student paintings, tattoo artists, and scientists: the rutgers university art library exhibition...
TRANSCRIPT
STUDENT PAINTINGS, TATTOO ARTISTS, AND SCIENTISTS: THE RUTGERS UNIVERSITY ART LIBRARY EXHIBITION SPACES
MEGAN LOTTS, ART LIBRARIAN, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES
EXHIBITION SPACES IN ACADEMIC LIBRARIES
• Permanent funded exhibition spaces & galleries (ex. Special Collections/University
archives).
• Teaching exhibition spaces.
• Pop up exhibitions.
• Digital Exhibitions
@MCLotts
WHY WAS THIS SPACE CREATED
• I was looking to find ways to further connect with the departments to whom I liaise (Art
History, Digital Filmmaking, Landscape Architecture, and Mason Gross Visual Artists)
• Elevate the importance of the scholarly work being created in the Arts on the Rutgers
campuses.
• Provide an opportunity for artist to exhibit their work.
• Provide the Art Library intern an opportunity to curate an exhibition.
@MCLotts
EXHIBITION SPACES
• The Art Library has two wall hanging track systems. Both walls are 8 feet tall from ceiling
to floor. The longer wall, from track system to shelves is 63 inches, and 26 feet end to
end. The shorter wall is 13 feet end to end. Sculptures, Installations, and performances
will be considered as long as the art work does not damage the Art Library walls/spaces,
or create a fire hazard.
@MCLotts
WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE SPACES
• 38 exhibits
• Little to no fiscal cost, other than time.
• Built closer connections with MGVA, LA, and Arts communities on the RU campuses
• Partnerships with multiple departments on campus including: Brigham Young University Humanities
Center’s Archipelagoes, Center for Women in the Arts & Humanities, Hammarskjold Middle School in East Brunswick, NJ,
Institute for Research on Women, Jersey Collective Mason Gross Visual Artists, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Research
Collaboratory for Structural Bioinformatics, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of New Jersey, Rutgers Brodsky Center, Rutgers
faculty & staff artists, Rutgers Center for Cultural Analysis, Rutgers Poetry club, School of Arts and Sciences Honors Program,
Rutgers Theater Department, and The Centers for the Global Advancement and International Affairs at Rutgers
• http://libguides.rutgers.edu/eventsandexhibits
@MCLotts
WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE SPACES
• Provide an opportunity for Rutgers students, faculty, and staff to exhibit their work.
• Many exhibitors have learned more about installing an exhibit from creation to
consumption, including installation, marketing, and reception planning.
• Provides an opportunity for individuals to view artworks in person as opposed to
studying an image in a book.
@MCLotts
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE- JENNY BURKHALTER
• One of the first graduate student exhibits.
• Initial solid connection to Landscape Architecture (LA) students.
• Got the LA students, faculty, & staff into the Art Library which is a 30 min walk away.
• Met many of the LA faculty for the first time.
@MCLotts
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE- JENNY BURKHALTER
@MCLotts
ART OF THE TATTOO
• 2 undergraduate students co-curated exhibition.
• Exhibit in the Art Library cases & on one wall.
• Crowd sourced collection of tattoos from RUL community.
• Used in house printing services.
• Cookies & bottle water donated for reception.
• Honorarium to owner of Inksanity/speaker at reception.
@MCLotts
ART OF THE TATTOO
@MCLotts
PROTEIN DATABANK
• Wonderful example of cross-disciplinary collaboration between Arts & Sciences.
• Provided a making space in which one could “make a protein”.
• Brought 40 scientists to the Art Library who were not aware that our library existed,
Including the chair of the Department who has interests in future collaborations.
• Provided an opportunity for the Chemistry & Physics librarian and myself to tour the
RCSB (research center for Structural Bioinformatics).
@MCLotts
PROTEIN DATABANK
@MCLotts
MARKING TIME- PRISON ARTS
• Collaboration with the Institute for Research on Women.
• Included 5 galleries, 2 on the Rutgers campuses, and 3 galleries located in downtown
New Brunswick, NJ.
• Art Library hosted artist talks in conjunction with this exhibition and conference.
• Interactive photo opportunity for viewers to engage with the work.
• This exhibit helped create stronger ties with multiple Artists communities located in
New Brunswick, NJ.
@MCLotts
MARKING TIME- PRISON ARTS
@MCLotts
JERSEY COLLECTIVE
• Jersey Collective was started by Kerri Sullivan, former Art Library graduate intern, and
graduate of Rutgers SCI.
• Exhibit of printed images of digital photography taken throughout the state of NJ.
• Exhibit highlighted the Jersey Collective, as well as created a conversation about digital
born images and materials.
@MCLotts
JERSEY COLLECTIVE
@MCLotts
AMEE J. POLLACK & LAURIE SPITZ
• An exhibit by MGVA Advisor, and Book Artist.
• Books were borrowed from Rutgers University Libraries Special Collections New Jersey
Book Arts collection to be displayed in the cases.
• Reception brought students from MGVA over to the Art Library to view the exhibit as
well as learn more about the collections, and meeting their library liaison.
@MCLotts
AMEE J. POLLACK & LAURIE SPITZ
@MCLotts
COMIC INK: THE ART OF THE GRAPHIC NOVEL
• Exhibit created by the Art Library graduate student intern, Cynthia Robbins.
• Included a create and submit your own comic contest.
• Highlighted materials found in the RUL collections, as well as scholarly articles found in
the RUL databases.
@MCLotts
COMIC INK: THE ART OF THE GRAPHIC NOVEL
@MCLotts
THE BOOK: DIGITAL, EDIBLE, AND AS ART
• Byrne seminar taught in the Art Library.
• 2 pop up exhibits
• Week long exhibit of student books created for the course
• 2 hour pop-up exhibit of edible books
@MCLotts
THE BOOK: DIGITAL, EDIBLE, AND AS ART
@MCLotts
THE BOOK: DIGITAL, EDIBLE, AND AS ART
@MCLotts
FIDALIS BUEHLER AND JUANA VALDES
• Collaboration with Rutgers Center for Cultural analysis (CCA).
• Exhibit was fully funded, and up for a semester.
• The Art Library hosted a day long symposium including talks by the artists.
• Graduate student from Art History commented, “Valdes work is quite charming, and it’s
nice to see the Art Library host an installation for a change.”
@MCLotts
FIDALIS BUEHLER AND JUANA VALDES
@MCLotts
IN SEARCH OF A PUNCHLINE
• Part of an MGVA collaborative exhibit featuring multiple galleries on the Rutgers
CAC/Douglass campuses. The Art Library hosted 5 artists.
• Work on the walls, in the cases, and an installation in the reference collection, as well as a
looping video with headphones & monitor.
• The exhibit was visited by multiple courses from MGVA including a talk with the artists.
@MCLotts
IN SEARCH OF A PUNCHLINE
@MCLotts
ASSESSMENT
• Surveys at events.
• Stories and interactions from exhibitions, events, and receptions.
• Monitoring the RUL and other Rutgers social media pages for comments and likes.
• Publicity in local media sources.
HOW CAN YOU MAKE IT HAPPEN
• You don’t need a lot of money.
• Cross-disciplinary collaboration is good. Partnerships can help share the fiscal and labor
costs. As well as, help with promotion and attendance to events.
• Marketing & Outreach.
• Create a proposal process & challenge process.
• I have an Art Library intern or Undergraduate reference assistant who help with planning
and coordinating exhibitions & events.
@MCLotts
CONCLUSION
• Exhibition spaces can be a great way to connect with individuals and create community
within ones library.
• Exhibition spaces can highlight the materials found in local library collections.
• Exhibition spaces provided artists an opportunity to share their work & learn more
about the exhibition process.
• Exhibition spaces can be a hands on way of educating patrons about the Arts.
@MCLotts
READ THE PAPER
• Lotts, Megan. “Building bridges, creating partnerships, and elevating the Arts.” College &
Research Libraries News 77, no. 5 (May 2016): 226-230.
@MCLotts
QUESTIONS
@MCLotts
Megan Lotts, MFA, M.L.I.S
Art Librarian
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
(848)932-7189
www.meganlotts.com
link to work in RUcore
http://soar.libraries.rutgers.edu/bib/Megan_Lotts/
like the Rutgers Art Library facebook page
www.facebook.com/rutgersartlibrary