INSIDE PLUS Documentary Photography Pictures at an Exhibition Women Behind Opera Before Instagram the Camera Photos on Social Media LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MAGAZINE NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 THE POWER OF PHOTOGRAPHY LOC.GOV NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MAGAZINE In This Issue Library of Congress Magazine FEATURES Vol. 5 No. 6: November/December 2016 Mission of the Library of Congress The Library’s central mission is to provide The Power of Photography Congress, the federal government, and the 12 From daguerreotypes to digital images, the Library’s photograph American people with a rich, diverse, and collections illustrate and inspire countless new works. enduring source of knowledge that can be relied upon to inform, inspire, and engage them, and support their intellectual and creative endeavors. Witness to History 18 The documentary photo collections in the Library provide a rich visual Library of Congress Magazine is issued record of the 19th to 21st centuries. bimonthly by the Office of Communications of the Library of Congress and distributed free of charge to publicly supported libraries and research institutions, donors, academic libraries, learned societies and allied organizations in 8 Daniel A.P. Murray the United States. Research institutions and educational organizations in other countries may arrange to receive Library of Congress Magazine on an exchange basis by applying in writing DEPARTMENTS to the Library’s Director for Acquisitions and Bibliographic Access, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington DC 20540-4100. LCM is available on the web at loc.gov/lcm/. All other 02 22 Trending My Job at the Library correspondence should be addressed to the Office of Communications, Library of Congress, 03 Curator’s Picks 23 Favorite Places 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington DC 04 24 20 20540-1610. How Do I? Around the Library Marvin Breckinridge [email protected] 05 Page from the Past 25 News Briefs loc.gov/lcm 06 26 ISSN 2169-0855 (print) The Library in History Shop the Library ISSN 2169-0863 (online) 08 Technology at the Library 27 Support the Library Carla D. Hayden 10 28 Librarian of Congress Online Offerings Last Word 17 Gayle Osterberg Expert’s Corner Executive Editor Audrey Fischer Editor John H. Sayers ON THE COVER: Titled “Tribute in Light,” this art installation near the World Trade Center 24 Managing Editor site commemorates the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Camilo J. Vergara Collection, Prints and Stephen King Ashley Jones Photographs Collection Designer Shawn Miller Photo Editor Contributing Writers CONNECT ON Brett Carnell Phil Michel Christmas tree at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., 2006 | Carol Twitter: @librarycongress Pinterest: pinterest.com/LibraryCongress/ Mari Nakahara Youtube: Instagram: M. Highsmith Archive, Prints and Photographs Division Barbara Orbach Natanson youtube.com/libraryofcongress @librarycongress Facebook: Library of Congress blogs: Amy Pastan facebook.com/libraryofcongress blogs.loc.gov Helena Zinkham Flickr: flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/ LCM online: loc.gov/lcm NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 | LOC.GOV/LCM 1 #trending AT THE LIBRARY curator’s PICKS OPERA AUTHORITY CHARLES JAHANT (1909–1994) DISCUSSED SOME OF THE 20TH CENTURY’S BEST OPERATIC PERFORMERS. 1 5 1. LUISA TETRAZZINI 5. LEONARD WARREN Soprano Luisa Tetrazzini American baritone (1871–1940) made Leonard Warren her debut in her native (1911–1960) entered Florence, Italy, in the Metropolitan Opera 1891. Her international in 1938 as a beginner, career took her to San later playing larger Francisco, London and parts like the title role Chicago before she in Giuseppe Verdi’s appeared at New York’s “Rigoletto.” Studying PATHWAYS TO PICTURES Metropolitan Opera with Giuseppe de Luca, Jahant observed in his Warren learned the MANY OF THE LIBRARY’S RICH VISUAL RESOURCES ARE SHARED ON notes in 1911–1912, secrets of “bel canto” ITS WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS. “Her voice was uneven, 2 3 4 (beautiful singing). “His and while superb in dramatic death from a Taken in 1839, this the upper register was Photos have always been popular, but they seem selected public-domain photos on the Flickr site cerebral hemorrhage self-portrait or “selfie” somewhat undeveloped suffered onstage at the by Robert Cornelius is all the rage today in our smartphone-equipped, for photo enthusiasts. Hundreds of millions of elsewhere. However, her Metropolitan during a known as the earliest social-media infused culture. In ways hardly views later, the Library’s rediscovered collections joy of singing is apparent performance of ‘La Forza existing American imaginable a decade ago, nearly everyone shares continue to attract new information history on her records.” portrait photo. Marian pictures of their families, vacation stops, lunch detectives and fans of fun photos. del Destino’ robbed the Met of one of its most S. Carson Collection, selections and, of course, pets. Prints and Photographs Pinterest: In an effort to reach more users where valued performers,” Division Sharing is part of the mission of the Library they were using images, the Library launched a 2. MAX LORENZ 3. ROSETTA PAMPANINI recalled Jahant. of Congress, too, and photos have been among Pinterest presence in 2014. The scrapbooking- some of its most popular assets for decades. So style site allows us to share our existing resources Max Lorenz (1901–1975), Rosetta Pampanini (1896– it should be no surprise that the Library’s image in unique, thematic pages, sharing not only pictured here as Siegfried 1973), an Italian lyric soprano, curators have always kept their sharp eyes out for photo imagery but visual assets from other in Richard Wagner’s debuted in Rome in 1920 as “Götterdämmerung,” was Micaëla in “Carmen.” She new ways to share the Library’s visual wealth. In collections, including rare books and folklife. 4. EVA TURNER Germany’s leading dramatic was engaged by conductor addition to visiting our Prints and Photographs Instagram: tenor before World War II. First Arturo Toscanini to perform in Dame Eva Turner (1892–1990), a dramatic reading room here in Washington, D.C., you can The Library began sharing more of its daily happenings on its Instagram account, heard at the Dresden Staatsoper Giacomo Puccini’s “Madame soprano, made her debut with England’s Carl find rich photo treasures in a variety of ways. Rosa Company in 1914. First engaged at launched in 2015, from events and concerts to in 1927, Lorenz moved to Butterfly” in the revival of Berlin and Vienna, then to the the work at La Scala before Milan’s La Scala Opera House in 1924, Turner LC website: The Library of Congress was special visitors and rich historical images. Metropolitan Opera, where he performing internationally. She became a favorite of Italian audiences. She one of the first cultural institutions to make sang between 1931 and 1934 was considered by many to is pictured here in the title role of Puccini’s digitized versions of its most popular collections As the Library continues to digitize its eligible photos, public domain imagery will continued to and again from 1947 to 1950. be the world’s leading Puccini “Turandot” in 1926. She would be associated available on the web. Today, more than 60 with that role for the next two decades. “Turner be shared and promoted on its website and via “His great renown probably singer. According to Jahant, million primary-source files from the Library’s stems from his striking physical “The soprano had a limpid was conventional in her interpretations, but her social media. collections are online. These include 1.2 million appearance, his acting and the (clear) voice of fine quality and voice, extremely clear, was one of a handful digitized visual images (photos, fine and popular absence of any serious rivals,” she was an affecting artist.” of comparably powerful sopranos of the age,” prints and drawings, posters, and architectural noted Jahant. wrote Jahant. and engineering drawings), which are free and MORE INFORMATION accessible to the public. Photos at the Library of Congress Blogs: Most of the Library’s 16 subject-specific loc.gov/pictures/ “#Opera Before Instagram: Portraits, 1890– blogs showcase images through “Pix of the Week” 1955,” selected photographs from the Charles and other features, and we have one blog — “Picture This” Blog Jahant Collection, is on display at the Library of Congress through Jan. 21, 2017. MORE INFORMATION “Picture This”— dedicated to visual resources and blogs.loc.gov/picturethis/ the stories behind them. View exhibition online Follow the Library of Congress on social media All photos | Charles Jahant Collection, Music Division loc.gov/exhibits Flickr: In 2008, the Library began sharing loc.gov/connect 2 LCM | LIBRARY OF CONGRESS MAGAZINE NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 | LOC.GOV/LCM 3 how DO I? page FROM THE PAST PRESERVE DIGITAL PICTURING THE PARKS National parks are among the nation’s PHOTOGRAPHS most cherished natural resources. The National Park Service—a bureau of the U.S. Department of Interior—was created by an act of Congress and signed by PHOTOGRAPHS HAVE RICH PERSONAL MEANING. Images are unique. If they President Woodrow Wilson on Aug. 25, are lost, the information they provide can never be replaced. An increasing 1916. A century later the National Park number of these images are born-digital and require special archiving Service overseas more than 400 sites, techniques to ensure their preservation. in every U.S. state and territory. These include parks, monuments, battlefields, scenic rivers and trails and historic sites— PHOTO ARCHIVING TIPS many of which are represented in the Library’s photograph collections. 1. Identify where you have digital photos (digital cameras, computers One of these sites is California’s Yosemite and removable media such as memory cards, and those posted to the National Park. This pristine scene at web). Yosemite’s Mirror Lake (pictured) was captured by Carleton Watkins during 2. Decide which photos are most important.