A Librarian Like No Other: Belle da Costa Greene and Self-Invention
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 มิ.ย. 2024
- "A Librarian Like No Other: Belle da Costa Greene and Self-Invention"--RBS Summer 2024 Lecture by Deborah Parker
Deborah Parker will chronicle the making and empowerment of a female connoisseur, curator, and library director in a world where such positions were held by men. Belle da Costa Greene (1879-1950) was Pierpont Morgan’s personal librarian (1908-13) and the first Director of the Morgan Library (1924-48). She was also the daughter of two mixed-race parents and passed for white. In the nearly 600 letters that Greene sent to art historian Bernard Berenson (1865-1959), Parker identifies Greene’s energetic pursuit of exceptional opportunities, illuminating the artistry and imaginative features of Greene’s writing-her self-invention, her vibrant responses to books and art, and her path-breaking work as a librarian. As Greene transformed a private library into a magnificent public institution, she also transformed herself: hers was a life both lived and writ large.
Deborah Parker is Professor of Italian at the University of Virginia. Her research expertise and teaching focus on Italian and Mediterranean visual and print cultures in the medieval and early modern eras. Her books include "Commentary and Ideology: Dante in the Renaissance," "Bronzino: Renaissance Painter as Poet," and "Michelangelo and the Art of Letter Writing." Her most recent book, "Becoming Belle da Costa Greene: A Visionary Librarian Through Her Letters," will be coming out this fall with Officina Libraria as part of a "Villa I Tatti: Harvard Center for Italian Renaissance Studies book series." Parker's co-authored article, "Belle Greene and Literature," will appear in the exhibition catalog for the Morgan Library & Museum's forthcoming centenary exhibition, "Belle da Costa Greene: A Librarian's Legacy," in October 2024.
If you enjoyed this talk and want to learn more, you can purchase Deborah Parker's book, "Becoming Belle da Costa Greene: A Visionary Librarian Through Her Letters" here: a.co/d/cjyUxja
