Michael Mazur papers, circa 1936-2016

Scope and Contents

The papers of artist Michael Mazur measure 22.2 linear feet and 22.83 gigabytes, and date from circa 1936 to 2016, documenting a studio and exhibition practice in addition to teaching and activism activities.

Biographical materials include documents related to Mazur's early education, trips to Europe, and development as an artist, as well as biographies, degrees and awards, with some materials in digital formats.

Correspondence is primarily professional in nature with institutions and fellow artists, including letters requesting Mazur's participation in exhibitions and other projects. Also included are extensive correspondence advocating for ecological preservation of the Massachusetts Cape Cod where Mazur had a home in Provincetown. Earlier correspondence includes letters with family members and friends. Some correspondence is digital.

Studio records include artwork inventories and documents regarding donations, appraisal and tax deduction information, as well as the artist's website. Gallery records contain correspondence and business documents with various commercial art galleries, including artwork images, mailing lists, price lists and guest books. Project records document various commissions and collaborations including perhaps Mazur's longest ongoing project, artwork, publications and exhibitions engaging with Dante's Inferno. Many of Mazur's professional records are in digital format.

The Affiliations series includes faculty appointments as well as ongoing board service for Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown and other professional advising and project participation, including a Tamarind Lithography Workshop Fellowship in 1968. Many of the Fine Arts Work Center documents are digital.

Exhibition records document select exhibitions including Mazur's traveling print retrospective. In addition to correspondence and documents and agreements, select digital installation images and documents are also included.

The Writings series includes various essays, letters to the editor, and lectures by Mazur including student work, as well as essays and films discussing the artist's career and contributions, many in digital form. Also included are Mazur's journals kept for the entirety of his career.

Printed materials include exhibition announcements, catalogs and press, select published journals (some of which include contributions by Mazur), and publications for which Mazur has provided the cover artwork.

Photographic materials are both print and digital in nature and capture the breadth of Mazur's art production, organized by medium, genre, artwork series, subject and time period. The arrangement of digital photographs reflects the categories represented on the artist's website archive.

Artwork includes drawings, sketchbooks and watercolor pads, as well as artwork by others including a photographic portrait portfolio of Mazur by Brigitte Durer. Computer study images and source material in digital formats, are also included.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Papers were lent for microfilming 1977 and 1998 by Michael Mazur. Material on microfilm and additional papers donated 2018 by Gail Mazur, Michael Mazur's widow.

Processing Information

The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Ryan Evans in 2019.