Guide to the Laura Aguilar Papers M0829
Processed by Special Collections staff ; machine readable finding aid created by Steven Mandeville-Gamble
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
1997 ; revised 2020
Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford 94305-6064
specialcollections@stanford.edu
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
Department of Special Collections and University Archives
Title: Laura Aguilar papers
Creator:
Aguilar, Laura
Identifier/Call Number: M0829
Physical Description:
2.75 Linear Feet
(8 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1981-1995
Conditions Governing Access
Open for research; material must be requested at least 36 hours in advance of intended use. Selected photographs have been
digitized and are available online: https://purl.stanford.edu/jm174sx1579
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Laura Aguilar, 1996.
Biographical / Historical
Laura Aguilar is a photographer whose works are mostly portraits. Professor Chon Noriega of UCLA's Department of Film and
Television writes that Aguilar's work documents "social groups and identities that remain invisible in mainstream culture:
Latina lesbians, black couples, obese people, et al." She cooperates with her subjects so that "her work is not about power
differentials between photographer and subject as is often, if implicitly, the case with...the social documentary tradition."
An autobiographical element is also apparent in Aguilar's work. Art critic Diana Emery Hulick noted that "the circumstances
of [Aguilar's] life are reflected overtly in her art." Aguilar, Hulick wrote, "is large, lesbian, and Chicana, acutely aware
of her separateness, yet comfortable enough with herself to present us with a personal vision that is both intimate and authoritative."
Laura Aguilar was born in west San Gabriel Valley, California in 1959. She has studied in the East Los Angeles Community
College photography program and the Santa Fe Photographic Workshop, among other programs. In 1994/95 she was the recipient
of a California Arts Council Fellowship and in 1991/92 of an Artist's Project Grant from Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions
(LACE). Her work has appeared in exhibits in California, Texas, New York, and Mexico. Collections of her work can be found
at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Santa Monica Cultural Affairs Department in Santa Monica, California. Aguilar
lives in Rosemead, California.
Diana Emery Hulick,
"Laura Aguilar,"
Latin American Art 5:3 (1993), 52-54.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Laura Aguilar Papers, M0829, Dept. of Special Collections, Stanford Libraries, Stanford, Calif.
Processing Information
Processed by Patricia Mazón, 1996 April
Scope and Contents
The Aguilar Papers and Photographs include the personal and professional materials of Laura Aguilar and occupy 2.75 linear
feet. The collection traces through correspondence with mentors and friends both Aguilar's artistic development and her struggle
with dyslexia. Her professional achievements are detailed in the series on exhibitions and published works. The print series
includes original prints of three of Aguilar's photographic series:
Latina Lesbians,
Plush Pony, and
Clothed/Unclothed.
Conditions Governing Use
While Special Collections is the owner of the physical and digital items, permission to examine collection materials is not
an authorization to publish. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. Any transmission
or reproduction beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the owners of rights, heir(s) or assigns
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Dyslexia.
Hispanic American lesbians.
Mexican American art.
Obesity.
Photography.
Photoprints.
Cuadros, Gilbert.
House, Suda.
Martel, Pat.
Tenneson, Joyce.
Box 1, Folder 1
Deborah Bright, The Passionate Camera,
1995
Box 1, Folder 4
Letters of recommendation for Aguilar,
1991-1995
Box 1, Folder 5
"Letters on photos,"
1987-1994
Box 1, Folder 6
Los Angeles County Museum of Art,
1995
Box 1, Folder 8
Siobhan Somerville, Purdue University,
1995
Box 1, Folder 9
Joyce Tenneson,
1991-1993
Box 1, Folder 10
Joyce Tenneson,
1993-1995
Box 2 (legal), Folder 1
Biennale di Venezia,
1993
Series 2. Exhibitions & Published Works
Box 3 (legal), Folder 1
Exhibitions and published works,
1986
Box 3 (legal), Folder 2
Exhibitions and published works,
1987
Box 3 (legal), Folder 3
Exhibitions and published works,
1989
Box 3 (legal), Folder 4
Exhibitions and published works,
1990
Box 3 (legal), Folder 5
Exhibitions and published works,
1990
Box 3 (legal), Folder 6
Exhibitions and published works,
1990
Box 3 (legal), Folder 7
Exhibitions and published works,
1991
Box 3 (legal), Folder 8
Exhibitions and published works,
1991
Box 3 (legal), Folder 9
Exhibitions and published works,
1992
Box 3 (legal), Folder 10
Exhibitions and published works,
1992
Box 3 (legal), Folder 11
Exhibitions and published works, 1992
Box 3 (legal), Folder 12
Exhibitions and published works,
1993
Box 4 (legal), Folder 1
Exhibitions and published works,
1993
Box 4 (legal), Folder 2
Exhibitions and published works,
1994
Box 4 (legal), Folder 3
Exhibitions and published works,
1994
Box 4 (legal), Folder 4
Exhibitions and published works,
1994
Box 4 (legal), Folder 5
Exhibitions and published works,
1995
Box 4 (legal), Folder 6
Exhibitions and published works,
1995
Box 4 (legal), Folder 7
Exhibitions and published works,
1995
Box 4 (legal), Folder 8
Exhibitions organized and curated by Aguilar,
1989-92
Box 4 (legal), Folder 9
Exhibitions, workshops, conferences,
1987-90, n.d.
Box 5 (OS), Folder 1
Luz Calvo, paper draft,
1995
Box 5 (OS), Folder 2
Certificate, honorable mention, for Mexican exhibit,
1988
Box 5 (OS), Folder 3
Elan (East Los Angeles College: Winter 1980)
Box 5 (OS), Folder 4
Photo Nation, and undated (workshop)
1992
Box 5 (OS), Folder 5
Square Peg
(Dec./Jan. 1992/93)
Box 5 (OS), Folder 6
"Writing about being dyslexia [sic] at Pasadena City College,"
1983
Box 5 (OS), Folder 7
Nueva Luz, v. 4, no. 2
(1993)
Box 6 (OS), Folder 1
Latina Lesbian series,
1986-1990
Box 7 (OS), Folder 1
Clothed/Unclothed series, list of photos
Box 7 (OS), Folder 2
Clothed/Unclothed series, nos. 1-17
1990-94,
Box 7 (OS), Folder 3
Clothed/Unclothed series, nos. 18-34
1990-94,