Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- Sim贸n Silva papers
- Dates:
- 1991-1997
- Abstract:
- Papers and artwork of Sim贸n Silva, a Los Angeles-based contemporary artist.
- Extent:
- 3.5 Linear Feet (1 document box, 1 flat box, and 9 posters)
- Language:
- English Spanish; Castilian
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of Item], Sim贸n Silva Papers, CEMA 68. Department of Special Research Collections, UC Santa Barbara Library, University of California, Santa Barbara.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The collection contains materials produced and compiled by Sim贸n Silva through the creation of his artwork. Materials include correspondence, notecards, photographic prints, posters, slides, and newspaper clippings.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Sim贸n Silva (1961- ) was born in Mexicali, Mexico and moved to the United States with his family at the age of one and a half. One of eleven children, he grew up in Holtville, California a small border town in Southern California. From an early age to his mid-twenties, Silva worked alongside his family in the fields of the Imperial Valley, eventually traveling to Oregon and Washington to work over the summers.
Due to the lack of respect for his type of labor and his family's lack of educational support, Silva found meaning, motivation, and confidence through art. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from Imperial Valley College in 1981, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena in 1986.
Silva lives in San Bernardino, California, with his wife Mar铆a, and their three sons, Josu茅, Francisco Xavier, and Emilio. In addition to creating and exhibiting his own artwork, Silva travels the country lecturing at schools to inspire others by sharing his art and his personal experiences.
Describing himself as "American-Mexican, not Mexican-American," Silva's work is inspired by his upbringing, which instilled a strong work ethic, his experiences traveling across California, Oregon, and Washington State, and the Los Angeles Chicano art movement. Exhibited both locally and internationally, his art brings attention to the often overlooked hardworking individuals and the challenging conditions they endure, making the invisible visible through his art.
- Acquisition information:
- Gift of Sim贸n Silva, September 1996.
- Arrangement:
-
This collection has been arranged by topic into seven series:
- Series 1: Personal and Biographical
- Series 2: Notecards
- Series 3: Slides
- Series 4: Photographic prints
- Series 5: Lithographs
- Series 6: Publications
- Series 7: Video recordings
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Indexed terms
- Subjects:
- Mexican American art -- 20th century
About this collection guide
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-04-08 10:58:32 -0700 .
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
This collection is open for research. Audiovisual materials must be reformatted for access. Please contact the Department of Special Research Collections in advance to request access.
- Terms of access:
-
Property rights to the collection and physical objects belong to the Regents of the University of California acting through the Department of Special Research Collections at the UCSB Library. All applicable literary rights, including copyright to the collection and physical objects, are protected under Chapter 17 of the U.S. Copyright Code and may be retained by the creator and the copyright owner, heir(s), or assigns.
All requests to reproduce, quote from, or otherwise reuse collection materials must be submitted in writing to the Department of Special Research Collections at UCSB at special@library.ucsb.edu. Consent is given on behalf of the Regents of the University of California acting through the Department of Special Research Collections at UCSB as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission from the copyright owner. Such permission must be obtained from the copyright owner, heir(s), or assigns. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or their assignees for permission to publish where the UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of Item], Sim贸n Silva Papers, CEMA 68. Department of Special Research Collections, UC Santa Barbara Library, University of California, Santa Barbara.
- Location of this collection:
-
UC Santa Barbara LibrarySanta Barbara, CA 93106-9010, US
- Contact:
- (805) 893-3062