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Library Perspectives The newsletter for the Friends of the Oberlin College Libraries Library Perspectives Spring 2019, Issue 60 Woodbury Susan Orlean to Deliver Papercut Gift Jantz Lecture ward-winning journalist and Abestselling author Susan Orlean will deliver the 2019 Harold Jantz Memorial Lecture on Monday, April 15 at 4:30 p.m. in the Science Center. A book signing will immediately follow the lecture. This event is sponsored in part by the Office of the President of Oberlin College and the Friends of the Oberlin College Libraries. Orlean, author of the New York Times bestseller The Orchid Thief, will discuss her new book The Library Book, published last year by Simon and Schuster, in which teven ’68 and Ann Woodbury have she reopens the unsolved mystery of the Sdonated their extensive collection of most catastrophic library fire in American books and ephemera related to papercut history. The Los Angeles Public Library’s after moving to New York, Orlean art, papercut book illustration, folk 1986 arson fire destroyed 400,000 books, published her first book Saturday papercutting, and associated materials damaged 700,000 more, and closed the Night (1990). In 1992 she became a to the Oberlin College Libraries. The library for seven years. Her investigation staff writer for The New Yorker; since donated materials will be housed in pays homage to the crucial role that then, she has contributed articles to both the Clarence Ward Art Library and libraries play in our lives, and how this many magazines including the Boston the Mary Church Terrell Main Library’s institution, a provider of much more than Globe Sunday Magazine, Vogue, Rolling Special Collections Department. just books, is needed now more than ever. Stone, Esquire, and Outside. In 1998 Steve Woodbury became interested in Born and raised in Shaker Heights, her best-selling nonfiction book The folk papercutting in the 1970s when Ohio, Orlean graduated with honors from Orchid Thief was published. She now he was introduced to Pennsylvania the University of Michigan, where she German traditional paper cutting studied literature and history. Shortly Continued on page 14 (Scherenschnitte). His interest led him to become a founding member and first president of the Guild of American Papercutters. Terrell Main Library Ceremony Highlights The collection comprises roughly 1,100 books, pop-up books, and pamphlets. Some of the books are illustrated with papercut art while others discuss paper sculpture, paper engineering, portrait silhouettes, and folk papercutting traditions (including Chinese, Japanese, Continued on page 9 Right: Audience members at the naming ceremony Story on page 6 1 From The Director discourse regarding who is deserving of the honor of a named space on a college Dear Friends, campus. Thanks to the Friends and the I am pleased to launch my new Oberlin Alumni Association of African Director’s column. Much of our success Ancestry (OA4), we were able to fully is due in part to the Friends, who endow the Mary Church Terrell Endowed continue to enrich us through your Book Fund in record time! I am also support. Thank you for your love and pleased to report that, in celebrating the excitement regarding the work of the learning, labor, leadership, and legacy Oberlin College Libraries. of Mary Church Terrell, we inspired 72 This first column will briefly new members to join the Friends as of summarize the amazing year we our press date! I am still receiving lovely enjoyed. Organizing what exactly to messages from people all over the world discuss was actually rather hard for me, who are celebrating this special moment Alexia Hudson-Ward as there are so many people and events in the history of our institution with us. Azariah Smith Root Director of Libraries that I could write about in volumes. So The libraries hosted several public know that the omission of any event or events featuring incredible scholars academic library and museum directors person does not mean that it is any less and professional luminaries including on our campus in June. Johnnetta Cole important. My column strives to hit the Meredith Evans, Director of the Jimmy ’57, who served as summit keynote proverbial “high notes” in recognition of Carter Presidential Library and Museum speaker, so electrified my library director our boundary-bending activities in 2018. and President of the Society of American colleagues that they invited her to speak Our signature event last year on Archivists (co-hosted by the Friends); at the Association of Research Libraries October 4 was the naming of the Mary the 2018 Harold Jantz Memorial Lecture directors’ meeting later in the year. The Church Terrell Main Library as a part speaker Denise Gigante, Professor partnership with AMAM continued with of President Carmen Twillie Ambar’s of English at Stanford University, the very successful Counternarratives inauguration weekend. The moving Guggenheim Fellow, and leading expert exhibition by contemporary artist ceremony captured the essence of in early American “bibliophilia;” and Alexandra Bell. Bell’s public talk drew a Oberlin while also placing us at the Friends of the Oberlin College Libraries sizable crowd, and the excitement about center of an important national annual dinner speaker Maria Balinska, her public installations on campus Editor and Co-CEO of The Conversation energized the entire community. U.S. edition and incoming Executive The libraries welcomed nine new Director of the US-UK Fulbright staffers into our fold in 2018 including Library Commission. Associate Director of Libraries Sarah Perspectives Our collaboration with the Allen Weeks, who will chair the Friends Memorial Art Museum (AMAM) was Council’s Acquisitions Committee. Kathleen Abromeit strengthened through our shared Having such a high number of new Cynthia Comer Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Library- talent join the libraries has initiated Ken Grossi Museum planning grant that culminated very healthy and productive change Alexia Hudson-Ward into a highly successful summit of within our unit. Our intradepartmental Heath Patten Alison Ricker Editors William Ruth, Copy Editor Wendy Donkin, Graphic Designer, Production Editor The newsletter of the Friends of the Oberlin College Libraries, Library Perspectives is issued two times a year. Printed from an endowed fund established by Benjamin and Emiko Custer. Summit attendees at OCLC: Hudson-Ward is 8th from left, back row; Zhu is 2nd from right, back row 2 THANK YOU to the Friends of the Libraries Council who voted to support the libraries with a matching grant during this one-day fundraising campaign on Thursday, April 25. 2018-2019 Friends Council SAVE THE DATE! Officers Gary Kornblith President collaborations continue to be fostered several highly talented staffers including Bill Bradford ’76 through the great work of task forces and the retirements of Assistant Director and Vice President working groups, comprised of staff at all Head of Public Services Allison Gallaher Eric Carpenter levels. Each of the branches participated and Head of Collections and Acquisitions Secretary in various activities and programs Jessica Grim means that a significant throughout the year that highlighted portion of knowledge departs with them. Members their incredible collections. Oberlin’s Academic and Administrative Stephanie Davis-Kahl ’94 Libraries staffers are repeatedly Review Process (necessary for the long Robert Follet ’64, tapped for leadership roles in a term sustainability of our beloved Chair, Nominating Committee multitude of organizations, serving institution) has caused nervousness Jennifer Graham ’12 as speakers at conferences and among some members of our campus Tom Lopez ’89 symposia, authoring books and community. Pablo Mitchell In spite of challenging times, the articles, acknowledged for their Michael J. Moore expertise, and celebrated with awards libraries are committed to providing Ann Sherif and recognitions. I was honored to critical educational support and social Robert Taylor infrastructure for Oberlin. Our 2019 represent the college on a life-altering Chair, Membership Committee trip to Ghana with a delegation of programmatic agenda and organizational Steve Volk college and conservatory faculty to outlook are very positive. The newly Wendy Wasman ’85 honor the life of legendary alumna, formed Libraries Leadership Team, Sandra Zagarell the late Shirley Graham Du Bois ’34, composed of my direct reports and Chair, Programming Committee MA ’35. I was also invited to attend the me, is outlining unit-level strategic Sixth North America-China Libraries priorities. The spring semester brings Summit hosted by OCLC in Dublin, an outstanding lineup of events. We are Ex-Officio and Ohio. East Asian Studies Librarian initiating plans for the 2020 centennial of Appointed Members Runxiao Zhu served as an interpreter women’s suffrage and our participation Gillian Johns for the event. Growth in the libraries’ in an institution-wide symposium Chair, General Faculty international scope appears to be on to honor Shirley Graham Du Bois. Library Committee the horizon. Consequently, we became I cannot emphasize enough what Alison Ricker a new institutional member in the your commitment to the libraries Chair, Library Research International Federation of Library means to the staff and me. By providing Award Committee Associations and Institutions (IFLA) important financial resources, the Ken Grossi and look forward to more partnership Friends further enable our ability to Chair, Scholarship Committee engagements with libraries
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