The Laguna Arts Museum's newest exhibit, Titi, Nunu, and Klembolo: Helena Modjeska's Fairy Tale Book, features items from the UCI Libraries' Modjeska collection.
The exhibit, which opened March 3, 2019, is attracting news attention from OC Weekly and the Laguna Beach Independent, featuring the beautiful hand-written and painted book.
The bound, 147-paged manuscript measures 7-3/4" x 1-1/8" x 10-3/4”. It is illustrated with watercolor and ink, and each story is written in both Polish and English. It tells of the adventures of the two boys, Titi and Nunu and their six-legged dog Klembolo
This is the first time the public has access to this illustrated book of fairy tales. The book was generously donated to the UCI Libraries' Special Collections and Archives by the City Museum of New York in 2017. Helena Modjeska (1840-1909) was a Shakespearean actress, artist, and storyteller born in Poland, who spent much of her later life in Orange County, in what is now known as Modjeska Canyon. Her grandson Felix Modjeski, for whom the book was originally written in 1896, donated the book to the City Museum of New York. It is now a part of the Helena Modjeska collection in UCI Special Collections and Archives’ Orange County regional history collection.
This exhibit will run until May 27, 2019.