Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. Collection, 1992-2019 | Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Title: Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. Collection, 1992-2019

ID: 01/01/MSS00100

Primary Creator: Kennedy, Amos Paul, Jr.

Extent: 20.0 Cubic Feet

Arrangement:

The collection consists of six series arranged by format and size: 1). Prints and postcards, 2.) State road maps, 3.) Promotional materials, 4.) Handheld fans, 5.) Publications, and 6.) Posters. The materials in each series are arranged chronologically by date of the print's creation.

Series 2 contains two subseries: 1.) General and 2.) Bombingham. Series 4 contains two subseries: 1.) General and 2.) Civil rights leaders. Series 5 contains two subseries: 1.) Periodicals and 2.) Event publications.

The collection is described at the item level. The contents of each print are transcribed in quotations, following the capitalization and wording of the prints as closely as possible.

Information contained in parentheses within the quotation marks is found at the top or bottom of the print. Often this information refers to the source of the quotation on the print or an organization involved with the event promoted on the print. For example, “YOUR LIBRARY IS YOUR PARADISE. (Desiderius Erasmus)” and “PRINTERS FAIR (ANNA TEMPLETON CENTRE).”

Text on the background of the prints is included in brackets within quotations. Any information in brackets outside of the quotations indicates design related characteristics of the given print to distinguish it from other prints with identical text. For example, “Food Justice: Community, Local food, Water is life, Fresh Food, Farm-to-Table” [blue and pink].

Date Acquired: 00/00/1997. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: Kuba (African people), Smoking -- Folklore, Tales -- Congo (Democratic Republic), Tales -- Nigeria, Yoruba (African people) -- Folklore

Forms of Material: African Americans--Music, American poetry, Artists' Books--United States, Christmas music, Miniature Books -- Specimens, Postcards, Proverbs, African, Spirituals (Songs)

Languages: English

This collection consists of graphic art on handmade paper printed at Kennedy Prints!, Jubilee Press (also Jubalee), or elsewhere by Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. (1948-), an American letterpress printer, papermaker, educator, and social activist. Formats include postcards, posters, state road maps, and hand fans. There is also some additional promotional material for events with which Kennedy was involved. Some items for this collection are individually cataloged and searchable in Primo at the link below. Many are also digitized and available to view online as part of our Digital Collections.

See Administrative/Biographical History and Administrative Information for more information.

Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, in 1948. His father, Amos Paul Kennedy Sr., was a professor of agriculture and chemistry who taught at numerous historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) throughout his professional career. In 1972, Kennedy Jr. earned a BA in mathematics at Grambling University, and went on to pursue an MA in education.

Kennedy spent time in the Peace Corps during graduate school, which gave him the opportunity to teach mathematics in Liberia for 18 months. After contracting and recovering from malaria, he returned to the United States and settled in Gaithersburg, Maryland, taking a position with IBM as a systems programmer. He worked there for three years before moving to Cleveland, Ohio, where he worked for various computer firms and revived his interest in graduate school—this time for library science.

In 1981, Kennedy moved to Chicago, however, which once again put his formal academic plans on hold. While working for AT&T, he studied calligraphy as a hobby and took letterpress courses at Artist's Book Works, a small non-profit papermaking studio that opened in 1983. His initial interest in the printmaking process was peaked during a trip to Colonial Williamsburg, where he saw the town’s 18th century print shop and book bindery. After six months of coursework, Kennedy came into his own press and, being gifted four cabinets of type by a seasoned printer, quickly transformed his basement into a print shop. This private press was called Idiot Press, its name changing to Kennedy and Sons Fine Printing once he shifted his focus to commercial printing, and later to Jubilee Press (also Jubalee).

In 1995, Kennedy began graduate school at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and studied graphic design under Walter Hamady (1940-2019), also taking courses on the history of African art and Vodún. At this time, he moved to Bayside, a suburb of Milwaukee, and worked out of a studio there. He graduated with an MFA in 1997, and in 1998, became the first Black faculty member in the School of Fine Arts at Indiana University.

While living in York, Alabama, in 2002, Kennedy shifted his interest from books to posters and cards. He spent much of the next decade honing his craft in a series of small Alabama towns while traveling to teach, speak, and sell his work. In 2008, he moved to Detroit, Michigan where he established his print shop, Kennedy Prints!.

Using wood type and hand presses, Kennedy produces large editions of wildly colorful, typographically driven posters on inexpensive chipboard stock. His method often involves overprinting multiple layers of text and making constant, subtle alterations to the color of the inks throughout each press run, making each print being subtly unique. He passionately addresses issues of race, freedom, and equality in his work, often incorporating proverbs and tales of the Kuba and Yoruba people of Africa, as well as the work of Black American poets, such as Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906). Kennedy has printed under a number of press names, including York Show Prints, Kennedy & Sons, Fine Printers, and Kennedy Prints!

As more and more artists seek to steer away from computer-generated art, Kennedy is often credited with the revival of the letterpress in contemporary and folk art.

Kuba (African people)
Smoking -- Folklore
Tales -- Congo (Democratic Republic)
Tales -- Nigeria
Yoruba (African people) -- Folklore

Repository: Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Accruals: Additions through 2019 have been processed.

Access Restrictions: Open to researchers.

Use Restrictions:

The RBML reproductions policies can be found here:

http://www.library.illinois.edu/rbx/ReproductionServices.htm

The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials.

Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study scholarship or research." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement.

This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgement, fulfillment of the order would damage materials or involve violation of copyright law.

Related Materials: Interview with Amos Kennedy (University of Wisconsin, Madison Library)

Processing Information: https://wiki.cites.uiuc.edu/wiki/display/librare/Home

URL: https://go.library.illinois.edu/AmosPaulKennedyJrCatalog

Box and Folder Listing

Series 5: Publications, 1994-2019

Sub-series 1: Periodicals, 1994-2018

Contains newspaper and magazine articles related to Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. and his work.

Box 5

Folder 5: Magazine, newspaper clippings, and a newsletter, 1994-2000

Item 1: “Concerts, exhibits, TV shows highlight Black History Month” newspaper article by unknown author from Post-Tribune, 1991

The article promotes the exhibit “Joy-Filled Words: African-American Spirituals in Print” by Amos Kennedy Jr. at the DuBois branch of the Gary Public Library.

Item 2: “Gary Public Library exhibits/displays at DuBois” newspaper article by unknown author from The Crusader, 1991

The article promotes the exhibit “Joy Filled Words: African-American Spirituals in Print” by Amos Kennedy Jr. at the DuBois branch of the Gary Public Library.

Item 3: Post-Tribune Calendar Page featuring Amos Kennedy Jr.’s exhibition “Joy Filled Words” at the Gary Public Library, undated

Item 4: Journal Times Community Page with photograph of Amos Kennedy Jr. demonstrating letterpress art to kids, 1993

Item 5: Caxtonian newsletter, 1994

Item 6: Sign of the Windmill: A Magazine for Printers, 1997?

Includes “Printer does things the old-fashioned way” article about Amos Kennedy Jr. by Heather Larson Poyner of Kenosha News.

Folder 6: Magazines, 2005

Item 1: Jubilation magazine, 2005

Features Amos Kennedy Jr. in “Rural Renaissance: Artists Converge in an Unlikely West Alabama Town” by Jeana Durst.

Item 2: First Draft journal, 2005

Includes artwork by Amos Kennedy Jr. on the front cover.

Folder 7: Chicago Reader section two, 2006

Features work by Amos Kennedy Jr. for the promotion of his “In Memoriam” exhibit at Las Manos.

Folder 8: Tuscaloosa magazine, 2008

Includes “Amos Kennedy: the Journeyman Printer” by Janet Sudnik.

Folder 9: Magazines, 2008-2009

Item 1: Step Inside Design magazine (the Self-Promotion Issue), 2008

Includes “My First Time” by Christopher Simmons featuring artwork by Amos Kennedy Jr.

Item 2: “art in migration” publication, 2009

Includes “Ladies no fighting in the bathroom” featuring Amos Kennedy Jr. by Agnes Achola and Tapfuma Gusta.

Folder 10: Progetto grafico magazine, 2008

Includes “Il messagio nelle mani del popolo, Amos Paul Kennedy Jr: Tipografo, Artigiano” and interview with Kate Ferrucci. Magazine encloses small booklet titled “Sistemi regolari di punti: I gruppi cristallografici di movimenti nel piano” by David Hilbert and Stefan Cohn-Vossen.

Folder 11: Magazines, 2010, 2017

Item 1: Southern Living magazine, 2010

Includes “Handmade in Alabama: Kennedy Prints” by Chip Brantley.

Item 2: Lawrence Arts Center magazine, 2017

Includes art by Amos Kennedy on the front and back covers. Also includes course details for “Letterpress Workshop with Amos.”

Box 11

Item 1: Art Muscle magazine, 1994

Item 2: Shepherd Express newspaper, 1998

Item 3: IDS WEEKEND publication, 2000

Includes “The Optimistic Cynic,” a story about Amos Kennedy Jr. by Aline Mendelsohn.

Item 4: The Daily Toreador newspaper, 2009

Includes “Guest artist speaks about importance of printing press” by Alexandra Pedrini.

Item 5: The Crimson White newspaper, 2011

Includes “Printing press artist Amos Paul Kennedy holds workshop” by an unknown author.

Item 6: Weld for Birmingham newspaper, 2015

Includes “Thank You for Buying a Poster: Amos Kennedy’s Art Graces Paperworkers Local” article by an unknown author.

Item 7: Pasatiempo magazine, 2017

Includes “Freedom and the Press: Printer Amos Paul Kennedy Jr.” article by Paul Weideman.

Item 8: The Chronicle Herald newspaper, 2018

Includes “Book promotion a pressing matter: Master print maker shows students how it’s done” article by Tim Arsenault.

Item 9: C-Ville (Charlottesville’s News and Arts Weekly) newspaper, 2019

Includes “Movable type: Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr. gathers community voices with his letterpress” article by Erin O’Hare.

Sub-series 2: Event publications, 1996-2017

Contains programs for events and exhibitions which involved Amos Paul Kennedy Jr.

Box 5

Folder 12: Event programs, 1996-2007

Item 1: “Mapping Wisconsin Book Artists: Your Official Guide to the ‘I Build Books!’ Exhibition” brochure, 1996

Includes Amos Kennedy, Jr. as a Wisconsin book artist.

Item 2: Program for Martin Luther King Library Renovation Celebration, 1997

The back of the program describes a book created by Amos Kennedy, Jr. with quotes by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in celebration of the renovation. The program encloses an insert with quotes by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Item 3: Program for “Alberto Casiragi, Games of the Flea: A Small Italian Publisher in America” exhibition at the School of Fine Arts Gallery at Indiana University, 2000

In the program, curator Ben Pond thanks Amos Kennedy, Jr. for “his efforts to make this exhibit possible.” NAPPY – negroes in ART! is also given credit for helping make the exhibition possible on the back of the program.

Item 4: Brochure for “Dual Commitment: Current Examples of Public Art Projects in the USA and in Austria” symposium, 2005

Item 5: Kentucky Festival of the Arts program, 2007

Includes Amos Kennedy, Jr. as a participating artist.

Folder 13: “FREEDOM NOW!” booklet by Francesco Baldassare, Ivan Pengo, Moreno Chiodini, Adriano Porazi, and Amos Kennedy, Jr., 2008

Contains “WE WHO BELIevE IN FREEDOM CANNOT REST (Ella Baker) print by Amos Kennedy, Jr. with gold design.

Folder 14: “CONTENTS UNDER PRESSURE” catalog for “Art of the Contemporary Letterpress Poster” exhibition at Texas Tech University, 2009

Includes Kennedy Prints! and work by Amos Kennedy, Jr.

Folder 15: PRINT! AMOS KENNEDY, JR. & THE FINE ART OF RABBLEROUSERY booklet, 2009

Printed and published by Andrew Steeves of Gaspereau Press as a keepsake for those who attended a conferences at Harvard University in May 2009.

Folder 16: Event programs, ticket, and handouts, 2009-2019, undated

Item 1: Program for “Arbeiten oder nicht arbeiten: Soho in Ottakring” [“To Work or Not to Work”] event in Vienna, Austria, 2009

Includes Amos Kennedy Jr. on the front cover and as a special guest.

Item 2: Program and schedule for the 7th annual American Black Film Festival in Montgomery, Alabama, 2009

Item 3: Kentucky Festival of the Arts event program, 2010

Includes Amos Kennedy Jr. as a participating artist.

Item 4: Ticket for Proceed and Be Bold at St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival, 2010

Item 5: Program and schedule for Miles College’s Black History Month Celebration with Amos Paul Kennedy Jr., 2011

Item 6: Program for “Road to Equality: The 1961 Freedom Rides” exhibit at the Freedom Rides Museum in Montgomery, 2012

Includes Amos Kennedy Jr. as an exhibiting artist.

Item 7: “Art Wave: New Jersey Book Arts Symposium and Exhibition” program, 2018

Includes Amos Kennedy Jr. as a participating artist and presenter.

Item 8: Program for “Art in Action: Herblock and Fellow Artists Respond to Their Times” exhibit featuring the work of Amos Kennedy Jr. at the Library of Congress, 2019

Item 9: Program for “Art in Action: Herblock and Fellow Artists Respond to Their Times” exhibit featuring the work of Amos Kennedy Jr. at the Library of Congress, 2019

Item 10: “MSU Notstock” flyer for Amos Paul Kennedy Jr. ,Paul Kreizenbeck, Calvin Laituri, and Lisa York poster sale, 2019

Item 11: “Art on the Rocks: Schedule of Events for Friday the 16^th” flyer for “The Art of the Print: Featuring Old Masters to Modern Methods & Todd Snider”, undated

Includes artist print demonstration by Amos Kennedy Jr.

Item 12: “Southern As… by Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr.” biographical handout for exhibition, undated

Folder 17: Program for “Full of Pepper and Light: Welcoming the Gwendolyn Brooks Papers at the University of Illinois” exhibit at the Rare Book and Manuscript Library at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 2014

Box 11

Item 10: Alabama Book Festival event program, 2010

Includes station to craft a commemorative poster with Amos Kennedy, Jr.

Item 11: Design Week Portland guide, 2017

Includes Amos Kennedy, Jr. as a presenter.

Item 12: “Tabook 8” event schedule (in Czech), 2019