Lessons in (Library Excavations)

Marc Fischer will lead the group on a personal guided tour of the Harold Washington Library’s “Business Periodicals” collection .
About this Event

For this two hour class, Marc Fischer of the long-running project Public Collectors will lead the group on a personal guided tour of the Harold Washington Library Center’s “Business Periodicals” collection on the fourth floor. This rich, publicly-accessible but often overlooked collection of periodicals includes an outstanding array of specialized magazines devoted to hundreds of different industries. Titles in this collection consist of thousands of issues dating back to the early 1900s covering industries such as fabrics, rubber, concrete, printing ink, secretarial work, citizens band radio, toy manufacturing and retailers, vending machines, institutional restaurants, and quick frozen food. After a period of exploration and discovery, we’ll bring our personal selections to a meeting room to share, present, and discuss what we’ve found.

*Please note that this program is taking place at the Harold Washington Library. Meet under the rotunda on the first floor, straight ahead from the State Street entrance.

This class has been organized by Laurel Hauge as part of Lessons in (Hospitality), which offers a series of classes during the run of this year’s Ground Floor exhibition (August 9–November 1, 2026). While each class in this series has been conceived by a different thinker, maker, and/or professional, they are all centered around the subject: hospitality. The project offers the conditions for a multitude of definitions and interpretations of “hospitality” to be shared, enacted, and embodied.