The Long Beach Museum of Art (LBMA) was among the first museums in the United States to focus on video as an artistic medium. The materials in the archive document LBMA's innovative approaches to collecting, producing and displaying video art, primarily between 1974 and 1999. Materials include artist files; exhibition records; LBMA's administrative records pertaining to the video program; materials on the museum's grant and cable television programs; photographic materials; and almost 5,000 videotapes.

The Long Beach Museum of Art (LBMA) began collecting and exhibiting video art in 1974 and in three decades developed one of the most significant video collections in the country, comprising approximately 5,000 videotapes. LBMA's video program started when museum director, Jan Adlmann, hired curator David Ross to establish the museum's video program. Exhibiting video as an artistic medium was at the forefront of LBMA's mission during the 1970s. The video program allowed artists to display their videos through experimental exhibitions like the Southland Video Anthology (1975-1978), which featured work by hundreds of video artists. Video art exhibitions were already taking place in Europe and on the East Coast in the mid-1960s, and LBMA played a pivotal role in bringing video art to West Coast audiences.

465 Linear Feet (127 boxes, circa 5,000 videos)

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Open for use by qualified researchers. Videos are unavailable until reformatted.