Watch, Read, Listen

I've been tracking two people in the archives of the Huntington Library whose careers reveal surprising parallels. One is William Wordsworth, the Romantic-era Lake District poet who made a career of dancing among daffodils and touring the rural reaches of late 18th-century England.

The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens announced today that Chad Alligood, curator at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., has been named Virginia Steele Scott Chief Curator of American Art. Alligood, who joins The Huntington in late April, will oversee a growing collection

The history of art is peppered with tales of women artists who struggled to gain the same recognition as men. To shine a light on women’s artistic bounty, the National Museum of Women in the Arts kicked off a social media campaign last March to honor Women’s History Month. 

At the dedication of The Huntington's Munger Research Center in 2004, California historian Kevin Starr (1940–2017), who died in January, said, "Southern California contemplates itself, defines itself, brings itself to further identity through a variety of agencies and instruments

Last Thursday, we let art historian James Fishburne—guest curator of "A History of Whiskers: Facial Hair and Identity in European and American Art, 1750–1920"—run The Huntington's Instagram account for the day. In a nod to the exhibition, which is on view for just one more week, James spent the day looking at facial hair in our art galleries, touring us through "Shenandoahs," "chin curtains," and mustachioed teapots.

For the shopper looking for a unique Father’s Day gift, the Huntington Store is filled with thoughtfully curated items inspired by holdings of The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens.

One of the most iconic images of California is the coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia). With its rugged trunk, twisting branches, and broad canopy, it adds both power and grace to our native landscape. We're fortunate to have more than 200 coast live oaks on The Huntington property. We also have a very small and special one that expresses the iconographic qualities we associate with our native oaks.