Special and Digital Collections Unit

Photo of the print article in Arts Nouveaux with text French Connection

Parlez-vous français? (Do you speak French?) If not, you might want to after the Auraria Library’s Gaston Save Special Collection was featured by the French magazine Arts nouveaux, magazine de l'art nouveau, in an article giving an overview of the artist’s life entitled ”Gaston Save (1811-1901).”

“It's certainly a point of pride to have such a unique collection with global reach and interest here in Colorado,” said Matthew Mariner, digital collections manager at the Auraria Library, “the majority of our collections are absolutely unique to Auraria and are essential in aiding researchers from any background.” 

Mariner was approached by the article's author and French Government Conservator Marie Gloc after the collection gained attention from several museums and libraries, including the library Bibliothèque Municipale de Nancy in Nancy, France, which aims to put on an exhibition of Save’s work. Gloc and Mariner worked together to surface specific pieces of Save’s work to be featured in the article. 

“The 19th century French artist and historian is relatively unknown in North America, but a person of note in France,” said Mariner, “I found this to be rewarding insofar as I really enjoy unearthing things that are obscure but have value in spite of that obscurity. Plus it was just fun to work with these original, hand-drawn works of literal art!” 

The Gaston Save Collection at Auraria Library

Gaston Save art of a windmill and a lake
Gaston Save drawing of a street scene
Gaston Save self portrait
Gaston Save art drawing of a strone archway

The collection includes personal and professional correspondence, as well as original artwork, by Gaston Save. It also includes hundreds of original illustrations and paintings by Save, typically of urban scenery and city life, as well as a series of handwritten correspondence.

“Save's connections to other late 19th century French artists, as well as his contributions to modern ideas of historic preservation, are crucial in understanding turn-of-the-century notions of conservation and fine art,” said Mariner, “we own and maintain a collection of truly unique and stunning artwork and manuscripts.”

Accessing the collection

Though not all of the Gaston Save Collection is digitized, much of it is available for anyone to view online along with many more collections preserved at the Auraria Library.

See the Gaston Save Collection

Other Digital and Special Collections at Auraria Library

The Auraria Library Special and Digital Collections is a physical and digital space aiming to preserve and make available unique and rare materials, specializing in our Latinx and Asian-American communities, local activism and civic reform, and the Auraria Campus institutions.

We also collect a wide variety of resources about art, architecture, Colorado history, and other topics to support campus curricula. Researchers and students can use our resources to write theses, study a variety of topics, and teach courses 24/7 on our Digital Collection homepage.

Access All Digital Collections

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Get Help with Digital and Special Collections

headshot of Matthew Mariner

Matthew serves as the Digital Collections Manager for Auraria Library and is responsible for managing the Library's day-to-day scanning and digitization operations, as well as managing the Auraria Library Digital Collections. Matthew works with the Special Collections Librarian and other Collection Development specialists to select, digitize, promote, and preserve the rare, unique, and fragile materials in Special Collections.

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