¡Noche en el Met! ¡Noche en Watson Library!

Pierre Verger (born Paris, 1902; died Salvador, Brazil, 1996). Dieux d'Afrique; Culte des Orishas et Vodouns à l'Ancienne Côte des Esclaves en Afrique et à Bahia, la Baie de Tous les Saints au Brésil. Paris: P. Hartmann, 1954

«Friday nights at the Met are always special, thanks to MetFridays: New York's Night Out, and Friday, September 18, was extra special. Not only because the theme for that night was ¡Noche en el Met! Celebrate Latin America, but also because it was the first time Watson Library participated in MetFridays. In conjunction with the Museum's increased focus on modern and contemporary Latin American art, Watson Library has been steadily growing our own collection of materials from that region. The event offered a perfect opportunity for us to keep Watson open late and let others know what we have been up to, and to show off some highlights from our collection. (A recent gift of several hundred exhibition catalogues and monographs from the Brazilian art space Casa Daros gave us quite a boost!)»

Special Collections Librarian Jared Ash, Manager for Library Administration Dana Hart, and Principal Departmental Technician Fredy Rivera with a table of special collections materials. Over fifteen rare books, journals, and artists books were on display for the event.

Watson staff Jared Ash, Dana Hart, and Fredy Rivera gave collection chats on the rare books, exhibition catalogues, and journals on display. Fredy's collection chat, which was given in Spanish, drew an especially large crowd.

Fredy Rivera discussing facsimiles of pre-Columbian art and manuscripts in Spanish.

Approximately half of the rare books and periodicals on display focused on Afro-Brazilian art and culture, including photography books by Mário Cravo Neto and Pierre Verger; books illustrated by the Brazilian artist Carybé; and an extraordinary record of Afro-Brazilian life in the early nineteenth century by Johann Moritz Rugendas. Also on display were recent acquisitions purchased with support from the Friends of Thomas J. Watson Library, including collections of writings by Joaquín Torres-García; collections of Afro-Cubano poems; and poems by Francisco Manrique Cabrera that are illustrated by Antonio Martorell. In preparing for the event, we were thrilled to rediscover a rare and remarkable art journal in Watson's collection: Forma: Revista d'Arte, published in Santiago, Chile, from 1942 to 1943, which guests also seemed to appreciate.

Maria Luiza Leão (Brazilian, b.1932). From the portfolio, Escritura. Rio de Janeiro, 1973. Silkscreen

In addition to two tables of material from Watson's special collections, there were four tables of Latin American books and periodicals selected from the nearly one million books that comprise the Museum Libraries' collections. They were all arranged in the Reading Room and available to visitors for browsing. (All quite helpful for staying current on the latest exhibits in Chile and new architecture in Brazil!)

Forma: Revista de Arte. Santiago, Chile, 1942–1943

We had a great night showing off our collections and making new friends (not to mention being as loud as we wanted in the Reading Room). We were pleased to learn that many of our visitors had never been to Watson Library before, and hope that many of our new friends will return again during regular library hours as new researchers, or during future MetFridays! If you missed the event but are interested in any of the books shown here, you can request them through our catalogues and create your own private viewing in Watson! As a reminder: Watson Library is open to all researchers college age and older. For additional information about using Watson and the Museum Libraries, please visit our website.

Exhibition catalogues, illustrated books, and other publications related to Afro-Latino art, waiting to be set out on display and browsed. Two book trucks were needed to roll in all of the material!