The Irene Peslikis Papers span the years 1957-2002 and document Peslikis's life as a feminist artist, activist, and educator. The collection is organized into nine series: Feminist Activism, Correspondence, Writings, Personal Files, Subject Files, Education, Art, Printed Material, and Audiovisual Material.
The Feminist Activism Series is composed of materials from three key venues for Peslikis's feminist activist work: the New York Feminist Art Institute, the journal Women & Art, and the group Redstockings. This series includes organizational records, related correspondence and articles, exhibition announcements, and grant proposals.
The Correspondence Series contains letters, postcards, and cards received by Peslikis from family and friends. Frequent and/or notable correspondents include her immediate family: her mother, father, and brother, Michael; and friends Ursula Karau, Alix Kates Shulman, Rosalyn Baxandall, Robin Morgan, Carol Hanisch, Lucinda (Cindy) Cisler, Lucia Vernarelli, Pat Mainardi, Judy Chicago, and Shulamith (Shulie) Firestone. A smaller amount of outgoing letters is also included. Correspondence depicts Peslikis's work as an activist and as an artist, as well as her financial and medical difficulties.
Materials in the Writings Series include manuscripts, notes, notebooks, and journals kept by Peslikis. The Manuscripts subseries includes writings by people other than Peslikis which directly impacted her work, as well as drafts and outlines of Peslikis's publications. Notes, notebooks, and journals were all penned by Peslikis. Notebooks are primarily personal journals kept by Peslikis from her teenage years through the early 1980s and again from the early 1990s until the end of her life.
The Personal Files Series depicts the numerous financial, legal, and medical issues confronted by Peslikis over three decades. Peslikis received assistance in the form of Supplemental Security Income (SSI), food stamps, and subsidized housing for artists (at Westbeth Artist Housing), each of which required meticulous documentation in order to retain. A portion of this series is closed until 2099.
The Subject Files Series consists primarily of clippings and notes retained by Peslikis on a number of women- and feminism-related subjects, as well as on art, astrology, United States foreign policy, and Greek politics.
The Education Series is composed of files documenting Peslikis as a student, an instructor, and an instructor in search of employment.
Items in the Art Series include artwork by Peslikis, duplications of her artwork, sketchbooks, and files related to her exhibits, including flyers, reviews, and catalogs.
The Printed Material Series comprises periodicals, pamphlets, and printed essays. Subjects represented include feminism, Marxism, and art.
The Audiovisual Material Series consists of audiocassettes and super 8 film documenting discussions, meetings, and other events. Items are labeled with original descriptions provided by Peslikis. Also included is a VHS tape of a memorial service for Peslikis.
Feminist artist, activist, and educator Irene Peslikis was born 7 October 1943 in New York, New York. Upon completing high school in 1962, she began studies in art at Pratt Institute. In 1963, Peslikis, along with others, broke away from Pratt and co-founded the New York Studio School for Drawing, Painting, and Sculpture. She was a founding member of the feminist theoretical and consciousness raising group Redstockings, authored "Resistances to Consciousness," a paper on understanding consciousness raising, and was one of the organizers of and participants in the Redstockings Speak Out on Abortion at Washington Square Methodist Church in New York City. Peslikis founded the journal Women & Art with another feminist artist, Pat Manairdi, in the early 1970s, and in 1973 graduated from Queens College.
The first Women and Art course on a college campus was taught by Peslikis at the State University of New York at Old Westbury, and she was a founder of the New York Feminist Art Institute. From the 1970s through 1980s, Peslikis taught at a number of post-secondary institutions, including the City College of New York, the College of Staten Island, the College of New Rochelle, and Ramapo College. She taught courses such as Painting, Drawing, Visual Arts Orientation, Introduction to Art Making, Women and Art Studio Workshop, and Contemporary Perspectives on Art. Peslikis had a number of solo art exhibitions, and participated in a larger number of group exhibitions. In 1983, she earned an MFA from the City College of New York. Peslikis died on 28 November 2002 at the age of 59.
