Collection context
Summary
- Abstract:
- A collection of creative and intellectual works by Rich Gold, an American inventor, futurologist, and artist who was active from the 1970s to early 2000s. Gold produced writings, presentations, inventions, and artwork to demonstrate relationships between technology, society, and creativity. The collection features a variety of formats on which Gold created and documented his works, including digital media, video recordings, posters, drawings, and notebooks. A portion of the collection includes Gold's manuscript materials for The Plentitude, a posthumous publication from 2008.
- Extent:
- 28.16 Linear Feet (61 boxes, 4 flat boxes, 3 map folders)
- Language:
- English
- Preferred citation:
-
[identification of item], Rich Gold papers (M1510). Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, California.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
Rich Gold papers include notebooks (114), artwork, correspondence, and manuscript for The Plenitude, which was posthumously published in 2008. Also included are patents, awards, slides, video tapes, audio tapes, compact discs, photographs, and documentation materials (including the World Economic Forums of 1999, 2000, and 2001).
- Biographical / historical:
-
Rich Gold (1950-2003) was a digital artist, inventor, cartoonist, composer, lecturer and inter-disciplinary researcher. He was a provocative speaker who lectured throughout the world on the future of the book, the nature of engineering, creativity, innovation and Evocative Knowledge Objects (EKOs) [from the Rich Gold website, 5/13/2011].
Gold received his B.A. from SUNY-Albany, and a M.F.A. from Mills College, Oakland where he studied in the graduate electronic music program at the Center for Contemporary Music. Gold's career was diverse in its achievements, including composing avant garde music, being a cartoonist, and leading the development of innovative and creative designs for Sega video games and the Mattel Toy company. In 1993, he created the artist-in-residence program for Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center), and managed a multi-disciplinary laboratory, RED (Research in Experimental Documents), which developed a project called "Experiments in the Future of Reading" that was featured at the San Jose Tech Museum of Innovation in 2000.
Gold incorporated his inventions and artwork into a series of lectures and presentations that focused on the intersection between the arts, science, design and engineering. These presentations evolved into a manuscript, The Plentitude, and was posthumously published in 2008 by Gold's family members, including his wife and artistic collaborator, Marina LaPalma. Described as a "graphic textbook, a cartoon treatise, speculative autobiography" [preface from The Plentitude], the short book focuses on Gold's observations of the American consumer-based economy and the perpetual roles of innovation within this system [from encylopedia.com 3/22/2023]. Gold passed away in Menlo Park, California in 2003.
- Acquisition information:
- Purchased, 2005. Accession 2005-343
- Processing information:
-
Large folders originally mis-identified as "Map Folders" were re-processed as folders inside boxes 56-59 in Series 11: Artwork. This correction resulted in a gap in box numbers from 60 to 79. Additional materials that were accessioned after the collection's initial processing were also incorporated into the collection.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Open for research; material must be requested at least 36 hours in advance of intended use
- Preferred citation:
-
[identification of item], Rich Gold papers (M1510). Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, California.
- Location of this collection:
-
Department of Special Collections, Green Library557 Escondido MallStanford, CA 94305-6004, US
- Contact:
- (650) 725-1022