Innovation
Butterflies, Bugs, and Maria Sibylla Merian
Once you start looking, it seems like you find examples of women who did important things in the past everywhere. Women you’ve never heard of unless you happen to be in their field of expertise—and maybe not even then. Take, for instance, naturalist and illustrator Maria Sibyella Merian (1647-1717). She was trained as a painter…
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The Strange Case of Dr. Couney
A number of years ago I read a novel titled The Hatbox Baby, by Carrie Brown. It was the story of a man who brought a premature infant to the Century of Progress (aka as the World’s Fair of 1933*) here in Chicago, where premature babies were displayed in incubators as an exhibit alongside freak…
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Let There Be Light
One thing leads to another when I write. One minute I’m focused on the topic at hand. The next thing you know, I’m scurrying down a research rabbit hole. Earlier this week I was working on an article about a very minor (but quite delightful) artist named named Maurice Busset (1879-1936) who created a portfolio…
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