Becoming Belle Da Costa Greene: A Visionary Librarian Through Her Letters (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780674299818)

In Becoming Belle da Costa Greene: A Visionary Librarian through Her Letters, Deborah Parker chronicles the making and empowerment of a female connoisseur, curator, and library director in a world where such positions were held by men. Belle da Costa Greene (1879-1950) was Pierpont Morgan's personal librarian (1908-1913) and the first Director of the Morgan Library (1924-1948). She was also the daughter of two mixed-race parents and passed for white. In the nearly six hundred letters that Greene sent to art historian Bernard Berenson (1865-1959), Parker identifies Greene's energetic pursuit of exceptional opportunities, illuminating the artistry and imaginative features of Greene's writing--her self-invention, her vibrant responses to books and art, and her pathbreaking work as a librarian. As Greene transformed a private library into a magnificent public institution, she also transformed herself: hers was a life both lived and writ large.

Author: Deborah Parker
ISBN-10: 0674299817
ISBN-13: 9780674299818
Publisher: Villa I Tatti
Language: English
Published: 10/08/2024
Pages: 160
Format: Paperback