The Irwin Rubin Archive is organized by Carmelle Safdie, a New York based artist and archivist who studied Color with Rubin at Cooper Union from 2000-2001, in coordination with the Estate of Irwin Rubin. The archive was established in 2019 in an effort to document, catalog, and preserve Rubin’s artworks and teachings. The Irwin Rubin Papers were acquired by the Smithsonian Archives of American Art in 2023, and are available to the public in their Washington DC Research Center. 

Special thanks to: RISD Museum; Yale University Art Gallery; Sheldon Museum; Buffalo AKG Art Museum; Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt Design Museum; Green-Wood Historic Fund Collections; Josef and Anni Albers Foundation; Martha Jackson Gallery Archive; Cooper Union School of Art, Library Archives, and Architecture Archives; Smithsonian Archives of American Art.

We are seeking to determine the owner and whereabouts of various works by Irwin Rubin, as well as to locate his collection of students' work and teaching materials. If you have any information to share please write to irwinrubinarchive@gmail.com. We’d love to hear from you!