The Library will be closed on Monday, October 14, 2024, in observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

The Library's catalog, e-media, databases, and cardholder accounts will be unavailable for several hours beginning Monday, October 14 at 6 a.m. for maintenance.

Vi Thục Hà, Senior Librarian, International Languages Department

Avatar

view of the moon as seen from the space station

Songs of the Earth: An Indigenous Language Festival

August 28, 2024

The world has roughly over 7,000 languages, with over 200 of those languages spoken in Los Angeles. As Angelenos, we live in one of the most interesting linguistic communities in the world. How does language acquisition happen?


Phoenix Bakery in early 1940s Central Plaza, current Phoenix outdoor sign and menu cover with Sing Song

A Slice of Chinatown Life: Phoenix Bakery and the Strawberry Whipped Cream Cake

May 17, 2024

Long-time visitors of Chinatown will be very familiar with the storefront with Sing Song, a Tyrus Wong (1910-2016) drawn logo of a bashful little boy in a traditional Chinese haircut with a robe holding a box behind his back


Close-up of a single page of the Gutenberg Bible, 1456

Looking at Art: The Gutenberg Bible

April 25, 2024

In this ongoing year-long exploration of the book that includes workshops, exhibits, video interviews, demos and more, there should be an exploration of the artistry of the book within the exemplary holdings of the Central Library, specifically focusing on the treasures in the Los Angeles Public Library's


Julius Levitt is pictured on this coloring page in front of Breed Street Shul

Julius Levitt, Community Activist

May 17, 2022

Julius Levitt (1885–1952) was a promoter of Yiddish culture and a community activist, most importantly through the Jewish Labor Committee (JLC) to bring attention to the horrors of Nazism throughout the world.


Norma Merrick Sklarek in front of the big blue whale

African American History Month Coloring Pages

February 15, 2022

In order to showcase the technology available in the Octavia Lab, celebrate the diversity of Los Angeles, and demonstrate how library resources, such as Tessa, the library's online digital archive, and historical newspaper databases, can be used towards social justice, Octavia Lab staff have been creating


You Chung Hong and the gateway to LA Chinatown

Y.C. Hong - A Biography

February 01, 2022

You Chung (“Y.C.”) Hong (1898–1977) was a community booster, social activist, and immigration lawyer based in Chinatown in Los Angeles and is profiled as a part of Archives Alive: Stories and Voices from L.A.


The holiday tree in the Central Library Rotunda

Ornament Making in the Octavia Lab

December 03, 2019

Each December we face a design challenge of decorating a 15-foot noble fir tree in the Central Library’s rotunda.


close up to the gumball machine in the octavia lab

Turn the Knob: Find Inspiration

June 10, 2019

Looking for Inspiration for a project? Need a good fortune to help you out on a bad day?


drawing of Octavia Butler

On Persistence: Octavia E. Butler & Central Library

June 11, 2019

“Habit is persistence in practice.”—Octavia E. Butler


Surfer Beetle

World Water Day, Innovation, and Southern California

March 31, 2015

World Water Day was celebrated this past March 22. It is a day created in 1993 by the UN to bring to light the importance of water to life among people. This year’s celebration was dedicated to Water and Sustainable Development.


Top