One of the main funding bodies for continuing professional training for specialist librarians is the Initiative Fortbildung für wissenschaftliche Spezialbibliotheken und verwandte Einrichtungen. This autumn they are holding 2 events of particular interest to art librarians. The first is in co-operation with AKMB, for its annual autumn career development event, which will be held in Münster, 17-18 November. The theme is digital environments in art and museum libraries (Die Zukunft in Kunst- und Museumsbibliotheken: Digitale Wissensräume).
The second event builds on a very successful Germany/US artists’ books event in Leipzig in 2014. This year the focus of Bitte umblättern! Künstlerbücher im Einsatz is using artists’ books as a teaching tool to engage art and design students and it will be held 21-22 November in Hamburg at the Kunsthalle.
The ARLIS/NA study trip ‘On the Material Trail: Inside the Culture of ‘Made in Italy‘ has had to be postponed again. The trip, organized by the ARLIS/NA International Relations in co-operation with its Fashion, Textile and Costume special interest group, is now planned for spring 2017.
The ARLIS/NA award-winning Multimedia & Technology Reviews have a new co-editor. Alexandra Provo joins Gabriella Karl-Johnson and Melanie Emerson. Emilee Matthews, one of the first co-editors, has stepped down after helping to establish the reviews as a useful tool for librarians and library users.
The deadline is fast approaching to apply for a Samuel H. Kress Foundation Award for travel to the ARLIS/NA annual conference in New Orleans, 5-9 February 2017. There are a number of awards for European librarians and art information professionals to attend the annual conference and the application deadline is November 21, 2016.
On the subject of conferences, the 7th international conference of art libraries, organized by the committee of the Art Discovery Group Catalogue will be held 27-29 October in Florence. The programme looks interesting, with a combination of presentations, lightning talks, and visits.
Registration is also now open for the 5th International Summit of the Book to take place 2-3 November in Limerick, Ireland.
The Visual Resources Association (VRA) is holding an online election during the month of November for the positions of President-Elect, Vice President for Conference Program, and Secretary for next year.
And finally, ARLIS/NA welcomes a new affiliate organization to its fold. ARLIS/NA and its members have been supporting links with Latin American art libraries for years and now the art libraries network Redarte/RJ has become an affiliate. Redarte/RJ was established in 1995 and has now grown to include 34 member institutions in Rio de Janeiro and Niteroi. Its main objectives are to promote access for researchers and the general public to the excellent specialized collections of art information in the wider Rio area and to promote continuing professional development for library staff in the member institutions.
Contributor:
Erica Foden-Lenahan
Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste
and Editor, Art Libraries Journal