The Library will be closed on Thursday, November 28 & Friday, November 29, 2024, in observance of Thanksgiving.

looking at art

Ste. Ostrich in Manhattan: The Visitations of a Martyr book(1990)
Nicholas Beyelia, October 09, 2024

Ste. Ostrich in Manhattan: The Visitations of a Martyr (1990) was written and illustrated by Lois Morrison, with Julie Chen serving as the paper engineer.


Collage of various promotional brochures, workshops, and art created at The Woman's Building
Art Department, June 04, 2024

In 1970, "Art and Technology," a group exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), had no women artists included.


Sample pages from VVV, 246 Little Clouds, The Four Suits, and Every Building on the Sunset Strip
Art Department, May 22, 2024

In this installment of book treasures in our Special Collections, we will be looking at broadly distributed multiples: materials that are expressive with experimentation similar in energy to a modern-day zine.


Advertisement from the Los Angeles City Directory, 1918, LAPL City and Street Directories Collection
Maya Peterpaul, May 15, 2024

Vintage city directories contained alphabetized lists of the names of residents and their street addresses (if they existed). Additional information could include their occupation, spouse, property ownership, and, in certain instances, after 1879—telephone numbers.


Works by Wassily Kandinsky, Henri Matisse and Salvador Dalí
Art Department, May 08, 2024

In continuing the exploration of the history of the book through the holdings of Los Angeles Public Library’s Special Collections, this installment will cover the fine printing in paper form of artworks by famous artists.


William Blake's Visions of the Daughters of Albion, woodcut image from the Kelmscott Press and "The Tyger" from Songs of Experience
Art Department, May 02, 2024

In continuing the exploration of the history of the book through the holdings of Los Angeles Public Library’s Special Collections, this installment will cover three notable publishers of books: William Blake and his self-published books, Kelmscott Press (1891 – 1898) and Doves Press (1900 – 1916).


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


shelf of books about books
Daniel Tures, January 05, 2024

Consider the book. Not just what's written in it but the thing itself. It's a familiar object, usually composed of printed paper pages sewn or glued into a binding. Libraries, stores, homes, and public buildings are full of them.


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