Lending Art to Celebrate 44 Years with Art Show Opening Nov. 6

The Friends of Greenwich Library Lending Art Collection includes approximately 220 pieces ranging from lithographs and original drawings to watercolors, acrylics, photographs and museum quality posters and prints. These items include works from Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Claude Monet, Georgia O'Keefe and Jackson Pollack, among others. The collection is multicultural with a broad range of subject matter including botanicals, landscapes, portraiture, history and children's pieces. Sizes range from small to large to the very large.

 This year, Lending Art has acquired prints of interest to children as well as smaller pieces to add to the collection, which is continually being upgraded and updated.

Lending Art, funded by the Friends of the Library, began in 1965. The purpose of the collection is to provide art and photographs for the citizens of the Greenwich, and those who work here, to borrow for their homes and offices. The collection is suitable for anyone who enjoys art and would like to change the look of their walls and rooms. The collection is popular among individuals with businesses, most notably real estate brokers who stage homes for sale. Restaurants and those with retail stores also feature pieces from the Lending Art collection.

The art circulates just as books do at the circulation desk on the first floor. Two pieces may be borrowed at one time. Lending Art can be borrowed for six weeks and then renewed twice for three weeks each time. Large canvas bags located near the Lending Art area are available for easy transporting of the prints. There is a multi-volume catalog in the Lending Art area, which describes each item in the collection. The title of each piece is also accessible online in the Library catalog database. Fifteen pieces from the collection can now be viewed online. The fine for overdue prints is $1/day per print. Not-for-profits can make special arrangements for long-term loans of the pieces.

Lending Art can be found in bins on the second floor. Seventeen pieces from the collection are on display on the walls in the Lending Art area. The Library cannot accept donations for the collection, but does have some funds available to maintain and purchase new pieces each year. For more information, please contact Laura Grad, lllggg@aol.com, Nancy Duffy, KcDuffy@aol.com or the Friends Office at 203-622-7938.