Oral history interview with Steven Englander
name: label: Interviewee
content: Englander, Steven
label: Interviewer
content: Kirwin, Liza
label: Names
content: ABC No Rio (New York, N.Y.)
label: Names
content: Anarchist Switchboard
label: Names
content: Collaborative Projects, Inc.
label: Names
content: Libertarian Book Club
label: Names
content: New York (N.Y.). Dept. of Housing Preservation and Development
label: Names
content: Acierno, Lou
label: Names
content: Castrucci, Paul
label: Names
content: Courtney, Matthew
label: Names
content: Cramer, Peter Francis
label: Names
content: Kristal, Hilly
label: Names
content: Moore, Alan
label: Names
content: Waters, Jack
label: Names
content: Weber, Bruce
topic: label: Occupation
content: Political activists -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: Community activists
label: Topic
content: Political activists -- New York (State) -- New York
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
creator: label: Interviewee
content: Englander, Steven
label: Interviewer
content: Kirwin, Liza
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Steven Englander (1961-2024) was the director of ABC No Rio, New York, N.Y.
label: Biographical / Historical
content: Liza Kirwin is the curator of manuscripts at the Archives of American Art, in Washington, D.C.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 3 Sound discs (Sound recording, master (2 hr., 35min.), digital, 2 5/8 in.)
label: Extent
content: 53 Pages (Transcript)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 2007 Sept. 7 and Oct. 10
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.englan07
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Sound discs
label: Type
content: Pages
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
label: Type
content: Interviews
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Transcript is available on the Archives of American Art's website.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Interviews
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: An interview with Steven Englander conducted 2007 Sept. 7 and Oct. 10, by Liza Kirwin, for the Archives of American Art, in conjunction with Artists' Spaces Archives Project, at ABC No Rio, in New York, N.Y. Englander, the director of ABC No Rio, speaks about his early interest in film; his involvement with Anarchist Switchboard, the Libertarian Book Club, and other anarchist groups; his introduction to ABC No Rio through Matthew Courtney's events there; "baby-sitting" ABC No Rio in 1990 for director Lou Acierno, who went to Hamburg with the exhibition "10 years, Seven Days"; ABC No Rio's managerial tasks; the composition of the board; living at ABC No Rio; the character of the building; other tenants; previous directors Peter Cramer and Jack Waters; ongoing conflicts with the New York City Department of Housing, Preservation and Development (owner of the building); programs and projects; squatters and punks; challenges of educational outreach; conflicts with the board; the organizational structure of ABC No Rio as a "collective of collectives"; ABC No Rio's political activism; the process of purchasing the building; renovation plans; community support; and funding from the New York State Council on the Arts. Englander also recalls Bruce Weber, A Mica Bunker group, Hilly Kristal, Bobby G., Alan Moore, Colab, Paul Castrucci, and others.