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Smithsonian Libraries and Archives / Unbound

“Once There Were Billions” opening June 24th

The Smithsonian Libraries invites you to:

Echoes of Their Wings: The Passenger Pigeon and its Legacy

The exhibition opening for “Once There Were Billions”, featuring a lecture and book signing by Joel Greenberg, author of A Feathered River Across the Sky: The Passenger Pigeon’s Flight to Extinction.

Date: Tuesday, June 24, 2014 – 6:00pm
Location: Baird Auditorium
National Museum of Natural History
10th and Constitution Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20004

FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Please RSVP to SILRSVP@si.edu  or call 202-633-2241

Mentorship Monday: David Opkins

dave opkinsWelcome to “Mentorship Monday,” where we will be featuring blog posts from our staff about their experiences with the Smithsonian Institution Mentorship program. This “Mentorship Monday” post was written by Dave Opkins, Administrative Project Specialist, Smithsonian Libraries Administration Services. The Smithsonian Institution Mentorship Program is an annual 9-month program dedicated to “developing leaders throughout the Institution” through professional development in the areas of networking, interpersonal skills, coaching, and institutional engagement.

Discovering the artwork of the original AA/PG Library

~This post was written by Katherine Williamson, an intern at the American Art/ Portrait Gallery library.

Smithsonian NCFA/NPG Library c. 1975. Photo by Wolfgang Freitag
Cast-iron Eagle in the Smithsonian NCFA/NPG Library c. 1975. Photo by Wolfgang Freitag
Smithsonian NCFA/NPG Library, 1975. Photo by Wolfgang Freitag
Smithsonian NCFA/NPG Library, 1975. Photo by Wolfgang Freitag

As part of my work as an American Art/Portrait Gallery Library (AA/PG) intern, I answer reference questions from patrons that involve some type of research, either within our collection or using  online sources that the library subscribes to. One of the most interesting reference questions I have received actually came from our Head Librarian, Doug Litts. Through his own research involving the original location of the AA/PG library – Room 331 of the main museum building – he came across a list of paintings, a marble bust and a cast iron sculpture, that were located in what was known as the NCFA/NPG Library when it was housed in the museum. Through circumstances unknown to us, those artworks were never transported to the Victor Building when the library moved here in 2000. He became very interested in the history of the artworks, as well as where they are now, and recruited me to help him in his research.

Answers to our “Ask Me Anything”!

On April 30th, in honor of Preservation Week, the Smithsonian Libraries hosted an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) question and answer session with our book conservator, Katie Wagner.  The conversation primarily took place on our Tumblr page, from 12-2pm.  Katie answered about 30 questions, related mostly to book care and treatment, the Libraries and our collections and careers in conservation.