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Robert Hughes papers

Archives of American Art

Robert Motherwell
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
Finding aid
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .

Object Details

sova.aaa.hughrobe
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw91e43c30f-cdfe-4107-8c5c-23ef2dc5ddf3
Creator
Hughes, Robert, 1938-2012
Names
Arikha, Avigdor, 1929-
Kitaj, R. B.
Motherwell, Robert
Pegram, Lorna
Rattazzi, Delfina
Occupation
Art critics -- New York (State) -- New York
Authors -- New York (State) -- New York
Historians -- New York (State) -- New York
Provenance
Donated in 2021 by Doris Downes, Robert Hughes' widow.
Creator
Hughes, Robert, 1938-2012
See more items in
Robert Hughes papers
Summary
The papers of art critic, author, and historian, Robert Hughes measure 16.6 linear feet and date from 1952 to 2012. The collection provides a glimpse of Hughes' personal life and documents his extensive career through biographical material, personal and professional correspondence, interviews, journals, writings, project files related to books and television programs, research files, personal business records, printed material, and photographic material.
Biographical / Historical
Robert Studley Forrest Hughes (1938-2012) was an art critic, author, and historian based in New York, New York. Born in Sydney, Australia, Hughes attended St. Ignatius College and Sydney University, where he studied art and architecture. After a stint as an abstract expressionist painter, Hughes worked as a political cartoonist before becoming a full-time art critic. He lived in Italy and London and traveled extensively throughout Europe before moving to New York City in 1970, where he lived until his death in 2012. Hughes was best known for the 1980s television series, "Shock of the New," where he explored the development of modern art, and for his longstanding position with TIME Magazine. Throughout his career, Hughes published several books, including his 2006 memoir where he recounted the story of his near fatal accident in 1999, and wrote and presented multiple documentary style television series and films.
Extent
16.6 Linear feet
Date
1952-2012
bulk 1973-2004
Archival Repository
Archives of American Art
Identifier
AAA.hughrobe
Type
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Diaries
Interviews
Motion pictures
Scrapbooks
Sound recordings
Video recordings
Citation
Robert Hughes papers, 1952-2012. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as 11 series. Series 1: Biographical Material, 1955-2007 (1.05 linear feet; Box 1, 16, 21) Series 2: Correspondence, 1952-2012 (1.40 linear feet, Box 1-2, 21) Series 2: Sub-Series 1: Personal, 1952-2012 (0.50 linear feet; Box 1, 21) Series 2: Sub-Series 2: Professional, 1966-2012 (0.90 linear feet; Box 2, 21) Series 3: Interviews, 1971-2006 (0.64 linear feet; Box 2, 17, 21-22) Series 4: Journals, circa 1970-1987 (0.41 linear feet; Box 2, 22-23) Series 5: Writings, 1960-2009 (2.05 linear feet, Box 1, 3-4, 23) Series 6: Project Files, 1961-circa 2008 (7.74 linear feet, Box 5-9, 13-20, 23) Series 7: Research Files, 1962-2000 (0.65 linear feet, Box 9-10, 23) Series 8: Personal Business Records, 1972-2007 (0.30 linear feet, Box 10) Series 9: Printed Material, 1959-2008 (0.51; Box 10-11, 14) Series 10: Photographical Material, 1973-2006 (0.70 linear feet, Box 11) Series 11: Unidentified Audiovisual and Born-Digital Materials (Box 11, 12, 23)
Processing Information
The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Jennifer E. Neal and Lewis Tio in 2022. Additional finding aid description of the video and sound recordings was completed by Kirsi Ritosalmi-Kisner in 2024.
Rights
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Genre/Form
Diaries
Interviews
Motion pictures
Scrapbooks
Sound recordings
Video recordings
Scope and Contents
The papers of art critic, author, and historian, Robert Hughes measure 16.60 linear feet and date from 1952 to 2012. The collection provides a glimpse of Hughes' personal life and documents his extensive career through biographical material, personal and professional correspondence, interviews, journals, writings, project files related to books and television programs, research files, personal business records, printed material, and photographic material. Biographical material includes address books and day planners, stationery, sound recordings, memoirs, academic memorabilia, and a scrapbook documenting the National Gallery of Australia's tenth birthday in 1992. Correspondence includes letters, emails, and post cards from personal and professional contacts, including friends, family, colleagues, and fans. Interviews include video and sound recordings, transcripts, and clippings related to Robert Hughes interviewing others or Robert Hughes being interviewed for various publications and television programs. Journals include excerpts from the 1970s and sound recordings that document Hughes' travels around the world. Writings include notes, notebooks, and draft articles, essays, lectures, speeches, and manuscripts written by Hughes. Some of the lectures were recorded. Project files include clippings, transcripts, draft scripts, digital files, sound and video recordings, photographs, proposals, outlines, notes and correspondence related to various publications and television programs. Research files include notes, correspondence, drafts, clippings, translations, and a sound recording of Australian convict ballads. Personal business records include sound recordings, photographs, legal files, a description of events related to a 1999 car crash that left Hughes in critical condition, lists of travel expenses and publications, a lecture contract, email correspondence related to litigation, and legal files related to a defamation claim and some of Hughes' writings. Printed material includes clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, press releases, and a published poem. Photographic material includes slides, photographs, and negatives documenting Hughes' travels, friends, family, his Shelter Island home, self-portraits, and works of art.
Restrictions
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center. Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact References Services for more information.
AAA.hughrobe
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw91e43c30f-cdfe-4107-8c5c-23ef2dc5ddf3
AAA.hughrobe
AAA
Record ID
ebl-1644333600137-1644333600265-0

  • Electronic resource 11 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Images 8 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Archival materials 615 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Sound cassettes 55 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Videocassettes (vhs) 27 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Videocassettes (u-matic) 10 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Hard drives 4 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Electronic discs (dvd) 3 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Film reels 2 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Floppy discs 1 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Sound cassettes (microcassette) 1 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1950s 9 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1960s 59 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1970s 132 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1980s 189 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 1990s 166 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 2000s 129 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • 2010s 25 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers 615 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 5: Writings 124 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / The Shock of the New 46 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 2: Correspondence / 2.1: Correspondence, Personal 44 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 2: Correspondence / 2.2: Correspondence, Professional 44 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 1: Biographical Material 36 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 3: Interviews 32 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Beyond the Fatal Shore 24 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 10: Photographic Material 23 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 9: Printed Material 23 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files 21 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / American Visions 20 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 7: Research Files 18 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 8: Personal Business Records 17 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Rome 15 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 4: Journals 13 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Barcelona 13 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Nothing If Not Critical 13 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 11: Unidentified Audiovisual and Born-Digital Materials 11 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Culture of Complaint: The Fraying of America 10 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Bernini 9 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Goya 9 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / The Art of Australia 9 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Heaven and Hell in Western Art 6 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Robert Hughes papers / Series 6: Project Files / Rubens 5 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • CC0 615 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • No 584 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • Yes 31 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • ead_component 615 Filter by term plus Exclude term minus
  • R.B. Kitaj

  • L

  • Drafts, "Flipping the Wig"

  • Simon Watson Taylor

  • The View From the Edge, Interviews, Transcripts

  • Mix Tape: The Prodigy, Sound Recording

  • Draft Essay Re Shelter Island Fishing

  • Lectures, Lunchtime Talk to Whitney Donors

  • Journal, Leningrad-Venice, Sound Recording

  • Essay

  • Clippings and Reviews

  • Lectures, "In What Sense is Culture in the National Interest"

  • Lectures, Australian and American Landscape

  • Irish/Aboli/Abol II, Sound Recording

  • Car Crash, Letters From Friends [1]

  • Clippings

  • 20/20

  • C

  • Original Manuscript [3]

  • S

  • Slides

  • Colin Lancely Catalog

  • "Immigrants," Draft of Final Script

  • Notes


  1. First page First
  2. Previous page Previous
  3. Page 2
  4. Page 3
  5. Page 4
  6. Page 5
  7. Current page 6
  8. Page 7
  9. Page 8
  10. Page 9
  11. Page 10
  12. Next page Next
  13. Last page Last
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