Thursday, April 26

Wood engraving of Baltimore 's Washington Monument, designed by Robert Mills, based upon a sketch by Granville Perkins. Published in Picturesque America, 1872; Wright collection. We will be at the foot of the monument during our visit to the neighboring Peabody Institute Library.

The first afternoon will be spent at the Maryland Institute College of Art, a Maryland legend that has roots in the city back almost 200 years. MICA has graciously offered our Society the use of their new state-of-the-art lecture hall, Falvey Auditorium in the award-winning Brown Center. We will be enlightened about aspects of the mid-Atlantic's printmaking past through four talks that promise to cover a wide range of members' areas of interest. After the talks, Gail Deery, chair of the Printmaking Department, has graciously offered to open their printmaking studios to our group. We will have full freedom to scrutinize the three floors of the department, seeing both traditional and modern processes being employed today in etching, lithography, paper-making, and the letter-press book-arts. Students are already planning to be on hand to show us these processes. The department is also home to Dolphin Press & Print, a professional print and letterpress shop. Through coursework and internships, students have an opportunity to work with professionals in collaborative projects. We will learn more about these wonderful MICA facilities and capabilities.

Thursday evening should not be missed! Sunset will be highlighted by a two-hour sail from Baltimore's Inner to Outer Harbor, on an authentically constructed clipper-ship, the Clipper City. We will pass close by Fort McHenry, the famous site of the battle in the War of 1812, and then continue on to be able to see it the way Francis Scott Key did when he wrote the anthem. The fort is hardly visible, and thanks have to be given to the Rockets Red Glare! We will learn a bit of Baltimore's history and development from writer Jim Dilts, who has graciously agreed to join us. Jim is an authority on Baltimore's architectural history. A traditional Baltimore crab-cake buffet dinner will be served on-board during the tour.

We will return to port with enough time to convene back at our hotel for coffee and dessert, and enjoy our much-loved Show and Tell, Swap and Sell event. This venue will be held in the Hotel's Harbor Club room. This space has magnificent views out over the entire harbor. Between strolls on the open-air deck that surrounds the room, members can discuss their latest “finds,” trade stories and information, and hopefully support the livelihood of our dedicated and hard-working dealer members, who go to great efforts to bring fresh material to display at our conferences. Stay up late, but be sure to get some good sleep, for Friday will be especially busy.

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Friday, April 27

View of Baltimore from Reservoir Hill. Steel engraving published in Picturesque America, 1872; Wright collection. The middle ground of this scene defines the current campus of the Maryland Institute College of Art, where we kick-off our conference activities.

We will start off Friday morning with a quick bus ride to the Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA). Associate Curator of Prints, Drawings and Photographs, Rena Hoisington, will be working with us to provide a broad-based “show and tell” that is still in the planning stages. We hope to have on view a wide range of the etchings, engravings and lithographs that were created locally, and that have achieved a national reputation. We have arranged with the Museum café, Gertrude's, to provide box lunches, which we anticipate enjoying in the Museum's Wurtzburger and Levi sculpture garden. After lunch, a short bus ride will bring the group to the Maryland Historical Society, now also home to the legendary print collections of the disbanded Peale Museum. Again, we are in the process of working with staff members to make the afternoon at the MHS a memorable one. Laura Rice, a past curator of prints at the Society, and a speaker on Thursday's lectures, has graciously offered to help us gain a first-hand appreciation of the MHS collection.

Our last stop on late Friday afternoon will be a recollection for stalwart members who came to Baltimore on the Society's last visit, almost twenty years ago. We are hoping to spend an hour in the conference rooms of the Baltimore law offices of Venable Baetjer, Howard & Civilett, not in litigation, but in appreciation of their stellar collection of historical prints. Jay M. Fisher, Deputy Director of Curatorial Affairs at the BMA and the former curator of prints, indicated that this is a not-to-be-missed opportunity. Although arrangements are still being finalized, the firm has expressed its willingness to allow our visit. Since many of us have yet to see the collection, this will certainly be an exciting event.

On Friday evening, participants are on their own for dinner. A list of restaurants and other evening activities will be included in the registration packets.

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Saturday, April 28

Saturday morning will start with a brisk twenty minute walk over to the Enoch Pratt Free Library, an esteemed Baltimore institution. The library is located directly across the street from the Baltimore Cathedral designed by Benjamin Latrobe, noted by British architectural historian Nicholas Pevsner as being the finest example of American architecture. The Cathedral will have just completed a four-year restoration (back to its Latrobe roots) and is definitely worthy of a visit. The Wheeler Auditorium at the Pratt Library will be the site of the annual meeting. After the meeting, we will have a “show and tell” in their Maryland Print room, reviewing pieces from the Library's Cator collection of Maryland prints.

Ten minutes away up Charles Street is the Washington Monument , the first pubic monument to honor the nation's first President, and a design celebrated in numerous American prints. We will visit the Peabody Institute Library, located at the foot of the monument, anchoring the southeast corner of Mount Vernon Place, the urban park that defines and frames the monument. The Peabody has the city's greatest historic map and rare book collection, now part of the Johns Hopkins University Library System. Even those who aren't map-lovers will be in awe of this 1860s cast-iron library with its six-story, sky-lit, central atrium space.

View of Locust Point, Baltimore elevators, from the outer harbor. Wood engraving drawn by J. O. Davidson, engraved by J. Krast, and published in J.G. Pangborn's Picturesque B&O, 1882. During our Thursday evening boat trip, we will be passing this same area, substantially changed in its architectural character.

Saturday afternoon is free, and the registration packets will include many suggestions for activities, from visits to the Walters Art Museum directly across the street from the Peabody, to jaunts definitely more distant.

Saturday evening will conclude with the traditional annual dinner and—once again—live auction. The dinner festivities will be held in the Harbor Club room, with its spectacular views of the Harbor and its wrap-around outdoor balcony. During cocktails participants will be able to appreciate close-up the beauty of Baltimore 's revitalized downtown. Drinks will be followed by a plated dinner, with options for entrée. For the after-dinner event, Mike McCue has kindly offered to serve as the auctioneer, in an expression that honors the spirit and wit of our past beloved member Dick Hathaway, who served as the quintessential auctioneer for so many years. Please bring prints or reference books for the auction!

Optional Sunday Program

For members coming from out of town who wish to extend their stay, Barbara Bither has been working to organize a fascinating mid-day Sunday event. The venue is the seldom-seen but greatly praised mansion and grounds of the Ladew Topiary Gardens, in Monkton, Maryland, about 45 minutes north of Baltimore. A guided tour of the house is being arranged, and strolls through the garden will be at liberty. Arrangements for an elegant Sunday lunch are still in the planning stages. Keep tuned!

Mark your calendars! This conference is shaping up to be a stellar event.

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