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Alexander (Will) Papers
mssAlexanderw
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: Will Alexander papers
Identifier/Call Number: mssAlexanderw
Physical Description:
8 Linear Feet
(15 boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1979-2017
Abstract: Materials related to the creative output of writer, artist, and musician Will Alexander, including drafts of artistic works;
notebooks containing poetry, prose, and notes; research materials indicating areas of interest and inspiration; and audio
recordings.
Language of Material: Materials are in English.
Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more
information.
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material,
nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and
obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
NOT AVAILABLE. Audio materials in box 15 are not available for paging until reformatted. Please contact Reader Services for
more information.
[Identification of item]. Will Alexander papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Purchased from Will Alexander through Granary Books, December 2021.
Writer and artist Will Alexander was born in Los Angeles, California in 1948. He attended the University of California, Los
Angeles, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in English and Creative Writing in 1972. Alexander has published several books
of poetry including Across the Vapour Gulf (2017), Compression & Purity (2011), The Sri Lankan Loxodrome (2009), Asia & Haiti
(1995), and The Stratospheric Canticles (1995). He has taught at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa
University; the University of California, San Diego; and Hofstra University. His collection Singing In Magnetic Hoofbeat:
Essays, Prose, Texts, Interviews, and a Lecture (2013) was awarded an American Book Award; and Refractive Africa: Ballet of
the Forgotten was a 2022 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in poetry. Alexander's other honors include a Whiting Fellowship
for Poetry, a California Arts Council Fellowship, a PEN/Oakland Josephine Miles Award, and the 2016 Jackson Poetry Prize.
The collection includes drafts of Will Alexander's artistic works; notebooks containing poetry, prose, and notes; research
materials indicating areas of interest and inspiration; and audio recordings of interviews and Alexander's piano playing.
Processed by Kelly Kress in March 2023. Will Alexander's original arrangement and folder titles were retained.
Detailed inventory available in collection information file. See Reader Services for more information.
Arranged in three series:
1. Works, projects, and research materials
2. Notebooks
3. Audio recordings
Subjects and Indexing Terms
American poetry -- African American authors
American poetry -- 20th century
American poetry -- 21st century
Poetry, Modern -- 20th century
Poetry, Modern -- 21st century
Audiocassettes
Drafts (documents)
Poetry
Alexander, Will
Torregian, Sotère