forrest.
Box 2, Folder 3
Francken, Ruth,
1969-1979
Box 2, Folder 4-5
G,
1957-1993
Scope and Content Note
Including Joe Goode and Bernard Giovagnoli.
Box 3, Folder 1-2
H,
1970-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including Al Held.
Hiltermann, B.H.R.,
2002-2003
Box 3, Folder 5
Hosiasson, Philippe,
1961-1964
Box 3, Folder 6
Hulten, Pontus,
1963-1997
Box 4, Folder 1
Correspondence
Scope and Content Note
Including Daria Iacone, and Toshi Ichiyanagi.
Box 4, Folder 2-3
Idemitsu, Tako,
1959-1085
Box 4, Folder 4
Isozaki, Arata,
1964-1993
Box 5, Folder 2
Jaffee, Shirley,
1964-1972
Jensen, Alfred,
1958-1964
Box 5, Folder 4
K,
1976-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including James Kirsch and Lilly Keller.
Kogelnik, Kiki,
1965-1987
Box 5, Folder 6
L,
1964-1992
Scope and Content Note
Including Jules Langsner, and Murray Lerner.
Box 5, Folder 7
Leslie, Alfred,
1961-1987
Box 5, Folder 8
M,
1956-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including Yves Michaud, Michio Matsumoto, Lee and Luchita Mullican, and Dorothy Miller.
Mitchell, Joan,
circa 1980
Box 6, Folder 3
N,
1971-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including Hans Namuth and Sybille Nova.
Box 6, Folder 4
O,
1984-1992
Scope and Content Note
Including Sadao Ogawa.
Box 213, Folder 8
Jeff Perkins photographs,
undated
Box 6, Folder 6
R,
1980-1991
Scope and Content Note
Including Pierre Rouge, and James Rosenquist.
Box 6, Folder 7-8
Correspondence
Scope and Content Note
Including Janna Stern, Terry Schoenhaven, Clifford Still, Peter Selz, and Pierre Schneider.
Box 6, Folder 9
Saegessar, Marguerite,
1989-1993
Box 6, Folder 10
Saint Phalle, Niki de
1987
Box 6, Folder 11
Sweeney, James Johnson,
1967-1990
Box 6, Folder 12
T,
1964-1993
Scope and Content Note
Including Dorothea Tanning, Michel Tapie, Shuzo Takiguchi, and Garner Tullis.
Tanaka, Atsuko,
1988-1999
Box 7, Folder 6
V,
1981-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including Eleonora Vallanti, and DeWain Valentine.
Box 7, Folder 7
Van Der Post, Laurens,
1991-1993
Von Huene, Stephan,
1981-1987
Box 7, Folder 9
Correspondence
Scope and Content Note
Including Marcia and Frederick Weisman, Elfie Weinstock, Michael Whitney, and Larry Weiss.
Box 213, Folder 13
Michael Whitney photographs
Box 7, Folder 10
Wagner, George,
1989-1994
Box 8, Folder 2-4
Yoshiaki, Tono and Usami,
1953-1990
Box 8, Folder 7
Assorted acquaintances,
1964-1991
Box 9, Folder 1-4
Cards (birthday, Christmas, and assorted),
circa 1970 - circa 1994
Box 9, Folder 5-6
Cards from Litho Shop employees,
1980-1995
Box 9, Folder 7
Faxes for Sam when sick,
1993
Box 196*, Folder 2
Collage letter (author unidentified),
undated
Flatfile 55**
Thank you card from MOCA on large piece of foam core,
1993
Series I.B.
Family,
1937-1995
Physical Description:
1.66 linear feet
(4 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Correspondence between Sam Francis and his father, stepmother, siblings, daughter, wives, and other relatives. Courtship letters
from Francis to Vera Miller, who would become his first wife, offer a portrait of the artist as a young man. Divorce papers,
income tax returns, and other official documents have been removed from these files and are restricted until 2086.
Arrangement note
Arranged in rough chronological order. Manuscripts accompanying the correspondence have been filed with family papers in Series
II. Personal.
Box 10, Folder 1-4
Sam Francis to Vera Miller (first wife),
1937-1978
Box 196*, Folder 8
Poem for Vera Miller,
undated
Box 11, Folder 1
Virginia Francis (stepmother),
1942-1991
Box 11, Folder 2-4
Duplicates of correspondence between Virginia Francis, Sam Francis (senior), and Sam Francis,
1950-1964
Box 12, Folder 1
Muriel Goodwin (second wife),
1955-1995
Box 12, Folder 2
Teruko Yokoi (third wife),
1961-1966
Box 12, Folder 3-4
Masako Idemitsu (fourth wife),
1964-1993
Margaret Smith (fifth wife),
1985-1993
Box 13, Folder 1
Assorted relatives,
1965-1993
Box 13, Folder 2
George Francis (brother),
1968-1994
Box 13, Folder 3
Nancy Frances Moser (sister),
1973-1990
Box 13, Folder 4-5
Kayo Francis (daughter),
1971-1994
Series I.C.
Museums,
1960-2008
Physical Description:
9.17 linear feet
(22 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Correspondence regarding museum exhibitions or acquisitions of Francis' work. The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles,
with which Francis had a long relationship, occupies several boxes. Also amply represented are the Bundestag, Bonn, and the
Jeu de Paume, Paris. Along with object lists and exhibition proposals, these files sometimes contain installation diagrams,
loan agreements, and checklists.
Arrangement note
Arranged in alphabetical order by the museum name.
Box 14, Folder 1-7
A,
circa 1960- circa 1998
Box 213, Folder 16
Brooklyn Museum photographs
Box 16-17
Bundestag, Bonn,
1991-1994
Box 213, Folder 17
Hiroshima Museum photographs
Box 20, Folder 1-6
Jeu de Paume, Paris,
1995-1996
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles,
1980-2001
Box 35, Folder 6
Photocopies of selected museum correspondence,
1956-2002
Series I.D.
Galleries,
1954-2005
Physical Description:
5.42 linear feet
(13 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Correspondence with Sam Francis' various dealers around the world, and with galleries that had reason to contact him, generally
regarding sales. There are especially large multiple files from Martha Jackson Gallery (New York), Kornfeld Gallery (Bern),
Delaive Gallery (Amsterdam), and Nanteshi Gallery (Tokyo). In addition to letters, some of the files contain inventory lists,
sales receipts, invoices, and other documents that are also found in Series IV. Business files.
Arrangement note
Arranged in alphbetical order by the name of the gallery, or by the last name of the gallerist, depending on how the gallery
is commonly known.
Box 42-43
Kornfeld Gallery,
1959-2002
Box 213, Folder 25-32
Photographs,
circa 1960-2000
Scope and Content Note
Including images from ACE, Delaive, Gray, Kornfeld, Minami, Proarta, Samuels, and Wirtz.
Series I.E.
Collectors,
1960-2005
Physical Description:
0.42 linear feet
(1 box)
Scope and Content Note
Letters from collectors of Sam Francis' work, including Robert Chen, Joseph Hirshhorn, Edwin Janss, and John Rouge.
Arrangement note
Organized in alphabetical order by the collector's last name.
Box 49, Folder 25
Requests for Sam Francis' signature,
1970-1990
Series II.
Personal,
1916-2000
Physical Description:
20.14 linear feet
(41 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Included are photographs, video and film of Francis and his family. There are family papers, and a smattering of financial
documentation. Of note is a video made by Mako Idemitsu, Francis' fourth wife, now a well-known video artist. Included also
are some poetry and dream journals by Francis. Box 193 contains retricted material from 1950-1994 which will remain sealed
until 2086.
Arrangement note
Arranged in two subseries, one for Sam Francis and another for family and friends.
Series II.A.
Assorted,
1930-1995
Physical Description:
12.0 linear feet
(17 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Included are some poetry and dream journals by Francis. Box 193 contains retricted material from 1950-1994 which will remain
sealed until 2086.
Arrangement note
Arranged by media.
Box 50, 204*
Writings,
1967-circa 1994
Scope and Content Note
Including dream journals, poetry, reflections, and doodles.
Box 51
Calendars, awards, and lists,
1961-1991
Box 52
Medical and financial,
1974-1994
Box 267, Item C2-C10
Audio cassettes,
1994-1995, undated
Scope and Content Note
Including the Remembrance Meeting at MOCA, Howard Fox's interview with Margaret Smith Francis after Sam's death, and Sam's
astrological reading.
Photographs,
1930-1994
Scope and Content Note
Photographs of Sam Francis, ranging from childhood snapshots, to views of the artist in his studio, to posed portraits. Photographers
include Meibao Nee, Peter Friedli, Jerry Sohn, Vera Isler, Nico Delaive,Shima Bukuro, Jim Arkatov, Brian Forrest, and Francis'
fourth wife, Mako Idemitsu. Includes grammar school class portrait from 1937 (Box 196*, f. 1)
Box 53-55, 194*, 207*, 215
Flatfile 58**
Portrait drawing of Sam by Walasse Ting,
undated
Box 193
Restricted material,
1950-1994
Scope and Content Note
Sealed until 2086.
Series II.B.
Family and friends,
1916-2000
Physical Description:
8.14 linear feet
(24 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Of note is a video made by Mako Idemitsu, Francis' fourth wife, now a well-known video artist.
Arrangement note
Arranged in rough chronological order.
Box 56
Samuel Augustus Francis (father),
1937-1947
Scope and Content Note
Book manuscript about U.S. military strategy during World War II, by Sam Francis' father.
Box 57
Virginia Francis (stepmother),
1952-1991
Scope and Content Note
Including her journals, correspondence, photographs of Sam Francis Sr. in his youth, and assorted papers.
Box 58
Margaret Smith,
1989-1994
Scope and Content Note
Miscellaneous papers belonging to Francis' fifth wife, including insurance documents, receipts, and brochures about her art
exhibitions.
Box 59, 196*, 213
Family,
1916-1962
Scope and Content Note
Including views of father, mother, stepmother, brother, and other close relatives.
Box 60, 214
Wives and children,
1950-2000
Scope and Content Note
Includes views of Vera Miller, Muriel Goodwin, Mako Idemitsu, Kayo Francis, Osamu Francis, Shingo Francis, Margaret Smith,
and Augustus Francis.
Box 61-64, 222-228
Friends,
1952-1992
Scope and Content Note
Including Kurt and Erika Blum, Jan Butterfield, John Cage, Bruce Connor, Patricia Faure, Nico Delaive, Martha Jackson, Shirley
Jaffe, Ed Kienholz, Phillip and Paula Kirkeby, James Kirsch, Kiki Kogelnick, Ebehard Kornfeld, Carl Meier, and Liga Pang.
Arranged in alphabetical order by the friends' last names, with a separate sequence for studio visits, and another for group
shots with Sam and unidentified friends.
Box 196
Portraits of artists,
undated
Box 270, Item V1
Video of Osamu and Shingo by Mako Idemitsu Francis,
1967-1971
Box 274, Item F3-F5
Films of wives and children,
1970s
Scope and Content Note
Including also a small Super 8 film of Osamo and Shingo, 1971, and trips to Disneyland and Nevada.
Box 272, Item V19-V20
Friends,
circa 1970-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including VHS tapes of Kornfeld's birthday and Ebi's birthday.
Series III.
Lapis Press,
1943-2002, undated
Physical Description:
26.14 linear feet
(48 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Material concerning Francis' book press, which published art- related literature, psychology, and theory, a portion of which
were works in translation.
Arrangement note
Arranged in five subseries.
Series III.A.
Projects,
1943-2000
Physical Description:
5.84 linear feet
(14 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Includes manuscripts by authors, some of which were published, along with some correspondence related to the submissions.
Arrangement note
Arranged in alphabetical order by the authors' last names.
Box 65
A-B
1971-1989
Scope and Content Note
Including Alchemy, American Film Foundation, Bob Arnold, Antonin Artaud, Jan Butterfield, Irene Borger, Bruce Boone, Silva
Barandon, and Yves Bonnefoy.
Box 66
B-C,
1957-1990
Scope and Content Note
Including Sinclair Beilis, Brancusi, Jacques Carrio, and Dennis Cooper.
Box 67
C-D,
1973-1994
Scope and Content Note
Including Alan Chadwick, Cid Corman, and Bruce Connor.
Box 68
D-F,
1961-1997
Scope and Content Note
Including Doug Davis, Les Ferris, Kathleen Fraser, and Michael Friedman.
Box 69
F-G,
1981-1988
Scope and Content Note
Including James Farwell and Amy Gerstler.
Box 70
G,
1985-2000
Scope and Content Note
Including Robert Gluck and Pierre Guyotat.
Box 71
H-J,
1966-1988
Scope and Content Note
Including Rebecca Horn, Pontus Hulten, Robert Irwin, Ed Janss and Arata Isozaki.
Box 72
J-K,
1965-1989
Scope and Content Note
Including Rachel Jacobs, Edith Jenkins, Hayao Kawai, and Fujiyo Koyama.
Box 73
L-M,
1943-1991
Scope and Content Note
C.A. Meier, Dean Metzger, and Mike Morrow.
Box 74
M-S,
1959-1995
Scope and Content Note
Including Yves Michaud, Nancy Mozur, Noguchi, Ooka, Gordon Onslow-Ford, Carolee Schneeman, Robert Shapazian.
Box 75
Niki de Saint-Phalle,
1985-88
Scope and Content Note
Regarding her book about AIDS, published by Lapis Press.
Box 76
S-T,
1982-2000
Scope and Content Note
Including Robert Thierron, James Turrell, Dorothea Tanning, and Michael Taylor.
Box 77
Yasutaka Tsutsui,
1991-1995
Scope and Content Note
Regarding his book
The Fictives, published by Lapis Press.
Box 78
W,
1989-1998
Scope and Content Note
Including Jane Wheelwright and Christopher Wool.
Series III.B.
Business,
1975-2002
Physical Description:
6.67 linear feet
(16 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Assorted financial papers from the press from intermittent years.
Arrangement note
Arranged in rough chronolgical order by year.
Box 79-80
Memoranda and Minutes,
1986-1996
Box 84-85
Ledgers,
1975, 1979, 1989, 1991
Series III.C.
Awards and Reviews,
1976-1994
Physical Description:
1.67 linear feet
(4 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Material showing the acclaim that greeted many of the Lapis Press publications.
Arrangement note
Arranged in chronological order by year.
Series III.D.
Selected Publications,
1983-1996, undated
Physical Description:
10.92 linear feet
(11 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Includes selected Lapis publications, often in final proofs, along with the press's first publication.
Arrangement note
Arranged in chronological order.
Box 101
Saturated Blue,
1994-1996
Series III.E.
Photographs and audio visual,
circa 1976- circa 1996
Physical Description:
1.04 linear feet
(3 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Assorted photographs from Lapis publications and a video tape of an interview on The Today Show about the press's AIDS book.
Arrangement note
Arranged in rough chronolgical order.
Box 270, Item V6-V8
Video about Lapis Press AIDS book (The Today Show),
1987
Series IV.
Business files,
1960-2008, undated
Physical Description:
21.93 linear feet
(46 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Files comprising virtually all projects that Francis was engaged in except for Lapis Press Projects and exhibitions. The Samuel
Francis Estate files, including financial material and the catalog raisonnée, have been incorporated into this series.
Arrangement note
Arranged in four subseries, and within each sub-series in rough chronological order.
Series IV.A.
Projects,
1960-2004
Physical Description:
7.09 linear feet
(17 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Files about projects, often of a collaborative nature, generally involving other artists, writers, or institutions.
Arrangement note
Arranged in rough chronological order.
Box 108
circa 1960 - circa 1969
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Print Council of America, Tamarind Institute, and New Arts Society.
Box 109
circa 1970 - circa 1979
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Single Wing Turquoise Bird, Venezuela Bienal, Michael Blackwood Films, Phillip Glass, and Weinstock
Department Store.
Box 110
Peter Seltz book project,
1974-1981
Scope and Content Note
For
Sam Francis, 1976
Box 111
circa 1980 - circa 1984
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Welton Beckett, Vice President Mondale, Federal Reserve Bank, Olympics Los Angeles, and Art for Nuclear
Freeze.
Box 112
Manny Silverman Gallery,
1982-2002
Box 113
circa 1985 - circa 1986
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Cathedrale de Nevers, Michel Waldberg, Yves Michaud, World Print Council, World Wilderness Council,
and Daniel Papierski Print.
Box 114
circa 1987 - circa 1989
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Bibliothèque Nationale,
Artforum, Art Against Aids, and Petersburg Press.
Box 115
circa 1990 - circa 1991
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Seoul Art Festival, American Indian Heritage Foundation, Art Music Barcelona, Nick Wilder, and Musee
Nichido.
Box 116, 170-171
Swatch project,
1992-1997
Box 117
circa 1993
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Paul La Bell, George Wagner, Vorwerk Carpets, and wine labels.
Box 118
circa 1994
Scope and Content Note
Including projects with Graphique de France, Grafiska Verkstaden, Mendocino Art Center, Daco Verlag Monotype, and Mark Whitney.
Box 119
circa 1995 - circa 1999
Scope and Content Note
Including Clos Pegase Winery, Beverly Hills Public Library, Society for the Arts in Healthcare, Tracy Shiffman, and Jean Paul
Riopelle.
Box 107
Artist print projects,
1995-2002
Scope and Content Note
Litho Shop print projects with artists including Marina Abramovich, Vija Celmins, Rebecca Horn, Anish Kapoor, Guillermo Kuitca,
Ed Moses, Giuseppe Penone, Martin Puryear, David Reed, Niki de Saint-Phalle, Robert Therrien, and Christopher Wool.
Box 120
Jeffrey Perkins video project,
2000-2004
Scope and Content Note
For his 85 minute video,
The Painter Sam Francis, 2008. Includes transcripts of some interviews he did for the film.
Box 233, Folder 11-17
Slides and color prints from project files,
undated
Series IV.B.
Finances,
1966-2008
Physical Description:
5.0 linear feet
(12 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Including assorted material to do with profits from Francis' art, including appraisals and auction sales, along with reports
from business ventures, especially the wind farm.
Arrangement note
Arranged by record type and in rough chronological order within each category.
Box 121-124
Correspondence,
circa 1966-circa 2004
Scope and Content Note
Including memoranda, phone messages, emails, assorted correspondence and administrative documents roughly arranged in chronological
order.
Box 127-128
Auction house reports,
1994-2002
Box 130
Publishers and printers,
1976-2008
Wind farm business,
circa 1983-circa 1993
Series IV.C.
Catalogue Raisonnée,
circa 1960-2008
Physical Description:
3.75 linear feet
(9 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
An incomplete collection of research and documents used in the preparation of Francis' Catalogue Raisonnée.
Arrangement note
Arranged in two groupings, research and documents, and within each grouping in rough chronological order.
Box 234-240
Documents of etchings, screenprints, and lithographs,
circa 1960- circa 1994
Series IV.D.
Miscellaneous
circa 1974-2008, undated
Physical Description:
5.59 linear feet
(8 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Videotapes, audiotapes, computer files, and film, some unidentified, others regarding Francis. Unavailable for viewing or
listening until reformatting is complete.
Arrangement note
Materials are grouped by media type.
Box 275
Computer files on diskettes,
undated
Box 270-271, Item V2, V3, V9-V16
Videos about Sam Francis and his art,
1974-1999
Box 269, Item DVD1-DVD6
DVDs about Sam Francis and his art,
1999-2008
Box 274, Item F1, F2
Films about Sam Francis and his art,
1977, undated
Box 272, Item V25
Video catalog of the Ohara museum of art,
undated
Box 268, Item R1, R3-R5
Unidentified audio recordings,
undated
Box 273, Item V26
Unidentified Umatic videotape,
undated
Box 274, Item F6-F13
Unidentified small super 8 films,
undated
Series V.
Jung Institute,
1929-1997, undated
Physical Description:
3.34 linear feet
(8 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Material about Jungian philosophy and the Jung Institute, in which Francis was active for much of his adult life.
Arrangement note
Assorted materials are arranged in chronological order, and articles are arranged in alphabetical order by the author's last
name.
Box 135-136
Assorted materials,
1973-1987
Scope and Content Note
Including correspondence, fliers, membership rosters, journals and proposals.
Box 138, Folder 1-4
Articles by Hilde Kirsch,
1972-1975
Box 138-140
Articles by James Kirsch,
1931-1986
Box 196*, Folder 6
Photographic portrait of James Kirsch,
undated
Box 141
Articles, Kirst-Z,
1943-1988
Box 272, Item V7, V22-V24
Documentaries about Jung,
1983-1997
Series VI.
Printed matter,
1950-2010
Physical Description:
39.22 linear feet
(23 boxes, 3 flat file drawers, 3 rolls)
Scope and Content Note
This series offers a comprehensive collection of announcements, brochures, and posters about Francis' exhibitions, and also
a selection of articles about his work.
Arrangement note
Arranged in two subseries, and within those, in chronological order.
Series VI.A.
Articles and reviews,
1951-2000
Physical Description:
2.92 linear feet
(7 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
A comprehensive collection of reviews of Francis' art exhibitions.
Arrangement note
Arranged in chronological order.
Series VI.B.
Announcements and brochures,
1950-2003, undated
Physical Description:
36.3 linear feet
(16 boxes, 3 flat file drawers, 3 rolls)
Scope and Content Note
A comprehensive collection of announcements and brochures for Francis' solo and group shows.
Arrangement note
Arranged in chronological order.
Large binders prepared by estate,
1950-2010
Group shows,
1952-2003, undated
Box 162
Photocopies of brochures,
circa 1970-circa 1994
Box 163-164
Miscellaneous printed matter,
circa 1970-circa 1994
Flatfile 5**-20**
Posters for museum and gallery exhibitions,
1961-2002
Flatfile 54**
Poster for Jeffrey Perkins film,
199?
Roll 1**
Banner for Chicago Art Expo,
1989
Series VII.
Artist files,
circa 1960-2002, undated
Physical Description:
13.87 linear feet
(7 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Works, including photographs, posters, and drawings, by artists whom Francis knew.
Arrangement note
Arranged in alphabetical order by the artist's last name.
Box 268, Item R2
Ron Cooper recording,
1977
Box 267, Item C1
Yukio Mishima reading,
1989
Box 269, Item DVD8
Salut, Riopelle! (DVD),
2002
Item DVD9
Martin Sosin,
A celebration of the first amendment,
2008
Box 210*-211*
Assorted artwork,
1961-1981, undated
Scope and Content Note
Including works by Kurt blum, Walasse Ting, Meibao Nee, Heinz Baumuller, Irving Grupp, Arthur Leslie, and Hisashi Otto. See
also a poster of Jose Bueno's
Water in flat file 52**.
Box 196*, Folder 4, 7
Photographs by unidentified artists,
undated
Scope and Content Note
Including one of the trees at Pontus Hultén's residence.
Box 241
Color prints, negatives and transparencies by assorted artists,
circa 1960 - circa 2000
Scope and Content Note
Including Vija Celmins, Pontus Hultén, Takako Idemitsu, Martin Puryear, Ed Ruscha, Niki de St. Phalle, and Sadamas Motonaga.
Series VIII.
Artwork,
1955-2003, undated
Physical Description:
80.65 linear feet
(56 boxes, 4 flat file drawers, 4 triple oversize objects
Scope and Content Note
Includes assorted artwork by Sam Francis, including prints, transparencies of paintings, etchings and lithographs, and exhibition
installation shots. There are also various products Francis made, including scarves, ornaments, and puzzles, along with tools
he used, such as brushes and printing plates.
Arrangement note
Arranged in four subseries and in chronological order within each topical group when dates are known.
Series VIII.A.
Works on paper,
circa 1960-circa 1994
Physical Description:
40.58 linear feet
(11 boxes, 4 flat file drawers, 2 triple oversize objects)
Scope and Content Note
Including ink drawings, watercolors, and prints.
Arrangement note
Objects of like sizes and media are grouped together.
Box 169, 182, 186, 191, 208*
Prints and proofs,
undated
Box 183, 205*-206*
Watercolors and drawings,
undated
Flatfile 2**
Large black ink drawings,
undated
Flatfile 53**
Brush and ink drawings done with wife Muriel Goodwin,
undated
Flatfile 56**
Large drawing of a face,
undated
Box 203*
Pasadena box collophon,
1963
Box 278***
Painting on board,
undated
Flatfile 21**-52**
Proofs of prints,
1960-1994, undated
Box 279***
Works on paper (4),
undated
Series VIII.B.
Photographs of artwork and exhibitions,
circa 1955-2003
Physical Description:
8.21 linear feet
(26 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Assorted photography of Francis' work, and a selection of exhibition installation shots.
Arrangement note
Arranged in rough chronological order.
Box 241-242, 250-253
Transparencies of paintings, etchings and lithographs,
circa 1955-circa 1965
Box 244
Special projects,
1960-1984
Box 245
Book project with Pontus Hultén,
1960-1987
Box 246
California Box Project,
1963-1964
Box 247, 254-246, 261
Exhibition and studio installations,
1957-1974
Box 261
Pasadena Art Museum,
1964
Box 255
Studio, Santa Monica,
1966
Box 261
Andre Emmerich Gallery, New York,
1969
Box 261
Art Institute of Chicago,
1970
Box 261
The Zurich Gallery,
1970-1971
Box 261
Andred Emmerich Gallery, New York,
1971
Box 261
Stanford University Art Gallery, Palo Alto,
1972
Box 261
Albright-Knox, Buffalo, New York,
1972
Box 255
Studio, Santa Monica,
1972-1973
Box 261
Galerie Jean Fournier, Paris,
1973
Box 261
Andre Emmerich, New York,
1973
Box 261
Nicholas Wilder Gallery, Los Angeles,
1973
Box 247
36 KAOs (Faces), Tokyo,
1973-1977
Box 261
Minami Gallery, Tokyo,
1974
Box 261
Louisiana Museum, Denmark,
1974
Box 248-249, 257-266, 195*
Exhibition and studio installations,
1975-2003
Series VIII.C
Products,
undated
Physical Description:
12.12 linear feet
(12 boxes)
Scope and Content Note
Including products bearing Francis artwork.
Arrangement note
Grouped according to like size and media.
Box 174
Ornament buttons,
undated
Box 179
Pins and puzzles,
undated
Box 180
Wine labels, and logo,
undated
Series VIII.D
Art materials,
undated
Physical Description:
19.75 linear feet
(7 boxes, 2 triple oversize objects)
Scope and Content Note
Including printing plates, brushes, and other tools.
Arrangement note
Grouped according to like size and media.
Box 188-189
Limited edition plates,
undated
Box 190
Paintbrushes and clogs,
undated
Flatfile 1**
Metal printing plates,
undated
Flatfile 3**-4**
Notes on lithographs in progress,
undated
Box 277***
Transfer plates (4),
undated
