Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Willem Volkersz Papers, 1985-2020
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Volkersz, Willem
- Title
- Willem Volkersz Papers
- Dates
- 1985-2020 (inclusive)19632020
- Quantity
- 8 linear feet
- Collection Number
- 2697
- Summary
- Willem Volkersz is a mixed-media artist and art collector. The Willem Volkersz papers consist of materials relating to his work as a professor at Montana State University and of his work as an artist.
- Repository
-
Montana State University Library, Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections
Montana State University-Bozeman Library
Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections
P.O. Box 173320
Bozeman, MT
59717-3320
Telephone: 4069944242
Fax: 4069942851
- Languages
- English
Historical NoteReturn to Top
Willem Volkersz is a mixed-media artist and art collector. He was born in 1939 in the Netherlands to Everhardus Gerard Volkersz and Elisabeth Volkersz-Merens. His family immigrated to the United States in 1953, when he was 14. He received his Bachelor of Arts from The University of Washington in 1965 and his Master of Fine Arts from Mills College in California in 1967.
Volkersz is most known for his work in neon sculptures and paint-by-numbers style painting, often incorporating multiple techniques, and occasionally found objects, into his pieces. His works have been featured in the Emerson Cultural Center (Bozeman, Montana), Museum of the Rockies (Bozeman, Montana), Yellowstone Art Museum (Billings, Montana), Missoula Art Museum (Missoula, Montana), Holter Museum of Art (Helena, Montana), Museum of Neon Art (Glendale, California), Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art (Great Falls, Montana), Plains Art Museum (Fargo, North Dekota), Museum of Northwest Art (La Conner, Washington), Coconino Center for the Arts (Flagstaff, Arizona), Reed Whipple Cultural Center (Las Vegas, Nevada), Francine Seders Gallery (Seattle, Washington), Leeds Polytechnic (Leeds, England), and others.
Volkersz was the Director of the School of Art at Montana State University (MSU) from 1986 until his retirement in 2001, when he was granted the status of Emeritus Professor. During his time as director his works were exhibited in galleries on campus and in faculty art magazines. Prior to teaching at MSU he taught at The Ohio State University (1967-1968), Leeds College of Art, Leeds, England (1972-1973), and Kansas City Art Institute (1968-1986).
He has received the Montana Governor's Arts Award in 2020, the James and Mary Ross Provost's Award for Excellence (Montana State University) in 1999, the Charles and Nora L. Wiley Research Award for Meritorious Research and Creativity (Montana State University) in 1998, and the Anna K. Fridley Phi Kappa Phi Distinguished Teaching Award (Montana State University) in 1996.
Volkersz has also been an avid collector of folk art and the works of self-taught artists. In 1986 he donated a collection of audio cassettes of folk artist interviews to the Archives of American Art (Washington, D.C.). His collection of folk, outsider, and self-taught art now resides at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center (Sheboygan, Wisconsin), The Missoula Art Musem (Missoula, Montana), and the Hallie Ford Museum of Art (Salem, Oregon).
He lives in Bozeman, Montana, with his wife Diane Volkersz.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The Willem Volkersz papers consist of materials relating to his work as a professor at Montana State University and his work as an artist. His teaching materials include his annual reviews, tenure review documentation, and his sabbatical work and documentation. His work as an artist is represented through gallery and auction announcements, publications of his exhibitions, video and audio interviews with him, professional correspondence, and sketches of his work. In addition to his teaching and artistic work, his collections of postcards, gallery cards, and correspondence cards are also included.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
This collection is open for research.
Preferred Citation
[Creator Name], [Date of Creation], [Brief Description of Object], Folder [#], Box [#], [Collection Name], [Collection #], Montana State University (MSU) Library, Bozeman, MT
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Acquisition Information
Gift of Willem Volkersz, 2021. Additional materials (exhibit catalog and textile) were received in February 2022. In 2023 a binder of newspaper clippings and an oral history done with Willem by the Booth Western Art Museum (audiocassette titled "conversation with H.H. about drawings") were added. In July 2024 a small selection of announcements for "The View from Here" was added.
Processing Note
The collection is largely in the arrangement that Volkersz created. However, the Annual Review documents were arranged chronologically, and in the Works and Reviews series, publications of the same name were grouped together to enhance discoverability. The Gallery Cards and Personal Correspondence were transferred as close as possible to the original order, but oversized items were relocated to the "Oversized Exhibition Announcements" folder. In cases where Personally Identifiable Information (PII) was discovered, items were scanned with PII redacted and replaced with the print out of the scaned document.
Separated Materials
The Annual Review documents originally included the individual scantron student reviews. Most of the information from these documents was also included in a summary page. These scantron documents were removed from the collection and only the summary documents were retained. Additionally, any items that included FERPA protected information were removed. Duplicate materials were also removed. Lastly, among the books that were donated as part of the collection, Yellowstone Art Museum: Fifty Years, and Visual Workouts: A Collection of Art Making Problems were removed to be described bibliographically in the MSU Library catalog.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Teaching MaterialsReturn to Top
This series includes materials related to Willem Volkersz' teaching career. Included in this series are materials from the University of Washington, and Kansas City Art Institute, as well as annual reviews, sabbatical reports, and tenure review materials from Montana State University.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | University of Washington |
1963-1964 |
| 1 | 2 | Kansas City Art Institute Viewbook |
1982 |
| 1 | 3-4 | Second Year Review- Originals Xeroxed for Tenure and Second Year Review |
1987 |
| 1 | 5 | Sabbatical Originals |
1986-1992 |
| 1 | 6-7 | Tenure Review MSU |
1988 |
| 2 | 1 | Tenure Review MSU |
1988 |
| 2 | 2 | Annual Review Materials- Promotion and Tenure Materials |
1988-1989 |
| 2 | 3 | Annual Review |
1989-1990 |
| 2 | 4 | Tenure Review Student Evaluations/Teaching |
1986-1991 |
| 2 | 5-6 | Review |
1992 |
| 2 | 7-8 | Sabbatical |
1993 |
| 3 | 1 | Sabbatical |
1993 |
| 3 | 2-3 | Review Materials |
1993-1994 |
| 3 | 4 | Annual Review Clippings etc. |
1995 |
| 3 | 5-6 | Annual Review |
1995 |
| 3 | 7 | Teaching Evaluations and Sample Student Comments |
1991-1996 |
| 3 | 8 | Annual Review |
1996 |
| 4 | 1 | Annual Review |
1996 |
| 4 | 2-3 | Annual Review |
1997 |
| 4 | 4-5 | Annual Review |
1998 |
| 4 | 6-7 | Annual Review |
1999 |
| 5 | 1 | Annual Review |
2000 |
| 5 | 2 | Annual Review |
2001 |
| item | |||
| 5 | 3 | MSU School of Art T-Shirt |
|
| Folder | |||
| 23 | 5 | Business Card, Director, School of Art, MSU |
Professional Files and CorrespondenceReturn to Top
The personal files and correspondence in this series are research files, contracts, and correspondence files between Willem Volkersz and galleries, museums, universities, professional organizations, and individuals regarding his work as an artist and as a professor. Additionally, some files cover the planning and description of some of his exhibitions.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 7 | 3 | Montgomery Museum |
2002-2006 |
| 7 | 4 | Portrait Sketch of Willem Volkersz by Bob DeWeese |
1987 |
| 7 | 5 | B. Muller |
1980-1981 |
| 7 | 6 | John Muller and Co. |
1985-1987 |
| 7 | 7 | Murray State University |
1986 |
| 7 | 8 | Museum of Northwest Art |
1999 |
| 7 | 9 | Andy Nasisse |
1984-2014 |
| 7 | 10 | National Endowment for the Arts |
1986-1992 |
| 7 | 11 | Neon: Current |
2000 |
| 7 | 12 | Will Nettleship |
1986-1988 |
| 7 | 13 | Nevada Museum of Art |
1989-1990 |
| 7 | 14 | Newell Commission (Flint Hills) Tall Grass Prairie |
2019-2020 |
| 7 | 15 | Wilbur Niewald |
2006 |
| 7 | 16 | New York City |
|
| 7 | 17 | Nicolaysen Museum |
2006-2020 |
| 7 | 18 | Nine Dot Arts (Dairy Block) |
2016 |
| 7 | 19 | Nine Dot (Seattle Project) |
2016 |
| 7 | 20 | Richard T. Notkin |
1978-1990 |
| 7 | 21 | Oats Pack Art Center |
2017 |
| 7 | 22 | Pacific Northwest College of Art |
1983-1986 |
| 7 | 23 | Paper Trail |
1998 |
| 7 | 24 | Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art |
2007 |
| 7 | 25 | Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art- 2008 Show |
2008 |
| 7 | 26 | Ernie Pepion |
2005 |
| 7 | 27 | Persistent Memories- Yellowstone Art Museum (YAM) Condition Report |
4237 |
| 7 | 28 | Will Petersen |
1977 |
| 7 | 29 | Pinhole Cameras |
|
| 7 | 30 | Retirement |
1997-1998 |
| 7 | 31 | E. M. Plunkett |
|
| 7 | 32 | Pollock-Krasner (Final Application) |
2006 |
| 7 | 33 | Portland Art Museum |
2015 |
| 7 | 34 | Portland Maine School of Art |
1983-1988 |
| 7 | 35 | Charles Scheidt |
2017-2018 |
| 7 | 36 | Seattle Art Musuem |
2016 |
| 8 | 1 | Seders, F |
2013 |
| 8 | 2 | SF MOMA Sales and Rental Gallery |
1989 |
| 8 | 3 | Siddiqui, Ayesha |
2009 |
| 8 | 4 | Studio Building |
1979-1988 |
| 8 | 5 | George Sugarman Foundation |
2007-2008 |
| 8 | 6 | Todd, Bill |
1988 |
| 8 | 7 | Swanston, Foster and Hanchey |
1984-1990 |
| 8 | 8 | Tree of Life Holocaust education Center of Montana (Connie Ostrovsky) |
2019-2020 |
| 8 | 9 | Tucson Museum of Art |
2018-2020 |
| 8 | 10 | UM UC Art Gallery |
2009-2010 |
| 8 | 11 | U of Northern Iowa |
|
| 8 | 12 | University of Washington (1984 Job Application) |
1983-1984 |
| 8 | 13 | Visions West - Checklist and Contract and Final Details |
2013-2016 |
| 8 | 14 | Washington State Arts Committee |
1991 |
| 8 | 15 | Whitney Western Art Museum |
2020 |
| 8 | 16 | Yellowstone Art Museum (YAM) "Boundless Visions" [Yellowstone Wildlife] |
2015 |
| 8 | 17 | Yellowstone Art Center |
1986-1990 |
| 8 | 18 | "Persistent Memories" (YAM 2015-16) |
2015-2016 |
| 8 | 19 | Who's Who in American Art |
2010-2014 |
| 8 | 20 | Willem Volkersz: A Life in Art |
|
| 8 | 21 | Working in the Dark |
1984 |
Works and ReviewsReturn to Top
This series includes materials representing Willem Volkersz' work as an artist. The series includes books that include Volkersz' work, exhibition catalogues for exhibitions Volkersz produced or participated in, auction catalogues that include Volkersz' work, magazine articles that showcase Volkersz, interviews with Volkersz, and sketches and posters produced by Volkersz.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 5 | 4 | Willem Volkersz The View From Here- A 25-Year Retrospective |
|
| 5 | 8 | The View from Here- A 25-Year Retrospective |
2022-2023 |
| Cassette | |||
| 24 | 1 | Conversation with H. H. About Drawings |
|
| compact-disc | |||
| 24 | 1 | Booth Western Art Museum, Oral History: Willem Volkersz |
2009 |
| Folder | |||
| 5 | 5 | Boise Weekly |
2022 |
| 5 | 6 | Follow your Bliss |
2023 |
| 5 | 7 | Reviews and Articles |
1953-1987 |
| 5 | 9 | Early Studio Cards |
1969-1986 |
| box-os | |||
| 25 | 1 | Public Art Review, Issue 7, Volume 4, Number 1 |
1992 |
| Box | |||
| 6 | Postcard collection |
1954-2012 | |
| Folder | |||
| 5 | 10 | Folk Art Collection Materials |
|
| 5 | 11 | Folk Art Exhibits and Articles |
|
| 7 | 1 | The Folk: Identity, Landscapes, and Lores |
1989 |
| 7 | 2 | Strange and Wonderful Folk Art Collection Materials |
1988-2017 |
| box-os | |||
| 25 | 2 | Number : An Independent Journal of the Arts, Number 39, The Visionary Art Issue |
2001 |
| Box | vhs | ||
| 24 | 1 | Wayne Ritter, Casper, WY, KGWC |
|
| 24 | 2 | Domestic Neon, Sculpture by Willem Volkersz |
2002 |
| 24 | 3 | Glowing in the Dark |
|
| 24 | 4 | KGWC/Casper Interview |
|
| 24 | 5 | KRTV-3 News Item on Shows at Paris Gibson Square, Including "Inventory" |
1998 |
| Folder | |||
| 8 | 22 | Sketchbook |
1969-1973 |
| 8 | 23 | Some Things Explained and Entertained |
1972 |
| 8 | 24 | Houses, Etcetera |
|
| 23 | 1-4 | Sketches |
|
| 9 | 1 | Exhibition Announcements |
1972-2024 |
| 9 | 2 | Willem Volkersz Solo Exhibition Catalogs |
1994-1999 |
| 9 | 3 | In Memoriam Exhibition and Related Materials |
2013-2015 |
| box-os | |||
| 25 | 4 | Richard Demarco Gallery, Edinburgh Festival |
1974 |
| Box | |||
| 9 | 4 | Artists Speak: Primer for Understanding Contemporary Art |
1990 |
| 9 | 5 | Northwest Neon |
1997 |
| 9 | 6 | Exhibition Announcements |
1987-1997 |
| 9 | 7 | Montana 3-D |
1990 |
| 9 | 8 | Domestic Neon: A Gallery Guide for All Ages |
|
| 9 | 9 | Exhibition Announcements |
2000-2013 |
| 9 | 10 | A Sense of Place: Contemporary Sculpture in Montana |
1988 |
| 9 | 11 | Exhibition Announcements |
1990 |
| 9 | 12 | How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist |
|
| 9 | 13 | The Walrus - Associate Students of Mills College |
1965-1967 |
| 9 | 14 | The Joslyn Biennial Joslyn Art Museum |
1978-1982 |
| 9 | 15 | Thirty Miles of Art Halls Exhibition Gallery |
1972 |
| 9 | 16 | Mud - Four Annual Juried Art Exhibition |
1979 |
| 9 | 17 | Ball State University Art Gallery, Twentieth Annual Drawing and Small Sculpture Show |
1974 |
| 9 | 18 | Mid South Biennial - Brooks Memorial Art Gallery |
1975 |
| 9 | 19 | Midwest Biennial - Joslyn Art Museum |
1972 |
| 9 | 20 | Nineteenth Dixie Annual Montgomery Museum of Fine Art |
1978 |
| 9 | 21 | Francine Seders Gallery 1987 Calendar |
1987 |
| 10 | 1 | Holter Museum of Art 11th Annual Art Auction |
2004-2007 |
| 10 | 2 | School of Art Faculty Montana State University |
1997 |
| 10 | 3 | Ana - Holter Musuem of Art |
1998-2003 |
| 10 | 4 | Luminous Beginnings Museum of Neon Art |
2001 |
| 10 | 5 | Art on the Vine - Oregon College of Art and Craft Auction |
2007-2008 |
| 10 | 6 | Missoula Art Museum: [newsletter] |
2011-2017 |
| 10 | 7 | 19th Annual Nation Exhibition of Prints and Drawings, Oklahoma Art Center |
1977 |
| 10 | 8 | Third Alumnae Art Exhibition - Mills College |
1969 |
| 10 | 9 | Appalachian National Drawing Competition |
1977 |
| 10 | 10 | Art Equinox: A Regional Survey of Contemporary Art Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art |
1990-1997 |
| 10 | 11 | Musuem Notes: Cheney Cowles Museum |
1997 |
| 10 | 12 | Neon: Current Curated by Willem Volkersz |
2000 |
| 10 | 13 | Christine Lamb, Willem Volkersz Francine Seders Gallery |
1985 |
| 10 | 14 | The Emerson's Open Door |
2003 |
| 10 | 15 | Artist as Collector Rosenberg Gallery, Goucher College |
1997 |
| 10 | 16 | Yellowstone Art Center Annual Art Auction |
1987-2015 |
| 10 | 17 | Exhibition Flyers |
1996-2001 |
| 10 | 18 | Alaska Airlines Magazine |
2013 |
| 10 | 19 | Big Sky Journal, Arts |
2018 |
| 10 | 20 | A Question of Scale: Missoula Museum of the Arts |
1986 |
| 10 | 21 | Friends of the Helena Film Society Benefit Auction |
|
| 10 | 22 | Cel-e-brate -- By David Dunlap |
|
| 10 | 23 | San Diego State College, Annual National Invitational Show |
1983 |
| 10 | 24 | New Glass Review 25 Corning Museum of Glass |
2004 |
| 10 | 25 | Signs of the Times: Porcelain Enamel |
1990 |
| 10 | 26 | New Art Examiner: Art and Visual Culture from the Greater Midwest |
2001 |
| 11 | 1 | Contemporary Northwest Art Awards |
2016 |
| 11 | 2 | Montana Triennial: Missoula Art Museum |
2009-2015 |
| 11 | 3 | Face to Face, Wall to Wall, Yellowstone Art Museum |
2014 |
| 11 | 4 | Montana Triennial: Yellowstone Art Museum |
2018 |
| 11 | 5 | Illustration A Visual History |
2008 |
| 11 | 6 | 25 Years of New Glass Review The Corning Museum of Glass |
2005 |
| box-os | |||
| 25 | 5 | Las Vegas Sun Front Page, "Self Portrait"
Item removed from frame.
|
1992-12-14 |
| 25 | 3 | Posters |
1989-1994 |
Gallery Cards and Personal CorrespondenceReturn to Top
This series includes exhibition cards, gallery announcement cards, greeting cards and other ephemera collected by Willem Volkersz over the years. The exhibition cards and gallery announcements are from galleries across the United States and around the world, both for exhibitions that Volkersz participated in, and ones that he did not participate in. The items have been kept roughly in the order they were received. Correspondence in the form of greeting cards, postcards and short letters are intermingled with the exhibition cards just as they were when they were donated.
| Container(s) | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | |
| 11 | 7 | Oversized Exhibition Announcements |
| 12 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 13 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 14 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 15 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 16 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 17 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 18 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 19 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 20 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 21 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 22 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
|
| 23 | Exhibition Flyers, Gallery Cards, and Correspondence |
Willem Volkersz Web Archive, 2023-2024Return to Top
Archive of Willem Volkersz' website. Web archives are updated regularly so long as the site is live.
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Art
- Art--Exhibitions
- Art--Study and teaching
Corporate Names
- Montana State University--Bozeman--Faculty
Form or Genre Terms
- Works of art
- folk art (traditional art)
- neon sculpture
Melissa Pomeroy
2024
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
