Alan Sondheim Papers

Call Number

MSS.267

Date

1965-2010, inclusive

Creator

Sondheim, Alan

Extent

55.5 Linear Feet

in 21 record cartons, 47 manuscript boxes, 11 flat boxes, 3 media boxes, 1 LP box, 1 flat file, and 4 oversize film cans

Extent

88 sound tape reels

Extent

216 audiocassettes

Extent

47 film reels

including 23 8mm film reels, 1 super 8 film reel, 22 16mm film reels, and 1 35mm film reel.

Extent

87 Half_Inch_Video_Reel

Extent

100 U-matic

Extent

7 Betamax

Extent

1 Betacam

Extent

124 VHS

Extent

3 MiniDV

Extent

87 Hi8

Extent

2 Sound_Disc--Vinyl

Extent

260 Gigabytes

in 30,768 digital files

Language of Materials

Materials are in English.

Abstract

Alan Sondheim (born 1943) is an author, musician, artist, and cyberspace theorist. His work explores embodiment in cyberspace and the use of computer technology and coding languages for personal and artistic expression. This collection contains Sondheim's intellectual and artistic work across many mediums. It includes his written work in articles, manuscripts, e-mails, and digital files; his visual artwork portrayed on paper and canvas, in photographs, photo slides, and negatives, and in digital images; his musical work, as both a solo artist and as a member of the groups Damaged Life and Ritual-All-7-70, on audio reels and audiocassettes; his work as a filmmaker on a variety of film and video formats; his engagement in exhibitions and performances, often in collaboration with other artists; and his academic career, reflected in lecture notes, instructional materials, and syllabi.

Biographical Note

Alan Sondheim is an author, musician, artist, and cyberspace theorist. He was born February 3, 1943 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania and received a B.A. and M.A. in English from Brown University.

Sondheim's work explores embodiment in cyberspace and Codework, which is the use of computer coding languages for creative expression. His written works include Being on Line: Net Subjectivity (1997), Disorders of the Real (1988), .echo (2001), Vel (Blazevox, 2004-5), Sophia (Writers Forum, 2004), The Wayward (2004), and Writing Under (2012), as well as numerous other chapbooks, ebooks, and articles. In 1994, Sondheim began a "continuous meditation on cyberspace" titled The Internet Text. This collection of writing and mixed media art is distributed via the email list "Cybermind" and displayed online (https://collection.eliterature.org/1/works/sondheim__internet_text.html). He has also co-moderated several email lists, including "Cyberculture," "Wryting," "Fiction of Philosophy," "Image," and "Deleuze World." Sondheim's writing is philosophical and poetic in nature, often incorporating computer coding languages and concepts from online gaming communities.

Sondheim is also a musician, and has released numerous albums as a solo musical artist and a member of the groups Damaged Life and Ritual-All-7-70. He started out as a guitarist, and expanded to playing a variety of instruments, including ghijak, cura, saz, sarangi, sing lisu, harmonica, and Chinese mouth harp. His music is characterized as post-industrial, avant-garde, and free improvisation. He frequently collaborates with his partner, singer/songwriter Azure Carter. Sondheim has also collaborated extensively with Swiss choreographer and dancer Foofwa d'Imobilité (Frederic Gafner), as well as many other dancers, often using tools like motion capturing technology to explore themes of embodiment and sexuality in cyberspace.

Sondheim has created several films and videos, including The Blue Tape (1974, co-directed with Kathy Acker), Hollywood (1981), Postmodern Pobre (1992), Nikuko (2000), and Trilby (2002). Much of his filmography includes digital avatars that are manipulated with 3D blending software. He has also shot a large collection of travel and nature photography and videography.

Sondheim has completed residencies at the trAce Online Writing Centre of Nottingham-Trent University, SecondLife's Odyssey exhibition space, West Virginia University's Center for Literary Computer and Virtual Environments Laboratory, and Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana. In 2001-2002, Sondheim taught New Media at Florida International University in Miami. In 2006-2007, he taught filmmaking at his alma mater, Brown University. His mixed media art has been exhibited and performed internationally and across the United States. He also speaks at symposiums, conferences, and cultural events that explore cyberspace theory, including the Cybermind96 Conference, CyPosium, and South by Southwest.

Arrangement

Organized into six series:

Series I. Written Work;

Series II. Visual Art;

Series III. Musical Recordings;

Series IV. Film and Video Recordings;

Series V. Exhibitions and Events;

Series VI. Academic Career.

Scope and Contents

Alan Sondheim is an author, musician, artist, and cyberspace theorist. His work explores embodiment in cyberspace and the use of computer technology and coding languages for personal and artistic expression. This collection contains Sondheim's intellectual and artistic work across many mediums, including written work, visual art, films and videos, musical recordings, multimedia exhibitions, and dance performances.

Sondheim's work is primarily concerned with the convergence of the real world with the virtual world, expressed through artistic creation and collaboration. The written work in this collection ranges from calculator programs to philosophical academic texts and poetic reflections on virtual environments. Some written pieces include multimedia and web elements, and some are nestled within email listservs.

The musical recordings in this collection include Sondheim's solo work, as well as works by the bands Damaged Life and Ritual-All-7-70 (often referred to as "All"). These recordings are characterized as post-industrial, avant-garde, and free improvisation, and include a large variety of musical instruments. In addition to sound recordings, this collection also holds written documents pertaining to Sondheim's musical career, such as set lists, performance flyers, liner notes, and circuitry diagrams. There are also many photographs of Sondheim and his contemporaries capturing Very Low Frequency (VLF) recordings in natural settings.

The films, videos, and visual art in this collection iterate on the human body manipulated with technology, often with 3D blending programs, motion capture techniques, and modern dance. Codework, a concept created by Sondheim that refers to the use of computer coding languages and technology for creative expression, can be found throughout the collection. Sondheim's work frequently explores sexual themes, and may include sexually explicit content.

In addition to his solo work, Sondheim has worked with numerous artists. Throughout the collection, collaborative pieces with musician Azure Carter, choreographer and dancer Foofwa d'Imobilité, writers Kathy Acker and Sandy Bladwin, filmmaker Leslie Thornton, poet Miekal And, and many others highlight the collaborative nature of Sondheim's work.

Sondheim's films, exhibitions, and dance performances have premiered across the U.S. and internationally. He has held residencies at the trAce Online Writing Centre, SecondLife's Odyssey, West Virginia University's Center for Literary Computer and Virtual Environments Laboratory, and Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana. Sondheim has taught New Media at Florida International University (2001-2002), Filmmaking at Brown University (2006-2007), and has been an Artist in Residence at many other institutions. He has also appeared at many symposiums, conferences, and cultural events, including the Cybermind96 Conference, CyPosium, and South by Southwest. Sondheim's travels greatly influence his work, and in addition to event documentation, this collection includes a large volume of photographs and videos related to travel.

Subjects

Topics

Cyberspace -- Political aspects.; Art and the internet -- Exhibitions; Computer art.; Digital art; New media art.; Video art -- United States.; Experimental films -- United States; Slides (Photography); Gender identity -- United States; Feminist theory.

Conditions Governing Access

Materials are open without restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

This collection is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use materials in the collection in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Preferred Citation

Identification of item, date; Alan Sondheim Papers; MSS 267; box number; folder number; Fales Library and Special Collections, New York University.

Location of Materials

Some materials are stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. Please request materials at least two business days prior to your research visit to coordinate access.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchased from Alan Sondheim in April, 2010; the accession numbers associated with this collection are 2009-267 and 2023-043.

Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures

Access to some audiovisual materials in this collection is available through digitized access copies. Researchers may view an item's original container, but the media themselves are not available for playback because of preservation concerns. Materials that have already been digitized are noted in the collection's finding aid and can be requested in our reading room. To request an access copy, or if you are unsure if an item has been digitized, please contact special.collections@nyu.edu with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.

Born-Digital Access Policies and Procedures

Advance notice is required for the use of computer records. Original physical digital media is restricted.

An access terminal for born-digital materials in the collection is available by appointment for reading room viewing and listening only. Researchers may view an item's original container and/or carrier, but the physical carriers themselves are not available for use because of preservation concerns.

Appraisal

During processing an archivist identified published books, commercial audiovisual recordings, art pieces by other artists, and personal documents. These materials were removed from the collection, deaccessioned, and offered back to the donor by a curator in 2022.

During processing of the accretion associated with accession number 2023-043, 3 linear feet of materials were identified as outside of the scope of the collection and offered back to the donor. These materials included original housing, art pieces by other artists, and personal items.

Collection processed by

Rachel Mahre

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2024-02-06 14:24:20 -0500.

Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Language: Finding aid written in English

Processing Information

In Winter of 2021 and Spring of 2022, the collection was arranged and described by an archivist. The collection was divided into series based on record type and material was arranged together intellectually within these series. Wherever possible, record titles were taken directly from descriptions or labels provided by Sondheim. Physically, items are stored together with others of the same format.

Films stored in unsuitable containers, many exhibiting signs of vinegar syndrome, were scanned and rehoused by Preservation during the collection survey process. Several audio reels were also rehoused. Images of the original containers have been preserved.

Several photographs received treatment from Preservation during the survey process, including photos that were stuck together, photos stuck in enclosures, and negative strips that required special housing.

Audio reel 267_124 in Box 24 (Barcode 31142063407004) was identified as moldy on December 6, 2021. Theis item is currently isolated from other items in the box by housing it in a polyethylene bag with a desiccated board and RH monitor strip. If this strip indicates an RH greater than 50%, the Preservation department should be contacted ASAP. Do not open this packaging without contacting the Preservation Department.

8 video reels in Box 82 were identified as moldy in October, 2021. These items are currently isolated from other items in the box by housing them in polyethylene bags with desiccated boards and RH monitor strips. If a strip indicates an RH greater than 50%, the Preservation department should be contacted ASAP. Do not open this packaging without contacting the Preservation Department.

195 optical discs, 2 floppy disks, and 1 hard drive were forensically imaged, analyzed, and arranged. New York University Libraries follows professional standards and best practices when imaging, ingesting, and processing born-digital material in order to maintain the integrity of the content.

In March 2023 during an audio digitization project, six 1/4" audio reels were found to be blank and subsequently discarded.

In the Spring of 2023 some additional materials were found in the repository. The accession number associated with these materials is 2023-043. In September 2023 these materials were processed by an archivist. During processing, large format photo negatives were inspected and rehoused by Preservation.

Revisions to this Guide

March 2023: Updated by Rachel Mahre to state that audio materials have been digitized and are accessible to patrons.

September 2023: Updated by Rachel Mahre to process accretion

November 2023: Updated by Rachel Mahre to include rehoused photo negatives

Repository

Fales Library and Special Collections