Collections : [University of Michigan Special Collections Research Center]

This collection includes 86 sketchbooks of the Detroit artist, Sam Karres as well as miscellaneous items and publications that either discuss or correspond with his artwork.

The Sam Karres Archive largely consists of sketches of the Detroit area during the 1980s as well as other types of documents that relate to the drawings. It has been divided into six series: guidebooks, small sketchbooks, medium sketchbooks, large sketchbooks, printed materials, and miscellaneous items.

Guidebooks: In this series, there are three binders composed by Sam Karres' friend, Denny Stavros that provide background on the artist as well as discuss the content of his sketchbooks that were donated to University of Michigan's Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library for The Modern Greek Studies Collection. Following the descriptions of the sketchbooks, there are indexes and appendixes that include some of Karres' writings, photographs that complement the drawings, and photocopies of pages from the sketchbooks. The binders are divided up by the dates the sketchbooks were given: December 9, 2011, September 28, 2012, and June 20, 2013. The sketchbooks have been designated as small, medium, or large by Stavros in addition being assigned individual numeric identifiers. There is also one hand-written list of periodicals and ephemera donated by Stavros on September 28, 2012. A few of the articles and all of the ephemera relate to Sam Karres.

Small Sketchbooks: This section consists of ten sketchbooks ranging in size from 3.5 by 4. 75 inches to 5.5 by 8 inches. The majority of these sketchbooks from this series dates from the late 1970s and contends with a variety of subjects including: restaurant scenes, animals, human forms and faces, boats, and especially Greek Orthodox religious figures and practices.

Medium Sketchbooks: This series consists of twenty-two sketchbooks, ranging in size from 6 by 9 inches to 9 by 12 inches, completed between 1977 and 2009. Some of the themes depicted in the drawings are: restaurants, dogs, horses, wrestling, daily life activities, Karres' family, and characters like Greektown Stella, International Cowboy, and performers that could be found in Detroit's Greektown.

Large Sketchbooks: This series consists of forty-seven sketchbooks, ranging in size from 11 by 14 inches to 14 by 17 inches. Although the drawings in this section were completed between 1955 and 1991, the majority of the images were executed in the 1980s. Some of the themes reflected in these sketchbooks are: human forms, restaurant scenes, tug boats, factories, weightlifting, performances, Detroit's Greektown, vacations, and Karres' aging parents.

Miscellaneous: The items in this series consist of letters, news articles, exhibition catalogs, a flyer, an awards booklet, and photocopies of photographs. These assorted materials that range in date from the late 1950s to 2004, were donated by Sam Karres' friend, Denny Starvos to the University of Michigan's Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library for the Modern Greek Studies Collection on September 28, 2012. They are arranged in numerical order according to the numbers Starvos assigned to them.

Tom Pohrt is a self-taught artist who works out of Ann Arbor, Michigan. He is best known as a children’s book illustrator and author. The collection documents Pohrt’s work as a children’s book illustrator and author through published works, correspondence with authors and publishers, manuscripts, and artwork.

This collection spans the years 1980-2004, and is comprised of published books, correspondence between Pohrt and authors and publishers, manuscripts, and artwork. The published books have been removed from the collection and catalogued separately. It is divided into 4 main series; Correspondence, Manuscripts, Ephemera and Artwork. The collection was divided into these four series to facilitate the addition of materials to the collection. The repository also holds a box of facsimiles of items in the collection used in an exhibit at the Ann Arbor District Library Exhibit in Fall, 2003.

The Correspondence series is arranged into subseries according to the correspondent or organization (usually publishing houses) in alphabetical order. Under each correspondent the materials are further divided into folders by date span and arranged chronologically. Under the publishing houses, materials are divided under subheadings according to project (book title) and arranged chronologically.

The Manuscript series contains manuscript material by Jim Harrison, Barry Lopez, and Tom Pohrt, and is arranged alphabetically by creator and book title.

The Ephemera series consists of calendars with illustrations by Pohrt, exhibit catalogs, flyers and brochures announcing events and public appearances, and other printed ephemera.

The Artwork series contains unbound preliminary drawings, paintings and sketches created by Pohrt to illustrate some of his most well-known books. The pieces of art are of various sizes and in a variety of media (e.g., pencil, watercolor, pen and ink). Many are stored in linen-covered cardboard portfolios, while others are tipped into handmade booklets and scrapbooks.