Tagged art
Best Summer Albums Through the Decades
Whether it is eating ice cream, swimming, or visiting your neighborhood library, there are so many great summer pastimes. One of the most exciting parts of summer is listening to all the incredible music! As we approach the end of…
For the Greatest Number: The New Deal Revisited
by Laura S. and Caitlin G. It’s been ninety years since the crisis of the Great Depression inspired the New Deal’s government investment and aid. But it’s not just history. The country is again facing a choice: What do…
An Update from Our Summer of Wonder Teen Artist Deyania Sanders
Last year, the Free Library put out a contest call for artwork from high school students. Deyania Sanders’ art teacher encouraged her to submit her designs and she was selected to be our Summer of Wonder artist! You’ve seen…
Central Senior Services Joins Moore College of Art to Fight Social Isolation During Pandemic
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has studied the impact of loneliness and social isolation on American seniors and the results are deeply disturbing. Extensive studies of the subject reveal that social isolation of…
Frank Stephens, Jr.: A Free Library Legacy
When Frank Stephens, Jr., passed away in March at the age of 89, many mourned the loss of a friend and colleague. Others were hearing about Frank for the first time. And it was an opportunity for all of us at the Free Library to learn…
Spotlight on Special Collections: Artist Dox Thrash and the WPA Printmaking Collection
Dox Thrash was an innovative artist and printmaker who gained recognition for his realistic and moving depictions of Black life while working for the federally-funded Philadelphia Fine Print Workshop. Dox…
Thinking in Community
by Mariam Williams, Project Director, Chronicling Resistance One of my greatest joys in this project is witnessing how the Fellows draw connections among their respective areas of research and activism. I get to see and hear lightbulbs…
Art Book Club Online
The Art Department is now hosting a virtual book and art-making club and we're excited to kick off our next topic! Art Book Club Online: Picturing Information starts Tuesday, February 2, meeting 5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. on Tuesdays…
Story Search from Special Collections: An Interview by Hannah Cho
Hannah Cho is a University of Pennsylvania Work-Study student from Davis, CA. During the Fall semester, she studied, recorded, and edited the Story Search podcasts remotely from South Korea. I’ve always been more of a talker…
Chronicling Resistance: Meet the Fellows
by Mariam Williams, Project Director for Chronicling Resistance "I've studied what I could of the Niess and their culture. There isn’t much left, and I have to sift the truth from all the lies. But there was a … a…
An Interview with Deyania Sanders, the High School Artist Behind This Year's Summer of Wonder
2020 Summer of Wonder poster In December, the Free Library and the design team at Mighty Engine put out a contest call for artwork from high school students. Deyania Sanders’ art teacher encouraged her to submit. Now, she’s…
Call for Artwork: Nourishing Literacy Series of Printed Learning Materials
Hello to our friends of all ages! The Nourishing Literacy team is in the process of creating a series of printed learning materials and we would be thrilled to include your artwork! Call for Artwork Community Coloring Books and Activity…
Community Cultural Engagement: Youth Street Art
One of the many challenges experienced by librarians and teachers during quarantine has been connecting with the young people in our communities. How are young people feeling? What are they thinking about during this time? What…
Community Cultural Engagement and Social Change Through Art
How do we engage with our communities during a pandemic? In particular, how do we engage creatively with the goal of affecting social change? These questions have been at the forefront of our minds since mid-March. Beth Heinly,…
Race in the United States: Social Justice Virtual Workshops for Teens
Updated Friday, July 10, 2020 4:59 p.m. "The Social Justice Symposium Teen Planning Committee supports the Concerned Black Workers of the Free Library of Philadelphia ! CBWFLP Response to DEI/Board of Trustees' letter We are…
#ColorOurCollections: Creating Art with the Free Library's Digital Archive
Do you remember that scene at the beginning of Tangled where Rapunzel completes a day's worth of tasks before breakfast? Yeah, that's a lot less funny now. But if the school assignments are done and your Netflix…
Window Birding
With the current quarantine for Covid-19 affecting Pennsylvania, many parents are looking for fun, educational activities for their children. One activity worth exploring is window birding . Due to the seasonal change, birds around the…
Free Library Installs Colorful Abstract Banners Designed by Alexander Calder
An exciting art installation is underway at Parkway Central Library ! Two soaring, colorful banners, created by celebrated American artist Alexander Calder (1898-1976), are now on display in the Robert and Eileen Kennedy Heim Center for…
Book Paper Scissors: 12th Annual Artists' Book Fair at Parkway Central Library
On December 7, the Art Department at Parkway Central Library will host the 12th annual Book Paper Scissors event, a fair designed for artists who create book-and paper-based work. As usual, numerous local artists and organizations…
Artist Talks Hosted by the Free Library's Art Department
Earlier this summer, we kicked off an exciting new series in collaboration with Mural Arts Philadelphia . Each Artists in Conversation event brought two artists to the library, where they discussed their work,…
For the Greatest Number: The New Deal Revisited
It’s been ninety years since the crisis of the Great Depression inspired a New Deal of arts programs, infrastructure investment, and worker protections. The art and objects funded by New Deal programs show us how workers shaped…
For the Greatest Number: The New Deal Revisited
It’s been ninety years since the crisis of the Great Depression inspired a New Deal of arts programs, infrastructure investment, and worker protections. The art and objects funded by New Deal programs show us how workers shaped…
Garden Variety: An Arrangement of Exceptional Art
Now that the Free Library of Philadelphia has reopened to the public, Parkway Central feels like it is in full bloom again! We hope you enjoy these botanically-themed materials housed in the Children’s Literature Research…
Garden Variety: An Arrangement of Exceptional Art
Now that the Free Library of Philadelphia has reopened to the public, Parkway Central feels like it is in full bloom again! We hope you enjoy these botanically-themed materials housed in the Children’s Literature Research…
Garden Variety: An Arrangement of Exceptional Art
Now that the Free Library of Philadelphia has reopened to the public, Parkway Central feels like it is in full bloom again! We hope you enjoy these botanically-themed materials housed in the Children’s Literature Research…
Printmaking with the Dox Thrash House
Drop in between 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. to learn more about the history and future of the Dox Thrash House and participate in a fun printmaking activity. This program is part of For the Greatest Number: The New Deal Revisited .
Make Your Own WPA Poster with Posters for The People
Drop in between 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. for a free hands-on screen printing workshop. All ages welcome and no experience required. A teaching artist from Posters for the People will guide you in making your…
Make Your Own WPA Poster with Posters for The People
Drop in between 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. for a free hands-on screen printing workshop. All ages welcome and no experience required. A teaching artist from Posters for the People will guide you in making your…
Creativity Kits for Teens
Teens are invited to visit the library pick up a creativity kit. See Ms. Watson in the Teen Section for your swag bag!
Online English Language Learning through Storytelling
Mondays 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Tuesday 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. October 4 - December 21, 2021 Practice English by sharing stories and exploring literary and performing arts. Enjoy virtual performances and bring your whole…
Online English Language Learning through Storytelling
Mondays 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Tuesday 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. October 4 - December 21, 2021 Practice English by sharing stories and exploring literary and performing arts. Enjoy virtual performances and bring your whole…
English Conversation Group: Art and Architecture
Join us to learn and practice English while discussing famous works of art and architecture (in Philadelphia and beyond). Every Monday 9-10:30 am Class is currently full - for more information or to join the waitlist, call…
Creativity Kits for Teens
Teens are invited to visit the library pick up a creativity kit. See Ms. Watson in the Teen Section for your swag bag!
Art Book Club online: Cut Paper - week 6
This informal group meets in a video-free private chat and image-sharing forum with a librarian from the Free Library's Art Department to discuss and gather inspiration from the different ways artists have used…
English Conversation Group: Art and Architecture
Join us to learn and practice English while discussing famous works of art and architecture (in Philadelphia and beyond). Every Monday 9-10:30 am Class is currently full - for more information or to join the waitlist, call…
Anime and Manga - Manga for You and Me
Learn the techniques behind the creation of anime.
Anime and Manga - Hot Manga
Get your hands on the newest manga we have.
NewsBank Hot Topics
Trending news and hot topics for your next assignment! Hot topics covers Current Events, Business & Economics, Civics, Government, & Politics, Social Issues, Science, Technology & Health, Sports, Arts & Literature, and People in the News.
AskART
Art Full Text
Art Full Text™ is a comprehensive resource for art information featuring full-text articles from more than 300 periodicals dating back to 1995, high-quality indexing and abstracting of over 600 periodicals dating as far back as 1984,…
Academic OneFile *
More than 18,000 peer-reviewed journals and more than 9,200 in full text Full text of The Economist ranging from 1988 to the present, with no embargo Full text of The New York Times from 1985 to present, updated daily Full text of The…
Laura Raicovich | Culture Strike: Art and Museums in an Age of Protest
In conversation with Seph Rodney, PhD, opinions editor and managing editor of the Sunday Edition for Hyperallergic , author of The Personalization of the Museum Visit , and winner of the 2020 Rabkin Arts Journalism Prize. The interim…
Paul Hendrickson | Plagued by Fire: The Dreams and Furies of Frank Lloyd Wright
Paul Hendrickson’s books include Hemingway’s Boat: Everything He Loved in Life, and Lost, 1934–1961 , a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist; Sons of Mississippi , winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award; and The Living…
Jed Perl | Calder: The Conquest of Time: The Early Years: 1898-1940
Watch the video here . “Few people write about art as beautifully” ( Wall Street Journal ) as Jed Perl, a regular contributor to The New York Review of Books and the former 20-year art critic for The New Republic . A longtime…
Walter Isaacson | Leonardo da Vinci
Watch the video here . Released just weeks after the tech guru’s death, Walter Isaacson’s “staggering” ( The New York Times ) portrait of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs instantly became an international bestseller. Isaacson has also penned…
Christina Baker Kline | A Piece of the World
Watch the video here . Christina Baker Kline is the author of The Orphan Train , the no. 1 New York Times bestseller and 2015 One Book, One Philadelphia selection. Her other novels include Bird in Hand, The Way Life Should Be , and…
Ross King | Mad Enchantment: Claude Monet and the Painting of the Water Lilies
“With a fiction writer’s feel for character” (Philadelphia Inquirer ), Ross King is the author of several nonfiction works that situate art within the context of the history in which it was born, including the New York Times bestsellers…
Edward Sorel | Mary Astor's Purple Diary: The Great American Sex Scandal of 1936 with Jules Feiffer | Cousin Joseph
“One of America’s foremost political satirists” ( New York Times ), illustrator, caricaturist, and cartoonist Edward Sorel has illustrated 41 covers for The New Yorker and has published pictorial essays and features in The Nation ,…
David Salle | How to See: Looking, Talking, and Thinking about Art
One of the principal definers of postmodern art, painter David Salle is one of the last four decades’ most celebrated artists. Known for paintings and prints of what seem to be indiscriminately overlaid found images from a variety of…