The Book Beautiful: Margaret Armstrong & Her Bindings

Margaret Armstrong

Margaret Armstrong, courtesy of The Armstrong Family Collection

The Book Beautiful: Margaret Armstrong & Her Bindings

The Assunta, Ignazio, Ada and Romano Peluso Exhibition Gallery through April 3, 2021

Visit our online gallery in City Readers

Margaret Armstrong was one of the most sought-after artists in an almost forgotten chapter in the history of book publishing—the golden age of the decorated book cover (1890-1915). During Armstrong’s remarkable career, more than a million books with her covers made their way into homes and libraries across America. By 1895 the beauty of Armstrong’s cover designs had placed her as a preeminent talent in an art that publishers had come to value highly. Most of her commissions were from three major publishing houses (Scribner, Putnam and Bobbs-Merrill), although in all she worked for 21 different publishers.

Today Armstrong’s covers are once again prized by scholars, educators and collectors. Her book covers here at the Library are among the prize jewels in our collection. The Book Beautiful:  Margaret Armstrong & Her Bindings highlights Armstrong’s exquisite covers and, for the first time, the Armstrong family’s long connection to our Library. 

This exhibition showcases some of Armstrong’s most exquisite covers (curated by Head of Special Collections Barbara Bieck), along with historic photographs and documents.

Meet Margaret Armstrong and Her Family

Digital Gallery Talk

Virtual Tour: Margaret Armstrong's Botanical Watercolors at the Met Museum

A virtual tour focused on botanical watercolors from the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Curators discuss Margaret Armstrong's life and work, highlighting her Field Book of Western Wildflowers, the role of women in the decorative arts at the turn of the 20th century, and the influence of her artistic family on her career. Originally presented on June 19, 2020.

Slideshow

Lowell Thing, Cover Treasure: The Adventures of a Margaret Armstrong Collector

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Book Beautiful Banner

This exhibition is generously supported by The H.W. Wilson Foundation. Additional funding is provided by The Thomas E. Dewey Fund and The Felicia Fund Inc.