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Category: Architecture

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

Rediscovering Drive-Ins with the Vogel Collection

Posted by: Melissa Lindberg

The following is a guest post by Gillian Mahoney, Technical Services Technician in the Prints & Photographs Division. Are drive-in theaters making a comeback? Because of the current pandemic, many are seeking socially distant yet still sociable activities, and drive-in movie theaters offer a perfect combination. In the 1950s and 60s drive-ins were wildly popular, …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

Ready for Research: Balthazar Korab Collection

Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson

The following is a guest post by Ryan Brubacher, Reference Librarian, and Emma Esperon, Archivist, Prints & Photographs Division. The Prints & Photographs Division is very excited to introduce the Balthazar Korab Collection with its extraordinary array of architectural photography. The exceptional high quality images and the lack of copyright restrictions encouraged us to make …

Pointing North in the Historic American Buildings Survey Collection

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

What do a carousel horse, Theodore Roosevelt, and a lighthouse have in common? Look closely at the drawing below from the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) of the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial – can you spot two Roosevelts? There is, of course, the large drawing of the Roosevelt statue featured at the memorial on Theodore Roosevelt …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

Ready for Research: The Winold Reiss Collection

Posted by: Barbara Orbach Natanson

The following is a guest post by Owen Ellis, Archivist, Prints & Photographs Division. An invaluable record of modern design and art during the 1920s through 1940s is now available through the Winold Reiss Collection. Close to 800 drawings, photographs, posters, and prints document the creativity and contributions of a visionary designer. The collection highlights …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

One Hundred Fifty Years of Copyright at the Library of Congress

Posted by: Kristi Finefield

The year 1870 is significant for copyright and the Library of Congress. Prior to that year, copyright registration was administered by the U.S. District Courts. Starting in 1870, the copyright registration and deposit system was centralized in the Library of Congress. One of the requirements for protecting your creation with copyright was to send in …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

Behind the Scenes: an Archivist Draws on Myriad Experiences

Posted by: Melissa Lindberg

Below is an interview with Kristen Sosinski, Archivist in the Prints & Photographs Division at the Library of Congress. Melissa: Can you tell us about your background, and how you came to work as an archivist in the Prints & Photographs Division? Kristen: Yes, I got my start in college where I had a work-study …

Smiling woman dressed in outdoor winter clothes holds a large, old-style camera

“The Arts” and Kenyon Cox: A Mural in the Thomas Jefferson Building

Posted by: Melissa Lindberg

The following is a post by Kristi Finefield, Reference Specialist in the Prints & Photographs Division, and member of the Picture This blog team. As the Library of Congress marks its 220th year, we take the opportunity to explore one example of its efforts to sustain and celebrate the arts in its physical spaces. Above …