The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

09/05/2020

In a "normal" year The Huntington's Education department welcomes up to 20,000 students on-site for a variety of learning experiences. The 2020 school year is proving to be abnormal. Check out the blog to learn how the Education team has spent the last six months shifting gears to create innovative new resources for teachers, activities for students and families, and programs for lifelong learners > https://bit.ly/34XKDRM

Pictured: Interdisciplinary activity guides were developed for teachers to help students dive deeper into the collections. One new guide focuses on the art and science of painting conservation, inspired by the recent “Project Blue Boy” exhibition, and includes an activity in color mixing to achieve different tones, tints, and shades.

09/04/2020

Hdoc: Tigers in the Greenhouse

Our #StinkyPlant grew almost two feet this week! While we wait for a bloom, discover the origin story of The Huntington's first Corpse Flower in our latest video. 🐅🌿

In the summer of 1999, The Huntington was the focus of world-wide attention when it exhibited the first "Amorphophallus titanum" ever to bloom in California....

09/03/2020

Mark your calendars! On Oct. 9, The Huntington will open the expanded #ChineseGarden to the public. The additional 11.5 acres of landscape, pavilions, and other features will make Liu Fang Yuan 流芳園 (the Garden of Flowing Fragrance) one of the largest Chinese gardens in the world. https://bit.ly/3gZX2XM

09/01/2020

Did you miss our recent virtual programs? We've got you covered. Watch our panel on Octavia Butler and follow the journey of one ancient parchment's digitization here: https://www.huntington.org/videos-recorded-programs.

08/31/2020

This is an aquatint (or print) of a quilt that was made by Loretta Bennett (b.1960). Bennett is descended from a long line of quiltmakers in Gee’s Bend, a close-knit Black community that is home to multiple generations of women who are artists and community builders. In 2019, The Huntington acquired 32 prints by Loretta Bennett and three other Gee's Bend artists, Louisiana Bendolph, Mary Lee Bendolph, and Loretta Pettway.

Want to create your own craft inspired by the quilts of Gee's Bend? Head to huntington.org/funtington for the full tutorial, and explore other engaging content from last week's program "The Funtington: Family Fun at The Huntington."

Pictured: "Forever (For Old Sally)," 2007 by Loretta Bennett. Courtesy of the artist and Paulson Fontaine Press.

08/30/2020

“I do know that for the sympathy of one living being, I would make peace with all. I have love in me the likes of which you can scarcely imagine and rage the likes of which you would not believe. If I cannot satisfy the one, I will indulge the other.”

Happy birthday to Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, born #OTD in 1797. She is best known for creating #Frankenstein, considered the first science fiction novel ever written.

08/28/2020

Well, it's official. 2020 stinks.

An Amorphophallus titanum (aka #StinkyPlant) is gearing up for a big bloom in our Conservatory! Visitors won't be able to see the plant in person, but everyone can join the virtual #BloomWatch here: https://bit.ly/2EGQCiZ

08/27/2020

Hear and Now episode 4 quote video

Episode 4 is here. Listen to The Huntington’s podcast “Hear and Now” to learn more about Loren Miller, one of the most important lawyers of the civil rights movement. Available wherever you listen to podcasts > https://bit.ly/3ljqRWB

08/26/2020

In 1859, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper became the first Black woman to publish a short story in the United States; but she is perhaps best known for a speech given at a suffrage convention in 1866. She laid bare the racial inequalities of the movement, stating “You white women speak here of rights. I speak of wrongs.”

Her political and social beliefs were often a topic in her writing—her poetry speaks of the injustice of slavery, and her novel “Iola Leroy or Shadows Uplifted” explores issues of class and racial identity.

Her activism wasn’t limited to written works. She helped enslaved refugees escape via the Underground Railroad, joined the American Anti-Slavery Society as a public speaker, and became one of the founders of The National Association of Colored Women.
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Discover more stories of women who fought for equality in #19SuffrageStories, a campaign from our friends at Smithsonian, The Library of Congress, and US National Archives. #WomensEqualityDay

08/25/2020

Finger lime from the Ranch Garden

it's aliiiive!

Native to Australia, finger limes (Citrus australasica) contain spherical vesicles that pop out when you cut them open. The little pearls are known as "lime caviar," and can be used as a garnish or ingredient in recipes.

Thanks to gardener Gretta Treuscorff (@littleranchgardener) for sharing this sneak peek of what's growing in the Ranch Garden, which is closed to the public for now.

08/24/2020

Ready for some free online fun? Check out The Funtington: Family Fun with The Huntington. Each day this week, we'll be releasing a set of themed virtual activities and engaging videos for kids of all ages, starting at 10 am.

Join us now for Metamorphosis Monday! 🦋 https://www.huntington.org/funtington

Pictured: Pomegranate and Menelaus Blue Morpho Butterfly (1702-1703) from Maria Sibylla Merian’s "Metamorphosis insectorium surinamensium (Metamorphosis of the insects of Surinam)." The Huntington.

08/23/2020

"Well, this is sort of like air conditioning."

Photograph of kids peeking into a deep freezer by Doug White (undated). Southern California Edison Photographs and Negatives Collection at The Huntington.

08/21/2020

Gold was discovered along the American River in California on Jan. 24, 1848. Within a year, thousands of gold seekers rushed to the Sierra Nevadas, causing inevitable wear and tear to the landscape. Learn more over on the blog: https://bit.ly/3g4RUkB

08/19/2020

As part of our Centennial celebration, a new one-year fellowship has been established for the study of Octavia E. Butler, the first science fiction writer to receive a MacArthur “genius” award and the first Black woman to win widespread recognition writing in that genre. More details: https://bit.ly/2E78XFU #OctaviaButler #OctaviaEButler

08/18/2020

On this day 100 years ago, the #19thAmendment to the Constitution was ratified. It had been proposed without success in Congress since 1878, and after its failure to pass in February 1919, a small group of activists boarded the “Democracy Limited” train for a nationwide campaign.

Their fifteen city tour highlighted the beatings, imprisonments, and hunger strikes suffered by activists fighting to give women a political voice. Just a few months later, the Senate would finally pass the amendment enfranchising women with fifty-six ayes over twenty-five nays. Despite this monumental victory, the 19th Amendment did not bring equality to all—it would take decades before women of color would be granted the right to vote.

Pictured: "National Woman’s Party Members Demonstrating in Front of the Lafayette Statue, Washington, D.C.," September 16, 1918, photograph reproduced in "Jailed for Freedom: 1919 Prison Special Edition of The Suffragist."

#OTD #WomensVote100 #Suffrage100

08/17/2020

While the Conservatory is closed, we're bringing you a behind-the-scenes peek at what's in bloom:

"Etlingera elatior," also known as torch ginger or bunga kantan, is a key ingredient in many Southeast Asian recipes; and African native "Crinum jagus" has long been valued for its medicinal properties. 🌺 🌿

08/16/2020

there's a bluebird in my heart that
wants to get out
but I'm too tough for him,
I say, stay in there, I'm not going
to let anybody see
you.

"Bluebird" by Charles Bukowski.

Happy Birthday, Bukowski. The so-called "poet laureate of Los Angeles low-life" would have been 100 years old today. Famous for writing about booze, gambling, and hard-luck living, Charles Bukowski (1920-94) is less well-known as a perceptive and sensitive soul. While many of his poems feature themes of loneliness, rejection, and anger, he also wrote tenderly of his daughter, mused on simple pleasures, and reveled in the humor of human folly.

In 2006, his widow, Linda, began donating Bukowski’s papers to The Huntington. The collection includes rare editions of Bukowski’s works, thousands of corrected typescripts of poetry, and files of correspondence. Two other Bukowski collections contain rare issues of journals that published Bukowski’s earliest writings.

Learn more about this unconventional man over on the blog > https://bit.ly/3kEBjro

Pictured: "Laugh Literary and Man the Humping Guns", a short-lived literary magazine published by Bukowski and fellow poet Neeli Cherkovski. The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens.
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#hbd #botd #CharlesBukowski

08/14/2020

What does your perfect summer’s day look like?

In George Bellow’s “Summer Fantasy” (1924), the painting depicts an ideal summer's day, set at the magical hour before sunset.

On a deeper level, the painting can be understood as an allegory of life itself: the pram and nanny symbolize birth, the central, striding couple and their attendants represent youth and adulthood, and the dark silhouetted boat is a classic reference to the afterlife.

08/12/2020

On #WorldCalligraphyDay, peek into the pages of "The Ten Bamboo Studio Collection of Calligraphy and Pictures," a Chinese book of early woodblock prints published in 1633 by Hu Zhengyan.

This set from our collections features 185 pictorial leaves and 139 calligraphy leaves, making it the most complete example known to exist.

Learn more about the contents of the book here: https://bit.ly/3gXXwyE

08/11/2020

Summer blooms spotted #atTheH. 🌺 🌻 🌹⁣⁣🌸
Planning to visit? Reserve your tickets here: https://tickets.huntington.org/

08/10/2020

Tune in on Wed., Aug. 26 for the next installment of the President's Series: Octavia E. Butler and Adaptation. Writer Lynell George will discuss her forthcoming book, "A Handful of Earth, A Handful of Sky: The World of Octavia E. Butler" and share her experience in The Huntington archives.

The event will be held online via Zoom. Zoom link will be sent to attendees in the registration confirmation email. Free with reservations: https://bit.ly/3kiD9hm

08/09/2020

“We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn, which does not forsake us even in our soundest sleep."

On this day in 1854, Henry David Thoreau's "Walden" was published. The book took Thoreau seven years to write and would be one of only two books he would publish in his lifetime. You can flip through a digitized proof of "Walden" (complete with handwritten corrections from Thoreau) here: https://bit.ly/31JVFHl

08/08/2020

On #InternationalCatDay, we give you the tiniest kitten in our collections (quite possibly sitting on a napkin). Happy #Caturday! 😺

08/07/2020

Curious how a 16th-century manuscript can be transformed into a 21st-century digital tool? Join our webinar on Wed., Aug 19 to follow the process from curator to conservator to digitization team. Free with RSVP! https://bit.ly/2DAj6u4

Pictured: The illuminated manuscript by William Bowyer, Keeper of the Records in the Tower of London, created in 1567 for Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester. This manuscript has been among the most studied volumes since Henry Huntington acquired it in 1912.

08/06/2020

Have you heard of writer and composer Harold Bruce Forsythe? Few today know his name, much less his work; but it's likely that in the years to come, his musical compositions will be become better known than they were in his lifetime. Learn more about how contemporary artists and educators are utilizing Forsythe's work over on Verso: https://bit.ly/2BWa9e2

08/05/2020

New Site-Specific Work by Lita Albuquerque on View at The Huntington | The South Pasadenan | South Pasadena News

“...I have placed ‘Red Earth’ in this intimate setting, in the heart of the bamboo grove of the Japanese Garden at The Huntington, to represent the earth—the heart even—of the planet in its stillness...It is through that stillness that we can discover the motion of the cosmos and our place within it.”

Read more from artist #LitaAlbuquerque on her site-specific creation "Red Earth," now on view at The Huntington.

Curious to know what other works of art are on view in the gardens? Take the outdoor art tour over on our Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CDg_xa6nM86/

A new site-specific artwork by Lita Albuquerque, "Red Earth," greets visitors at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens as garden areas reopen after a closure of more than

08/04/2020

Proof that you didn't always need a *car* in #LosAngeles. 🐴 🚗


Charles C. Pierce, a view of Los Angeles, Third Street, approximately 1898. 8 x 10 in. black and white photographic print. The Huntington.

07/31/2020

You've heard of bird watching; but what about butterfly watching? 🦋 ⁣
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There are roughly 20,000 butterfly species in the world, and close to 600 in the continental U.S. Here are few sighted at The Huntington recently—can you identify any? Share your best guess in the comments. ⬇️
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📷: Rick Blum [1-2] and Sean Lahmeyer [3]

07/29/2020

Cycads are unusual plants that have captivated generations of collectors. The Huntington's new cycad garden, under development for nearly five years, features cycads, gigantic staghorn ferns, dainty euphorbias, begonias, succulents, and bulbs that add colorful flowers throughout the year. Learn more about these fascinating plants and The Huntington's living collection over on the blog > https://bit.ly/3hEhQEW

Pictured: The Huntington’s new hillside cycad garden. Photo by Scott Berger.

07/28/2020

The best thing about paper flowers? You can create a fresh bouquet every day. 💐

This 19th-century "Myrianthea" set from our collections contains over 60 paper cutouts of flowers and leaves, allowing the owner to rotate floral arrangements at a whim.

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John Burgis, "Myrianthea, or Numberless Groups of Changeable Flowers Superior Edition," 1823. The set is comprised of paper cutouts and watercolored images of flowers and leaves, flat sticks to mount the paper cut-outs onto, three composition sheets with slots for insertion of the flowers, and an instruction booklet.

07/27/2020

During the pandemic, a new appreciation for botanical gardens blooms

“While people are really feeling adrift and uncertain, gardens and nature itself can really offer a way to decompress and provide some guidance and solace.” Check out this thoughtful piece from Washington Post on the positive effects of visiting botanical gardens amidst a pandemic. 🌻🌿🌳

Americans can find refuge in quiet outdoor spaces near home.

07/27/2020

This week we're launching a new series, "Caption This." Every month we'll select an image from The Huntington's digital photography collection and invite you to get creative and make up your own captions! Share them with us in the comments below ⬇️ #TheHAtHome
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Pictured: A.C. Vromans bookstore "I Married Adventure" window display, 469 East Colorado, Pasadena. 1940. From the Harold A. Parker Studio Collection of Negatives at The Huntington.

07/24/2020

Want to escape the heat this weekend? Stop by The Huntington for an evening stroll through the gardens. 🌙 Tickets available now: https://tickets.huntington.org/events

07/23/2020

The Huntington has one of the largest living plant collections in the nation, and quite a few of those plants—nearly 3,500 of them—have something “sharp” about them. If you think spines, thorns, and prickles are all the same, however, think again! Learn all about spinescent plants over on the blog > https://bit.ly/2WvfL6c

Pictured: The stem of Alluaudia ascendens, in the Desert Garden, showing multiple sharp thorns. This species makes up a core component of the spiny thicket forests in southern Madagascar. Photo by Sean Lahmeyer.

07/22/2020

The Huntington - Frontiers Spring/Summer 2020 - Page 1 - Created with Publitas.com

Need some fresh reading material? Check out the latest issue of our magazine "Huntington Frontiers" to learn more about an Underground Railroad account book, art inspired by garden seasons, and how kaleidoscopes relate to decorative art. https://bit.ly/30EiUlk

Spring/Summer 2020 issue of The Huntington's biannual magazine.