L.A. Artists for Survival records relating to Target L.A., 1981-1984, undated

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Summary

Creators:
L.A. Artists For Survival
Abstract:
The collection documents anti-nuclear war festivals in 1982 and 1983 organized by L.A. Artists for Survival, one of the later generation of artists' groups to emerge from the Los Angeles Woman's Building. The materials show the evolution of the festival's development and execution, and comprise largely administrative and production files, photographic documentation, and ephemera.
Extent:
6.97 Linear Feet (13 boxes, 2 flatfile folders)
Language:
Collection material is in English.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection documents the activities surrounding the production of the 1982 and 1983 Target L.A. festivals. Administrative and production files comprise the bulk of the collection; also present are financial and legal documents, clippings, promotional material, ephemera, and photographic documentation.

Arrangement

Arranged in two series: Series I. 1982 event, 1981-1983;Series II. 1983 event, 1981-1984.

Biographical / historical:

Target L.A.: The Art of Survival was conceived as an anti-nuclear art and music festival by the L.A. Artists for Survival (LAAFS), which formed when David Lumian, the president of the Alliance for Survival, approached the political artist Lee Waisler to encourage artists' engagement in the nuclear disarmament movement. In January 1982, LAAFS held their first meeting and received an overwhelming response with over 100 artists in attendance. In the ensuing months, LAAFS' network expanded to over 300 artists. In addition to coordinating the anti-nuclear artists' group Sisters of Survival's performance "Shovel Defense" in May 1982, LAAFS collaborated with the Asian Pacific Americans for Nuclear Awareness and Asian Americans for Nuclear Disarmament to produce the two-day art and music festival Target L.A.: The Art of Survival, held on the anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The event, held at a two-level parking structure on the corner of Alameda and 3rd Street in Little Tokyo, featured art installations and performances by Mother Art, The Waitresses, UNARM, and others, as well as musical and spoken-word performances, "games of nuclear chance" such as "Pin the Lawsuit on the Reactor" and "Kiss the Bombs Goodbye," children's activities, and the "Fallout Fashion" show.

A second event was held in 1983 at Brookside Park in Pasadena, with an expansion in time, space, and theme. Artist Cheri Gaulke, known for her role in the feminist art movement in southern California, served as the project coordinator for both events; her involvement with Target L.A. was a direct outgrowth of her work with the Sisters of Survival (SOS), which originated with the Woman's Building, a non-profit arts and education center that operated in Los Angeles between 1973 and 1991.

Sources:

John Tain, Acquisition Approval Form for "Target L.A.: The Art of Survival (1982-1983) Archives, 1982-1983, accession no. 2017.M.46," May 16, 2016.

L.A. Artists for Survival records relating to Target L.A., accession no. 2017.M.46, "History and Organizational Structure," 1982, Box 4, Folder 11.

L.A. Artists for Survival records relating to Target L.A., accession no. 2017.M.46, Press kit, 1983, Box 5, Folder 13.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Cheri Gaulke, L.A. Artists for Survival. Acquired in 2017.
Physical location:
Request access to the physical materials described in this inventory through the catalog record for this collection. Click here for the access policy.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Location of this collection:
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles, CA 90049-1688, US
Contact:
(310) 440-7390
Website