Library Company of Philadelphia Blog: "Technology Versus Art"

Friday, March 18, 2011

"Technology Versus Art"

Join us on Wednesday, March 23 at 6:00 p.m. for “Technology Versus Art: The Early Daguerreotype’s Confounding Status in Philadelphia, 1839-1845"

Sarah Gillespie, current William H. Helfand American Visual Culture Fellow at the Library Company, will discuss the initial reception of the daguerreotype in Philadelphia. The Library Company holds over 200 daguerreotypes, primarily produced in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860. Many of these early photographs were recently on display in our “Catching a Shadow: Daguerreotypes in Philadelphia, 1839-1860” and can now be seen in the online exhibition. Please email lpropst@librarycompany.org or call 215.546.3181 to RSVP for this event.

The Library Company of Philadelphia

The Library Company of Philadelphia is an independent research library specializing in American history and culture from the 17th through the 19th centuries. Open to the public free of charge, the Library Company houses an extensive collection of rare books, manuscripts, broadsides, ephemera, prints, photographs, and works of art. Founded in 1731 by Benjamin Franklin, the Library Company is America's oldest cultural institution and served as the Library of Congress from the Revolutionary War to 1800. The Library Company was the largest public library in America until the Civil War.

The mission of the Library Company is to preserve, interpret, make available, and augment the valuable materials in our care. We serve a diverse constituency throughout Philadelphia and internationally, offering comprehensive reader services, an internationally renowned fellowship program, online catalogs, and regular exhibitions and public programs.