January-February 2011
In addition to a sampling of books about posters from the collections of the New York State Library, the exhibit featured early posters about books from the print collection of the Manuscripts & Special Collections unit.
These were created around the turn of the last century by publishers of the day such as Harper & Brothers; D. Appleton; Little, Brown; A.L. Burt; Doubleday, Page; Dutton's; Century Company; Dodd Mead; etc. They were beautifully designed and printed, but highly ephemeral, and while many of the books they helped sell are still plentiful, the posters were not often saved. These were pulled from a collection (PRI 4524) numbering close to 200 pieces, some very large, some die cut, ranging in condition from worn to pristine, most gorgeous in their own way, and all informative and interesting.
Display case 1: Book posters for 1) The Days of Auld Lang Syne by Ian Maclaren; 2) Chiffon's Marriage by Gyp; 3) The Second Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling; 4) Toxin by Ouida 5) The Wonderful Wheel by Mary Tracy Earle; 6) A Book of Cheerful Cats and Other Animated Animals by Joseph Greene Francis; and 7) Thumbnail Sketches
Display Case 2: Book posters for 1) Stories of the Wagner Opera by H. A. Guerber; 2) The White Islander by Mary Hartwell Catherwood; 3) Stolen Souls by William Le Queux; 4) Rhymes of the States by Garrett Newkirk; 5) Kate Carnegie by Ian Maclaren; and 6) The White Cave by William Osborn Stoddard
Exhibit curated by Shawn Purcell