Scope and Content of Collection
The George Herms papers document the activity of an artist whose diverse practice comprises
interconnected works in the fields of assemblage, collage, drawing, painting, poetry,
theater, performance art, photography, and publishing. Arranged in series developed in
collaboration with the artist, the bulk of the collection begins in the late 1950s and early
1960s, when Herms first showed at Semina Gallery and at Batman Gallery and was invited to
lend his assemblage, The Poet, to MoMA's exhibition, The Art of
Assemblage(1961).
Series I. Personal correspondence comprises letters from Herms' various wives, his
children, and from long time friends among the Semina artists and poets, such as Diane Di
Prima, Michael McClure, Wallace Berman, and Jess. The work of these artists and many others
are also represented in Series XII. Artist files, while announcements for their exhibitions,
and Herms' numerous solo and group shows, appear in Series XV. Ephemera. Herms' working
notes, sketches and astrological charts can be studied in his journals in Series III, which
take the form of unbound pages. Series IV. Project and exhibition files, contains a large
number of photographs, including studio and installation views, as well as Herms'
photographic experiments from the Topanga years and photographs of the Los Angeles art
scene. Artifacts from Tap City Circus and Love Press comprise Series VI and VII.
Arrangement
Arranged in fifteen series:
Series I. Personal correspondence, 1950-2002, undated;
Series II. Professional
correspondence, 1962-2005, undated;
Series III. Journals and
working notes, 1960-2009, undated;
Series IV. Project and
exhibition files, 1958-2001, undated;
Series V. Research
materials, 1913-2009, undated;
Series VI. Tap City
Circus, 1960-2002, undated;
Series VII. Love Press,
1959-2002, undated;
Series VIII. Teaching
materials, 1976-2001, undated;
Series IX. Artworks,
1960-1980, undated;
Series X. Personal,
1935-2003, undated;
Series XI. Clippings and
biography files, 1967-2000, undated;
Series XII. Artist
files, 1946-2002, undated;
Series XIII. Books,
1890-1986;
Series XIV. Serials,
1963-2009, undated;
Series XV. Ephemera,
1957-2005, undated.
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