As promised in the last post, a shoot featuring a motorcycle-riding librarian! We had a great time doing this profile for the cover of the Library Journal, which recently honored LA County Library Director Skye Patrick as their 2019 Librarian of the Year. We met up with Skye and her executive team at the Manhattan Beach and West Hollywood Public Libraries, just two of the counties 87 branches. Both have really cool and modern architectural elements like floor-to-ceiling windows and large art installations that made them great shooting locations. Skye – who besides being a super cool librarian is a fellow Univ. of Pittsburgh alum – was a great subject throughout and made the process feel like a collaboration. Both her back story and what she has done for the LA library system in only two and a half years are impressive and worth the read, which you can check out here. One thing I learned on the shoot that the article doesn’t mention – perhaps because it doesn’t rise to the level of high brow concepts like expanding inclusivity and bringing the library into the wireless digital age – was that one of her first acts upon starting the job was to allow people to bring in coffee. Genius! So next time you’re in the mood to read at the coffee shop maybe grab it to go and head over to your local branch. It’ll be much quieter.
