The American Folk Art Museum Archives collects, preserves, and makes accessible primary source materials that document the history and field of folk art, self-taught art, and art brut. The Archives include AFAM institutional archives that document the development and activities of the Museum, as well as distinctive special collections related to the founding and development of the field, folk artists and networks, and how artists, collectors, curators, and scholars have shaped the field. Archival materials include audio, video, photographs, ephemera, clippings, manuscripts, correspondence, and expansive artist and subject files. Among these valuable documents are archives related to Henry Darger (1892–1973), widely acknowledged as one of the most prominent and iconic self-taught artists of the twentieth century. The museum holds four original manuscripts comprising more than 30,000 pages of text, approximately 3,000 items of ephemera, source material, and two dozen double-sided paintings in the museum’s collection—comprising the largest repository of works by Darger. The archive holdings can be searched in our archives database.
The American Folk Art Museum Library contains more than 10,000 volumes, including monographs and exhibition and auction catalogs, as well as substantial runs of nearly two hundred periodicals. It is a singular repository of scholarship in the field, unique in that its holdings include resources on traditional folk art and art by the self-taught from the twentieth century to the present together under one roof. The American Folk Art Museum Library is at AFAM’s Administrative Offices, Archives, and Collections Center in Long Island City, Queens. The Library is currently closed to the public. Please reach out to library@folkartmuseum.org for updates.
To search the library holdings, please visit our Library catalog. Please enter the Library Name: AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM LIBRARY. There is no password needed, but the Library Name is case-sensitive. When requesting AFAM Library materials, please write down the Name, Title, and Call Number of the resource(s) you would like to view.
Visitor Information
The American Folk Art Museum Archives and Library are located at AFAM’s Administrative Offices, Archives, and Collections Center in Long Island City, Queens.
The Archive Reading Room hours are Tuesday and Thursday, 11 am-4 pm, by appointment only. To request an appointment at the Archives, please email archives@folkartmuseum.org for a researcher registration form. All appointments must be scheduled at least one week in advance. Due to our reading room capacity, we may need to work with researchers to find a date that accommodates all parties. Researchers are asked to review the archival finding aids to identify specific collections or specific material within a collection when registering. After registration, the Archivist will reach out to confirm and schedule your visit. For detailed information on our research policies and procedures, please view our Archives Access Policy.
The Library is currently closed to the public. Please reach out to library@folkartmuseum.org for updates.
Reproductions
Upon approval, researchers may use digital cameras or phones to create reference copies of material in the reading room. If approved, the archivist will provide a proper citation that must appear in the image with the archival material.
Low-resolution digital reference copies may be requested and are subject to certain limitations (size, format, physical condition of originals, and collection restrictions). Costs depend on the format of the originals and include additional service and delivery fees. To request low-resolution reference copies, please contact archives@folkartmuseum.org
For information about reproductions with the intent to publish, please email a request to requests@artres.com.
Image: Ralph Fasanella, photograph by Charmian Reading, 1972, black and white contact sheet print, American Folk Art Museum, gift of the estate of Ralph Fasanella, 2009.
