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Category: Education and Outreach

Spring Break in Washington

Erin Rushing
April 6, 2015
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Margaret, Carlee and Anna in the Dibner Library.
Margaret, Carlee and Anna in the Dibner Library.

From March  16th-20th, the Smithsonian Libraries hosted five students from the University of Kentucky School of Library and Information Science as volunteers for Alternative Spring Break 2015.  Anna Gault, one of the spring break interns, shares her experience below.

I am interning at the Smithsonian Libraries with five classmates from the University of Kentucky School of Library and Information Science. As  a graduate student studying Library and Information Science, spending Spring Break interning with the Smithsonian Libraries is a dream. My five other classmates from The University of Kentucky School of Library and Information Science are in agreement.  They are working in different areas in the libraries and we love to share our experiences with one another, so it is a great learning opportunity for all!

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Smithsonian Libraries hosts Catesby Commemorative Trust Book Launch

Erin Rushing
March 25, 2015
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“The Red Curlew” from Catesby’s The natural history of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands.

Before John James Audubon, Englishman and naturalist Mark Catesby (1682-1749) was documenting the natural world.  His etchings of flora and fauna in the “new world”  of America are treasured by many.

The Smithsonian Libraries is pleased to host the launch of The Catesby Trust’s book tour for  The Curious Mr. Catesby: a “truly ingenious” naturalist explores new worlds, with speakers Dr. Charles Nelson, David E. Elliot  and our own Curator of Natural History Rare Books, Leslie K. Overstreet. Learn more with a question and answer panel and explore this new publication, which includes facsimiles of Catesby’s original watercolors. We invite you to join us for this interesting and unique experience.

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Garden Stories Twitterchat with the Biodiversity Heritage Library

Erin Rushing
March 13, 2015
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“Garden Stories” is a week long social media event for garden lovers from the Biodiversity Heritage Library. The campaign will explore the fascinating world of gardening, from the rise of agriculture to the home garden and the mail order gardening phenomenon. Celebrating the history, science, and art of gardening, content will be published via the BHL Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, and Pinterest, with additional posts through the Smithsonian Libraries’ Tumblr.

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Six questions with Dr. David Carr

Erin Rushing
February 11, 2015
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david_carrOn February 26th, the Smithsonian Libraries will host a free lecture with Dr. David Carr, “Questions for an Open Cultural Institution: Thinking Together in Provocative Places”.  To get to know Dr. Carr a bit better, we asked him a few questions and his insightful answers are below. We hope that you enjoy learning more about Dr. Carr and that you have the opportunity to join us (either in person or online) for his talk on the 26th!

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Books as Art?

Erin Rushing
February 2, 2015
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This post was written by Lilla Vekerdy, Head of Special Collections.

Recently, a class of book art- and art history students visited the Dibner Library of Science and Technology. Their professor, Kenneth Smith organized this “field trip” for his graduate course “The History of the Western Book” at the Corcoran Museum/George Washington University. The staff of the Dibner prepared a rare book display based on Professor Smith’s selection list, adding items in relation to the general description of the class.

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Lecture event: Questions for an Open Cultural Institution

Erin Rushing
January 27, 2015
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Join us for a discussion with Dr. David Carr about the potential of, and challenges facing, a cultural institution in the modern age. Carr speaks, writes, and teaches about the value of cultural institutions as essential instruments for nourishing public imaginations in democratic societies.  For thirty years, he has consulted in diverse American museums as an advocate for collaborative adult experiences with collections and ideas. Carr invites us to think with him about how an organization such as the Smithsonian can help ignite new ideas in its users and visitors and how those conversations can be continued long after the initial experience – regardless of whether that experience takes place in a physical or virtual space.

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