The Symphony

Roger can only think of three things to hate about Pete.

Don’t Stand So Close To Me - The Police

Leonardo Da Vinci (via aurelle)

Daguerreotype portraits were made by the model posing (often with head fixed in place with a clamp to keep it still the few minutes required) before an exposed light-sensitive silvered copper plate, which was then developed by mercury fumes and fixed with salts. This fixing however was far from permanent – like the people they captured the images too were subject to change and decay. They were extremely sensitive to scratches, dust, hair, etc, and particularly the rubbing of the glass cover if the glue holding it in place deteriorated. As well as rubbing, the glass itself can also deteriorate and bubbles of solvent explode upon the image. The daguerreotypes below are from the studio of Matthew Brady, one of the most celebrated 19th century American photographers, best known for his portraits of celebrities and his documentation of the American Civil War which earned him the title of “father of photojournalism”. The Library of Congress received the majority of the Brady daguerreotypes as a gift from the Army War College in 1920.

Today is a rare quotable Caturday, with this line from the one and only Edgar Allan Poe, who would have been 204 years old today. Poe is a perfect Caturday guest - he wrote “The Black Cat” and had his own tabby, Caterina, who lived with him during his time in Philadelphia and New York (check out a photo of his Bronx cottage from our collections, or actually visit the site). Happy birthday, Mr. Poe, and happy Caturday to all of you! We’ll be posting other Poe quotes today - if you enjoy those, check out some Poe works from NYPL!  (via nypl)

Thornton Wilder, Our Town