Greater São Paulo newer library automation

As a follow up to a 1981 on-site sabbatical study, automated projects or activities in academic, public and special libraries or information centers in the Greater Sao Paulo area that developed from 1981 to the end of 1987 are described. Among the 27 Greater Sao Paulo libraries and/or information centers that were surveyed, the Division of Information and Systems of the Institute of Technological Research of Sao Paulo State, the Division of Library, Documentation and Information of São Bernardo do Campo, the Regional Library of Medicine, and the System of Libraries of the University of São Paulo were among those answering the survey questionnaire which indicated having made further advancements in the aspects of functions, processes and/or routines in areas of librarianship. The Library of the Company of Data Processing of the State of Sao Paulo and the Sao Paulo School of Business Administration of the Getúlio Vargas Foundation reported automation in several of their library functions. The Library of the Institute of Energy and Nuclear Research, a library almost fully automated by the end of the 1970s, reported even newer automated efforts.     

Material characterization,stratigraphy, textures,and painting techniques of the mural painting The Allegory of the Industrial Development of São Paulo by Fulvio Pennacchi

ABSTRACT

This work presents a study of samples of the mural painting The Allegory of the Industrial Development of São Paulo (Alegoria ao Desenvolvimento Industrial Paulista), made in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, by the artist Fulvio Pennacchi. Using transmitted light petrographic microscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and X-ray fluorescence, the stratigraphy, the textures, the mineralogy, and the chemical compositions of the mural were established; therefore the painting techniques, pigments, and materials applied by the artist were identified. The mural was painted with the fresco technique and variations. This technique involves the use of materials of mineral origin, both in the support and for the pigments. About the artist’s relevance, Fulvio Pennacchi is considered an important muralist of his time, being one of the pioneers in the production of frescoes in Brazil. The mural, measuring approximately 11?×?6?m, painted in 1954, was removed from where it was originally made, in consequence of a fire that affected the place. Specialized engineers transported it, and today it is stored awaiting restoration. The data presented here can support the process of restoration of the mural, as well as contribute to the improvement of protocols for the analysis of works of art, and to the historical record of mural painting techniques over time.     

An examination of the materials,techniques and restoration of Fra. Ricardo Pilar's Christ in Martyrdom in the Monastery of São Bento,Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

This paper discusses the technical examination of Christ in Martyrdom, painted in 1690 by Fra. Ricardo Pilar for the Monastery of São Bento, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The painting, which hangs in the sacristy, has recently been restored; this restoration and three previous restorations are described. The characteristic pose of Christ in the composition has been found in mediaeval German sculpture and was popular in Spanish painting in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The techniques used for Christ in Martyrdom have been compared with contemporary Spanish and Portuguese treatises and selected paintings in the collection of the National Gallery, London, to illustrate Pilar's original style. The palette and the linseed oil medium are typical of Spanish painting and are likely to have been imported from Europe.     

Displacement or complementarity? Assessing the relationship between social media and public library usage in the U.S., South Korea,and Singapore

The relevancy of public libraries is often called into question, with some saying that library services have been or will be displaced by, among other things, new media such as social media. This study tested this displacement hypothesis with survey data collected from three nations (the U.S.: N = 879; South Korea: N = 700; and Singapore: N = 987). Ordinal regressions were used to investigate the relationship between the use of social media and nine public library services, taking into account individual demographic differences. The results show that for all three nations, social media use has significant complementary relationships with all nine library services examined. Computer and information literacy training showed the largest effect size. However, signs of displacement effects were observed in the odds ratio statistics, particularly among daily social media users and in reference services, library visits, and time spent in the library, suggesting that where displacement is concerned, these areas warrant extra attention.