Ira Licht papers
name: label: Creator
content: Licht, Ira Richard, 1938-
label: Names
content: Lowe Art Museum
label: Names
content: Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago, Ill.)
label: Names
content: National Endowment for the Arts
topic: label: Occupation
content: Art museum directors -- Florida -- Miami
label: Occupation
content: Art historians -- Florida -- Miami
label: Occupation
content: Art museum curators
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: The collection was donated in 2019 by Ira Licht.
creator: label: Creator
content: Licht, Ira Richard, 1938-
setName: label: See more items in
content: Ira Licht papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: The Ira Licht papers measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1963-1991. The papers document Licht's career as an art historian and museum professional. Included is professional and personal correspondence with artists during his career as curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, coordinator of Art in Public Places, National Endowment for the Arts, and tenure as director of the University of Miami's Lowe Art Museum. The letters are from many notable artists at early stages in their careers, which provides insight into how they built success from an early point. There are also artist and exhibition files which document working relationships with and about artists and exhibitions Licht curated, as well as printed materials such as exhibition invitations and posters.
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Ira Licht (1938- ) is a museum director, curator and art historian in Miami, Florida. During his career he served as the curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (1974-1976); coordinator of the Art in Public Places Program of the National Endowment for the Arts (1976-1978); and director of the University of Miami's Lowe Art Museum (1978-1989). Licht was closely connected with artists associated with 20th century minimalism, conceptualism, and land art. Artists who are represented by at least one piece of correspondence (postcards and/or letters) in the papers include: Duane Hanson, Pat Steir, Carl Andre, Ana Mendieta, Jackie Ferrara, Romare Bearden, Larry Bell, Robert Irwin, Adrian Piper, Lawrence Wiener, Dan Flavin, Laurie Anderson, Dan Graham, Robert Graham, Lynda Benglis, Dennis Oppenheim, Red Grooms and Christo. 

Ira Licht is married to Jennifer Licht who was an associate curator at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.8 Linear Feet
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1963-1991
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.lichtira
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is arranged as 4 series.

Series 1: Correspondence, 1969-1991 (0.3 Linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Artist and Exhibition Files, 1963-1991 (0.3 Linear feet; Box 1-2)

Series 3: Exhibition Files, 1972-1984 (0.1 Linear feet; Box 2)

Series 4: Printed Material, 1967-1978 (0.1 Linear feet; Box 2)
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The collection was processed, and a finding aid prepared by Sabine Lipten in 2022.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: The Ira Licht papers measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1963-1991. The papers document Licht's career as an art historian and museum professional. Included is professional and personal correspondence with artists during his career as curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, coordinator of the Art in Public Places Program of the National Endowment for the Arts, and director of the University of Miami's Lowe Art Museum and relate to projects and funding. The letters are from many notable artists at early stages in their careers, which provides insight into how they built success from an early point. Some letters have photographs and printed material enclosed. Artist files are arranged alphabetically by name and include writings on and by artists, resumes and project descriptions, photographic prints, slides of artists' artwork, press clippings, correspondence and exhibition catalogs. Exhibition files consist of planning documents, exhibition catalogs, correspondence related to and press releases for exhibitions Licht curated. Of note is an catalog for Bodyworks a 1975 group exhibition Licht curated for the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. The papers also include printed material which consists of exhibition announcements, invitations, and posters.