Virtual symposium in conjunction with Imperfect History: Collecting the Graphic Arts Collection at Benjamin Franklin’s Public Library in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Graphic Arts Department at the Library Company of Philadelphia

Please join us for the concluding program for the exhibition Imperfect History: Curating the Graphic Arts Collection at Benjamin Franklin’s Public Library (September 20, 2021 – April 8, 2022). Imperfect History explores the development of the Library’s graphics art collection as it relates to historical and cultural biases within American history. The exhibition is a candid exploration of the evolution of American graphic arts curatorship and collections in one of the oldest cultural institutions in the country.

Collecting, Curating, and Consuming American Popular Graphic Arts Yesterday and Today, including a keynote lecture by Makeda Best, Harvard Art Museums, continues the conversation started through Imperfect History. The symposium seeks to examine changing and innovative directions in how historical popular graphic art (i.e., art not traditionally classified as fine art, that is representative of popular culture, and/or is mass produced and consumed) is curated, interpreted, and used and understood by those who produced, viewed, and consumed it. Collecting, Curating, and Consuming asks how does historical American popular graphic art act as a mirror, bridge, and barrier in facilitating our visual conceptions of our past and present?

Further information, including sessions, panelists, and where to register is at the External Link below.

The exhibition and programming is supported by the Henry Luce Foundation, Walter J. Miller Trust, Center for American Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Jay Robert Stiefel and Terra Foundation for American Art.