Library of Congress acquires courtroom drawing collection

    The Library of Congress has acquired 95 original courtroom drawings depicting high-profile trials from the past four decades.

    The library announced Friday in a news release that the collection represents the genre popularized in California by Howard Brodie, who encouraged the first generation of artists creating artwork for news media. It includes drawings by Aggie Kenny, Bill Robles and Elizabeth Williams.

    The collection was obtained through the generosity of Thomas V. Girardi, a founding partner of Los Angeles law firm Girardi Keese and a member of the library’s private-sector advisory board, the Madison Council. The collection will be named the Thomas V. Girardi Collection of Courtroom Illustration Drawings.

    The library says this addition makes its collection of courtroom illustrations the most comprehensive in any American institution.

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