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Posted by: Kristi Finefield
The work of scanning, cataloging, and sharing our collection of images with the world is never ceasing in the Prints & Photographs Division. Digitization work brings to light both recently acquired and long-held items from the collections. I periodically browse our newly digitized images to see what is now available. I was particularly taken by …
Posted in: Architecture, Photographs
Posted by: Kristi Finefield
In 1906, New York photographer A.B. Phelan created several photomontages of an oversized man looming over parts of New York City. He accomplished this feat by skillfully combining two photos into one wonderful ‘trick’ photo. Lucky for us, he submitted them for copyright registration and the montage photos made their way into the Library’s permanent …
Posted in: Architecture, Photographs, Visual literacy
Posted by: Kristi Finefield
A fun feature on the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog is a link that allows you to view a selection of newly digitized images from the collections. Scanning visual materials from our collections, whether recently acquired or long-held but not yet digitized, is an ongoing task. We strive to bring as much of our collection to …
Posted in: African American History, Architecture, Photographs, Portraits, World War I
Posted by: Jan Grenci
Last week, we started a compare/contrast journey through Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia via photographs taken by Jack Delano in July of 1941 for the Farm Security Administration and by me in April of 2024. Our journey concludes this week with four more picture sets. First up is an exterior shot: Let’s return to …
Posted in: Architecture, FSA/OWI, Photographs
Posted by: Jan Grenci
In July of 1941, Jack Delano photographed Washington National Airport, in Arlington, Virginia, for the Farm Security Administration. The airport had opened a month earlier. Earlier this month, I went to the airport to try to replicate some of Mr. Delano’s photos. I concentrated on what in 1941 was known as the waiting room and …
Posted in: Architecture, FSA/OWI, Photographs
Posted by: Kristi Finefield
One of my favorite ways to explore the vast collections of the Prints & Photographs Division is to look for connections between multiple collections that span different time periods. Quite by accident while searching for another photo in the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Collection, I found this fascinating 1942 photo of a stop …
Posted in: Architecture, Flickr, Photographs, Series: Double Take, Visual literacy
Posted by: Kristi Finefield
The Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building is one of the more ornately decorated buildings in Washington, D.C. When visitors walk into the Great Hall, they usually look up and around, taking in the painted murals, sculpted details, the colorful glass skylight, and the monumental scale of the space. Today, we will instead talk about …
Posted in: Architecture, Drawings
Posted by: Jan Grenci
My latest Flickr album features a building that was once the tallest in the world, the Empire State Building. I particularly enjoy this photo, taken in 1933 by Theodor Horydczak. It shows the skyscraper on July 4th, from Fifth Avenue and East 41st Street: Ever wonder what was at the site of the Empire State …
Posted in: Architecture, Flickr, Photographs
Posted by: Kate Fogle
On a recent trip to Norway’s capital, I kept my camera busy. History emanates from Oslo’s many sights, from its nearby stave church to its market squares, and a delight of my visit was considering the life of the city’s built landscape through images in the photographic holdings of the Prints & Photographs (P&P) Division. …
Posted in: Architecture