.: Press Room and Media Information
Smithsonian Institution Libraries Headlines
Smithsonian Institution Libraries Celebrate 40th Anniversary
The Smithsonian Institution Libraries 40th Anniversary Ruby Red Gala, “Paint the Town REaD!,”will be held the evening of Oct. 30 at the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture. The event aims to increase awareness and raise funds for the Institution’s libraries. The guest speaker at the Ruby Gala will be author David Baldacci. Baldacci has written 14 best-selling novels and recently released his 15th novel, “The Whole Truth.”
The event will also include a silent auction featuring behind-the-scenes tours of museums and local attractions and tickets to events such as “The Colbert Report.” Corporate sponsors include Gryphon Technologies, ProQuest, Sage, MACRO International Inc., Edge Research and Alexandria Buick Pontiac GMC.
For more information about “Paint the Town REaD!,” visit www.paintthetownread.com. For more information about David Baldacci visit www.davidbaldacci.com.
Smithsonian Institution Libraries symposium: Mark Catesby’s America
Mark Catesby’s America focused on the famed British naturalist’s efforts to collect and publish information on North American flora and fauna. This undertaking, begun in 1731, would make Catesby famous at home and abroad as an explorer, botanist, scientist, and artist. The symposium, free and open to the public, was held on
Smithsonian Libraries Receive Botanica Magnifica
The Smithsonian Libraries’ Director Nancy Gwinn was recently presented with the first set of Botanica Magnifica, a five-volume, double-elephant folio-sized work of two hundred fifty high-resolution plant photographs. The volume was created by photographer John Singer and botanists John Kress and Marc Hachadourian. Comparable in scale and scope to Audubon’s Birds of America, the book presents scientifically identified species grouped in themes of horticulture, plant form, orchids, gingers, and rare species.
Only ten sets of double-elephant Botanica Magnifica will be produced. Each is printed on hand-made paper and custom-bound in Japan by renowned book-binder Tini Miura. The Libraries’ copy of Botanica Magnifica, is housed in a custom-built case that was included as part of the gift. The volume will reside in SIL’s Joseph F. Cullman 3rd Library of Natural History.
Smithsonian Curator Tom D. Crouch Discusses his New Book, "Rocketeers and Gentlemen Engineers"
Tom D. Crouch, Smithsonian curator, historian and author, discussed his new book, "Rocketeers and Gentlemen Engineers: A History of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics ....and What Came Before" at the Library of Congress on April 25. The program, cosponsored by the Smithsonian Institution Libraries and the Library of Congress, Center for the Book, was free and open to the public. A book signing followed the presentation.
"Rocketeers and Gentlemen Engineers" is a highly readable account of the significant contributions the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and its predecessor organizations have made to the evolution of flight. An aeronautical and astronautical "who's who," it covers the amazing story of visionary individuals and dedicated engineers who have changed society. During his talk, Crouch revealed fascinating anecdotes of famous air and space flight pioneers, including the Wright Brothers and Robert Goddard.
Crouch is senior curator of the Division of Aeronautics at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum and in 2002, he received the Smithsonian Distinguished Lecturer Award. He holds a PhD in American History from Ohio State University.
Crouch is the author or editor of more than a dozen books, and many articles for both magazines and scholarly journals. His leading books include "The Bishop's Boys; A Life of Wilbur and Orville Wright" (1989); "Dream of Wings: Americans and the Airplane, 1875-1905" (1981); "Eagle Aloft: Two Centuries of the Balloon in America" (1983) and "Wings: A History of Aviation from Kites to the Space Age" (2003). In the fall of 2000, President Clinton appointed him Chairman of the First Flight Centennial Federal Advisory Board.
For more information about Dr. Crouch, click here