One, among many reasons to visit and admire the art and architecture of the library atrium is a work by Fall River artist Mary Lizzie Macomber entitled, Marconi. Miss Macomber (1861-1916) was a much-celebrated artist of the American Pre-Raphaelite school whose paintings of beautiful women won international acclaim, and whose works were exhibited at the 1892 Chicago Columbian Exposition.
There are several works by Miss Macomber at the library, but one in particular is unusual and haunting. In April, 1912, the world was stunned by the sinking of the Royal Mail Steamer Titanic, bound for New York from Southampton on her maiden voyage. Thanks to Marconi’s invention of the wireless, the Cunard rescue ship Carpathia received the SOS and was able to save over 700 souls. In her painting Marconi, Mary Macomber portrays an ethereal, angel-like woman, listening over the ocean, with both hands to her ears. In the far distance at the top of the canvas, faint sparks can be seen traveling out over the water; a tribute to the life-saving invention of Gugliemo Marconi.
