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The Special Collections and Archives (SCA) collects unique and primary source materials including Book Art, Comics, Rare Books and Periodicals, Manuscript Collections, and University Archives. Many of these materials speak to the culture, heritage and works of diverse communities and individuals. A small selection is included below. Most materials are available for in house access only. Please go to the SCA website to see our hours or contact libsca@vcu.edu to make an appointment.
This is a selection of University archive records created by the University, and Manuscript collections donated by individuals and organizations. There is a more robust guide available upon request at libsca@vcu.edu. These collections are available for access in person in the Special Collections and Archives in Cabell Library on Monroe Campus and the Health Science Library on MCV Campus.
COLLECTION NOTE
As part of the effort to represent the social history of Richmond, SCA collects materials related to LGBTQ+ history. SCA’s LGBTQ+ manuscript collections generally span from the late 1970s to the mid 2000s, and, as such, is limited to that short period of history. VCU Libraries was awarded a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission in 2004 to expand its collections from historically underrepresented communities, which allowed SCA to fill critical gaps in the collection at that time.
While we strive for LGBTQ+ representation in our collections, gay and lesbian representation is most prominent. There are notable gaps in the representation of the lives and histories of other marginalized sexual and romantic orientations, intersex people, and trans and gender diverse people (including Two-Spirit people) in our manuscript collections at this time.
This is a selection of Book Art that either pertains to LGBTQAI+ culture or was created by LGBTQ+ artists. These and others can be accessed in person in the SCA at Cabell Library.
Exuberant resilience: a swatch book by Mary Tremonte, 3-621
Exuberant resilience: a swatch book uses screenprinted repeat patterns cut down and collected into the form of a swatch book. From the artist: ”The personal is the pattern is the political. This swatch book is a collection of designs that I drew and printed as a large scale repeat patterns on fabric at Women's Studio Workshop in Fall 2019. They explore intersecting themes of queer ecology, feminisms, individual autonomy, and collective ethos. They examines [sic] mycelium and queer resilience, as well as biological exuberance in birds and mammals, and new symbols for embracing agency and world-making. The larger fabrics these are a part will form banners and clothing, reinforcing the "text" in textiles, as a mode of communication (and subversion).”
Gender liberators by Sky Syzygy
Published by Women’s Studio Workshop in 2025, is “an anthology of writing, poetry, correspondence, photos, paintings, flyers, and other ephemera by trans*, two-spirit, nonbinary, and trans-adjacent authors and creators from 20th century turtle island/North America.” The many voices and experiences in the book are represented in the materials and techniques used to create it, which include new and traditional methods such as risography and paper marbling.
Team Ramey (2015) by Ben Rinehart
Team Ramey is a letterpress printed pop-up book that tells the story of two fathers navigating a birth through surrogacy. From the author: “It began as an innocent conversation with a friend. Despite having had a child before through adoption, we weren't prepared for the myriad of new issues in regards to conception, doctor's visits, the birth, legal challenges, and navigating an extended family.”
The theatre project by Christian Walker, 1-899
Christian Walker (1953-2003) was a photographer who explored race and queerness through photography. The Theatre Project (1985) documents an adult theater, which he referred to as "a contemporary urban temple" and its patrons in Boston.
This is a selection of Comic Arts either pertaining to LGBTQAI+ culture or created by LGBTQ+ artists. These and others can be accessed in person in the SCA at Cabell Library.
Come Out Comix (1974) represents the first comic book that fully centers itself on the lesbian experience written, drawn, and self-published by Mary Wings. Come Out Comix chronicles not only the experience of coming out, but the aftermath of searching for community and finding love.
Doom Patrol #70 by Rachel Pollak
This issue of Doom Patrol features the first appearance of a character named Coagula, the first trans superhero in a DC comic and the first trans superhero written by a trans creator, Rachel Pollack. Pollack introduces Kate Godwin, a freelance programmer who has the power to liquify solids and solidify liquids and becomes the superhero Coagula. Unlike previous representations of trans characters in comics, Pollack writes her character with charm, intelligence, and dignity. Throughout Pollack’s term writing for Doom Patrol, she explored complex themes of gender, bodily autonomy, and sexuality.
Gay Comix was an underground anthology series created by artist Howard Cruse and publisher Denis Kitchen in 1980 to give gay and lesbian comic artists the opportunity to publish their work and push back on stereotypes and caricatures of queer characters in comics. Cruse wanted to showcase work that presented the diversity of experience among the community.
I Am Only a Foreigner Because You Do Not Understand by L. Nichols, 2023.
I Am Only a Foreigner Because You Do Not Understand is a graphic memoir of L. Nichols’ reckoning with their trans identity alongside the pain of death, heartache and depression. Many vignettes tell a story that picks up where Nichols’ previous memoir Flocks leaves off, incorporating the same button-eyed doll imagery they evoked in their earlier work. Ultimately, Nichols’ story is one of immense tenderness and empathy, examining the ongoing journey of self-acceptance.
Some University archives and manuscript collection materials have been digitized and are available online.
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