The Spencer Art Reference Library is a wonderful resource for scholars, students and visitors. The library's Reading Room on the second floor of the Bloch Building, is a lovely spot to look at beautiful art books and read the latest art-world publications. If you don't have a specific need, it is always fun to check out the library's ongoing special displays.
The current display goes hand in hand with the Museum's latest featured exhibition, Art in the Age of Steam: Europe, America and the Railway, 1830-1960.
The display is called "Rails, Trains and Stations: The Railroad in Art and Architecture" and contains 27 books about different topics related to the railroad including photography, history, travel, films and literature.
I only had a few minutes to look through the display. The book that I spent the most time with was T.C. McLuhan's Dream Tracks: The Railroad and the American Indian. This book tells the story of how the great marketing machine of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway turned the great American Southwest into a tourist attraction and how that affected the American Indians of that region.
The reproductions of "railroad art" (advertising posters) is quite telling. One of the main passenger lines on the Santa Fe was called The Super Chief. The posters include slogans such as "The Chief is still Chief. Extra fast. Extra fare. Extra Fine" along with images of Native Americans and the rugged southwestern terrain. The Santa Fe was innovative in many ways providing passengers with car or bus service that would take travelers into areas that were inaccesible by the train. This was known as "The Indian Detour." Many of the posters promoting this service included the incentive of "More Indians."
The book also contains photographs of American Indians that were taken along "the detour" showing their every day life and how they lived. Two photographs that were particularly interesting show how the railroad had changed their existence.
One showed a group of men at the Grand Canyon train station dressed in native clothing. Their job was to welcome visitors coming off the trains and entice them to rent a car to travel into the Indian villages.
The other image was of Albert Einstein and his wife with Hopi Indians at the Grand Canyon. The couple are standing in the middle of a family with Mr. Einstein holding the hand of one of the Indian children. The thing that gets me is that Einstein is wearing a native headress and holding a pipe. Looking at it from the 21 century, it smacks of mockery as tourists (even well educated ones) played "dress up" with the American "savages."
Other books were just as fascinating, and I plan to spend more time with them in the future. The library display will be on view through January 18, which is also the last day for Art in the Age of Steam.