Josef Albers Papers

This series contains personal and professional correspondence with individuals and institutions and organizations, documenting Josef Albers’s personal and professional life. The series consists of the following six subseries: Individuals, Institutions and Organizations, Between Josef and Anni Albers, Birthday, German Officials, and Permissions. Note that typescript carbons of letters from Anni Albers written on behalf of Josef Albers are throughout the series and all letters to and from both the Alberses are in this series. Photographs and printed materials received as enclosures remain with the original letter.

This series contains extensive materials relating to Josef Albers’s professional life as an educator and as a visual artist in a variety of mediums. The series consists of eleven subseries: Teaching, Project Files, Solo Exhibitions, Group Exhibitions, Architectural Commissions, Awards and Honorary Degrees, Notebooks, Work Lists, Color Research, Interviews, and Bibliographies and Biographies.

The Writing Series in the Josef Albers subgroup documents Josef Albers's extensive writings throughout his life and includes writings of others. The series consists of three subseries: Books, Various, and Lectures.

The Personal series in the Josef Albers subgroup document Josef’s life outside of his career, including his family’s life. Among the materials in the Personal series there are documents relating to Josef Albers’s family; his academic records; birth, marriage and identification papers; and his will.

The Financial series contains used and unused checks, receipts, bills, lists, and tax forms.

This series consists of postcards collected by Josef and Anni Albers during their travels throughout the United States, Europe and Latin America. The bulk of them are loose and all are arranged by location. Josef created postcard collages with a portion of them. Highlights of the postcards include colorful postcards from Hawaii and the continental United States and photograph postcards from various states in Mexico portraying places that Josef and Anni Albers visited. Postcards by Hugo Brehme are included among them. Detailed cataloguing information for the postcard collages can be found in the “Archive” section of the Josef and Anni Albers Collection database. Available to researchers by request.

The Holiday Cards series contains the holiday cards designed by Josef and Anni Albers that the couple sent to friends. These cards are considered among the works of art created by the couple. They are beautifully designed and are often playful. Of note among the cards is one designed by Anni Albers and Alex Reed at Black Mountain College, circa 1940.

The Subject Files series includes printed materials collected by Josef Albers on individuals, including artists and other notable people, various subjects relating to art and education and the Bauhaus. Josef often handwrote comments on the printed materials.

This series consists of published articles on or mentioning Josef Albers or of interest to Josef Albers. Included among the materials are photostats of articles made by and grouped together by Josef. Many of the materials include Josef’s handwritten comments. Of note among the materials are New Yorker cartoons with references to Josef’s work.

This series includes loose mounted photographs, photograph albums, and scrapbooks assembled by people for Josef and Anni Albers. There are three photograph albums made by Hochschule fur Gestaltung students for Josef, including photographs of Josef teaching at the school and photographs of student studies. Among loose mounted photographs is a large print of Josef Albers's baby photograph. Also included in the series is a photograph album, "Josef Albers at the Metropolitan Museum of Art," Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York that includes photographs of Josef and Anni Albers at home and at Sirocco Screen Press. Photographers in the series include Arnold Newman, Margit Staber, Jon Naar, Cheryl Rossum, Erika Schmied, Josephine Mears, Lee Boltin, Michael Popp, Manfred Tischer, Herb Weitman, M. Unagami, and Hiram Ash.

The Audiovisual Series includes acetate and polyester open reel sound recordings and 16mm acetate and polyester films made of Josef Albers. They include only film and audio projects by other people on Josef Albers, as Josef did not make any of them himself. All sound recordings have been reformatted and access CD-Rs are available. Access DVDs are noted in the folder list when available.