Scope and Contents note
Processing Information note
Preferred Citation note
Biographical/Historical note
Accruals note
Conditions Governing Use note
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
Arrangement note
Conditions Governing Access note
Additional collection guides
Title: Frank R. LaPena papers
Identifier/Call Number: MSS 2001/31
Contributing Institution:
California State University, Sacramento Special Collections & University Archives
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
78.75 Linear feet
(57 record cartons and 5 oversize flat boxes)
Date (bulk): Bulk, 1970-2000
Date (inclusive): 1930s-2013
Abstract: The Frank R. LaPena Papers (1900-2013) include subject files on topics concerning
Native
Americans
, in particular, California Indians. Topics include institutions, people, programs, laws, and events. In addition, files relating
to his time teaching and participating in campus programs at Sacramento State University since the late 1960s are part of
the collection. The collection is rich with records documenting Frank LaPena’s involvement with various public and community
projects, organizations, and activities, among them the Alliance for California Traditional Arts, American Indian Historical
Society, Atlatl, California Arts Council, California Commemorative Seals Advisory Committee, California Indian Education Association,
California State Capitol Commission, California State Indian Museum, and
Native
American
Heritage Commission. A significant portion of the collection deals with LaPena’s artistic work and philosophy, his participation
in museum and art gallery exhibitions, both national and international, and his scholarly contributions to the art world and
art criticism, especially as it concerns contemporary
Native
American
art.
Language of Materials note: Collection is in English and Maidu.
creator:
LaPena, Frank R.
Scope and Contents note
The Frank R. LaPena Papers measure 78.75 linear feet (57 record cartons and 5 oversize flat boxes) plus materials in oversize
folders, and are dated 1940s-2013 (bulk 1968-2005). The papers consist of correspondence, printed material, writings, publications,
teaching material, notes, research materials, sound recordings, artwork, and photographs. They document LaPena’s career as
an activist, artist, educator, traditionalist, writer and curator of exhibitions in the field of contemporary art. A small
number of records concerning his personal life are included in the Biographical and Personal files (Series 1).
Found within the collection are Reference Files (Series 4) that are subject/correspondence files for artists/other individuals,
museums/galleries/organizations, and subjects. General correspondence to and from LaPena are found in Letters (Series 3).
Also found in the collection are Project Files (Subseries 4.2) that include manuscripts, notes, related correspondence, and
reference and research material for publications in which LaPena’s writing and/or art were included. Exhibition Files (Series
5) include manuscripts, notes, related correspondence, research material, and printed material. Teaching Files (Series 2)
consist of notes, reference and research materials, and administrative correspondence.
Documents relating to LaPena’s public activities—including art related activities, poetry readings, lectures, community projects,
ceremonial and traditional performances, and consultant work—are included Series 6. Among the Printed Material (Series 7)
is a wide variety of items collected by Frank LaPena, much of which overlaps with similar material in the Subject Files (Subseries
4.1). Photographs are of works of art, with some of exhibition installations, people, and miscellaneous subjects. The artwork
found in the collection includes lithographs, illustrations, drawings, and textiles. Book covers, newspaper layouts, and posters
are included in the Oversize files (Series 9). The collection also includes artifacts such as a
Native
American
pipe, a scrapbook, an exhibit model, and visual and audio recordings (Series 8).
Processing Information note
The papers were processed to a minimal level by Frank La Pena and SCUA staff in spring 2003.
Preferred Citation note
[Identification of item including date], [Folder Title], MSS 2001/31, Frank R. LaPena papers, Department of Special Collections
and University Archives, The Library, California State University, Sacramento.
Biographical/Historical note
Frank LaPena was born on October 5, 1937 in San Francisco, California to parents of the Wintu-Nomtipom tribe of
Native
Americans
. He was sent away to live at a federal American Indian boarding school when he was 5 years old and he stayed there until
after he graduated from high school in 1956. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Chico State University in 1965 and
did graduate work at San Francisco State University as well as California State University, Sacramento (CSUS), where he received
his Master of Arts in Anthropology in 1978.
LaPena started teaching professionally in 1969. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Chico,
a teaching credential at San Francisco State, and a Master of Arts degree in anthropology at Sacramento State. He is a Professor
Emeritus of Art and Ethnic Studies and was Director of
Native
American
Studies at Sacramento State for almost 30 years. He currently resides in Sacramento. LaPena identifies as a Wintu-Nomtipom
American Indian. He has been and continues to be a tireless educator of
Native
American
culture, a writer and poet, and an activist of
Native
American
and human rights. He is a founding member and Dance Captain of the Maidu Dancers and Traditionalists, a cultural dance group
dedicated to the revival and preservation of the ceremonial traditions of his own and other Northern California Indian communities.
As an accomplished artist, LaPena has exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the United States and Europe, as well
as Canada, Mexico, Cuba, South America, and New Zealand. He is a painter, printer, sculptor, illustrator, and photographer.
His art has been exhibited at the Crocker Art Museum, Oakland Museum of California, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, National
Museum of the American Indian (Smithsonian), the Linden Museum (Stuttgart, Germany), the Brooklyn Museum of Art, the C. N.
Gorman Museum (Davis, CA), American Indian Community House (New York and San Francisco), the Santa Fe Festival of the Arts,
the Heard Museum (Phoenix, AZ), and the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian (Santa Fe, NM), to name a few.
Accruals note
No further additions are expected.
Conditions Governing Use note
Copyright is protected by the copyright law, Chapter 17 of the U.S. Code. Requests for permission to publish, quote, or reproduce
from collections must be submitted in writing to the Head of the Department of Special Collections and University Archives.
Permission for publication is given on the behalf of the Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Library,
California State University, Sacramento as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include permission of the
copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
Donated by Frank LaPena in multiple deposits since August 2001.
Arrangement note
Series 1: Biographical and Personal, 1970s-2000s Series 2: Teaching Files, 1970s-2000s Series 3: Letters, 1960s-2000s Series
4: Reference Files, 1960s-2010s Series 5: Exhibition Files, 1960s-2010s Series 6: Public Activities, 1960s-2010s Series 7:
Printed Material, 1970s-2000s Series 8: Artifacts, 1990s-2000s Series 9: Oversize, 1960s-2000s
Conditions Governing Access note
A container listing is currently available for this collection. Contact the Department for further information on access.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
LaPena, Frank R.
LaPena, Frank R.
Native
American
arts
Native
Americans
Additional collection guides