It was funded when Louise Noun sold a Frida Kahlo painting titled "Self Portrait with Loose Hair" for $1.65 million through Christie's in New York on May 15, 1991.
"It is fitting that the Archives was funded by the sale of a Frida Kahlo painting…[as] Kahlo's paintings have been rescued from obscurity in recent years…the IWA was meant to rescue the papers of Iowa women from obscurity, neglect, or destruction…"[1] The Archives was officially established in 1992 and is named after its two founders, Noun and Mary Louise Smith.
The Archive will publicize interest in women's papers, write letters of solicitation to individuals or groups, sponsor or attend events, or establish good working relationships with people around the state.
By 1995, "the Archives was able to hire Kathryn Neal as assistant archivist to undertake the African American Women in Iowa Project.
"[1] Neal created her own mission statement and plan to undertake the project of collecting papers of African American women from around the state.
With a grant from the Iowa Farm Bureau Foundation, the Archive was able to hire an assistant temporary archivist for two years named Doris Malkmus.
With the sort of mobile and busy life led by migrant farm workers, the women often were unable to be educated or did not have the time to learn to read or write.
For a researcher, listening to a recording and a manner of speaking – accents, intonation, pauses, laughter, crying – creates a more intimate connection with the speaker and can contribute to a better understanding of her experience.