University Park, PA -- A new exhibit "'When Two or More Are Gathered Together': Groups and Composite Images from the B. and H. Henisch Photo-History Collection" in the University Libraries' B. and H. Henisch Photo-History Collection Exhibit Room features mid-nineteenth- to early-twentieth-century portraits of couples and groups.

As photographic studios proliferated in the mid-nineteenth century, many Americans had portraits made. "Whether casual or formal, whether the photographer created an ornate interior or assembled people outdoors, whether the moment was a milestone celebrated or an imaginary staged event, these images are revealing of the new art form, its practitioners, and the culture in which it developed," according to Ann Copeland, librarian/archivist, Special Collections Library.

Drawn from a teaching collection on the social history of photography, the exhibit includes daguerreotypes, tintypes, cartes-de-visite (photographic portraits mounted on 3 1/2 by 2 1/4 inch cards), prints on paper, and photo albums.

The B. and H. Henisch Photo-History Collection Exhibit Room, 201A Pattee Library, is part of the Eberly Family Special Collections Library. The exhibit is on display through March 30, 2002, and is open during standard library hours (call 814-865-3063 or visit http://www.libraries.psu.edu/hours/).

For more information, contact Ann Copeland at auc1@psulias.psu.edu or 814-865-1755. For more on the Henisch collection visit http://www.libraries.psu.edu/crsweb/speccol/henisch.htm