Source Material
name: label: Collection Creator
content: Cornell, Joseph
setName: label: See more items in
content: Joseph Cornell papers
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 8.5 Linear Feet (Boxes 11-18, 25-28, OV 29)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1804-1972
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.cornjose, Series 4
objectType: label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement note
content: In the source material found amongst Cornell's papers, a distinction can be made between his files on people and topics, as well as between the files and portfolios. While he variously referred to his files as "dossiers," "compilations," "source files" "portfolios," and "albums" (among other terms), he seems to have primarily used the term "dossier" to refer to his files on people and the term "source files" more generally; in addition, his use of the term "portfolio" seems to refer more particularly to the material maintained in portfolio cases. Distinguishing between the different types of files and material while retaining some of Cornell's own terminology, the Source Material series is arranged into three subseries.

4.1: Dossiers, 1941-1971

4.2: Portfolios, 1831-1957

4.3: Subject Source Files, 1804-1972
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: The bulk of this series has been digitized with the exception of books, magazines and exhibition catalogs for artists other than Cornell; typically only covers, title pages, and/or relevant pages of these items have been digitized.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents note
content: Series consists of Cornell's two-dimensional and textual source material and is largely comprised of files of clippings, notes, writings, stats, cutouts, and other printed material, stemming from his various artistic, research, writing, collecting, and collating activities. Some files are devoted to people and topics. Other files relate to specific art works, publishing projects, and exhibitions, as well as to his "explorations" in dance, music, art, science, and nature, among other topics, and his more personal "explorations" based on particular experiences and dreams. His typical practice involved accumulating massive amounts of material and information, which he would then collate into files, portfolios, or albums, continually adding to and refining them. Cornell seems to have used his source material as both raw material and inspiration for various creations, ranging from boxes and collages to design layouts for magazines and announcements for exhibitions of his work.

Source material sheds light on Cornell's preoccupations with certain people, events, subjects, and motifs. It documents his work on certain art works, publishing ventures, and exhibition catalogues, as well as the evolution of some of his major "explorations" from original experience or idea to the completion of one or more art works, and the various stages of other "explorations" that may or may not have resulted in a finished product. Source material also documents the influence of his preoccupations and "explorations" on his various artistic and commercial projects, as well as some of the major themes that recur in his art work. Source material reflects Cornell's efforts to gain access to the past and bring it into the present; his wide-ranging interests and the linkages he found between seemingly unrelated ideas and things; his real and imaginary relationships with historical and contemporary figures (such as artists and ballerinas); his abiding interest in the symbolism of images and objects; and the interconnectedness of his many artistic and creative endeavors.

The bulk of Cornell's source material, especially three-dimensional and non-textual material, can be found in the Joseph Cornell Study Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum, along with his library and record collection. Related material can also be found in Series 5: Ephemera and Artifacts.