Over 9000 Votes Cast
Nearly 100 Libraries from All Five Boroughs Designed Displays Recognizing New York City’s Art and Cultural Institutions
For images, click here.
Brooklyn, NY — Culture Pass, the library program created in 2018 to provide cardholders free access to cultural institutions, announced the winner today of a book display contest. Nearly 100 libraries—representing every borough—participated in the competition, designing displays for the theme The Creative City. Greenpoint Library and Environmental Education Center was named the grand prize winner and will receive $1500 to use for branch programming and resources. A complete list of finalists and winners can be found here.
The winning display featured an artist sewing a quilt; the figure was made using paper-mâchė from old newspapers, highlighting the Library and the neighborhood’s focus on environmentalism. In addition, the quilt was made using recycled materials. Children created the border patches, making the display a genuine representation of a creative city.
The public cast 9500 votes in the first round. The displays with the most votes were then reviewed by a panel of expert judges who selected the final winners.
Since Culture Pass launched in 2018, over 217,000 free passes have been distributed to library cardholders. The book display contest paid tribute to New York City’s creative community, including performers, curators, and designers and the favorite museums, historical sites, performance venues, and arts institutions which showcase their work and partner with city libraries to provide free access and admission.
“Library staff in branches across the five boroughs poured an enormous amount of heart and creativity into their displays this year. We’ve been able to engage thousands of New Yorkers and raise awareness about the free arts access available through the Culture Pass program, so while prizes go to the branches, everyone who sees one of these displays is a winner,” said Brendan Crain, Culture Pass Program Manager.
You can see the winning Greenpoint Library display through the end of April. To learn more about the Culture Pass Program and how you can use your library card to get free admission to over 80 cultural institutions, click here.
About Brooklyn Public Library
Brooklyn Public Library is one of the nation’s largest library systems and among New York City’s most democratic institutions. As a leader in developing modern 21st century libraries, we provide resources to support personal advancement, foster civic literacy, and strengthen the fabric of community among the more than 2.6 million individuals who call Brooklyn home. We provide nearly 65,000 free programs a year with writers, thinkers, artists, and educators—from around the corner and around the world. And we give patrons millions of opportunities to enjoy one of life’s greatest satisfactions: the joy of a good book.
About The New York Public Library
For over 125 years, The New York Public Library has been a free provider of education and information for the people of New York and beyond. With 92 locations—including research and branch libraries—throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, the Library offers free materials, computer access, classes, exhibitions, programming and more to everyone from toddlers to scholars, and has seen record numbers of attendance and circulation in recent years. The New York Public Library receives approximately 16 million visits through its doors annually and millions more around the globe who use its resources at www.nypl.org. To offer this wide array of free programming, The New York Public Library relies on both public and private funding. Learn more about how to support the Library at nypl.org/support.
About Queens Public Library
Queens Public Library (QPL) transforms lives by cultivating personal and intellectual growth and by building strong communities. It is one of the largest and busiest public library systems in the United States, dedicated to serving the most ethnically and culturally diverse area in the country.
An independent, non-profit organization founded in 1896, Queens Public Library offers free access to a collection of more than 5.4 million books and other materials in 200 languages, technology, and digital resources. Prior to the pandemic, the Library hosted more than 87,500 educational, cultural, and civic programs annually and welcomed 11.4 million visitors through its doors.
Nearly every Queens resident lives within a mile of QPL’s 66 locations, including branch libraries, a Central Library, seven adult learning centers, a technology center located in the nation’s largest public housing complex, two teen centers, two bookmobiles, and a book bicycle. For more information, visit www.queenslibrary.org.