As personal libraries grew in the 19th and 20th centuries, so did bookplates.
Library of Congress
Posted inArt
Library of Congress Photographs Mapped into an Interactive Atlas of the Great Depression
The Library of Congress has an incredible digitized archive of Depression-era photographs, taken between 1935 and 1945 on behalf of the United States Farm Security Administration and Office of War Information.
Posted inArt
Rare Postcards Reveal Early 20th Century Panoramas
The United States Postal Service was just expanding into widespread delivery to the remote corners of the country when panoramic postcards appeared to advertise in wide frame the beauty of these far-flung locales. Usually folding for more compact delivery, these broad little views offered expansive looks at landscapes, and also accommodated the rapidly growing modern marvels of the world, like towering skyscrapers or massive sea vessels. The Library of Congress recently added over 400 of these postcards to its online Prints & Photographs Catalog.
Posted inOpinion
How Many Photos Do Americans Take a Year?
The infographic above appeared in the April edition of National Geographic, and it demonstrates that the American addiction to digital images has created a huge surplus of pixels that tell us what most of us already know, people like to take A LOT of photos.
Posted inOpinion
Required Reading
This week, Geronimo’s eye, classic New York art dealer profiles, did arts reporting save the Rose Art Museum, in defense of bare walls, Uffizi’s new iPad app, artist suppression, Frederick Law Olmstead on the US South, Marshall McLuhan speaking to high school students (circa 1960s), a video tour of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater and photographs at the Library of Congress that include the photographer’s shadow.
Posted inNews
“All Your Tweet Are Belong to Us” — @librarycongress
First MoMA acquires “@” and now the Library of Congress (aka @librarycongress) is acquiring every tweet since March 2006. It’s always great to see institutions look past the monetary value of things and elevate the bonds we all share. So, next time someone luddite asks you “Who do you think is interested in what you had for breakfast?” You can confidently respond, “The Library of Congress, asshole!”
