[MDPLS] Assembling an Era

An exhibition at the library.

Assembling an Era

The Miami-Dade Public Library System, 1971-1989

January 20 – March 27, 2011

Main Library, 1st and 2nd floor exhibition space, 101 W. Flagler Street, Miami, 305-375-2665

Reception and 40th anniversary kick-off event: January 20, 6:30 – 8:30pm

The 1970s and 80s represented a period of great progress, upheaval, and change in Miami-Dade County. Miami hosted both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions. The Mariel Boatlift and McDuffie Riots happened simultaneously. 1983 saw both Surrounded Islands and Scarface. In 1971, at the very beginning of this important and volatile period, city and county libraries joined forces and formed the Miami-Dade Public Library System. In 1972, the Decade of Progress Bond expanded it with thirteen new branches.

Assembling an Era celebrates MDPLS’s 40th anniversary, bringing together materials from the Library’s special and reference collections to document this fascinating time and build associations between its popular culture, Miami history, and library stories. The show tells these stories through works on paper by Miami artists, Purvis Young canvas banner pieces, books, newspaper articles, a snapshot timeline, a special installation of every 1971 reference volume in the Library’s collection, a slide installation by Kevin Arrow, a sound station, and more.

I am included in the “and more”.