‘Sourcing the Archive: new approaches to materialising textile history’ Conference

Thanks to @KathrynHannan who alerted us to what looks like a really interesting conference! Details below.


Pasold Conference, 7-8 November 2013 & 11th January 2014

‘Sourcing the Archive: new approaches to materialising textile history’ 

Registration open.

Keynote speakers:
Professor Carolyn Steedman, University of Warwick
Dr Solveigh Goett, Textile Artist and Researcher
(January speaker tba)
Extra conference date, 11 January 2014

The 2013 Pasold Conference, jointly organised by Goldsmiths Department of History and the Goldsmiths Textile Collection will explore how tacit knowledge of material and affective relationships  can be traced through the words we think with (Lakoff & Johnson 1999, 2003) with a view to asking: how can  our engagement with textile sources extend our knowledge of the past?  What can textiles communicate that other sources cannot? Building on a range of recent events which encourage engagement with the materiality of textiles, textile archives and/or the relationship between textiles and other historical sources the Conference will seek to identify textiles’ unique contribution to the advancement of historical understanding and practices.

The Conference will include an exhibition in the Constance Howard Gallery and a display, and optional handling session, of material from the Goldsmiths’ Textile Collection, ‘an eclectic, international treasure trove of textiles’.

We are delighted to announce that the call for papers produced such an abundance of exciting proposals that we have arranged a second stage of the Conference, with support from Goldsmiths Department of Design, on January 11 2014. ‘Fashioning the Archive: new approaches to materialising textile history’ will build on the November sessions, addressing the same questions but with an emphasis – though not an exclusive focus – on dress-related papers. Details are yet to be finalised, but confirmed speakers are listed with the November programme. There will be a further accompanying exhibition and opportunity to access the Goldsmiths’ Textile Collection. Day rates are available for both stages of the Conference, but there is a January fee waiver for those registering for both November dates.

For all enquiries, please email Vivienne Richmond at: v.richmond(@gold.ac.uk).

Storify: Beyond the Text: Literary Archives in the 21st Century Symposium

The Beyond the Text Symposium at the The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library sounded brilliant and I was grateful to everyone live tweeting the papers. I have put together a selection of the tweets on Storify, adding in the titles of the papers where possible.

It can be found here

Writers and their Libraries Conference

An interesting looking history of the book and history of reading focused conference is coming up in March of 2013 through the Institute of English studies in collaboration with the University of the Andes, Colombia and the University of Lisbon. The IES at University of London is hosting the 'Writers and their Libraries' event at Senate House, focusing on the personal libraries of not just literary figures but of scientists, artists and philosophers, including figures such as: Friedrich Nietzsche, John Donne and  G.F. Watts.

The conference will explore issues of reclamation, representation and interpretation in regards to writers' reading habits, note-taking and other ways of recording and interrogating the experience of reading. Keynotes include: Keynotes include: Professor H.J. Jackson (University of Toronto) and Professor Dirk Van Hulle (University of Antwerp). [Professor Van Hulle is also the director with Mark Nixon (of the University of Reading) of the brilliant Samuel Beckett Manuscript project, which Carrie and I were lucky enough to see in action at the recent British Library Manuscripts Still Matter conference.]

For further details see the conference blog: http://writersandtheirlibraries.wordpress.com/ and the GLAM website: http://glam-archives.org.uk/

Manuscripts Still Matter: British Library Conference

A great looking upcoming event at the British Library -- Manuscripts Still Matter (Mon 30 Apr 2012, 09.00 - 18.00, Conference Centre, British Library £20).

Both Carrie and I will be there, and will be tweeting throughout (@LisaRoseStead / @CarrieRSmith) and following up with a full report on the day here on the blog. Full details below:

Manuscripts Still Matter is the second conference of the UK Literary Heritage Working Group. The highly acclaimed first conference Manuscripts Matter, held in 2006, focused on collecting modern literary archives and included discussion about the loss of British archives to overseas buyers and the perspectives of institutions, dealers and creators of archives. Now, Manuscripts Still Matter will consider the situation for archival institutions, archive creators and a broad range of users given the changing financial and political climate since.

The day will begin with discussion of the situation for literary archives since 2005 and later sessions will consider the archives sector as a whole. The programme includes a session on the use of archives by the Creative Industries, which will include the British Library’s Artist in Residence, Christopher Green, and discussion of funding of the heritage sector with the Chief Executive of the Heritage Lottery Fund, Carole Souter, and others. An in conversation session with the poet, Wendy Cope and former Poet Laureate, Sir Andrew Motion, will consider the feelings of writers and poets on using archives, and seeing their own papers archived. Finally the programme will include a series of short presentations on different literary archive collections designed to demonstrate the vibrancy of the UK archives and manuscripts sector that the Working Group wishes to champion.

Conference fee includes a buffet lunch and refreshments.

Welsh Libraries, Archives and Museums Conference 12--13th May 2011

CILIP Cymru
Welsh Libraries, Archives and Museums Conference12th -13th May 2011
Survive and Thrive The Metropole, Llandrindod, Wales

Full information and registration details can be accessed from the title link above.