The papers of Sylvia Sleigh date from 1803-2011, with the bulk of the materials dating from 1940 to 2000. The archive documents her life, career, and the larger context of contemporary feminist art, concentrated in the New York City area--her primary residence beginning in 1961. Materials include correspondence, photographic and audiovisual materials, exhibition publications and ephemera, and related material. The papers are comprised of correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues; project files relating to exhibitions of Sleigh's work; documentation of Sleigh's and others' work; writings by Sleigh and others; her appointment books; files concerning Sleigh's involvement with women's artist organizations and cooperatives; teaching files; printed matter in the form of clippings, ephemera, and publications; and personal material including photographs and legal and financial documents.
Correspondence material in Series I is of both a personal and professional nature. The vast majority of material is incoming correspondence, from others to Sleigh. A significant portion is from close family and friends. See the Lawrence Alloway papers for more correspondence between Sleigh and her second husband, Alloway. Many correspondents were both colleagues and friends of Sleigh's from the contemporary art world and feminist organizations. Other noted correspondents include museums, galleries, and publications with which she worked. Correspondence related material includes Sleigh's address books, mailing lists, and early extended family correspondence.
The project files of Series II relate to projects Sleigh was involved with and spans her entire career. Exhibition files include all solo and group shows documented in the collection. Documents relate to the planning, curating, and execution of Sleigh's exhibitions. Among the files are correspondence, diagrams, ephemera, exhibition catalogs, lists, fliers, pamphlets, photographs, press releases, schedules, audio recordings, and shipping and transportation records.
The art documentation files of Series III are comprised primarily of records of the works of art Sleigh produced and of the processes by which she produced them. Among the files are inventories, subject and form descriptions, slides, photographs, negatives, and storage and transportation records. A small amount of material relates to the artististic practice of others.
Among the writings and lecture files of Series IV are Sleigh's appointment books and calendars, files that document lectures given, original manuscripts, notebooks containing a wide variety of topics, brief notes, and writings by others. The main topics covered are the quotidian, art in general, and Sleigh's works. Among the materials included are correspondence, ephemera, inventories, poetry, and audio and video recordings.
The women artist organizations and cooperatives files of Series V relate to those with which Sleigh was involved in New York City primarily in the 1970s and 1980s. It includes Artists in Residence (AIR), Soho 20, Women's Caucus on Art (WCA), and others. The subjects of feminism, women artists, equality, and contemporary art are documented through correspondence, schedules, minutes, notes, publications, ephemera, and audio recordings.
The teaching files of Series VI are comprised of supporting material that documents the various short-term art teaching positions Sleigh held such as those at New School for Social Research and Northwestern University. Files contain correspondence, ephemera, attendance records, and notes.
The printed matter files of Series VII contain clippings about Sleigh, art, and other topics of general interest to Sleigh; ephemera primarily related to art exhibitions including posters, postcards, catalogs, fliers, brochures, press releases, and announcements; and publications such as newspapers and magazines about art, culture, and current events. Files of women artists' announcements as created and maintained by Sleigh are also included.
The personal files of Series VIII include research files Sleigh compiled concerning Alloway; records of her personal art collection; financial and legal records; papers relating to Alloway's death, early family records, education, home office, possessions, and travel; and photographs documenting Sleigh's friends, family, vacations and daily life. Material includes passports, birth certificates, correspondence, inventories, bills, receipts, expense reports, clippings, photographs, slides, and negatives.
