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Love Letter to a Library

Boston Public Library

July–October, 2018

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Installation view: Love Letter to a Library, Boston Public Library, MA (2018)

Press Release

Steve Locke's public installation Love Letter to a Library at the Boston Public Library, MA.

The institution's press release follows:

Boston Public Library and the Mayor’s Office of Arts & Culture launch a “Love Letter to a Library” public art collaboration today with a banner display at the Central Library and continuing throughout the BPL system. The text of the banners, "I Remember Everything You Taught Me Here," is intended to encourage viewers to engage with libraries as sites of learning, discourse, and memory.  Steve Locke is the project creator and a City of Boston Artist-in-Residence.

“Libraries always evoke early, fond memories of reading and discovery, and we invite patrons and visitors to share their experiences, old or new, with us through this project. Libraries continue to remain a core civic and cultural resource with traditional and innovative programs, offerings, and services,” said David Leonard, Boston Public Library President.

“From the time I came to Boston back in 1980, the library, particularly the McKim Building, was a place of discovery, refuge, and solace. There, I learned about Sargent, met Andy Warhol, fell in love, and mourned loved ones. As I moved to various Boston neighborhoods, the branch libraries have allowed me to learn about my community and about myself as an artist and as a citizen. This project is my way of saying ‘thank you’ - to the library and its people for what they do for people like me every day,” said Steve Locke, City of Boston Artist-in-Residence.

Memory books will be available for patrons to record library memories at the main reference desk of each installation library and at the Information Desk in the McKim building at the Central Library. Postcards explaining the project will be made available to take and use, and patrons are also encouraged to share their memories via social media using the hashtags #bplMemories and #BostonAIR.

“This project, through the Boston AIR program, will shine a light on the formative role libraries can play in our lives as centers of learning and culture,” said Kara Elliott-Ortega, interim Chief of Arts and Culture. “We’re excited to see how this project inspires people to reflect on those experiences and connect to their local branches.”