Administrative files, Series I.
1974-2014, undated
Physical Description:
1.29 Linear Feet
(6 boxes)
Scope and Contents
Administrative files consist of materials by and about Mother Art that document the collective's mission to create and promote
art centered on women's issues. The series includes audiocassettes of Mother Art interviews on Los Angeles area radio programs;
presentation scripts and resumes that detail the collective's formation and project history; image reproduction correspondence;
and the collective's 2011 documentary film,
Mother Art Tells Her Story, with related photographs and promotional materials. A disbound binder of assorted documents conveys an array of Mother Art's
early artistic endeavors, with project proposals, press releases, clippings of exhibition reviews, and a financial report
for the California Arts Council grant for 1977's
Laundry Works performances.
The series also contains one CD of digital presentation files. Software formats were identified using a DROID (Digital Record
Object IDentification) report from information recorded in the PRONOM technical registry. All dates refer to last modified
dates of files. Born digital materials are integrated into their corresponding series based on content.
Two publications,
Mother Art: A Collective of Women Artists and
The First Decade: Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of the Woman's Building, have been transferred to General Collections.
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by format and subject.
Articles and writings about Mother Art,
1978-2014, undated
box 1, folder 3
Artists' statements,
1978, undated
Binder: Mother Art: Established September 1974,
1974-1983, undated
box 1, folder 4
Proposals and statements; resumes; press releases,
1974-1983, undated
Scope and Contents
Includes artists' statements; strategic planning notes for the evolution of the collective; and proposals for realized and
unrealized projects, including
Rainbow Playground,
By Mothers (1976), and
Laundry Works. Also includes press releases for
By Mothers,
Art For Public Consumption,
Mother Art Cleans Up, and the collective's participation in the 1976 Garden Theater Festival in Barnsdall Park.
box 1, folder 5
General correspondence,
1976-1983, undated
Scope and Contents
Includes professional correspondence by Mother Art in support of the collective's projects and mission to champion mothers
and female artists, with letters between Mother Art and Los Angeles area radio stations; Pennsylvania Congressman Thomas M.
Foglietta; Los Angeles City officials Mayor Tom Bradley and Councilwomen Pat Russell and Peggy Stevenson; the office of California
Governor Jerry Brown; the Woman's Building Galleries; and the Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art (LAICA). Also includes
correspondence by Mother Art to the
Los Angeles Times in response to an article accusing the California Arts Council of wasting taxpayer money with its award to Mother Art for
Laundry Works, and a guest list of attendees for
Working Together, one of the installations in
Mother Art Cleans Up.
box 1, folder 6
Laundry Works and draft project descriptions,
1976-1982, undated
Scope and Contents
Includes preparatory materials for Mother Art's
Laundry Works project, with notes, correspondence to laundromat owners, handwritten attendee comments, and the date and location schedule
for the five performances in the project series. Also includes the
Laundry Works grant award document from the California Arts Council and the grant's requisite final evaluation and financial reports. Draft
project descriptions consist of summary texts for the collective's early projects as well as drafts for the questionnaire
that was part of the
Laundry Works performances.
box 1, folder 7
Correspondence,
1978-2008
Scope and Contents
Includes correspondence for image reproduction requests and with LAICA Board Director Robert L. Smith regarding the CETA guest
artist program.
History of Mother Art presentations,
circa 1979-2008
box 10, Item CM3
"Mother Art PPT show #11, PowerPoint slide show,"
2007 March 5
Physical Description:
0.027 GB
5 files
Scope and Contents
1 computer disc (CD) : digital ; 4 3/4 in.
CM3 contains: 2 Microsoft Powerpoint 97-2003 Presentation files (.pps and .ppt) titled: Presentation11. Unavailable until
reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 1, folder 9
Letterhead, business cards, and decals,
undated
Mother Art Tells Her Story,
2011-2013
box 6, folder 12
Color prints,
circa 2011
Scope and Contents
Eight 4 x 6 inch photographs of Mother Art setting up to interview Helen Million in Modesto, California.
box 9, Item DVD1-DVD2
DVDs,
2011
Scope and Contents
2 videodiscs (DVD) (46min) ; 4 3/4 in.
Original case labeled: Copyright 2011, run time 46 minutes. Award winning documentary tells of 8 Los Angeles artists who
were not afraid of those with power. Abortion, immigration, homelessness, weapons of mass destruction ... the hot topics of
the 70's and 80's. The 8 artists of Mother Art dealt with issues through Public Art.
box 1, folder 10
Film festival ephemera,
2012-2013
box 1, folder 11
Script and interview questions,
circa 2011
Radio interviews,
1976-1987
box 11, Item C1
"Mother Art Interview, KPFK-FM, Paul Vangelisti, Nov. 30,"
1976
Mother Art Interview, KPFK-FM, Paul Vangelisti, Nov. 30 1976 (Digitized version available on-site only)
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (60 min.) : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for
reformatting.
box 11, Item C2
"Mother Art, KPFK-FM with Claire Spark 2/25/79,"
1979
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (60 min.) : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Access restricted due
to fragility; contact the repository to request access.
box 11, Item C3
"KUTE-102FM 'Community Awareness' Mother's Day 8 May 1983,"
1983
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 11, Item C4
"Mother Art-KUTE FM 5/8/83, T.B.P., Mother's Day,"
1983
Mother Art-KUTE FM 5/8/83, T.B.P., Mother's Day (digitized version available on-site only): 1983
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (90 min.) : analog, 1 7/8 ips ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference
for reformatting.
box 11, Item C5
"ARN 3-13-87 Broadcast #24 Kaleidoscope The Artist Is a Woman, Mother Art,"
1987
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 1, folder 12
Resumes and exhibition histories,
1983-2009, undated
Scope and Contents
Includes an undated price list of select Mother Art works.
box 1, folder 13
Woman's Building calendars, programs, and clippings,
1976-1977, 1988
Scope and Contents
Includes event calendars for July-September 1976, January-February 1977, and May-June 1988, as well as a program for the
Artists Who are Mothers workshop held at the Woman's Building on May 7, 1988.
Project files, Series II.
1973-2017, undated
Physical Description:
6.28 Linear Feet
(11 boxes)
Scope and Contents
Materials in this series document Mother Art's major performance and installation projects, from 1973's
Rainbow Playground, a space created for children at the Woman's Building, to the 2000 retrospective
(Re)Visiting Mother Art, with project proposals, performance scripts, postcards and posters, and exhibition review clippings. Most files contain
either color slides or black-and-white photographs (prints and negatives) of project performances and installations. Some
files also include undated inkjet prints, printed at dates later than the project dates, and certainly all after 1990. Additional
project materials include original Mother Art trading cards, a menu list for the 1977
Bake Sale Exhibition, audiocassette recordings of women's abortion stories for the
Pro-Choice project, and typescript narratives for the 1984 installation
Flowers for Four Women.
The series also contains three DVDs of digital image files. Software formats were identified using a DROID (Digital Record
Object IDentification) report from information recorded in the PRONOM technical registry. All dates refer to last modified
dates of files. Born-digital materials are integrated into their corresponding series based on content. The original order
of the born-digital files is retained.
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by project, with group exhibitions and unidentified projects at the end of the series. When project
files include materials that date beyond the date of the project itself, the project date is noted in parentheses following
the project title. Most slides were originally housed in a binder, with select color slides originally housed in project files
and labeled as slides for the
Mother Art: A Collective of Women Artists publication. All slides (color and black-and-white) were rehoused in archival binders by the processing archivists. The distinction
between the groups of color slides was maintained.
Rainbow Playground (1973),
1973-1974, undated
box 5, folder 1, box 6, folder 6
box 1, folder 14
Notes and inkjet prints,
1973, undated
box 2, folder 1
Trading Cards for gumball machine,
1974
Scope and Contents
Thirty-two laminated handmade color trading cards of figurative or abstract illustrations and one baseball card for Angels
shortstop Jim Anderson.
By Mothers (1975-1976),
1975-1980
box 7*, folder 4
Black-and-white print,
1975
Scope and Contents
One 10 x 13 inch print, mounted.
box 5, folder 2, box 6, folder 7
box 2, folder 2-3
Fliers, programs, and clippings,
1975-1980
Bake Sale Exhibition,
1977
box 2, folder 4
Fliers and price list,
1977
Laundry Works (1977),
1976-1984, undated
box 4, folder 1
Black-and-white negatives and contact prints,
1977
box 7*, folder 2-3
Black-and-white prints,
1977
Scope and Contents
Six 7 x 9 inch prints, mounted.
box 2, folder 5
California Arts Council grant account book,
circa 1977-1984
box 2, folder 6
Clippings,
1976-1981, undated
box 5, folder 4, box 6, folder 8
box 2, folder 7
Correspondence and clippings,
1976-1981
Scope and Contents
Includes Mother Art collective correspondence to the editor of the
Los Angeles Times and a letter by Los Angeles artist Nancy Buchanan to
Los Angeles Times theater critic Dan Sullivan. Also includes fliers, black-and-white photographs, typescript notes on the performances, and
a black-and-white paper mask featuring images of clothespins.
box 7*, folder 1
Final financial report,
1976 December
Scope and Contents
Mounted on mat board.
box 8*, folder 3
"Laundry Works: Gallery into Laundry" pencil drawing,
circa 1977
Scope and Contents
Additional label on drawing reads: Environment by Mother Art and members of WCA at the Woman's Building celebration, Wednesday,
Feb 2, 1977. 20 x 16 1/4 inches.
Mother Art Cleans Up (1978),
1974-1979, 2000, undated
box 5, folder 5
Color slides,
Mother Art Cleans Up City Hall,
1978
box 5, folder 6
Color slides,
Mother Art Cleans Up the Banks,
1978
box 2, folder 8
Gallery exhibitions and related material,
1974-1978, 2000
Scope and Contents
Includes black-and-white prints, inkjet prints, and ephemera that document performances at Los Angeles City Hall and Los Angeles
area banks. Also includes a certificate of appreciation from the Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art (LAICA).
box 7*, folder 6
"Making It Safe: A Project on Violence Against Women in Ocean Park" event calendar,
1979
box 2, folder 9
"Making It Safe" and "Working Together" installations,
1979
Scope and Contents
Includes ephemera and black-and-white prints that document the
Mother Art Cleans Up installations at Barrett's appliance store in Santa Monica and the Exploratorium Gallery at California State University,
Los Angeles.
Art for Public Consumption,
1978
box 2, folder 10
Black-and-white prints and fliers,
1978
box 4, folder 2
Black-and-white negatives,
1978
Scope and Contents
Also includes negatives of an event preceding
Art for Public Consumption held at Barnsdall Art Park, "Dialogues at Barnsdall."
Power Roles for Women (1980),
1979-1981
box 4, folder 3
Black-and-white negatives,
1980
box 2, folder 11-12
Black-and-white prints,
1980 July
box 6, folder 13
Color polaroid photographs,
1980 July
box 3, folder 1
Correspondence and ephemera,
1979-1981
Scope and Contents
Also includes several black-and-white prints, some mounted.
Pro-Choice (1981),
1981-1983, undated
box 3, folder 2
Abortion notes,
circa 1981
Abortion stories,
1981-1983, undated
Scope and Contents
Accounts from women who received illegal abortions.
box 11, Item C6
"Mother Art, Gloria's Story, last take 175,"
undated
Mother Art, Gloria's Story, last take 175 (digitized version available on-site only): undated
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (90 min.) : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for
reformatting.
box 11, Item C7
"0-55 Deborah-abortion, Hal-abortion, Arlene-abortion,"
undated
0-55 Deborah-abortion, Hal-abortion, Arlene-abortion (digitized version available on-site only): undated
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (90 min.) : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for
reformatting.
box 11, Item C8
"Mother Art - 11/21/81 art perf. 'Not Even If It's You,' Church of Ocean Park, Santa Monica, CA,"
1981
Mother Art - 11/21/81 art perf. 'Not Even If It's You,' Church of Ocean Park, Santa Monica, CA (digitized version available
on-site only): 1981
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (60 min.) : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Handwritten on B side: Dodgers win World Series - 10/28/81
to 415. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 11, Item C9
"M. Art abortion tape stories 1981, approximately 44 minutes side 9-83,"
1981, 1983
M. Art abortion tape stories 1981, approximately 44 minutes side 9-83 (digitized version available on-site only): 1981, 1983
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (60 min.) : analog, mono ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference
for reformatting.
box 11, Item C10
"Mother Art abortion tape, 4 stories repeated, whole tape 10-83,"
1983
"Mother Art abortion tape, 4 stories repeated, whole tape 10-83", 1983 (digitized version available on-site only)
Scope and Contents
1 audiocassette (90 min.) : analog ; 3 7/8 x 2 1/2 in., 1/8 in. tape. Handwritten on B side: Skip 1st story (Deb), start w/
Caroline." Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 4, folder 4
Black-and-white 35mm negatives and contact print,
1981
box 5, folder 7, box 6, folder 9
Color slides,
1981
Scope and Contents
Museum of Illegal Abortion installation and
Not Even If It's You performance shots.
box 3, folder 3
Performance scripts and research notes,
1981, undated
Scope and Contents
Also includes Mother Art pro-choice ephemera, color inkjet prints, and a performance review of
Not Even If It's You, held at the Church in Ocean Park, Santa Monica, California, November 21, 1981.
box 8*, folder 2
Poster, "Thanks, But No Thanks,"
undated
Scope and Contents
Poster for a public art event presented by Los Angeles Political Art Documentation/Distribution, with a performance night
in Ocean Park that featured Mother Art.
L.A. Guernica (1982),
1982-1985, undated
box 4, folder 5
Black-and-white 35mm negatives, contact prints, and photographs,
1982
box 3, folder 4
Correspondence, fliers, and clippings,
1982-1985, undated
Scope and Contents
Also includes black-and-white photographs and a color inkjet print of the installation, printed at a later date.
box 7*, folder 6
Journals and wall label,
1985
Flowers for Four Women (1984),
1984, undated
box 3, folder 5
Ephemera and typescript narratives,
undated
Scope and Contents
Includes seven black ink drawings of flowers adhered to a single sheet of paper.
Homeless Women (1984),
1984-1988, 2005, undated
box 6, folder 2
Color slides,
1984-1986, undated
box 3, folder 6
Correspondence, fliers, and typescript narratives,
1985-1988, 2005, undated
Scope and Contents
Also includes a poster for the Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions presentation of The Cotton Exchange Show and a pencil
drawing of an outline of a female figure.
The Dining Room Table (1985),
1985, undated
box 3, folder 7
Interview transcripts and color inkjet prints,
1985, undated
Scope and Contents
Transcripts of an interview with Barbara Avedon, one of the founders of Another Mother for Peace.
(Re)visiting Mother Art (2000),
2000, undated
box 3, folder 8
Postcards and clippings,
2000, undated
Scope and Contents
Also includes press releases, a price list of Mother Art works, and a timeline of the collective's history.
box 6, folder 4
Color slides,
Running Out of Time,
2000
box 3, folder 9
Mother Art Cleans Up Yet Again postcards,
2016
box 3, folder 10, box 7*, folder 5
Group exhibition ephemera,
1982-1985, 2000-2014
Unidentified,
1975-2017, undated
box 6, folder 5
Color slides,
1975-1978, undated
box 4, folder 6
Black-and-white print and postcard,
1978 January
Scope and Contents
Includes Helen Million, Suzanne Siegel, Gloria Hajduk, and Laura Silagi.
box 8*, folder 1
Posters,
1978
Scope and Contents
Two black-and-white posters titled: Wanted: For crimes of role fixing and failure to tamper with stereotypes, featuring images
of Gloria Hajduk, Laura Silagi, Suzanne Seigel, and Helen Million Ruby.
box 4, folder 7
Black-and-white 35mm negatives, contact print, and postcard,
1983 March 7
Scope and Contents
Possibly images of the
At Home exhibition at the Long Beach Museum of Art, part of
Pro-Choice, Mother Art's series of installations and performances about abortion. Includes group images of Suzanne Siegel, Deborah Krall,
Laura Silagi, and Gloria Hajduk.
Photomural panels,
2011, 2017
Scope and Contents
All dates refer to last modified dates of files.
box 10, Item CM1
"Mother Art photomural panel 1,"
2017 September 27
Physical Description:
0.6 GB
(4 files)
Scope and Contents
1 computer disc (DVD-R) : digital ; 4 3/4 in.
CM1 contains: 1 Adobe Photoshop Document file (.psd) titled: 1st panel bank photomural." Unavailable until reformatted. Contact
reference for reformatting.
box 10, Item CM2
"Mother Art photomural panel 2,"
2017 September 27
Physical Description:
0.1 GB
(4 files)
Scope and Contents
1 computer disc (DVD-R) : digital ; 4 3/4 in.
CM2 contains: 1 Adobe Photoshop Document file (.psd) titled: 2nd panel washingmachines [sic] photomural." Unavailable until
reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 10, Item CM4
"Mother Art photomurals, 2 banks, 2 machines, 4 images,"
2011 July 25-30
Physical Description:
2.22 GB
(7 files)
Scope and Contents
1 computer disc (DVD-R) : digital ; 4 3/4 in.
CM4 contains: 4 Adobe Photoshop Document files (.psd) titled: panel with machines; panel with banks; correct scale banks;
and scaled washing machine panel. Unavailable until reformatted. Contact reference for reformatting.
box 4, folder 8
Black-and-white 35mm negatives and contact print,
undated
