This richly illustrated lecture takes a look inside The Rare Books Collection at the Library of Congress, the largest collection of rare books in the Western hemisphere. The lecture will be given by Mark Dimunation, Chief of the Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress. The collection documents the history of the book, from its ancient and medieval origins to its present day manifestations, including the fifteenth-century book and the history of printing, European social and intellectual history, the history of science, the illustrated book, Americana from colonial America to the Civil War, and special themes and formats such as gastronomy, magic, and fine press printing. The lecture will highlight building the book arts collection in particular.
Mark Dimunation, Chief of the Rare Book and Special Collections Division, arrived at the Library of Congress in 1998. Previously he worked in the Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley, in Special Collections at Stanford University and at Cornell University. He specializes in nineteenth- and twentieth-century English and American printing and contemporary artists’ books.
For more information or reservations call 207-596-0949 or visit The Farnsworth Art Museum online.
