Special Exhibits
Recent Exhibits:Albert Einstein Photographed By Lotte Jacobi
May 5- September 6, 2005
On view in the Library Rotunda, an exhibition marking the 50th anniversary of Einstein's death, selected from the Library's Photography Collections in Special Collections. Lotte Jacobi first met Einstein in 1927 when she photographed him at Gatow, Germany, where he and his wife Elsa were spending the summer by the river. Previously, Einstein had been photographed several times at the fashionable Jacobi Studio in Berlin by Lotte's father and sister. Jacobi Studio was much more than a photography business-it was a meeting place for the luminaries of Berlin. Among the people that Lotte Jacobi photographed in addition to Einstein were Emil Jannings, László Moholy Nagy, Käthe Kollwitz, Lion Feuchtwangler, Max Lieberman, and Max Planck.
Alternative Archives: A History of Underground Comics
January 30-March 28, 2004
The Special Collections Department of the Albin O. Kuhn Library presents Alternative Archives: A History of Underground Comics. The exhibition explores the history and effect of underground comics on the mainstream comic world and displays many examples from UMBC’s vast collection of comic books dating to the 1930s. The exhibition explores how comics changed after the Comics Code Authority Stamp was implemented in 1954 to censor comics for inappropriate content. Also explored is the way that underground comics, at each period of their history, have provided a rich arena for social and political discourse. Students at the Maryland Institute, College of Art collaborated with students in UMBC’s Graphic Novel class to research the thousands of comics in UMBC’s special collections and select works for this exhibition.
Baltimore Images from the era of Brown v. Board of Education
April 12th through May 10th, 2004
The landmark Brown v. the Board of Education, Topeka decision by the United States Supreme Court on May 17, 1954 that declared unconstitutional racial segregation in public education propelled dramatic and historic changes in the Baltimore City schools.Jack Engeman, who had been photographing in the schools for years, was a witness to the changes, and his photographs reveal much about the decision’s impact. A selection of photographs primarily by Engeman will be on display in the Rotunda of the Albin O. Kuhn Library & Gallery during the Library open hours.