Exhibits in the Greenfield Library

Thinking in the long-term: publications by Glenstone

On exhibit through August 15, 2025 are featured images from books published by Glenstone, a private contemporary art museum located on 230 acres in Potomac, Maryland. Founded in 2006, Glenstone shares with St. John’s College an interest in contemplative looking, deep thinking, and conversational learning.

Glenstone publishes books to support both its exhibition program, and the institutional mission to foster “profound experiences through direct engagement [and] create spaces where meaningful encounters with art are not just possible, but central to the human experience.”

We invite you to visit during the library’s regular opening hours to review the excerpted Glenstone publications, and to consider the difference between encountering a work of art, and encountering a reproduction of that work of art in a published book.

In support of this exhibit, we are also featuring books about art from the E. Barrett Prettyman collection. This exhibit is on view in the library’s Nutt Room from May 3rd to August 15, 2025.

Bibliophile: Inscribed Books from the E. Barrett Prettyman, Jr. Collection

E. Barrett Prettyman, Jr., a distinguished lawyer in the District of Columbia, generously donated his remarkable and unique collection of over 1,000 inscribed books to the Greenfield Library in several installments, beginning in 1997. A true bibliophile, Prettyman believed the value of a book is raised significantly if it is signed by its original author. He believed books are even more valuable if they are inscribed with elaborate personal inscriptions.

As a lover of books, Prettyman decided that it would be ideal for his collection to be housed at a College that is filled with book lovers. The Prettyman collection is an eclectic mix of books which spans from the early nineteenth century to the late twentieth century. The collection includes, but is not limited to, books signed by important political figures, artists, American, British, French and German literary authors, Nobel Prize winners, and contemporary authors. A selection of titles from the collection are on display in the Nutt Room.