American Antiquarian Society
185 Salisbury Street
Worcester, MA 01609
United States
The importance of New Year's Day in American culture is reflected in a variety of pre-1900 ephemera collections at AAS, including broadsides from the 1700s, party invitations from the early nineteenth century, and chromolithographed greeting cards from the post Civil War era.
Join Lauren B. Hewes, vice president for collections and Andrew W. Mellon Curator of Graphic Arts at AAS for a virtual behind the scenes look at New Year's Day ephemera, including a deep dive into how chromos were made using content from the Society's archive of Louis Prang & Co., one of the most successful color printers in the United States.
Founded in 1884, the Grolier Club is America’s oldest and largest society for bibliophiles and enthusiasts in the graphic arts. Named for Jean Grolier (1489 or 90-1565), the Renaissance collector renowned for sharing his library with friends, the Club’s objective is to promote “the study, collecting, and appreciation of books and works on paper.” Through the concerted efforts of an international network of over eight hundred members—book and print collectors, antiquarian book dealers, librarians, designers, fine printers, binders, and other artisans—the Grolier Club pursues this mission through its library, its public exhibitions and lectures, and its long and distinguished series of publications.
Lauren B. Hewes is vice president for collections and Andrew W. Mellon Curator of Graphic Arts at AAS. She builds and cares for the Society's collections of prints, broadsides, ephemera, and photographs and works with the curatorial team, the Center for Historic American Visual Culture (CHAViC), our fellows, and outside scholars to make connections between American history and the visual resources of the Society.