Description: The Smithsonian Institution Building, or the “Castle,” is the most iconic of all the Smithsonian’s 769 facilities, which include its nineteen museums, nine research centers, National Zoo, and all of its other establishments. The Castle was the first building constructed specifically for the Smithsonian after it was founded in 1846. On March 19, 1847, a contract was signed with
Description: Link Love: a weekly post with links to interesting videos and stories about archival issues, technology and culture, and Washington D.C. and American history.
Description: What is a field book and how do you digitize one? These were the first two questions I asked when I came on board at the Archives as the Summer 2018 Field Book Project Digitization Intern. During the course of my internship, I discovered the answer to both questions and learned a lot about digitization practices and standards at the Smithsonian.According to the Biodiversity
Description: In anticipation of its Fall 2016 opening, the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) did something beautiful. A film, by Stanley J. Nelson and Marcia Smith, was projected on NMAAHC's new building representing the history of African Americans in the U.S. You can check out all the images from the projection mapping on their Pinterest
Description: Art-inspired pumpkins. [via Hyperallergic]Gif's turned art. [via Wired]Our neighbor, the National Gallery of Art, just reopened their beautiful east wing and it has a stunning blue friend. [via Washington Post]Loved the Renwick Gallery's Wonder exhibit? You can now experience it in VR! [via DCist]The powerful symbolism in Nat Turner's bible. [via Smithsonian Magazine]Nashville
Description: This summer, members of the Archives staff packed their bags and headed to the 2019 Joint Annual Meeting of the Council of State Archivists (CoSA) and Society of American Archivists (SAA). When they returned, they refected om the most useful sessions and what topics they're looking for in the future.
Description: Images from the Rauschenberg Foundation are now available for educational use. [via NY Times] "How to Preserve Your Family Photos, Movies, and Memories Like a Smithsonian Archivist," with our own, Ricc Ferrante. [via Fatherly]The Bob Dylan Archive which includes sketches, notes, lyrics and chord progressions for unrecorded songs, has found its home at the University of Tulsa.
Description: At SPI, we were sad to learn that Jessie Cohen died earlier this week. Jessie was one of the photographic mainstays at the Smithsonian; she started working at the Smithsonian National Zoo in 1979, photographing animals, their living quarters, and behind-the-scenes events for exhibition, education, and marketing purposes. In addition, Jessie also managed the Zoo’s exhibition
Description: You can now download hi-res images of Vincent Van Gogh's paintings, sketches, and letters. [via Open Culture and Vincent Van Gogh Museum]Speaking of Van Gogh, the Art Institute of Chicago has recreated the bedroom in his famous painting and it is now for rent on Air BnB. [via Colossal]More enjoyable art browsing brought to you by technology! Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of
Description: On a cloudy Saturday afternoon, over 30 volunteers showed up at the National Museum of the American Indian to write minority women into digital history during a Wikipedia edit-a-thon in honor of Women's History Month. On the to-do list were artists, educators, activists, Smithsonian employees, the first Chinese-American female dentist, and the African-American woman who
Description: Yikes, who knew bunnies could be so vicious? [via Colossal]A previously unpublished story by Langston Hughes was found in the Yale Archives. [via New Yorker]Now that's dedication: A WWI soldier finished his PhD dissertation in the trenches. [via Open Culture]Bad news for the cultural heritage sector; a UN report showing climate change is putting World Heritage Icons at risk.
Description: Nearly four months into Smithsonian’s extended telework period, we thought it would be fun to share which skills and hobbies have been getting us through this overwhelming time.