Scope and Contents
Arrangement Note
Conditions Governing Access
Conditions Governing Use
Source of Acquisition
Accruals and Additions
Preferred Citation
Biographical Note
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & University Archives
Title: Donna Barr Papers
Creator:
Barr, Donna
Identifier/Call Number: MS-0072
Physical Description:
40.90 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1963-2014
Language of Material:
English
.
Scope and Contents
Materials in the
Donna Barr Papers document the professional career and creative process of Donna Barr. The collection includes a variety of document types
including correspondence, original artwork, and research materials. A large part of the papers consist of versions of her
illustrations, manuscripts, and personal documents. The papers have been divided into ten series:
Correspondence,
Administrative Files,
Desert Peach
,
Stinz
,
Bosom Enemies
,
Hadar and the Colonel
,
Other Works,
Audio and Visual Media Materials,
Born Digital Materials, and
Original Artwork.
The
Correspondence series dates from 1970-2014, and includes files primarily pertaining to Donna's interactions with fans. It includes birthday
and holiday greetings, thank you cards, fan-authored comic strips, paper dolls, and postcards. Several of the envelopes were
illustrated either by Barr or her fans. The series also includes correspondence with her family in the early 1970s. The series
is filed chronologically by date.
The
Administrative Files date from 1985-2014, and include files primarily pertaining to Barr's professional career. The series includes four subseries.
The topical
Subject Files are composed of business correspondence, art class materials, invoices, pamphlets, flyers, notes, legal referrals, contact
information, and directories. The
Consignment Work subseries includes illustrations, flyers, newsletters, pamphlets, greeting card layouts, and journals. The
Awards & Recognition subseries is composed of awards and certificates of achievement and recognition. The
Press Clippings series contains various newspapers clippings, newsletters, and magazines articles written by Barr and about her. The series
and all its subseries are filed chronologically by date.
The following Series represent the published and unpublished titles of Donna Barr's manuscripts and illustrative works:
The Desert Peach
comic materials date from 1919-2003, and includes the records of Barr's creative work for the series. The subseries is composed
of manuscripts, musical production files, announcements, press clippings, illustrations, media, and artifacts. The
Stinz
series is composed of comic strip stories, manuscripts, illustrations, artifacts, and photographs. The
Bosom Enemies
series is composed of comic strips stories and illustrations. The
Hader and the Colonel
series consists of comic strips, book drafts, and illustrations. The
Other Works series documents the creation of numerous shorter works, or works which are not very well documented in the collection. It
includes various comic strip stories, short stories, illustrations, and manuscripts. The series and all its subseries are
filed chronologically by date, when possible.
The
Audio and Visual Media Materials, c. 1987-2006, represents audio and video recordings from
The Desert Peach musical production and various interviews with Donna Barr. The series also contains 35mm slides of artwork.
Please note: All of the Audio and Visual Media Materials represented in the papers are restricted for access. Please contact
Robert Ray, Head of Special Collections and University Archives at rray@mail.sdsu.edu for more information.
The
Born Digital Materials represent professional and personal documents and art work originating on various media formats, including ZipDiscs, 3.5
floppy discs, CDs, and DVDs.
The Born Digital Materials in Series 9 are restricted. Please contact Robert Ray, Head of Special Collections and University
Archives at rray@mail.sdsu.edu for more information.
The
Original Artwork series is an oversize extensive collection of original artwork from 1988-2012. The series includes all the rough sketches,
penned ink art, line drawings, and colored panels and covers for
The Desert Peach,
Stinz, and other miscellaneous titles. The materials also include original paintings and watercolors of various non-comic related
material. It is arranged into three subseries:
The Desert Peach
,
Stinz
, and
Other Works.
Arrangement Note
I. Correspondence, 1970-2014
II. Administrative Files, 1982-2014
1. Subject Files, 1985-2014
2. Consignment Work, 1975-2010
3. Awards and Recognition, 1973-2010
4. Press Clippings, 1987-2004
III.
The Desert Peach, 1919-2003
1. Manuscripts, 1919-2003
2. Musical Production, 1943-1992
3. Announcements, 1988-2000
4. Illustrations, 1980-1995
5. Additional Materials, 1941-2001
IV.
Stinz, 1982-2003
V.
Bosom Enemies, 1987-2001
VI.
Hader and the Colonel, 1987-1999
VII. Other Works, 1981-2003
VIII. Audio and Visual Media Materials, ca. 1987-2006
IX. Born Digital Materials, c. 2000-2013
X. Original Artwork (Oversize), 1988-2012
1.
The Desert Peach, 1988-2012
2.
Stinz, 1985-2006
3. Other Works, 1988-2012
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research. All of the Audio and Visual Media Materials represented in the papers and the Born Digital
Materials in Series 9 are restricted. Please contact Robert Ray, Head of Special Collections and University Archives at rray@mail.sdsu.edu
for more information.
Conditions Governing Use
The copyright interests in these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with
the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of historical archival and manuscript collections
is such that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. Requests for permission to publish must be
submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. When granted, permission
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Source of Acquisition
Donna Barr
Accruals and Additions
2008-021, 2008-046, 2009-012, 2009-018, 2009-046, 2010-002, 2010-003, 2010-037, 2010-039, 2011-055, 2012-012, 2012-031, 2013-005,
2013-018, 2014-003, 2014-011, 2014-020, 2014-026
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, folder title, box number, Donna Barr Collection, Special Collections and University Archives, San
Diego State University Library.
Biographical Note
Donna Barr, an accomplished artist and prolific writer, was born in Everett, Washington in 1952, and began drawing as a child
in 1954. She served in the United States Army from 1970-73, and received a bachelors' degree in German from Ohio State University
in 1978.
Barr is best known for her two comic book series
Stinz (1984) and
The Desert Peach (1986).
Stinz tells the story of a society of centaur-like people living in a setting reminiscent of pre-industrial Germany, while
The Desert Peach is about Pfirsich Rommel, the fictional and homosexual younger brother of Erwin "The Desert Fox Rommel," and is set in North
Africa during World War II. Subsequent publications included
Hader and the Colonel (1987),
Bosom Enemies (1987), and
Barr Girls (1990). Her work has been translated into German, Japanese, Italian, and Croatian. Her most ambitious work is a series of
handmade ornate, stitchery-covered bound sketchbooks, called the
Black Manuscripts. In 1997, Barr started her own publishing company.
Barr has been a respected presence in drawn-book publishing throughout her career. Her drawn books, which cross the boundaries
between art and writing, redefine traditional novels, artist's books, graphic novels, and book design and illustration. Her
background in 20th-century German culture and language, literature, world mythologies, history, and religion informs her artwork,
which is influenced by Japanese woodcuts, European fine arts, Victorian novels, Chinese poets, and Russian mystics. She works
in pencil, ink, watercolor, and silkscreen.
Barr has been recognized throughout her career with numerous awards and honors, including The Xeric Grant 2000; The Bruce
Brown Foundation Grant 2004; San Diego Comicon International's Inkpot, 1996; Seattle's Cartoonists Northwest's Toonies, 1998;
London Comic Creator's Guild's Best Ongoing Humor Series, 1992; the Washington Press Association's Communicator of Excellence
for Fiction, 1997 and 1998.
Aside from her professional and personal writing, she has been involved in the Northwest community as a member of the Graphic
Artists Guild, the National Writers Union, UAW/AFL/CIO, and a consultant for the Media curriculum in the Arts Department at
Olympic College, in Bremerton, Washington. She lectures on her work at conventions and symposiums all over the United States,
Canada, and Europe, and is well known to the growing drawn-book audience in Eastern Europe. She lives in Clallam Bay, Washington
with her husband.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Personal Papers
Desert Peach (Fictitious character)
Desert Peach (Fictitious character)--Comic books, strips, etc
Caricatures and cartoons
World War, 1939-1945--Comic books, strips, etc
Nazis--Comic books, strips, etc
Zines
Women artists
Barr, Donna, 1952--Archives
Rommel, Erwin, 1891-1944--Comic books, strips, etc