Malcah Zeldis papers
name: label: Creator
content: Zeldis, Malcah
topic: label: Occupation
content: Self-taught artists -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: Outsider art
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Donated in 2023 by Yona Zeldis McDonough, Zeldis' daughter.
creator: label: Creator
content: Zeldis, Malcah
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Malcah Zeldis (1931- ) is a self-taught artist based in New York, N.Y. She is known for work that draws from biblical, historical, and autobiographical themes.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 3.1 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1931-2020
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.zeldmalc
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of Malcah Zeldis measure 3.1 linear feet and date from 1931-2020. Material documents Zeldis' long career as a "folk," "outsider," "self-taught," or "naive" artist and includes biographical material, writings, interview transcripts, press clippings, correspondence, personal business records, preparatory artworks, printed material, and photographic material.

Biographical material includes Zeldis's birth certificate, immigration documents relating to her emigration to Israel and back to the U.S., school records, and resumes. Writings include artist statements and other autobiographical writings by Zeldis; articles, essays, and a dissertation about Zeldis by others; and transcripts of interviews with Zeldis. Business records and correspondence relate to sales of artworks, publications, and solo and group exhibitions. The collection includes extensive press clippings, including those presumably collected by the artist as well as by professional services. Printed material includes exhibition announcements and brochures, as well as examples of Zeldis's commercial work, including childrens' book illustrations and calendars. Photographic materials include photographs of artworks (primarily transparencies and slides), as well as printed photographs of the artist, her studio, exhibitions, and family. Artworks include drawings for book illustrations and drawings on cardboard done later in life.