Robert Pincus-Witten papers
name: label: Creator
content: Pincus-Witten, Robert, 1935-2018
label: Names
content: Gagosian Gallery
label: Names
content: Bochner, Mel, 1940-
label: Names
content: Hecht, Leon
label: Names
content: Hesse, Eva, 1936-1970
label: Names
content: Twombly, Cy, 1928-
topic: label: Occupation
content: Art critics -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Occupation
content: Art historians -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Occupation
content: Educators -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: LGBTQ+
label: Topic
content: Postmodernism
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The papers were donated in 2019 by Leon Hecht, Robert Pincus-Witten's husband.
creator: label: Creator
content: Pincus-Witten, Robert, 1935-2018
setName: label: See more items in
content: Robert Pincus-Witten papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of art historian, critic, and curator Robert Pincus-Witten measure 12.4 linear feet and date from 1942-2017. The collection consists of biographical material; color and black and white photographs and negatives; writings by Pincus-Witten; teaching files and printed material; journals; sketches by Pincus-Witten; professional files related to curatorial work; correspondence; artist files maintained by Pincus-Witten; and audiovisual and born digital materials.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Robert Pincus-Witten (1935-2018) was an art historian, educator, critic, and curator in New York, New York. 

Born in the Bronx, Pincus-Witten attended PS4, the New York High School of Music and Art, and The Cooper Union. During this time Pincus-Witten met his husband, Leon Hecht, who lived on the same block and was in the same kindergarten class at PS4. He also formed a lifelong friendship with high school classmate and artist, Ray Johnson.  Pincus-Witten received a Master of Fine Arts and PhD from the University of Chicago and lived abroad in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Pincus-Witten became interested in art at a very early age and received recognition in the Regional and National Scholastic Art Awards in 1950 and 1952. 

While living abroad and finishing his doctorate, Pincus-Witten accepted a teaching position at Queens College, part of the City University of New York (CUNY) network, where he taught art history courses until his retirement in 1991. Coining the term, "postminimalism," Pincus-Witten played a central role in explicating postmodern art as it emerged between 1960 and his death in 2018. He exhaustively documented his daily life on the front lines of the art world as a contributing editor for  Artforum  for nearly fifty years, including a stint as senior editor from 1973-1974. In addition to his long teaching career at the CUNY, Pincus-Witten worked for Larry Gagosian and Robert Mnuchin, curating exhibitions and writing catalog essays for their galleries. He was the author of several books, including Postminimalism (1977).
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 12.4 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1942-2017
label: Date
content: bulk 1962-2005
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.pincrobe
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Diaries
label: Type
content: Drawings
label: Type
content: Interviews
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 9 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1942-circa 2010s (1.00 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1952-2015 (1.60 linear feet, Box 1, 2, 4)

Series 3: Journals, 1958-2015 (3.30 linear feet, Box 3, 12-18)

Series 4: Writing, 1953-2016 (1.50 linear feet, Box 4-5)

Series 5: Artist Files, 1950-2016 (1.60 linear feet, Box 5-7)

Series 6: Professional Files, 1959-2009 (1.50 linear feet, Box 7-8)

Series 7: Teaching Files, circa 1970s-1996 (0.50 linear feet, Box 8-9)

Series 8: Printed Material, 1962-2017 (0.95 linear feet, Box 9-10)

Series 9: Artwork, 1959-1996 (0.25 linear feet, Box 10)

Series 10: Unidentified Born Digital Materials, 1980s-2000s (0.2 linear feet, Box 10)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Jennifer E. Neal and Lewis Tio in 2021.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Diaries
label: Genre/Form
content: Drawings
label: Genre/Form
content: Interviews
label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of art historian, critic, and curator Robert Pincus-Witten measure 12.0 linear feet and date from 1942-2017. The collection consists of biographical material; color and black and white photographs and negatives; writings by Pincus-Witten; teaching files and printed material; journals; sketches by Pincus-Witten; professional files related to curatorial work; correspondence; artist files maintained by Pincus-Witten; and audiovisual and born digital materials.

The collection includes biographical material such as passports, address books, calendars, report cards, diplomas, and other academic ephemera; journals that document Pincus-Witten's daily personal and professional activities; drafts of articles, essays and other writings by Pincus-Witten; correspondence with friends and colleagues; teaching files from City University of New York that include lecture notes, slide lists, and student correspondence; research files on artists from the circa 1970s-1996; professional files that document Pincus-Witten's work at Gagosian Gallery and other curatorial activities;  and photographs and negatives of family, friends, events and works of art. Also included are audio visual material consisting of two reel-to-reel tape recordings and seventeen sound cassettes documenting panels that featured Pincus-Witten, artist interviews, and Pincus-Witten dictating essays; born digital material including a CD-R  from Rose Cabot's "The Marks Project" and 5.25 floppy disk(s) that include Pincus-Witten's writings; pencil, ink, and watercolor sketches and sketchbooks; and printed material consisting of exhibition announcements and invitations, pamphlets, press releases, event programs, newsletters, flyers, and clippings.
relatedmaterial: label: Related Materials
content: Also found in the Archives of American Art is an oral history interview with Robert Pincus-Witten conducted by Francis M. Naumann, March 23-24, 2016.