Drawing Albums & Print Portfolios

A little-known aspect of the rich cultural life in Philadelphia in the 19th century is revealed in an extraordinary group of some 42,000 European prints and 2,500 drawings spanning more than four centuries. This exhibition of 100 prints and 50 drawings traces the history of this vast collection by reviewing a century of collecting accomplishments by the principal Philadelphians responsible for its assembly between the 1830s and 1920s. Acquired from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1984 and 1985 by exchange and purchase with funds donated by Muriel and Philip Berman, the collection is now known as the Muriel and Philip Berman Gift to commemorate the donors' generosity.