Picturing America for Public Libraries

The Grand County Library District held eleven programs based specifically on the pictures. Some of the programs were given for an adult audience, and others were geared to elementary school aged children. We used local artists and historians as presenters. Most of the programs were held in the five branches of the library district, while others were held in the local school classrooms. In one of our branches, the Picturing America art was used in a program organized by the Adult Services Librarian in conjunction with the Middle Park High School social studies teacher Mr. Kelley. The students from the junior American history high school class did a re-enactment at the Granby Library, based on Grand County characters and incidents from the mid 19th century to the present day. The audience had their attention drawn to the pictures, which formed a back drop to the theatre. Of particular interest in this program were the pictures of artifacts and portraits of Native Americans. This particular program was most successful, attracting an audience of 35 people.

Submitted by Anna Winkel