Libraries exhibitions, collections, services offer summer enrichment activities

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State University Libraries provides several in-person and online learning opportunities ideal for summer enrichment. All Pennsylvania residents are eligible for borrowing privileges and in-library online services at all University Libraries locations on each Penn State campus.

Borrowing privileges

As part of the University Libraries’ commitment to Penn State’s land-grant mission, Pennsylvania residents are reminded that they are eligible for University Libraries borrowing privileges. Resident borrowers who also register online through the University’s Penn State Account service may place holds on items available at any Penn State library by selecting the “I Want It” button in the Libraries Catalog; view account information; renew materials online; and receive in-library access only to the Libraries’ online databases, journals, or e-books when using a University Libraries computer workstation.

Penn State Alumni Association members also are eligible for borrowing privileges and may log in remotely to two dozen select-access library databases through the Alumni Library Online, a partnership between the University Libraries and the Alumni Association.

Online exhibition: 'The World According to Doyle: Editorial Cartoons from The Jerry Doyle Papers at Penn State' 

An online exhibition highlighting one of Penn State University Libraries’ special collections takes an expansive view of American politics during the 20th century. It examines the work of one of the preeminent editorial cartoonists of the time, Jerry Doyle (1898-1986), a native Philadelphian and self-taught graphic illustrator. Doyle penned daily cartoons for the Philadelphia Record and the Philadelphia Daily News from the mid-1930s to the early 1980s. His cartoons and illustrations also graced the pages of some of the nation’s leading magazines — Collier’s, Time and The Saturday Evening Post. The exhibition draws upon the approximately 1300 original ink-and-pen cartoons that comprise the Jerry Doyle Papers, generously donated by the Lawlor-Doyle families and stewarded by the Eberly Family Special Collections Library. Read more about the exhibition here.

University Park and State College area enrichment opportunities

Visitors to libraries on the University Park campus can cool off in air-conditioned spaces to enjoy an exhibition, or view two unique murals of well-known arts and literary subjects, and a designer chairs collection. While outdoors, art and design enthusiasts can take a self-guided walking tour of State College neighborhood architecture.

'Earth Archives: Stories of Human Impact' 

Open through Nov. 22, this exhibition explores the intersection of the environment, human activity, climate change, and the documentary record, and is on view in the Eberly Family Special Collections Library’s Exhibition Gallery, 104 Paterno Library. The exhibition invites visitors to consider a range of environmental-related topics and serves as a model for a growing, centralized resource for the Libraries' rich trove of primary sources. Materials on view will focus around key environmental issues and themes including biodiversity, climate change and weather data, energy and extraction history, disasters and pollution, arctic exploration, eco-materiality, and environmental protection and activism. A companion online exhibition also is available.

'Architectural Origins: The Lasting Influence of Classical Forms' 

An exhibit curated by Stelts Filippelli Curatorial Intern Cameron Cook presents original architectural works from the Eberly Family Special Collections Library and connects them to specific movements in the American development of classical architectural forms. From the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio to Daniel Burnham's neo-classical City Beautiful movement to the design of Pattee Library, the exhibit considers the connection between the ancient and recent past, affirming that classicism remains foundational to Western architectural language. The exhibit is on view until Dec. 15 in the Eberly Family Special Collections Library’s exhibition space, 104 Paterno Library.

Iconic Modern Chair Collection

Fans of interior design may be interested in engaging with seven chairs by famous modern designers in the Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library, 111 Stuckeman Family Building, during that library’s summer operating hours. This collection could be considered an interactive exhibit as much as a set of teaching and learning tools available for faculty and students. Read more about the collection’s origins and recent addition.

'An Addams Family Holiday' and 'Moby-Dick'-inspired murals

A 1952 mural by American cartoonist Charles Addams, “An Addams Family Holiday” hangs prominently in the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Global News Center, first floor Paterno Library, clearly viewable from the adjacent Starbucks at Paterno Library. The nearly 14-foot-wide mural gained media attention in July 2018 from a brief article in The New Yorker magazine, where Addams was a longtime cartoonist. The interactive online article highlights aspects of the mural as the reader scrolls down the page.

Inspired by “Moby-Dick” and created by Penn State alumnus Brian Kappel, this 40-foot wooden mural was commissioned by Starbucks and is displayed opposite the Starbucks at Paterno Library counter. It includes a quote from Herman Melville’s novel “Moby-Dick” with imagery of the infamous whale, whose tail also can be interpreted as an open book. On its left side is a mythical maritime siren, which inspired the company’s logo. A character from Melville’s book, Starbuck, informed the name of the company, which is headquartered in the port city of Seattle. 

Robin Road neighborhood architecture walking tour 

Although this State College neighborhood was first laid out in the 1930s, the majority of homes on Robin Road were designed at mid-century by A. William Hajjar, a Penn State architecture faculty member in the 1950s and 1960s. The self-guided tour was devised by employees of Penn State University Libraries’ Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library and Donald W. Hamer Center for Maps and Geospatial Information and is based on the University Libraries special collection of Hajjar’s work. The tour is available online with audio and visual components via smartphone download and includes links with additional details about most homes, including interior photos showing period details.