– This post was contributed by Kelsey Clark, intern at the Smithsonian AA/PG Library summer 2013. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was created during the Great Depression as the largest more »
Smithsonian Libraries and Archives / Unbound
Tomorrow, December 7th, 2013, marks the 72nd anniversary of the Attack on Pearl Harbor. On that day in 1941, Japanese bombers and other aircraft launched a surprise attack on the more »
Throughout the year, the Smithsonian Libraries works with brand managers at the Smithsonian Enterprises to develop products based on unique items in our collection. From sleigh beds to weather vanes, our books have inspired a variety of merchandise! Not only are they neat items, but a portion of the proceeds comes back to the Libraries for the care and maintenance of our collection. Below is a list of perfectly giftable items just in time for the holiday season.
This was written by Hirshhorn Library volunteer, Elena Grant.
In the summer of 2013, while preparing donated books for cataloging at Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden library, we discovered an uncatalogued item—a 14 ½ by 11 ½-inch portfolio of reproductions titled 22 Selected Masterpieces: French Moderns, Museum of New Western Art, Moscow, USSR. The unfamiliar publisher name “Bookniga” and name of the long-extinct museum in the title attracted our attention. We decided to investigate the story behind this old publication.
On November 20-22 the Smithsonian Libraries hosted a three day workshop, “Understanding Asian Papers and their Applications in Paper Conservation,” given by Minah Song, a paper conservator at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts (CCAHA) in Philadelphia. The workshop began with a lecture on the process of papermaking in China, Korea and Japan and then moved onto hands-on techniques including learning different lining techniques, toning or paper with fiber reactive dyes, parchment repair and the Korean art of Joomchi.
We have the perfect activity to help you burn off some of tomorrow’s turkey dinner! Exercise your finger muscles by helping us transcribe the Scrapbook of Early Aeronatica! Collected by William Upcott, this first volume contains correspondence, clippings, ephemera, articles and illustrations, which cover early experiments, adventures and inventions in aeronautics starting with the Montgolfier brothers.
Please join us for our annual Adopt-a-Book event! 
Thursday, January 9, 2014, 6:00 p.m. (rescheduled from October)
The Smithsonian Castle, 1000 Jefferson Drive SW