Joseph Hawkins – Courtesy photo
Date & Time: Saturday, November 8, 2014, 2:00 p.m.
Location: Allendale Branch Library
Address: 1130 S. Marengo Ave., Pasadena, CA 91106
Information: (626) 744-7260 or visit pasadenapubliclibrary.net
“Since I’ve been working on this, I’ve almost become a collector of these monomaniac collectors themselves. I mean, they’re such an interesting, diverse, slightly crackpot but really smart and historically indispensable bunch of people, for people like us who care about the city.” – David Kipen
The Allendale Branch Library continues its “Collectors in Conversation” series with “Monomaniac LA,” a series of short videos directed by Joris Debeij which focuses on three unique Los Angeles-based historical collections and the collectors behind them, on Saturday, November 8, 2014, at 2:00 p.m., at 1130 S. Marengo Ave., Pasadena, CA 91106. Light refreshments will be served.
Produced by LA as Subject, a collaborative of museums, libraries, and archives dedicated to preserving and making accessible Los Angeles history, and funded through Cal Humanities, the videos illuminate little-known aspects of the region’s history and examine the impulse to collect and share historical knowledge that drives both professional and amateur historians. The three collectors featured in the videos will also be in attendance to discuss their passion for documenting underexplored aspects of Los Angeles’s history.
One of those profiled is Dr. Joseph Hawkins, director of the ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives at the USC Libraries, whose collection includes the personal papers of Jim Kepner, a science fiction fan and a pioneering activist for LGBTQ rights. His zines, artwork, and other materials from the 1950s and ’60s reveal hidden harmonies between the two movements, with both envisioning a future where social progress would overcome the traditional ideas about gender identity and sexual orientation.
A second collector, Carol A. Wells, founded the Center for the Study of Political Graphics in 1988, which contains more than 85,000 posters from the 19th century to the present. One of the focuses of her Culver City-based archive is preserving the early contributions of Southern California activist movements to national struggles for labor rights, racial and gender equality, and other causes.
Finally, citriculture historian David Boulé has had a lifelong fascination with the history, culture, achievements, and uniqueness of California. Through his collection and his book, The Orange and the Dream of California, he addresses the citrus industry’s role in shaping the myth of the “California dream” that inspired people from around the world to believe they could remake themselves in California.
Other presenters will include Liza Posas, LA as Subject coordinator, and journalist and broadcaster David Kipen, who is the off-camera interviewer for the videos and who served as the humanities advisor for the “Monomaniac LA” project.
“Collectors in Conversation” is an ongoing series of quarterly programs which showcases the wonderful world of collectors and collections, both private and institutional, and their ability to amaze, inspire, and enlighten the public.
For further information, contact the Allendale Branch Library at (626) 744-7260 or visit pasadenapubliclibrary.net. More details are also available at the Allendale Branch Library Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/allendalebranch.
