#LCPWilliamBirch

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The last twenty-five years of Birch’s life were in many ways professionally disappointing. Yet throughout the nineteenth century and into the twentieth century, Birch’s vision of the city and its environs began to find its place in the city’s iconography whether reproduced on high quality porcelain, as book illustrations, or as inexpensive mass produced pieces of ephemera. Birch’s work as an enamel painter also received recognition in the art world. William Birch’s legacy has been far-reaching and long-lasting. An example are these two vases on loan to the Library Company from the Philadelphia Museum of Art. 

Tucker Factory, Pair of vases ornamented with views from Birch’s Country Seats. (Philadelphia, ca. 1827). Glazed porcelain with enamel and gilt decoration. Philadelphia Museum of Art: Gift of Miss Mary Lea Perot, 1958.

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[Detail of] William Birch’s Paint Box, ca. 1780. Courtesy of the Philadelphia History Museum at the Atwater Kent, The Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection.

Enamel painting is a painstaking technique in which a glass-like flux is mixed with mineral colors and fused to a piece of metal under extreme heat.  It was hard to control the process, and the same color compound could “come from the fire very different in their seperate [sic]  preparations, from the delicacy of chymical practice.”  

William Birch’s paint box, which was handed down through six generations of his descendants, contained color charts (one dated 1782), bottles of powdered colors, a mortar and pestle to grind them with, dozens of blanks in various sizes, mostly copper but also brass and iron, more blanks already glazed and ready for painting, and a single paint brush.

See this painting and more on view now in our main gallery as part of our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy, through October 19, 2018.

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William Birch, Mendenhall Ferry, Schuylkill, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, 1809). Hand-colored engraving. Library Company of Philadelphia. Gift of S. Marguerite Brenner.

This is the only country view showing a public building, but in its celebration of the Schuylkill River scenery it is related to many of the other views.  

Birch wrote:

This beautiful spot close upon the falls of Schuylkill is one of nature’s choicest retreats. Mr. Mendenhall has opened his house for public entertainments.

Registration is open for William Birch and the Complexities of American Visual Culture: A Symposium Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of the Visual Culture Program, taking place Friday, October 5, 2018 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM EDT at the Library Company of Philadelphia.

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The jubilee memorial of the Evangelical Lutheran Ministerium Pennsylvania and adjacent states. (New York: Ernst Kaufmann, 1898). Chromolithograph. Library Company of Philadelphia. Gift of Dr. Don Yoder and William Woys Weaver-The Roughwood German-American Collection.

Although none of the artists whose work is reproduced on this broadside received any credit, it is William Birch’s depiction of the Lutheran Church from The City of Philadelphia that is the central vignette commemorating the 150th anniversary of the first Lutheran church body in North America.

The William Birch : His Life, His Views of Philadelphia, and His Legacy online exhibition is now live! Please visit  https://librarycompany.org/birch/

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It is the last week of the William Birch exhibition, and we are feeling nostalgic!

Anniversaries by their nature evoke interest in the past. Founder’s Week, the celebration of the 225th anniversary of William Penn’s founding of Philadelphia, served as a touchstone for packaging and selling views of “old Philadelphia” including those created by William Birch. From postcard sets to commemorative booklets, Birch’s city views were marketed with a nostalgic eye to the past.

Reproductions of Birch’s Celebrated Historical Views of Philadelphia.... Compliments of Underwood & Co. Philadelphia: R. M. Palmer, 1908. Library Company of Philadelphia. Gift of Louise Beardwood.

Numerous Philadelphia firms advertised their businesses by distributing a commemorative booklet containing all of Birch’s city views. The booklet’s introduction reads in part: “The costumes of the period, the general views of the buildings, street scenes, historical landmarks, then the show features of the city, etc., compared with the present, make the phenomenal strides in advancement now achieved seem almost incredible.” Additional text below some of the images, updated the viewer to the more recent history of a particular site.

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**UPDATE: Registration is now full for this event, but we are still adding names to the waitlist!***

Registration is open for William Birch and the Complexities of American Visual Culture: A Symposium Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of the Visual Culture Program, taking place Friday, October 5, 2018 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM EDT at the Library Company of Philadelphia.

This free symposium will explore the visual, cultural, and social themes elicited from the work of Philadelphia artist William Birch (1755-1834). The one-day symposium in collaboration with our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy aims to promote broad discussions on the continual resonance in American visual culture of the work of this premier enamel miniaturist, aspiring gentleman, and artist of the first American viewbooks.

Register here.

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Registration is open for William Birch and the Complexities of American Visual Culture: A Symposium Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of the Visual Culture Program, taking place Friday, October 5, 2018 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM EDT at the Library Company of Philadelphia.

This free symposium will explore the visual, cultural, and social themes elicited from the work of Philadelphia artist William Birch (1755-1834). The one-day symposium in collaboration with our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy aims to promote broad discussions on the continual resonance in American visual culture of the work of this premier enamel miniaturist, aspiring gentleman, and artist of the first American viewbooks.

Register here.

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William Birch, Lansdowne, the seat of the late Wm. Bingham Esq. Pennsylvania (Philadelphia,1809).  Hand-colored engraving.  

Lansdowne was considered by many to be the best country house in America. William Bingham was fabulously wealthy; his wife Anne Willing Bingham was the hostess of the Federalist era “Republican Court.”  Birch wrote:  

Lansdowne lies on the bank of the Pastoral Schuylkill, a stream of peculiar beauty, deservedly the delight and boast of the shores it fertilizes. The house was built upon a handsome and correct plan by the former governor Penn.

See this painting and more on view now in our main gallery as part of our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy, through October 19, 2018.

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Shown here is a study for the plate, "The View from Springland," published in William Birch's "Country Seats of the United States," showing the gated lush grounds of Springland, Birch's Pennsylvania country home near Neshaminy Creek in Bucks County from 1798 to 1818. Birch sold the property in 1805, continued to dwell on the grounds, and repurchased the estate in 1813. 

According to an obituary for William Birch’s son, Thomas Birch (1779-1851), the two-roomed toll-takers’ house, visible on the bridge over the creek, served as the studio where father and son produced the views for The City of Philadelphia.

See this painting and more on view now in our main gallery as part of our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy, through October 19, 2018.

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William Birch, Thomas Birch, ca. 1790. Watercolor, ink, and pencil. Library Company of Philadelphia.

Thomas Birch (1779-1851), William’s eldest son, pursued an art career like his father, finding success as a marine and landscape artist. Two of William’s other children, Priscilla Birch Barnes and George, also shared some of their father’s artistic talent. Priscilla exhibited work at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and George executed a drawing for one of his father’s Country Seats views.

William Birch, Ingenious Artist : His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy is on display through October 19, 2018. For more info visit: http://librarycompany.org/birch2018/ 

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People have always loved capturing their likeness, silhouettes were an affordable way to have a portrait made. 

William Birch visited Peale’s Museum to have this silhouette made. Philadelphians of all means went to the art and natural history museum to have their profile cut for one penny.

This silhouette is currently on display in our exhibition William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and his Legacy. For more information visit: http://librarycompany.org/birch2018/

William Birch, ca. 1805. Paper silhouette with embossed stamp from Peale’s Museum. Library Company of Philadelphia.

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Philadelphia and New York. (Philadelphia, ca. 1800). Broadside. Library Company of Philadelphia.

Here William Birch announces his intention of publishing a set of engraved views of both New York City and Philadelphia, projects in varying stages of completion in 1800. To increase interest in the sets, he published a larger engraving representing each city “intended as elegant furniture for a drawing or setting room, which will serve as references for amusement to the two volumes.” These engravings are on display to the right.

See this broadside and more in William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy now on display through October 19, 2018.

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**SAVE THE DATE** OCTOBER 5, 2018

WILLIAM BIRCH AND THE COMPLEXITIES OF AMERICAN VISUAL CULTURE

A free symposium celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Visual Culture Program at the Library Company of Philadelphia.

Launched in 2008, the Visual Culture Program (VCP) began with the mission to foster the study of historical images as primary sources for studying the past. VCP has grown to promote dialogues about the history of our social construction of the visual through exhibitions, research fellowships, conferences, acquisitions, and public programs.

William Birch and the Complexities of American Visual Culture explores the visual, cultural, and social themes elicited from the work of Philadelphia artist William Birch (1755-1834) in celebration of the anniversary of VCP.  The symposium in collaboration with our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy, aims to promote broad discussions on the continual resonance in American visual culture of the work of this premier enamel miniaturist, aspiring gentleman, and artist of the first American viewbooks.

What can be learned from works conceived and executed by a non-native artist parallel to constantly (and infinitely) evolving fields and definitions of art, and means of art production, distribution, innovation, and appreciation?

Registration opens in August.

Birch, William Russell, 1755-1834 artist. [Artist's study of detail from Second Street north from Market St. wth. Christ Church. Philadelphia.] [graphic]. [ca. 1798] 1 drawing: wash; 11 x 11 cm.(4.25 x 4.25 in.)

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On display now is this watercolor Plan of Springland, William Birch’s Pennsylvania country home near Neshaminy Creek in Bucks County.

Birch envisioned an impressive arrival for visitors to Springland. A path to a circular drive would lead guests arriving by water or land to the front of his residence and the adjacent “Green Lodge,” the building housing his extensive art collection. A grove of trees would surround his nearby painting studio. The plan incorporated practical features of a working rural residence, including a granary, hen house, and pig sty along with more picturesque elements such as “Neptune’s Garden” with a grotto.

Birch sold the property in 1805, continued to dwell on the grounds, and repurchased the estate in 1813.

See this painting and more on view in our main gallery as part of our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy, through October 19, 2018.

William Birch, Plan of Springland, near Bristol, Pennsylvania, ca. 1800. Watercolor, ink, and pencil. Library Company of Philadelphia.

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William Birch, Analostun, or Mason’s Island, with one wing of the House, at Georgetown, and two of Mr. Custus’s in the distance. Watercolor. 

John Mason built a Greek revival country seat in the 1790s on the island across the Potomac from Georgetown. In 1806 one wing of the house burned, which must be why Birch shows only part of it. George Washington Park Custis was Washington’s stepson, and his house, dimly seen in the distance, is the site of Arlington National Cemetery.

See this painting and more on view now in our main gallery as part of our current exhibition, William Birch, Ingenious Artist: His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy, through October 19, 2018.

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William or Thomas Birch, Preparatory sketch for An Unfinished House, in Chestnut Street Philadelphia, ca. 1800. Watercolor and ink. 

An Unfinished House, in Chestnut Street Philadelphia, (Philadelphia: W. Birch & Son, 1800). Hand-colored engraving. 

For subscribers not familiar with Philadelphia, Birch’s ambiguous title, “an unfinished house,” could mean that this impressive edifice was under construction and would soon be a showcase of American style and wealth. In reality, the residence’s owner, financier Robert Morris (1734-1806) was in debtors’ prison and the house, located near Eighth Street, would soon be demolished with the building’s materials used to pay off Morris’s creditors. William Birch purchased two bas- reliefs from the house for use in his own residence Springland. Restrikes from the original printing plate were issued as late as 1860.

William Birch, Ingenious Artist : His Life, His Philadelphia Views, and His Legacy on display now through October 19, 2018. To find out more visit: http://www.librarycompany.org/birch2018/