The Wittliff Collections

As Mark Twain noted, “the difference between the almost right word and the right word is the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”

The leading writers of the Southwest make it their business to be lightning rods, and the new  Spring, 2010 exhibit at the Wittliff Collections, The Lightning Field: Mapping the Creative Process, utilizes journals, letters, and manuscripts to illuminate the how of creation.

The Wittliff Collections offer a dynamic archival, exhibition, programming, and research environment designed to further the cultural legacy of the region’s literary and photographic arts, and foster “the spirit of place” in the wider world.

The Southwestern Writers Collection preserves and exhibits the literary papers and artifacts of principal writers, filmmakers, and musicians, including the major archives of Cormac McCarthy, Sam Shepard, and John Graves, as well as the production archives of Texas Monthly magazine, Fox’s animated series King of the Hill, and the CBS miniseries Lonesome Dove.

The Southwestern and Mexican Photography Collection includes the major holdings of such renowned artists as Kate Breakey, Keith Carter, and Graciela Iturbide, and houses the largest archive of modern and contemporary Mexican photography in the United States.  

The Wittliff Collections, including the Southwestern Writers Collection and the Southwestern & Mexican Photography Collection , are located on the 7th floor of the Albert B. Alkek Library on the Texas State. Please call or check our website for current exhibit hours and special event information.

Monday-Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Saturday-Sunday: By Appointment Only