Luis Cancel papers
name: label: Creator
content: Cancel, Luis R.
label: Names
content: Bronx Museum of the Arts
label: Names
content: New York (N.Y.). Department of Cultural Affairs
topic: label: Occupation
content: Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Occupation
content: Art museum directors -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: Artists -- New York (State) -- New York
label: Topic
content: Art, Latin American
label: Topic
content: Latino and Latin American artists
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The papers were donated by Luis Cancel in 2000.
creator: label: Creator
content: Cancel, Luis R.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Luis Cancel papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The papers of Puerto Rican arts administrator and artist Luis Cancel measure 10.1 linear feet and .947 gigabytes and date from circa 1900 to 1998 with the bulk of the material dating from 1970 to 1996. The collection is comprised of biographical material, professional files, arts administration records documenting his directorship at the Bronx Museum of the Arts and as Commissioner for the Department of Cultural Affairs in New York, subject and artist's files, files for the exhibition Legacy / Legado, printed materials, word processing documents, digital photographs, and unidentified sound recordings.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Luis Cancel (1952-) is a Puerto Rican arts administrator and artist from New York City, N.Y.

Cancel attended Fiorello H. La Guardia High School for Music and Art before earning his bachelor of arts  degree in painting and printmaking from Pratt Institute. During his last year at Pratt, he studied in Puerto Rico at the University of Puerto Rico. Cancel continued his research on Puerto Rico through a fellowship with the American Friends Service Committee Reciprocal Youth Project in Puerto Rico. Cancel's research resulted in a multifaceted presentation titled Puerto Rico: Its People and Its Artists. He continued his education receiving master of arts degrees from New York University in arts administration and from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government in public administration. Cancel also attended classes on educational software design and CD-ROM production at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

After finishing his studies, Cancel became gallery director at the Cayman Gallery in New York from 1975 to 1977. In 1978, he became the executive director of the Bronx Museum of the Arts. In his 13 years at the Bronx Museum, Cancel organized numerous exhibitions including The Latin American Spirit: Art and Artists in the United States 1920-1970, Devastation/Resurrection: The South Bronx, and Krishna Reddy: A Retrospective. He was also granted a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts to travel throughout Latin America to research art and build relationships with significant museums and galleries. Cancel left the Bronx Museum in 1991 to begin his tenure as Commissioner of New York City's Department of Cultural Affairs where he worked with Mayor David Dinkins to enhance support for the city's arts. 

In the 2000s, Cancel was also the executive director of the Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural Center, the Director of Cultural Affairs in San Francisco, was appointed by United States Representative  Nancy Pelosi to the National Museum of the American Latino Commission, and established a cultural consulting company. He is currently the CEO at the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 10.1 Linear Feet
label: Extent
content: .947 Gigabytes (ER01-ER04)
unitdate: label: Date
content: circa 1900-1998
label: Date
content: bulk 1970-1996
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.cancluis
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Gigabytes
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
label: Type
content: Video recordings
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as nine series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1970-1994 (0.3 linear feet; Box 1, OV 12)

Series 2: Professional Files, 1973-1998 (3.4 linear feet; Boxes 1-5)

Series 3: Arts Administration Records, 1972-1997 (4.1 linear feet; Boxes 5-8, OV 12, 14)

Series 4: Subject Files, 1973-1996 (0.4 linear feet; Boxes 8-9)

Series 5: Artist Files, 1952-1991 (0.5 linear feet; Box 9, 11, OV 12)

Series 6:  -- Legacy / Legado --  Exhibition Files, 1985-1996 (0.8 linear feet; Box 9-11)

Series 7: Printed Material, 1976-1992 (0.2 linear feet; Box 10, OV 13)

Series 8: Photographic Material, circa 1900-circa 1990 (0.3 linear feet; Box 10-11)

Series 9: Unidentified Sound Recordings, circa 1980s (1 folder; Box 11)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed and a finding aid prepared by Sarah Mundy in 2018. Born-digital materials were processed by Kirsi Ritosalmi-Kisner in 2019 with funding provided by the Smithsonian Collections Care and Preservation Fund and by George Apodaca in 2022.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Video recordings
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The papers of Puerto Rican arts administrator and artist Luis Cancel measure 10.1 linear feet and .947 gigabytes and date from circa 1900 to 1998 with the bulk of the material dating from 1970 to 1996. The collection is comprised of biographical material, professional files, arts administration records documenting his directorship at the Bronx Museum of the Arts and as Commissioner for the Department of Cultural Affairs in New York, subject and artist's files, files for the exhibition Legacy / Legado, printed materials, word processing documents, digital photographs, and unidentified sound recordings.

Biographical material contains two appointment books, awards, certificates, diplomas, a pin, real estate documents, resumes, a watercolor, and Cancel's writings. Files for committees, councils, consulting work, academic work, exhibitions, lectures, and various projects as well as a video recording are among Cancel's professional files. Arts administration records consist of files for the Bronx Museum of the Arts and the Department of Cultural Affairs. Subject files include printed material, two video recordings, and a small amount of other material on topics of interest to Cancel. Files on artists contain printed material, photographs, resumes, cross reference notes, and other material. 

The Legacy / Legado exhibition files include announcements, invitations, budgets, artist's files, administrative records, and photographic materials. Printed material consists of business cards, booklets, brochures, flyers, invitations, newsletters, magazines, and clippings. Photographic materials are of Cancel with colleagues, family, travel, and works of art. Two unidentified sound recordings are in the last series.