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Stuart Sherman Papers

Call Number

MSS.192

Dates

1945-2001, inclusive
; 1961-2001, bulk

Creator

Sherman, Stuart, 1945-2001
Bradford, Mark (Role: Donor)

Extent

50.8 Linear Feet in 21 record cartons, 2 half manuscript boxes, 3 box binders, 1 LP box, 1 flat box, 63 jewel cases, and 1 shared card box.
28.8 Megabytes in 23 floppy disks.
63 videodiscs (dvd)

Language of Materials

Materials are in English.

Abstract

The Stuart Sherman Papers include material pertaining to his career as a performance and visual artist, poet, actor, and filmmaker. The collection is largely composed of material related to Sherman's artistic output including performance plans, prose and poetry, sketches and diagrams for visual and performance works, drafts for sculpture, photographs, slides, video, film, audio, and floppy disks. Personal material such as correspondence, journal writing, legal and financial documents along with works by fellow artists and writers also make up a large portion of the collection. The material spans from 1945-2001 with the bulk of it covering from 1961-2001.

Biographical Note

Stuart A. Sherman was a performance artist, playwright, filmmaker, videographer, poet, essayist, sculptor and collagist. He was born 9 November 1945 to Helen Gordon and Samuel Sherman in Providence, Rhode Island. Soon after attending Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, Sherman moved to Manhattan and began a career in the arts which would span the next three decades. Before mounting his own work, Stuart Sherman worked extensively with Charles Ludlam in the early days of the Ridiculous Theatrical Company and with Richard Foreman's Ontological-Hysteric Theatre (Sherman appeared as Max in Foreman's "Pain(t)" in 1974).

Sherman was possibly best known for his solo "spectacles": programs of very short playlets performed on tabletops, in which he would physically manipulate and create semantic "dramas" around inanimate objects. He created and performed eighteen "spectacles" in all (12 solo and 6 group performances) as well as larger-scale dramatic works, including "Chekhov, Brecht and Strindberg" (1985-86), a trilogy of short plays adapting and commenting obliquely on those authors, "Slant (concerning Emily Dickinson)" (1987), and "Solaris" (1992).

Stuart Sherman also made over forty films and videos (rarely lasting more than five minutes), many of the most haunting of which were portraits of friends: Portrait of Benedicte Pesle (1984), Mr. Ashley Proposes (Portrait of George) (1985), Liberation (Portrait of Berenice Reynaud) (1993), and the 73-second Edwin Denby (1978). Nearly all of Stuart Sherman's film works are in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. Although best known for his performances and video, Sherman practiced in a variety of visual and literary mediums. He considered all of his artistic practices to share a performative dimension, and denied any guiding aesthetic principle. Sherman was wary of attributing any strict meaning to his work and assumed an essential polysemy in its interpretation. This assumption critically aligned Sherman's work with that of many of his downtown contemporaries.

Akin to the many distinct forms his art took, Sherman's work found an international audience. Although perhaps most at home with his New York contemporaries, he performed, exhibited, and lectured throughout the US (San Francisco, Cambridge, Boston, Indianapolis, Chicago) and abroad (Germany, Holland, The Netherlands, France, Wales, Japan, Australia).

Stuart Sherman received numerous awards for his work, including a Prix de Rome, a Guggenheim Fellowship, an Obie, a MacDowell Colony fellowship, an Asian Cultural Council Grant, a DAAD Grant for residency in Berlin and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Sherman died of AIDS in San Francisco on 14 September 2001.

Stage Works:

- First Spectacle (1975)

- Second Spectacle (with Stefan Brecht, Richard Foreman, Kate Manheim) (1976)

- Seventh Spectacle (with 30 performers) (1976)

- Tenth Spectacle (Portraits of Places) (1978)

- Eleventh Spectacle (The Erotic) (1979)

- Twelfth Spectacle (Language) (1980)

- Thirteenth Spectacle (Time) (1980)

- First Trilogy: Hamlet, Oedipus, Faust (1981-84)

- Second Trilogy: Chekhov, Strindberg, Brecht (1985-86)

- The Man in Room 2538 (1986)

- It Is Against the Law To Shout "Fire" In A Crowded Theater (1986)

- Endless Meadow and So Forth (1986)

- This House Is Mine Because I Live In It (1986)

- Slant (concerning Emily Dickinson) (1987)

- Crime and Punishment, or the Book and the Word (1987)

- "A" Is For Actor (1987)

- The Yellow Chair (1987)

- But What Is The Word For "Bicycle"? (1988)

- The Play of Tea, or Pinkies Up! (1989)

- Objects of Desire (1989)

- Knock, Knock, Knock, Knock (1989)

- Fourteenth Spectacle (1989)

- Taal Eulenspiegel (1990)

- Fifteenth Spectacle (1991)

- Sixteenth Spectacle (It's a Musical!) (La Mama E.T.C., March 18, 1991)

- Solaris (1992)

- Seventeenth Spectacle (Yes and Noh) (1993)

- Eighteenth Spectacle (The Spaghetti Works) (1993)

- Nineteenth Spectacle (But Second Musical) (La MaMa E.T.C., Jan. 10, 1994)

- Queer Spectacle (1994)

- The Stations of the Cross, or the passion of Stuart (2000)

Filmography:

- Globes (1977), 2:41

- Scotty and Stuart (1977), 2:22

- Skating (1978), 2:44

- Tree Film (1978), 1:30

- Edwin Denby (1978), 1:13

- Camera/Cage (1978), 2:57

- Flying (1979), 0:50

- Baseball/TV (1979), 1:12

- Hand/Water (1979), 1:37

- Piano/Music (1979), 1:17

- Roller Coaster/Reading (1979), 3:00

- Fountain/Car (1980), 0:39

- Rock/String (1980), 0:55

- Elevator/Dance (1980), 3:12

- Theatre Piece (1980), 0:52

- Bridge Film (1981), 1:20

- Racing (1981), 1:05

- Typewriting (Pertaining to Stefan Brecht) (1982), 2:06

- Chess (1982), 1:20

- Golf Film (1982)

- Fish Story (1983), 0:52

- Portrait of Benedicte Pesle (1984), 0:56

- Mr. Ashley Proposes (Portrait of George) (1985), 1:35

- Eating (1986), 6:10

- The Discovery of the Phonograph (1986), 6 min

- Scotty Snyder (All Around the Table) (1987), 10:13

- Berlin Tour (1988), 12 min

- Black-Eyed Susan (Portrait of an Actress) (1989), 9 min

- Liberation (Portrait of Berenice Reynaud) (1993), 8 min

Videography:

- Five Flowers (1982)

- Berlin (West)/Andere Richtungen (1986)

- Gray Matter (1987)

- Video Walk (1987)

- Yes and Noh Karaoke (1993)

- Scaffolding (1993)

- Don't Hang Up, I'm Freezing (1994)

- A Glass of Fish (1994)

- Cheers! (1994)

- Two Pixel Videos (Black and White/Grain) (1994)

- The Leap (1994)

- Bill Rice's Beer Garden (1994)

- Son of Scotty and Stuart (1994)

- Me and Joe (1994)

- 8 Eggs (1994)

- Pull (A Portrait of David Nunemaker) (1994)

- News Break (1994)

- Holy Bible (1994)

- Ah-Choo (1994)

Arrangement

For the most part materials are arranged as they were received.

All efforts were made to preserve the original arrangement of the collection.

Series

  1. Series I: Personal
  2. Series II: Legal and Financial
  3. Series III: Prose, Poetry and Other Writing
  4. Series IV: Performance
  5. Series V: Works by Others
  6. Series VI: Artwork
  7. Series VII: Photographs
  8. Series VIII: Slides
  9. Series IX: Video
  10. Series X: Film
  11. Series XI: Audio
  12. Series XII: Misc. Media
  13. Series XIII: Objects
  14. Oversize Series

Scope and Contents

The Stuart Sherman Papers include material pertaining to his career as a performance and visual artist, writer, actor, and filmmaker. The collection is largely composed of material related to Sherman's artistic output including performance plans, prose and poetry, sketches and diagrams for visual and performance works, drafts for sculpture, photographs, slides, video, film, audio, and floppy disks. Personal material such as correspondence, journal writing, legal and financial documents along with works by fellow artists and writers also make up a large portion of the collection. The material spans from 1945-2001 with the bulk of it covering from 1961-2001. The original order and description of material has largely been preserved and in most cases has been arranged chronologically. Thirteen series and one oversize series divide the collection into subgroups for the convenience of the researcher.

The Stuart Sherman Papers are divided into thirteen series:

SERIES I: Personal consists of personal items and documents including correspondence, resumes, and various material for psychological/spiritual healing.

SERIES II: Legal and Financial includes legal and financial documentation such as apartment leases, tax returns, bank account information, and Sherman's will.

SERIES III: Prose, Poetry and Other Writing contains much of Sherman's creative writing from his teenage years up until his death. The material has been ordered chronologically in groups respective of the arrangement as received: Juvenilia; Notes and Poetry; Reviews and Prose; Poetry; and Diagram Poetry. Although attempts were made to isolate these groups within this series, researchers may find Sherman's poetry and prose mixed throughout the collection. For example, poetry may be found in address books, in notebooks titled prose writing, alongside performance planning, or in other places.

SERIES IV: Performance consists of material related to Sherman's performances including written plans, diagrams, programs, correspondence, promotional material, and press.

SERIES V: Works by Others includes works by artists and writers other than Stuart Sherman which were included in his personal archive. Artworks, books, academic/professional journals, exhibition catalogs, and other miscellaneous items may be found in this series.

SERIES VI: Artworks consists of works of art by Stuart Sherman including drawings, sketches and drafts for sculpture, collage, as well as notes for visual art works. Two folders of mold damaged artworks have been removed from the bulk of other artworks and given a separate box.

SERIES VII: Photographic Materials includes all negatives, transparencies, contact sheets, and photographic prints from the collection. Some prints and contact sheets include photographer name, performance title, date and other identifying information.

SERIES VIII: Slides includes two binders of slides documenting Sherman's artistic output. The original order of slides has been preserved, though no obvious rule of arrangement appears to have existed. Some slides include detailed identifying information.

SERIES IX: Video contains all videotaped material by or pertaining to Stuart Sherman. Paper material which was found within original video containers may be found in Subseries C. Of the media portion, researcher access is limited to Subseries A: Video Recordings – Access Copies. Please contact a Fales archivist.

Subseries A: Video - Access Copies

Subseries B: Video - Originals

Subseries C: Video - Paper Material

SERIES X: Film contains all film from the collection. Researcher access is limited to Subseries A: Film - Access Copies. Please contact a Fales archivist.

Subseries A: Film - Access Copies

Subseries B: Film - Originals

SERIES XI: Audio includes all audio material in the collection. Audio recordings by Sherman may be found in Subseries A and B. Researcher access is limited to Subseries A: Audio - Access Copies. Commercial recordings owned by Sherman are included in Subseries C. Please contact a Fales archivist.

Subseries A: Audio - Access Copies

Subseries B: Audio - Originals

Subseries C: Audio - Works by Others

SERIES XII: Miscellaneous Media includes floppy disks.

SERIES XIII: Objects contains the few objects held within the collection.

OVERSIZE SERIES includes one large poster and several large artworks.

Series IV: Performance

Series VI: Artwork

Conditions Governing Access

Materials are open without restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright (or related rights to publicity and privacy) for materials in this collection, created by Stuart Sherman was not transferred to New York University. Permission to use materials must be secured from the copyright holder.

Preferred Citation

Identification of item, date; Stuart Sherman Papers; MSS 192; 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

Donated by Mark Bradford, executor of Stuart Sherman's Estate, in 2007. The accession number associated with this gift is 2007.192.

Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures

Access DVDs for audiovisual materials in the collection are available by appointment for reading room viewing and listening only.

Some audiovisual materials have not been preserved and may not be available to researchers. Materials not yet digitized will need to have access copies made before they can be used. To request an access copy, or if you are unsure if an item has been digitized, please contact fales.library@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.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Born-digital materials have not been transferred and may not be available to researchers. Researchers may request access copies. To request that material be transferred, or if you are unsure if material has been transferred, please contact fales.library@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.

Related Material at Fales Library and Special Collections

Creative Time Archive (MSS.179)

Jaime Davidovich Collection (MSS.155)

Richard Foreman Papers (MSS.152)

Collection processed by

Luke Martin and Brent Phillips, 2008-2009

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-20 17:02:37 -0400.
Language: Description is written in: English, Latin script.

Processing Information

Processing decisions made prior to August 2018 have not been recorded.

In August 2018, in preparation for materials to be sent to offsite storage, born-digital materials were removed from original boxes in order to keep the born-digital materials onsite in the Fales repository.

Revisions to this Guide

March 2017: Updated by Jacqueline Rider to reflect incorporation of video preservation master and sub-master files.
August 2018: Edited by Jasmine Larkin for compliance with DACS and ACM Required Elements for Archival Description.

Repository

Fales Library and Special Collections
Fales Library and Special Collections
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
2nd Floor
New York, NY 10012