How do college students spend their time and money? What’s on their minds? See how advertisers have tried to answer those questions in University Archives‘ newest exhibit: Please Patronize Those Who Patronize Us: Advertising Student Life in The DePaulia, now on display in the John T. Richardson Library. The exhibit features advertisements that have appeared in the pages of The DePaulia, and highlights perceptions of the college experience as reflected in the ads themselves. The title was taken from a short blurb that appeared periodically in the paper, encouraging DePaul students to spend their money on the products and businesses advertised there.
Themes like sex and dating were common, and used in advertisements that attempted to sell college students everything from caffeine supplements to cigarettes. Other ads tapped into social trends or current events. Items in the exhibit illustrate the evolution from military-themed advertisements during World War II, to ads that draw on the social unrest of the 1960s. Local businesses often tailored their ads specifically to DePaul students, promoting their proximity to campus and the chance of meeting with other DePaul students. The exhibit also features historical images of DePaul students and University artifacts come see which popular DePaul personality had his face immortalized on a can of Old Style!
Where and When: See the exhibit on the 1st floor of Richardson Library; on display during Autumn Quarter 2011.
Like the exhibit and want even more DePaulia? Email us or stop by Richardson 314 to see original copies of the paper going back to the 1920’s. Watch this blog for more information about when historical issues of The DePaulia will be available online!
Can’t make the exhibit? Watch this Two-Minute Tour and see other unique resources in the Special Collections and Archives Department!