The Print & Picture Collection of the Free Library of Philadelphia is pleased to announce a new exhibition in the Print and Picture Hallway Gallery. Kollner's View: Philadelphia and Beyond in the 19th Century features the work of German-born artist Augustus Kollner (1813-1906). Kollner settled in Philadelphia in 1840 and spent the next 50 years producing lithographs and watercolors as he traveled throughout the region, making sketches of the scenery. The Print & Picture Collection acquired a great number of Kollner’s watercolors in 1946 through the generosity of William Logan Fox, Esq., in memory of his father J.M. Fox, who had collected the works.

The exhibition presents watercolors of Philadelphia locations, from the Fairmount Waterworks to Germantown, as well as scenes from his travels outside Pennsylvania. Also on view are prints and watercolors representative of Kollner’s career as a working artist in the 1800s, including his work with the American Sunday School Union and U.S. Military Magazine.

Many of the scenes in Kollner's View are recognizable to Philadelphians. We recently asked the Free Library's Facebook followers for help identifying a house in the watercolor "At Germantown, Phila." Within moments, the house was identified as 4811 Germantown Avenue.  If you can identify one of Kollner’s views today, please post an image to Facebook or Instagram and tag #KollnerThenAndNow. For more about our collections, please follow the Print & Picture Collection on Instagram and Facebook.

Kollner's View: Philadelphia and Beyond in the 19th Century
August 1 through September 6, 2015

Print & Picture Collection Hallway Gallery, Second Floor
Parkway Central Library
Free Library of Philadelphia
1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103

Hours:
Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sunday 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Contact:
215-686-5405 or erefpix@freelibrary.org