Writings
name: label: Collection Creator
content: Ryan, Paul, 1943-
setName: label: See more items in
content: Paul Ryan papers
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 6.8 Linear Feet (Boxes 3-10, 20)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1955-2001
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.ryanpaul, Series 3
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: Writings are arranged by type of material. Most of the writings are arranged alphabetically by title if one exists, or by subject matter if no title is given. Notebooks were processed to a minimal level and arranged chronologically. Notebooks containing notes relating to a single project or work are filed with that project or work. Those filed in this series have heterogeneous content and cover a range of subjects. Note cards and loose notes were sorted loosely by subject during processing. 

Significant additional writings are also found in series 5, Project Files, in the form of project documentation and proposals. Writings in published form are found in series 7, Printed Material. A lengthy script and drafts of the project "Video Wake for my Father" by Ryan is found in Series 5.3 Other Projects. Writings and other records related to Earthscore are found in series 4, Organizational Records.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: Writings include mainly articles, lectures, book drafts, and notebooks by Ryan. Also found are poetry, short stories, a treatment for a television show, and writings by others in various genres. Most of Ryan's prose writing is theoretical in nature, although personal writings and notes from projects are also found. His core ideas are found in multiple forms, re-worked and revised for new publications and new applications. Articles include both published and unpublished writings, with some published multiple times under different titles. Some of the writings filed under articles are short essays in draft form which may have been incorporated into other works. Several of the articles were later collected in books. Books are documented with multiple drafts of Cybernetics of the Sacred and Video Mind, Earth Mind, as well as contracts and correspondence with publishers, layout documents, and notes. The article "Art and Survival: The Earthscore Notational System" brings together many of Ryan's core theories and ideas about their implementation.

Notebooks include over 100 notebooks spanning 40 years, and are arranged chronologically. Many notebooks contain notes related to later published works or projects, and such notes can be located by the date of the work. Notebooks in this series typically cover many subjects or do not relate in an obvious way to a single project. Some of the early notebooks have a subject written by Ryan on their cover, and where this is the case it has been included in the container listing. Some of the early notebooks are more like journals, and others contain journal entries along with drafts of letters, articles, or project notes.