Wynn Bullock archive

The collection offers insight into Bullock's attitudes toward his own work. Notes and diaries, articles written by Bullock, and his correspondence reflect the development of his philosophical approach to photography. There is less evidence of his thoughts on photography in general, although some of the papers do document his attitudes toward the work of other photographers and the development of the medium. The Bullock collection consists of 223 prints and 90 linear feet of archival materials, including personal papers, diaries, correspondence, activity files, audio-visual and photographic materials. The archive offers significant information on the exhibition, publication, and sale of Bullock's photographs; his experiments with solarization; his involvement with the Friends of Photography; and his teaching activities. The collection offers insight into Bullock's attitudes toward his own work and the development of his philosophical approach to the medium.

The first series contains correspondence (1921-1980) between Bullock and other photographers, gallery and museum staff, editors, students, photographic sales agents, and others. Subjects covered include the sale, publication, and exhibition of photographs; aesthetic issues relating to photography; Bullock’s photographic experiments; teaching positions; and other topics. Extent: 6.5 linear feet.

The second series of activity files contains publications and writings, exhibition files, education files, membership organizations, business records, technical materials, personal and financial papers, and miscellaneous papers.

Under activity files, subseries one through six include publications and writings (1950-1976), which include manuscripts, tear sheets, correspondence, and similar material relating to publications by Bullock and those written about him by others. Also included are Bullock’s diaries and notes on photography, transcripts of interviews with Bullock, files concerning the publication of his photographs, and copies of publications in which his photographs appeared. Extent: 3 linear feet.

The seventh subseries contains catalogs, scripts, lists of photographs, notices, contracts, correspondence and other material relating to exhibitions of Bullock’s photographs. See also the notebooks of Bullock’s negative numbers (AG10:11/ 23-24), which include lists of prints Bullock sent to various exhibitions. Extent: 1 linear foot.

The eighth subseries, education (1939-1980), includes correspondence, lists of students, course descriptions and announcements, minutes of professional association meetings, and similar material relating to photographic courses and workshops taught by Bullock. Also included are three folders of material from the Art Center School in Los Angeles, which Bullock attended from 1939 to 1940. Extent: .5 linear feet.

The ninth subseries includes correspondence, minutes and meeting material, reports, exhibition and publication notices, and other material relating to Bullock’s involvement with the Friends of Photography (FOP) between 1967-1975. Bullock served as chairman of the FOP’s exhibitions committee. Extent: .5 linear feet.

The tenth subseries contains business records relating to Bullock’s photographic businesses (1951-1965). Materials include correspondence, invoices, balance sheets, lists of supplies, and other material. These commercial enterprises were ARTCO, Inc., Arrow Portrait Studio, Arrow Photo Finishers, and Santa Maria Photo Finishers. The records pertaining to these businesses are sketchy and incomplete. Extent: .25 linear feet.

The eleventh subseries contains technical materials (1936- circa 1975), such as legal papers, correspondence, articles, and other material relating to the two photographic processes patented by Bullock – “Photographic Process for Producing Line Images” (1948) and “Method for Matching Opposing Densities in Photographic Film” (1957). In these experiments, Bullock worked with processes that he hoped would take the place of hand drawn technical illustrations. Material relating to Bullock’s photographic equipment is also included. Extent: 1.25 linear feet.

The twelfth subseries contains miscellaneous papers (1921-1975) that includes correspondence, bibliographies of Bullock’s publications and exhibitions, press releases, model releases, newspaper clippings, and other material relating to a wide variety of activities. Extent: 1 linear foot.

The thirteenth subseries contains personal and financial papers (1921-1970s) related to correspondence, army, school, and medical records, personal financial material, newspaper clippings, and similar items. Two scrapbooks of clippings, correspondence, brochures, articles, and similar material relating to Bullock’s career as a concert singer and photographer. Extent: .25 linear feet.

The third series, other materials, include newspaper and magazine clippings, books and periodicals, audio tapes, film and video tapes, and posters. The newspaper and magazine clippings (circa 1920-1975) are related to events of Bullock’s career, including exhibitions, publications, lectures, and related activities. A few of the clippings are examples of Bullock’s commercial work. The clippings are from a wide variety of publications, primarily newspapers. The books and periodicals come from Bullock’s personal library collection. The works deal with photography, philosophy, art and related subjects. Some of the books are annotated or signed by Bullock, but none contain his photographs or writings.

The fourth series, photographic materials, contains photographic equipment, photographs, negatives, and transparencies of Bullock’s work. In 1975, after Wynn Bullock had designated the Center for Creative Photography for his archive, he selected 140 prints as representative of his artistic oeuvre. These prints form the Core Collection of the Wynn Bullock Archive. At the same time, Bullock designated 159 prints as rejected prints, largely on technical grounds. An additional 700 prints from Bullock’s non-commercial, non-student work form a separate study collection. Early work, student work, commercial photographs, patent experiments, and family snapshots form five additional sections of Wynn Bullock’s photographs.

There are approximately 15,000 negatives ranging in size from 35mm to 8x10 inches. The negatives are often accompanied by Bullock’s notations, which usually include his negative number, title, or date. A few of the negatives are accompanied by contact prints. Note: the notebooks in which Bullock listed his negative numbers are in his papers (box 11).

The collections also includes approximately 1750 color transparencies of light abstractions, nudes, commercial work, family and friends, Bullock’s black and white photographs, and other subjects. Also included are color stereo transparencies of a variety of subjects and a series of transparencies that illustrate Bullock’s method of making light abstractions. An extensive inventory exists for the photographic materials in the Wynn Bullock Archive. This may be viewed in the Study Center, or a copy requested from the archivist.