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Andrew Carnegie, the wealthiest industrialist in nineteenth century
America, will not be physically present, but his spirit will be strongly
felt during our annual conference in Pittsburgh. In fact, his presence
is with members now if they have received a copy of the 28th annual
conference Preliminary Program. The cover design was donated to
ARLIS/NA courtesy of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. It features the
design on a historic stamp that was issued in the early twentieth
century by a city newspaper that is no longer published. The _Pittsburg
[sic] Dispatch_ created several stamp designs to promte the city, its
industries, and its cultural amenities. The stamps were designed circa
1911-1923. The design we chose offers a sylized image of The Carnegie
Institute, reflecting its expansion in 1907.
Conference attendees will experience The Carnegie Institute for
themselves on Sunday evening, March 19, 2000 when we gather in the
Carnegie Music Hall for our convocation. This event, along with the
reception following it, are made possible by a generous donation of the
Carnegie Museum of Art. Director Richard Armstrong will offer welcoming
remarks at our convocation. The grand finale of the evening will be a
wonderful reception in the lavish decor of the Music Hall foyer
sponsored by our friends at Ars Libri. After wining, dining, and
chatting with colleagues, we will be able to view the last Carnegie
International Exhibition of the twentieth century as we walk through the
museum's galleries.
The exhibition has been on view in the galleries of the Carnegie Museum
of Art since November 6, 1999. Today, our increasingly digitized lives,
the dichotomy of the computer screen and the physical world, the ease of
travel and worldwide communication all lead us to question such
fundamentals as the conditions in which we live, the relevance of where
we live, even the importance of physical presence. That is certainly
true for all of us who work in libraries as we answer reference
questions from around the globe, cope with global collections management
issues, and learn to work in global networked environments! That is
also the major issue presented to us through the artwork by artists
chosen for the Carnegie International. One of the artists, Janet
Cardiff, even incorporates the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh into her
work! Upon arriving in the library portion of The Carnegie Institute,
the viewer puts on a Walkman and takes an "audiow walk" through the main
branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. Cardiff directs the
itinerary, but of course each specific walk is influenced by the real
time and space that the viewer inhabits. Actual incidents, the real
visitors who may bump into you as you walk, become as much a part of
your experience of the artwork as the "tour" through which Cardiff is
directing you.
[By the way, those of you who have been curious about artist Chris
Ofili's work with elephant dung will be able to see it for yourselves at
the Carnegie International! The artist's work was recently made world
famous by New York City's Mayor Giuliani.]
On Monday, March 20, 2000, conference attendees will be able to learn
what Andrew Carnegie had in mind when he established The Carnegie
Institute in 1895 and followed it with the first Carnegie International
in 1896. Session 10 - "Wrought of Steel and Philanthropy: The Forging
of Andrew Carnegie's Cultural Legacy" sponsored by the Museum Library
Division and the Public Library Division, will present speakers who will
explore Carnegie's important contributions to both the library world and
the art world. Robert Gangewere, editor of Carnegie Magazine (published
by the Carnegie Institute) will discuss the original Carnegie libraries
in the Pittsburgh area and the concept of the Carnegie Institute in his
paper entitled "The Gospel According to Carnegie: a History of the
Carnegie Institute." Dr. Kenneth Neal, Pittsburgh art historian will
give a paper entitled "A Wise Extravagance: The History of the Carnegie
International Exhibitions, 1896-1901." And finally, Dr. Abigail Van
Slyck, Director of Architectural Studies at Connecticut College will
deliver a paper entitled "Free to All: Carnegie Libraries and American
Culture."
Those who wish to read up on the Carnegie International can refer to the
following publications:
Archer, Michael, et. al. Installation Art. Washington, D. C.:
Smithsonian Institute, 1994.
Bois, Yve-alain and Rosalind Krauss. formless: A User's Guide. New
York: Zone Books, 1997.
Cook, Lynne and Karen Kelly, ed. Robert Lehman Lectures on Contemporary
Art. New York: dia Center for the Arts, 1996.
Davies, Hugh, et. al. Blurring the Boundaries: Installation Art,
1969-1996. San Diego: Museum of Contemporary Art, 1997.
Godfrey, Tony. Conceptual Art. London: Phaidon, 1998.
1999 Carnegie International. [Exhibition: November 6, 1999 - March 26,
2000] Pittsburgh: Carnegie Museum of Art, 1999. 2 vols.
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