Eldzier Cortor Papers
name: label: Creator
content: Cortor, Eldzier, 1916-
label: Names
content: Anderson Gallery
label: Names
content: Art Institute of Chicago -- Students
label: Names
content: Kenkeleba House
label: Names
content: Sylvan Cole Gallery
label: Names
content: Anderson, Carol
label: Names
content: Carracio, K.
label: Names
content: Collier, Leontine L.
label: Names
content: Driskell, David C. (1931-2020)
label: Names
content: Harrigan, Violetta C., 1941-
label: Names
content: Lynch, Acklyn
label: Names
content: Saar, Betye (1926)
label: Names
content: Taha, Halima (1961)
place: label: Place
content: Haiti -- description and travel
topic: label: Occupation
content: Painters -- Illinois -- Chicago
label: Occupation
content: Painters -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Occupation
content: Printmakers -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Occupation
content: Printmakers -- Illinois -- Chicago
label: Topic
content: Art -- Economic aspects
label: Topic
content: Art -- Forgeries
label: Topic
content: Art -- Study and teaching
label: Topic
content: Cuba -- Description and Travel
label: Topic
content: African American artists
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: Eldzier Cortor loaned materials to the Archives of American Art for microfilming in 1970 and donated papers in 2009. His son, Michael Cortor, gave additional materials in 2016.
creator: label: Creator
content: Cortor, Eldzier, 1916-
setName: label: See more items in
content: Eldzier Cortor Papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of painter and printmaker Eldzier Cortor measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1930s to 2015, with the bulk of the papers dating from 1972 to 2015. The papers contain biographical material, correspondence, professional files, exhibition and gallery files, writings, printed material, artwork, and photographs.
bioghist: label: Biographical Note
content: Eldzier Cortor (1916-2015) spent his professional career as a painter and printmaker in Chicago and New York. He was born in Richmond Virginia to John and Ophelia Cortor. In 1917, the family moved to Chicago along with countless other African Americans as part of the Great Migration.

In 1936, Cortor began taking evening classes at the Art Institute of Chicago prior to enrolling full time. Kathleen Blackshear, an instructor at the Institute, recommended Cortor for employment at the Works Projects Administration in 1940. It was under Blackshear's guidance that Cortor was introduced to African Art. The depiction of African Americans became the defining subject of Cortor's career, specifically the portrayal of the African American woman, which he commonly represented nude in paintings and prints.

In 1941, with funding by the Works Projects Administration, Cortor helped found the South Side Community Arts Center in Chicago. Over the next few years he would receive two Rosenwald Fellowships, which allowed him to travel to the Sea Islands of Georgia. Afterward, Cortor moved to New York, and in 1946 Life magazine published his work Southern Gate. In 1949 he received a Guggenheim fellowship, which provided the opportunity to travel to Cuba, Jamaica, and Haiti. He settled in Port-au-Prince, where he taught for two years.

Cortor married Sophia Schmidt on August 20, 1951, and they subsequently had four children: Michael, Mercedes, Stephen, and Miriam. His work has been exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Studio Museum of Harlem, and the National Center of Afro-American Artists in Boston. Notable exhibitions include Three Masters: Eldzier Cortor, Hughie Lee-Smith, and Archibald John Motley, Jr. at Kenkeleba House in 1988; Southern Gate: African American Paintings from the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution at Duke University Museum of Art, 1999; Eldzier Cortor: Master Printmaker at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, 2002; and Black Spirit: Works on Paper by Eldzier Cortor at the Indiana Art Museum, 2006.

Eldzier Cortor died in November of 2015, at the age of 99.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 3.1 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: circa 1930s-2015
label: Date
content: bulk 1972-2015
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.corteldz
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Photographs
label: Type
content: Sketches
label: Type
content: Collages
label: Type
content: Diaries
label: Type
content: Watercolors
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The Eldzier Cortor papers are organized into 8 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1947-2012 (Box 1; 5 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1970-2015 (Box 1; 8 folders)

Series 3: Professional Files, 1960, 1972-2015 (Box 1; 0.2 linear feet, OV 4)

Series 4: Exhibition and Gallery Files, 1972-2015 (Boxes 1-2; 0.7 linear feet)

Series 5: Writings, circa 1970s-2006 (Box 2; 8 folders)

Series 6: Printed Material, 1940-1976, 1996-2015 (Boxes 2-3; 0.8 linear feet, OV 4)

Series 7: Artwork, circa 1930s, circa 1970s-circa 1990s (Box 3; 0.2 linear feet)

Series 8: Photographs, 1939-2002, 2014 (Box 3; 0.5 linear feet)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The papers were originally processed by Justin Brancato in March, 2010. The additional materials were merged and processed in 2017 by Rayna Andrews, with funding from the Henry Luce Foundation.
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Portions of the collection lent for microfilming are available on 35mm microfilm reel N70-47 at the Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Photographs
label: Genre/Form
content: Sketches
label: Genre/Form
content: Collages
label: Genre/Form
content: Diaries
label: Genre/Form
content: Watercolors
scopecontent: label: Scope and Content Note
content: The papers of painter and printmaker Eldzier Cortor measure 3.1 linear feet and date from circa 1930s to 2015, with the bulk of the papers dating from 1972 to 2015. The papers contain biographical material, correspondence, professional files, exhibition and gallery files, writings, printed material, artwork, and photographs.

Biographical material consists of awards certificates; Cortor's artist biography; an obituary and prayer cards for his father in law; an address book; and a Christmas list.

Correspondence includes letters from Cortor's family; correspondence with or about individuals or organizations; and general correspondence. Individuals included in the general correspondence are Acklyn Lynch, Leontine Collier, Violetta Harrigan, Halima Taha, David C. Driskell, Carol Anderson, and Betye Saar. Art institutions represented in this series include Sylvan Cole Gallery, Anderson Gallery, and Kenkeleba House.

Professional files include materials related to the Cosby Collection of Fine Arts; publishing; materials related to fake Cortor works; the Public School Mural Project; teaching files; lists of possible titles for paintings; financial documents; materials related to painting and etching plates for storage; and notes of museum and gallery contacts.

Exhibition and gallery files include correspondence; contracts and agreements; exhibition announcements; inventories; other exhibition materials; clippings; press releases; photographs and photocopied images of artwork; and photographs of exhibitions.

Writings consist primarily of essays and articles about Eldzier Cortor. Also included are his answers to a questionnaire about art, a diary, and notes, as well as hand-copied excerpts of reviews.

Printed material includes exhibition announcements, exhibition catalogs, newsletters, clippings, research and source material, and books. 

Artwork includes ink and watercolor sketches from Cortor's time as a student at the Art Institute of Chicago. This series also includes additional sketches, sketchbooks, and a collage by K. Carracio. 

Photographs depict Cortor, other individuals, his artwork, and exhibitions. There are also photographs from his time in Cuba and Haiti (circa 1950s).
separatedmaterial: label: Related Material
content: The Archives of American Art also holds microfilm of materials lent for microfilming on reel N70-47, including biographical material, correspondence, printed material, papers related to exhibitions, photographs, and sketchbooks. Except for three photographs that appear in this collection (Box 3, Folder 19), loaned materials were returned to the lender and are not described in the collection container inventory.