Friday, September 25, 2009

The Body as Art


During the summer, we asked Interns Emma, Gabrielle, Brendan and Jessica to create a virtual collection by collecting digital images of some aspect of the library collection to be decided by them. For example, they could collect images of bookplates in the collection, of details on binding, books with funny titles, or books on a particular subject – the possibilities were endless. On July 31, at the Library Open House, each collection was presented. This week we're posting the last collection from this summer. Thanks to our Summer interns for all of their hard work!

This week’s collection comes from Jessica Dame who is a student at Christopher Newport University. Jessica described her collection “The Body as Art” as follows:

"Since the beginning of time, the human body has been an important part of art and has been expressed in endless ways. From early cave paintings of stick-like figures, to complex life-like sculpture and paintings that capture veins, muscles, curves and angles. The body is crucial to art. For many artists the human body, in all its conditions, is the focus of their work.

After spending time in the Jean Outland Library, I began to find great examples of masquerade, fashion and costume; from runways in metropolitan cities to the lesser know parts of the world where the body has always been used in expression.

I came across images of masquerade dancers in the Congo, the Dance of Tumbu in Guinea, and the Mancrab dancer of the Caribbean. Masquerades blend art and symbolism to make magnificent costumes for performance. In the world of fashion, as with masquerades, there are no limits but the catwalk or photo shoot becomes the canvas which designers and photographers show off their art. Examples are the elegant and sometimes controversial designs of Dior, Chanel, Givenchy, Gaultier and other designers.

Across cultures, through art work of the body, one can see what is considered beautiful, acceptable in a society at that time period. Statements can be made about life, spirituality, sexuality, and society.

So what happens when the body is no longer limited to a flat surface or stiff marble and rock? What if it could walk, run or dance? Then that would be art brought to life. "

You can view all of the images in Jessica's collection here.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Yar! Beyond This Point There Be Pirates....


Ahoy! September 19th be International Talk like a Pirate Day. In celebration, we at the Jean Outland Chrysler Library have been thinking about illustrator and realist painter Newell Convers Wyeth. Though we know much of his work from main-stream sources, such as The Saturday Evening Post and many posters advertizing household products like Coca-Cola, he is also famous for his illustrations of classic novels. Wyeth loved literature as much as a pirate loves treasure. One of his most popular series of illustrations was for Robert Lewis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. Wyeth successfully navigated the choppy seas of the arrrt world to have a long and varied career, passing on the bounty of his knowledge to others. His protégés include eminent illustrator Howard Pyle and Wyeth’s own talented children, including his son Andrew. On this September 19th, the 9th Annual International Talk like a Pirate Day, take a moment to think about all the land-lubbers in history and in your life who enjoy a fine tale (or image) of swashbuckling romance, daring-do and black-hearted evil. Also, please remember to practice your pirate speak!
Bone up at http://www.talklikeapirate.com/piratehome.html. Happy International Talk like a Pirate Day! Arrrrr….

By Jean Outland Chrysler Library First Mate Sara Mason

New York Through My Eyes


During the summer, we asked Interns Emma, Gabrielle, Brendan and Jessica to create a virtual collection by collecting digital images of some aspect of the library collection to be decided by them. For example, they could collect images of bookplates in the collection, of details on binding, books with funny titles, or books on a particular subject – the possibilities were endless. On July 31, at the Library Open House, each collection was presented. In the coming weeks, we’ll be posting each intern’s collection along with a few other posts they created during their time in the Library.



This week’s collection comes from Emma Tisdale who is a student at New York University. Emma described her collection “New York Through My Eyes” as follows:


"The beautiful thing about New York City is that it is the kind of place that can be seen through many different perspectives. A tourist may only see the crowded streets of Times Square while a businessman sees the opportunity for success on Wall Street. A high school drama student may see the city as a place where her dreams of fame could come true. A boy who is misunderstood or ashamed in his own skin could see New York as a place of acceptance. My personal view of New York, which is reflected through the images in my collection, is that of a college student living in Lower Manhattan. I searched for scenes with which I am familiar, such as the marketplace in Union Square, the wildly painted buildings in the Village, and the pedestrians relaxing in Washington Square Park. I also included some older photographs of the New York City’s older architecture, paintings of a green Central Park, and an image of my favorite bookstore. These are the things that I see not only throughout my daily life at school but in my mind as I daydream of New York. My perspective is not one of glamour or crowds. It is just my personal view of the diverse city that has become my home. "


You can view all of the images in Emma's Collection here.

Intern Projects - Walter Chrysler Jr. Research



This summer, we asked the Library interns to write a short paragraph about their favorite assignment this summer. In a post on September 4, we told you about Emma, Gabrielle and Jessica's favorite task. This week it's Brendan Higgin's turn. Here's what Brendan said he enjoyed the most:

"Our second to last week here at the Jean Outland Chrysler Library, the other interns and I assisted with an ongoing project to trace Walter P. Chrysler Jr.’s life as an art collector and key figure in the Museum’s history. Ultimately the research will be compiled into a database that contains detailed information on Chrysler’s possessions and purchases/sales/donations at different points in his life. Each of chose a decade and, after poring over the Library’s collection of biographies, scrapbooks, and files of newspaper clippings pertaining to Chrysler, constructed a timeline of everything relevant we could find about that period. I researched the 1930s, a period in history and the arts that I find particularly interesting, and became immediately absorbed in the work. The name Walter Chrysler had been somewhat of an enigma to me all summer, and it was fascinating finally to learn some of the details of his life—sometimes controversial, often inscrutable, but always active and aware. His tastes in the '30s were ahead of his time, and thanks to a keen business sense, he built up one of the finest collections of modern art in the world, containing supposedly hundreds of Picassos, as well as pieces by Matisse, Cezanne, Braque, Leger, and Gris (among many other big names of the 20th century). This task, probably more than anything else I did this summer, really deepened my understanding and appreciation of the Chrysler Museum and its art; specifically, I realized the impact Walter Chrysler’s voracious buying during this period has had on the wonderfully varied collections housed in the Museum today."

Friday, September 11, 2009

Brides Across Borders

During the summer, we asked Interns Emma, Gabrielle, Brendan and Jessica to create a virtual collection by collecting digital images of some aspect of the library collection to be decided by them. For example, they could collect images of bookplates in the collection, of details on binding, books with funny titles, or books on a particular subject – the possibilities were endless. On July 31, at the Library Open House, each collection was presented. In the coming weeks, we’ll be posting each intern’s collection along with a few other posts they created during their time in the Library.



This week’s collection comes from Gabrielle Barr who is a student at Johns Hopkins University. Gabrielle described her collection “Brides Across Borders” as follows:

"For little girls, weddings are about the flowers, cake, and most of all their dream dress. Magazines and reality TV shows emphasize this fantastical view of matrimony, and occasionally distort the true meaning of the event. As I hope this collection demonstrates, weddings have always been a fundamental component of cultures throughout time and across borders. These paintings and photographs depict not only the individual subject but also his or her society. From the ancient Egyptian couple to the modern photograph of the bride in an unusual setting, viewers can observe how the world’s perspective on marriage has changed and remained constant. The scary sculpture of the bride who holds roses in one hand and babies and reptiles in the other differs vastly from the formal portrait of Queen Victoria. In turn, the regal and religious works vary greatly from the representations of peasant weddings. This cultural discrepancy between eras, nations, and classes can give the viewer a sense of how one ritual is performed in so many different ways.

Religion and ceremonial customs play a significant role in the event as well. Marriage is frequently seen as a religious rite of passage and a transforming ceremony, especially for the bride. In the depiction of the young girl flanked by her mother and grandmother, the artist is showing the Portuguese, Jewish bride at her beddekah ( a ceremony before the wedding where the bride sits on a throne like chair surrounded by female family members and greets her guests). While fashions have changed over the years, this custom and the kettubah are still important aspects of an observant, Jewish wedding. Similarly, the religious imagery seen in many of the works display the Christian view of nuptials and include certain symbols that westerners would associate with weddings today. The depiction of the Muslim wedding procession underscores Islamic values with the woman fully cloaked beneath a litter. An Englishman captured this scene which prompts the question, “How do other societies interpret foreign ceremonies and how have the traditions merged in our connected world?” From the colorful Berber and African weddings to Hogarth’s dark criticism of the institution, weddings have always been a part of art and the human experience. "

A better view of all of the images in Gabrielle's Collection is available here.

Friday, September 4, 2009

Intern Projects - Moving the Myers Library



This summer, we asked the Library interns to write a short paragraph about their favorite assignment this summer. Imagine our suprise when three of four chose to write about the dirtiest, most difficult task they were given - moving the Myers Library. Here is what Gabrielle Barr, Emma Tisdale and Jessica Dame had to say about this unique assignment.

Gabrielle Barr :Tying Up Loose Ends


"Green with Gold. Swirling purple and blue paper. Diamond embossed leather. With the many damaged books in the Myers’ Collection, it was the interns’ task to mend and help preserve these deteriorating volumes. I enjoyed matching covers to works which involved analysis of the book’s size, the color of its remaining cover, and identification of designs on the spine and inside the piece. If both covers were missing, it was necessary to observe the way the pages had laid on the leather. Then I tied linen tape around the volumes to keep them intact until they can be enclosed. The most rewarding aspect of this project was when I was able to unite missing pages with the books such as with Moliere’s plays. These pages often bestowed useful and interesting information about the book as well, giving the name of the author, date, title, and publisher. While I loved the detective and detail oriented nature of the assignment, I relished the opportunity to handle these old works. A drawing of a horse, algebra problems scribbled in pencil and little notes demonstrate the personal quality of books that allow viewers to gain an understanding of the individuals. The Myers’ library encompasses such a range of eras, genres, and authors that reveals a part of each member of the family. "

Emma Tisdale: My Favorite Project

"Before my summer at the Chrysler Museum, I truly had no comprehension of the amount of work a librarian has to face each day. From the numerous long term projects to the preservation of the collection, the tasks that the librarians at the museum have to address are much more than I ever thought existed. I had the chance as an intern to tackle a small part of many of these difficult tasks. My favorite project, however, left me scrubbing smudges off my fingers and sneezing book-rot for days. It involved moving the ever-aging Myers Library from the back corner of the library to the front of the stacks. It took patience and focus, as the books were very delicate to handle and extremely disorganized on their shelves. My fellow interns and I took a new inventory of the collection of books and moved them in chronological order. The project took over a week to finish, but it left me with a sense that I had actually done something to help the library and that Laura could now check one of the many projects off her to-do list. "


Jessica Dame - Favorite Project

"Over the summer, I got the chance to intern for the library and obtain school credits and gain great hands on experience. Of all the projects in the library this summer, my favorite was getting to work with the Moses Meyer book collection. It was fun to look at books from the 1700s through the 1950s and see what a wealthy local family was reading in that time period. I came across books and authors I have heard of or read and got to see science books that had very bad information in them that have long since been changed in today’s books. I had to wear gloves and handle the books with care because I was literally handling history. Somehow when you have to put on gloves for a project, it feels more important and reminded me of professions that require gloves, like doctors, scientists and historians in general.
It also felt like I helped accomplish something big and I got to see an end result. The books were relocated and put in order by year. What began as a bit of a mess came together and now looks neat and organized. "

Farewell from Rachel

Although the 2009 Jean Outland Chrysler Library Cataloging Fellowship has ended, the knowledge I gained through my work this summer will be put to use in my next job, cataloging and archiving photographs at the Chicago History Museum, and as continue I pursue a career in museum libraries. This summer, I learned about cataloging many different types of materials and had the opportunity to work hand-on with many old and rare items. I want to thank the Friends of the Jean Outland Chrysler Library for making the Cataloging Fellowship possible. I am also appreciative of the staff, volunteers, and patrons of the Jean Outland Chrysler Library and the Chrysler Museum for providing me with such a welcoming and educational environment. I had a wonderful summer in Norfolk!