Survey: aleXander Hirka

Posted August 05, 2010 by Anonymous

Organization:

aleXander Hirka

Part 1.

Year Founded:

1951

1b. Primary activity[ies] of the organization.:

artist, publisher

1c. Organization's annual budget.:

$0 - $50,000

1b. Primary activity[ies] of the organization.:

Printed Periodical / Publication

Other

Part 2.

2a. Mission Statement:

To bring to the eye what only the mind can see.

2c. Exhibition / Programming / Publishing History.:

Smegma the Magazine was published in New York City between 1978 and 1981 and is included in the library of the Museum of Modern Art. As the punk music scene exploded, this New York City publication burst onto the local art world seeming to express the same creative, anarchic, playful energy in print. While it certainly would be listed among the very first montage-style punkzines, it’s creativity, innovation and scope went far beyond the others - with original artwork contributions including original drawings by Tuli Kupferberg (of the Fugs), a Lance Loud (star of first reality tv show "An American Family") interview, poetry, and works by now famous correspondence artists Buster Cleveland, John Evans, E.F.Higgins III, Ray Johnson, G. A. Cavellini, and many, many others. The third issue included a 2-sided flexidisc recording, an audio montage called "Hot Dog, You Bet!", which was voted as a favorite in November 1980 by music critic Lester Bangs in the Village Voice Pazz & Jop poll. The first issue was printed in a limited edition of only 500.

Website Link to Exhibition / Programming / Publishing History:

http://www.alexhirka.com/smegmart.html

Part 3.

3a. Names and email addresses of Founders, Board Members, Directors or other key individuals::

Alex Hirka obladida@adelphia.net

3b. Could any of these individuals assist in providing an oral history of your organization?:

Yes

Part 4.

4a. Is organization currently active?:

Yes

4b. Year activity suspended if no longer active.:

Organization Still Active

Part 5.

5a. Type of organization at its founding.:

For-Profit

5b. Type of organization currently, or at the termination of activities.:

For-Profit

Part 6.

6a. Does the organization have an archive?:

Yes

6b. Are there any short or long-term threats to the organization?:

Fiscal endangerment of organization

6c. Other threats to the organization::

Are there other threats to your organization? Please describe below.

Part 7.

7a. How important is to the organization to preserve the organization’s historical material. From 1 – Very Important to 5 – Not Important.:

7b. Has planning for the preservation and documentation of archive begun?:

Yes

7c. Does the organization know how and where to seek expertise and assistance?:

Yes

7d. Does the organization have specific concerns regarding starting an archive working with its historic materials?:

Space Concerns

Part 8.

8a. Is the organization's archives in the collection of another institution or promised to one?:

8a. Location:

IF YES to 8: University (Name)

8b. Archival materials are also located at::

Unknown

Where are these locations?:

Where are these locations? [I.E. Home / Office of Private Individual(s) (i.e. Former Board, Staff, Funders, etc)]

Part 9.

9. Does the organization maintain archives for any other organization.:

survey_field_49:

IF YES to 9: 10a. Please describe:

Part 10a.

10a. Is the archive accessible to scholars, curators or researchers?:

Part 10e.

10e. Under what circumstances would access to archives be allowed.:

SPecific special requests.

Part 11.

The following questions address the historical materials (type, quantity and storage) of the organization. 11a. Paper Files and Documents:

Artist Files

Correspondence

11b. Artwork and Documentation:

Audiotapes [Any Format]

Photographs

Unique Art Objects

Other Artwork. Please describe below.

Other::

mail-art

11c. Press and Promotional Materials:

Announcements, Mailing Cards, etc.

Newspaper / Magazine / Media Clippings

Posters / Flyers

Other::

Other Press or Promotional Materials:

11d. Printed Publications:

Artists' Publications

Brochures

Broadsides / Small Press

Commercially Published Materials

Other::

Other Printed Publications

Other::

Other

Part 12.

12. What years does the materials cover?:

1970-1979

1980-1989

Part 13.

13a. How is the material stored?:

Other Boxes

File Cabinets

13b. Are some or all of these storage units “archival”?:

None

Part 14.

14a. Estimated Number of Boxes or Milk-Crate Sized Storage Units:

1 - 10

14b. Estimated Number of Archive Drawers:

1 - 10

14c. Estimated Number of Archive Notebooks:

----

14d. Estimated the total Linear Feet. ["Linear Feet" is standard measure of the quantity of archival materials on the basis of shelf space occupied or the length of drawers in vertical files or the thickness of horizontally filed materials. For example, a:

----

or:

I don’t know

Part 15.

15. Is the historical materials - or archives - inventoried or catalogued in any way, either formally or otherwise?:

Part 16.

16a. Is there a key, index or finding aid to the materials inventoried?:

Part 16 / Electronic Files & Archival Management

16f. Does the organization have a back-up program, or back-up schedule, for its electronic records and perform monitoring of its removable media (i.e. floppies, ZIP disks, CD-ROMs, DVDs, portable hard drives, etc.)?:

Part 17.

17. How are new materials processed?:

No System

Part 18.

18. What, if any, conservation methods are in place for both physical materials and electronic data?:

None or Limited

Part 19.

19. What type of climate-controls are present in the area[s] in which the archives are stored?:

No or minimal climate controls [i.e. in an attic, basement, unheated / uncooled storage area, etc.]

Part 20.

20a. What are the goals for the historical materials for the next year?:

begin archiving

20b. What are the biggest challenges to reaching these short-term goals?:

time

20c. What goals are in place for the historical materials for the next three to five years?:

find university or other site to adopt

20d. What are the biggest challenges to reaching these long term goals?:

20e. Are there any additional goals for the organizations historic materials?:

find a safe permanent home

Part 21.

21. Estimated cost to achieve these archival goals for the next year.:

$15,001 - $20,000

Part 22.

22. Estimated cost to achieve these archival goals for the next five years.:

----

Part 24.

24. What archival issues could / should visual arts organizations address collectively in the next three to five years? Ranked from 1 (highest priority) to 5 (lowest priority).24a. Shared standards / protocols for digitization:

Promote professional standards / protocols for digitization

Part 25.

25a. Is the organization a member of, or in contact with, any organizations concerned with archival issues?:

Part 26.

26. Additional information, comments, observations, and questions.:

Looking for a permanent home for a vast archive of mail-art and remaining information and copies of Smegma the Magazine.

Finish

survey_field_150:

Alex Hirka

Who executed this survey.:

Alex Hirka

Is this survey complete and all appropriate questions answered?:

Yes