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Diego Cortez No Wave Collection

 Collection
Identifier: 8120

COLLECTION DESCRIPTION

Approximately 135 pieces complied by Diego Cortez comprising of material related to both his 1981 No Wave show at PS1 and many of the personalities involved in the artistic and musical scenes of the period, including Jimmy DeSana, James Chance, Anya Phillips, Fab 5 Freddy, Bob Gruen, Robert Gordon, Glenn O'Brien, Legs O'Neil, Ray Johnson, Debbie Harry, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, among others. The collection also contains concert flyers, photographs, and exhibition materials, including early proposals for a book and exhibition on graffiti art.

Dates

  • 1972 - 1981

Creator

Language of Materials

Collection material in English

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Born James Allen Curtis in Geneva, Illinois in 1946, Curtis moved to New York City in 1973 and assumed the name Diego Cortez. He became well-known as an artist, club manager, promoter, and independent curator, co-founding the influential NYC nightspot The Mudd Club, which offered an eclectic mix of art, music and cultural events that combined both modernist and punk aesthetics. In 1981, Cortez curated the groundbreaking exhibition "New York, No Wave" at a defunct elementary school in Long Island City, Queens called P.S. 1. The exhibition featured the work of David Byrne, Keith Haring, Robert Mapplethorpe, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Kenny Scharf, among many others.

Extent

1.5 cubic feet. (1.5 cubic feet.)

Abstract

Approximately 135 pieces complied by Diego Cortez comprising of material related to both his 1981 No Wave show at PS1 and many of the personalities involved in the artistic and musical scenes of the period, including Jimmy DeSana, James Chance, Anya Phillips, Fab 5 Freddy, Bob Gruen, Robert Gordon, Glenn O'Brien, Legs O'Neil, Ray Johnson, Debbie Harry, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, among others. The collection also contains concert flyers, photographs, and exhibition materials, including early proposals for a book and exhibition on graffiti art.

Physical Description

Extent is approximate.

Physical Description

Photographs, artwork, correspondence, manuscripts, and printed material.

General

Contact Information:
Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections 2B Carl A. Kroch Library Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853 (607) 255-3530 Fax: (607) 255-9524rareref@cornell.eduhttp://rmc.library.cornell.edu
Compiled by:
RMC Staff
Date completed:
October 2018
EAD encoding:
Marcie Farwell, October 2018
Date modified:
RMC Staff, October 2018
Status
Completed
Author
Compiled by RMC Staff
Date
October 2018
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Part of the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections Repository

Contact:
2B Carl A. Kroch Library
Cornell University
Ithaca NY 14853
607-255-3530
607-255-9524 (Fax)