DOC BULLETIN

Volume 24 no. 2

Spring | Printemps 2014

Editorial CommittEE / Comité dE rédaCtion :

Pamela Caussy, Adèle Flannery (Layout / Mise en page), Jessica Hébert, Rhiannon Herbert

ExECutivE CommittEE / Comité ExéCutif 2014:

President / Président : Pierre B. Landry � Secretary / Secrétaire : Corina MacDonald �

Treasurer / Trésorier : Felicity Tayler ��Membership Secretary / Responsable des membres

: Philip Dombowsky �� Professional Development Award / Bourse de perfectionnement

professionnel : Patricia Black - Gisèle Guay - Danielle Léger ��Canadian Representative /

Représentante ARLIS/Canada : Jennifer Garland

Biannual / Semi-annuel ISSN 11860-6641

www.arlismoq.ca

©ARLIS/NA MOQ

2

mot du PréSidEnt

PrESidEnt’S mESSagE

3

Nous avons à notre portée des richesses extraordinaires. Voyez

la collection de livres anciens de la Jewish Public Library, décrite

par Daniela Ansovini dans son article. Il n’y a pas que la diversité

culturelle à noter ici, mais la résilience de l’être humain dont le

savoir – sous forme de livres – se transmet au fil des siècles, malgré

les grands conflits et grâce au renouvellement des technologies

mises au service de la pensée. Or le livre peut être bien plus qu’un

contenant servant à consigner la pensée d’un auteur. Il est objet

de découverte et de plaisir, voire lieu de création. Une véritable

forme de création artistique affirmait l’auteur et bibliothécaire

Clive Phillpot lors d’une communication chez Artexte, ce dont

nous parle Jessica Hébert. Et puisque nous y sommes, pourquoi ne

pas poursuivre la réflexion sur « la chose imprimée » avec Adèle

Flannery et Gisèle Guay?

Alors que nos institutions nationales traversent une période

difficile – voir mon compte-rendu du congrès d’ARLIS/NA à

Washington –, Jessica Stewart nous

rappelle la pertinence d’une bibliothèque

comme celle du Musée des beaux-

arts du Canada et l’importance de son

personnel de référence. Elle souligne le

rôle capital que jouent les professionnels

d’expérience dans la transmission de

leur savoir à une nouvelle génération de

bibliothécaires. Alors que nous invitons

des personnalités comme Clive Phillpot

pour nou-s transmettre la flamme de leur

génie, faudra-t-il continuer d’accepter

que nos gouvernements mettent à la

retraite – ou à la porte – du personnel de grande expérience sans

aucun souci de préparer la relève?

Innovation et leadership… deux mots souvent prononcés au

congrès de Washington. Pour connaitre la saveur que peuvent

prendre l’innovation et le leadership dans le contexte d’une

bibliothèque académique, je vous recommande l’article de Rebecca

Young au sujet de l’Art + Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon. Selon

mon expérience, innovation et leadership se déclinent toujours

avec collaboration. D’où l’importance de prendre contact et de

maintenir ce contact – voir à cet effet le compte-rendu de John

Richan sur les rencontres de l’ACA et de l’AMIA à McGill. N’est-ce

pas, aussi, la raison d’être d’ARLIS/NA MOQ?

J’aimerais féliciter le comité de rédaction, Pamela Caussy, Adèle

Flannery, Jessica Hébert et Rhiannon Herbert, pour cet excellent

numéro de MOQDOC. Bonne lecture à tous!

Pierre B. Landry

Directeur général, Action patrimoine

Président, ARLIS/NA MOQ

We have amazing treasures close at hand. Consider the Antiquarian

Book Collection of the Jewish Public Library, as described by

Daniela Ansovini in her article. It’s striking not only as a sign of

cultural diversity, but as an example of the resilience of human

beings and of our ability to transmit knowledge – in the form of

books – through centuries and wars, thanks to the continuous

renewal of technologies designed to communicate our thoughts

and ideas. Yet books are much more than containers for an

author’s text. Books are also objects meant to be discovered and

enjoyed, books may even be artworks. A form of artistic creation to

recognize and appreciate, said renowned author and librarian Clive

Phillpot in his address at Artexte, reviewed here by Jessica Hébert.

And, for further thinking about the printed object, Adèle Flannery

and Gisèle Guay’s piece is well worth reading.

Our national institutions are going through rough times – see my

review of the ARLIS/NA Washington Conference – so it’s good to

have Jessica Steward reminding us of

the relevance of the National Gallery

of Canada Library, and telling us about

the importance of the reference staff.

She underscores the essential role

played by experienced professionals

in the transfer of knowledge to a new

generation of librarians. On one hand

we invite prominent librarians such as

Clive Phillpot to instill their passion

and brilliant thinking among us. And

yet we remain powerless when our own

governments push to retirement or even

lay off experienced staff without a thought to the loss of knowledge

and service...

Innovation and leadership – I heard these two words many times

at the Washington Conference. Read Rebecca Young’s piece on the

Art + Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon to find out what shape take

innovation and leadership in a university library! In my experience

these two words always call for a third: cooperation. And the only

way to do it is to get together and discuss ideas. John Richan tells

us this is precisely what the McGill School of Information Studies

did when they organized the symposiums of the ACA and AMIA.

Isn’t it also the very purpose of our own ARLIS/NA MOQ Chapter?

I would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate

our Editorial Committee – Pamela Caussy, Adèle Flannery, Jessica

Hébert and Rhiannon Herbert – for this new and excellent issue of

MOQDOC. I hope you enjoy it!

Pierre B. Landry

Directeur général, Action patrimoine

President, ARLIS/NA MOQ

arliS/na moQ fall 2013 mEEting in montréalPamela Caussy, MLIS IISchool of Information Studies, McGill University

The ARLIS/NA MOQ chapter held their Fall meeting in Montreal on

Friday November 8th, 2013. The McGill University Libraries hosted

the business meeting in the Canadian Architecture Centre, situated

within the McGill Redpath Library building. It was a fitting location

that reflected the subtle theme of the day, which was to celebrate

the works of the acclaimed architect Percy Nobbs. At the turn of

the twentieth century, Nobbs had designed several McGill Campus

buildings, including the Redpath Library, the McCord Museum and

the Osler Library. During the days’ events, meeting attendees had

the pleasure of visiting all three heritage sites. The meeting was

chaired by then chapter President, Jennifer Garland. Twenty-six

members were in attendance representing all three chapter regions;

Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec.

The President Report announced the creation of a special project

in which current outreach practices and marketing materials will

be reviewed in order to make recommendations for improving

membership recruitment. The ARLIS/NA MOQ chapter has the

honour to be the first in conducting this kind of study, and its

proceedings will serve as a pilot project for other ARLIS/NA chapters.

The Membership Secretary Report was read by Alexandra Gregory,

outlining several options to simplify and improve the membership

sing-up process. One of the options discussed included creating a

PayPal account where annual memberships may be renewed online,

as well as allowing for payments to be received prior to the bi-annual

chapter meetings.

During the Professional Development Committee Report read

by Patricia Black, members were reminded of the importance of

applying for the three available bursaries; the Michelle Gauthier

Travel Award, the Daphne Dufresne Award, and the Marilyn Berger

Student Award. One of the advantages of becoming an ARLIS/NA MOQ

member is having the opportunity to apply for the aforementioned

funding opportunities, the benefits of which encourage ARLIS/

NA collaboration and help offset travel costs incurred through

conferences and meetings.

Once the business meeting was adjourned, the group strolled down

to the McCord Museum where they had the pleasure of attending

presentations by Conservation Technician Mr. Denis Plourde, and

Archives and Documentation Technician Ms. Josianne Venne. Mr.

Plourde explained how the effects of corrosive iron mixed with ink

put valuable historical works at risk. He provided some examples of

damage where the ink marks had evidently eaten through the paper.

In the Archives and Documentation Centre, Ms. Venne provided a

rich sampling of treasures from the archives, including Louis Riel’s

last letter written before being sentenced to death.

Following a delicious lunch at the McCord Café Bistro, the group

walked back to McGill campus to attend to the last planned activity

of the day. This took place at the Osler Library of the History of

Medecine, where Sir William Osler’s personal collection of medical

rare books is kept in an elegant space designed by Percy Nobbs in 1925.

The library has been preserved in its original splendour, transporting

one back in time with stained glass windows and oak paneling. Here,

Liaison Librarian Ms. Anna Dysert shared some of the gems of Osler’s

collection, including an impressive and beautifully illustrated 13th

century manuscript of al-Ghafiqi ,and the mezzotint-printed book

Exposition Anatomique de la Structure du Corps Humain by Jacques Fabien

Gautier d’Agoty (1759).

4

This past February, I attended a special presentation at Artexte

given by librarian, writer and curator, Clive Phillpot. During the

presentation he discussed his career, in particular his time as director

of the library at the Museum of Modern art (MoMA) where he began

building their artists’ book collection in the late 1970’s. Throughout

his career, he has worked closely with artists’ books, and is an

advocate for their relevance and importance as an art form. Phillpot

seeks to better establish the place of artists’ books in museums and

art libraries and in promoting their access to a wider audience.

The presentation provided a retrospective of artists’ books

published from the 1960’s to present, featuring works of particular

importance or relevance to Phillpot. Included was the ground-

breaking work by Edward Ruscha, Twentysix Gasoline Stations (1963),

as well as the Daily Mirror Book by Dieter Roth (1961). The talk also

featured works by Ray Johnson, including a collaboration with

Phillpot entitled Ray Johnson on Flop Art: Fragments from Conversations

with Ray Johnson 1988-1994, (2008).

When discussing or classifying artists’ books, it’s easy to blur the

lines between literary work and artwork, art documentation and art

form. Phillpot’s definition of artists’ books is unambiguous, and

he makes clear distinctions between related genres such as ‘livre

d’artiste’ and book objects. He describes artists’ books as artworks

expressed in the medium of the book, where the book format is

intrinsic to the artistic idea expressed. Therefore, the artwork is not

merely being represented in a book; the artwork is the book itself.

(see Phillpot, 1977; Phillpot, 1975; Phillpot & Lauf, 1998).

The books that Phillpot presented (and which he has been involved

with throughout his career) are typically inexpensive works, produced

in large print runs, making them accessible to the everyday audience.

Their production is often similar to the paperback format, and these

works break down the elite barrior of the precious art object, while

still allowing the viewer to experience the artwork firsthand.

Towards the end of the presentation, there was a brief discussion

with the audience on the presence of artists’ books in the library,

during which Phillpot stated that these works should not be

treated as “precious bibliographic trophies”. This statement

concisely portrays Phillpot’s views that these works, in order to

be appreciated, should be experienced and shared. Libraries are

inevitably faced with the challenge of mediating preservation and

access, as many artists’ books have become rare and highly valuable

items. Yet it is important to maintain access as much as possible, as

they are a naturally interactive art form. Their materiality allows the

books to be experienced as a one-on-one encounter and exchange

between an individual and the artwork.

As someone at the beginning of their career as a librarian, I found

Clive Phillpot’s presentation to be both informative and inspiring.

Phillpot demonstrates how librarians can engage with the art

world and artist community to build a rich and diverse collection by

recognizing the value the artists’ book medium. Many of the ideas

discussed in Phillpot’s presentation are illustrated in greater detail

throughout his writings, and many of these influential texts

can be found in his most recent publication, Booktrek (2013), a

collection of essays on artists’ books from the 1970’s to the

present.

rEfErEnCESPhillpot, C. (1977). Artists’ books and book art. Art Library Manual: A Guide to Resources & Practice. P. Pacey (Ed.). London & New York : Bowker, p. 355-363. Reprinted in Phillpot, C. (2013). Booktrek: Selected essays on artists’ books from 1972 to present. Bovier, L. (Ed.) New York: JRP|Ringier.

Phillpot C., Lauf, C. (1998). Books by artists and books as art. Artist/Author contemporary artists books. New York: distributed by Art publishers & American Federation of Arts, p. 30-55. Reprinted in Phillpot, C. (2013). Booktrek: Selected essays on artists’ books from 1972 to present. Bovier, L. (Ed.) New York: JRP|Ringier.

Phillpot C. (1975). Book art: Object and image. Artists’ Bookworks. London: British Council. Reprinted in Phillpot, C. (2013). Booktrek: Selected essays on artists’ books from 1972 to present. Bovier, L. (Ed.) New York: JRP|Ringier.

Jessica Hébert, MLIS IISchool of Information Studies, McGill University

an artiStS’ Book rEtroSPECtivE with ClivE PhillPot

5

Oubliez les froids d’un printemps tardif et maussade… après les pluies

diluviennes du 31 avril et du 1er mai, la ville de Washington accueillait les

délégués canadiens avec un soleil splendide, une chaleur comparable à

nos étés et des fleurs à profusion! Sans compter les richesses historiques

et artistiques disponibles à deux pas du Grand Hyatt où avait lieu notre

congrès!

Table ronde des représenTanTs des secTions régionales

Vendredi midi, le 2 mai, Sarah Sherman animait autour d’un déjeuner/

sandwich la rencontre des présidents des sections régionales d’ARLIS/NA.

Chaque représentant présentait à tour de rôle les succès rencontrés au cours

de l’année. Remettant en question la pertinence des visites informelles

organisées à l’occasion des réunions biannuelles, certaines section ont

plutôt invité des experts à présenter des communications plus structurées.

Plusieurs sections, dont l’Ontario, se sont montrées très créatives dans

leurs activités de levée de fonds. Les petites sections, comme la nôtre,

doivent composer avec les grandes distances qui séparent les membres et

rendent les rencontres difficiles. Plusieurs sections cherchent d’ailleurs

à modifier leur nom de manière à affirmer leur identité géographique. De

toute évidence, les listserv perdent en popularité, certaines sections leur

préférant les médias sociaux, gratuits et faciles d’accès.

En conclusion, Sarah nous a rappelé que l’un des objectifs d’ARLIS/NA

étaient de nous fournir les outils de communications pour faciliter les

contacts non seulement entres membres, mais aussi entre l’organisation

centrale et les sections régionales. Elle souhaite mettre sur pied des

rencontres en ligne aux trois mois pour les présidents des sections ainsi

qu’un listserv distinct à l’usage des exécutifs. La rencontre, à n’en pas

douter, a été une occasion exceptionnelle de prendre le pouls de la situation

de nos collègues un peu partout en Amérique.

PrESErving Canadian Cultural hEritagE

En après-midi, Jennifer Garland animait la session sur la préservation

du patrimoine culturel canadien. Ce fut, bien évidemment, l’occasion de

retrouvailles parmi les membres de MOQ  : Jennifer, bien sûr, mais aussi

Jonathan Franklin, Marie-Chantal L’Ecuyer-Coelho, Louise Guy, Alexandra

Gregory, Gisèle Guay.

En début de session, Jonathan a tenté d’adopter un ton mesuré pour

dresser le portrait des institutions nationales canadiennes sous l’égide

d’un gouvernement interventionniste qui cherche à imposer des valeurs

partisanes fondées sur l’histoire et les faits d’armes, dont la guerre de

1812, en plus d’imposer des compressions budgétaires et des coupures de

postes. Mary Kandiuk, de York University, a ensuite pris la parole pour faire

le point sur Bibliothèque et Archives Canada, dont le mandat de préserver

le patrimoine historique et culturel de notre pays se trouve mis à mal par les

compressions budgétaires et les politiques de la direction. Elle nous invite

à suivre la campagne menée par l’Association canadienne des professeures

et professeurs d’université à l’adresse www.sauvonsbiblioarchives.ca.

Vous aurez sans doute déjà appris que Guy Berthiaume, présentement PDG

de Bibliothèque et Archives Nationale du Québec, prendra la direction de

Bibliothèque et Archives Canada le 23 juin prochain.

Ce fut une session morose. À mon avis, le contexte actuel exige de chacun

de nous une vigilance accrue si nous souhaitons que les organisations

que nous représentons gardent le cap sur leurs missions respectives et

continuent à valoriser le savoir et la préservation de notre patrimoine. Je

souligne cette phrase, gravée sur l’entablement de l’édifice des National

Archives, à deux pas du lieu de notre congrès : « This building holds in trust

the records of our national life and symbolizes our faith in the permanency

of our national institutions.  » Faut-il aussi graver dans la pierre notre

vision de nos archives, de nos bibliothèques et de nos musées?

réunion d’arliS/Canada

Samedi après-midi, les participants canadiens se retrouvaient de nouveau,

cette fois à la réunion d’ARLIS/Canada. Daniel Payne nous a livré le compte

rendu des activités de l’année. La nouvelle représentante canadienne est

Sylvia Roberts, de la Simon Fraser University.

6

arliS/na, 42e CongrèS annuEl waShington, d.C., du 1er au 5 mai 2014Pierre B. Landry Président, ARLIS/NA MOQ

SeSSionS marquanteS

Il serait trop long d’exposer ici le détail des différentes sessions auxquelles

j’ai assisté. Je me contenterai donc de mentionner les plus marquantes.

Pour un Canadien, Fair Use/Fair Game: Intellectual Property and the Visual

Arts démontrait clairement l’avantage du «Fair Use», un concept qui

contrebalance la protection rigide accordée par la loi sur le droit d’auteur et

qui favorise la créativité. Dans Politics of Change: Digital Humanities, Michele

Greet, de George Mason University, a su jeter un regard neuf, au moyen

de cartes interactives du type Google Map, sur la réception et la diffusion

des artistes d’Amérique latine à Paris dans l’entre-deux-guerres. Dans

la session intitulée Reinventing the Scholarly Collection Catalogue for

the Online Age, Anne Helmreich présentait l’Online Scholarly Catalogue

Initiative (OSCI) de la Getty Foundation, un projet qui renouvelle de fond en

comble l’offre des musées sur Internet en permettant (enfin!) la diffusion

de contenus savants par des auteurs reconnus et pouvant être cités

selon les normes académiques. Les catalogues de collections présentés

comprenaient Dutch Painting of the Seventeenth Century (National Gallery

of Art), Southeast Asian Art (LACMA) et une partie de la collection Gerhard

Pulverer de la Freer and Sackler Gallery.

Est-ce le prix du succès? Faute de place suffisante dans les salles, j’ai du me

résoudre à manquer deux sessions auxquelles je m’étais inscrit. N’empêche

que dans l’ensemble, le contenu du congrès s’est avéré très stimulant.

activitéS poSt-congrèS

Les institutions nationales situées à Washington sont d’une richesse

fantastique et les participants au congrès étaient conviés à des activités

plus intéressantes les unes que les autres. Le lundi 5 mai, plusieurs

bibliothèques locales ouvraient leurs portes aux membres

d’ARLIS/NA. J’ai saisi l’occasion pour visiter la bibliothèque

de la Freer/Sackler Library où l’on nous présentait une

sélection de livres illustrés des périodes Edo et

Meiji, par les artistes Hiroshige, Hokusai et

autres.

L a b i b l i o t h é c a i r e K a t h r y n

P h i l l i p s m ’ a e n s u i t e

e n t r a i n é v e r s l e s

r a y o n s p o ur m e

7

présenter l’ensemble des collections. Avec le temps qui me restait, j’ai pu

me rendre à la Library of Congress où le personnel des diverses sections

avait préparé pour nous une sélection de trésors dignes de la caverne d’Ali

Baba.

Tout au long du congrès, les mots innovation et leadership ont été

prononcés. Pouvons-nous véritablement innover sans la connaissance de

nos collègues et de leurs réalisations? J’en doute. Grâce à des rencontres

comme celles d’ARLIS/NA, nous avons l’opportunité de voir au-delà du

quotidien, de rêver et de penser innovation… Je remercie très sincèrement

les membres d’ARLIS/NA MOQ et le Comité des Bourses de perfectionnement

professionnel pour m’avoir accordé la bourse de voyage Michelle Gauthier,

sans laquelle je n’aurais pu assister à ce formidable événement.

PhotograPhies1. Livres illustrés japonais présentés à la Freer/Sackler Library.2. Salle réservée aux congressistes d’ARLIS/NA au Jefferson Building de la Library of Congress.

This May Montreal’s Jewish Public Library (JPL) will

present an exhibit and accompanying catalogue of

its Antiquarian Book Collection. As part of a larger

project to highlight and invite the public to consult

the collection, the exhibit follows from a series of

workshops, as well as the on-going process of re-

cataloguing these 1,200 volumes. Many months

ago I was invited to help create a book of books,

to direct the design and printing of the project’s

exhibition catalogue. In doing so I have become

more familiar with this diverse collection, one

where topics range from works on anatomy, to a

treatise on torture, to numerous commentaries,

canonical works, and kabbalistic texts.

The earliest book in the collection is an

incunabulum, a 1481 printing of Josephus’

Antiquities of the Jews, which makes it easy to see

the overall project as a gentle reminder of the long

lineage of emergent technologies, which at one

stage was the printed word. As the JPL embraces

digital avenues to offer its members, the project

serves a broad vision, one that seeks to build and

diversify our literacy as we engage with a range

of media, both old and new. I see the project

as a return to the lesson of ‘the medium is the

message’, or part of it at least, and the additional

kinds of knowledge we gain from looking at context

as a whole, be it through an irreplaceable sensory

experience or one-click digital accessibility.

How the JPL came to have these books is in itself

a murky narrative. The exact provenance of much

of this collection is unknown. Some books were

purchased early in the JPL’s hundred-year history

by one of its founders, Yehuda Kaufman, on trips

back and forth to Philadelphia. Decades later, a

number of volumes were donated to the Library

by the widow of a local business owner, Hyman

Ressler, who himself was a book collector. Most

of the collection however is a somber inheritance:

after WWII, the Jewish Cultural Reconstruction

Organization attempted to identify and locate

the owners of books that had been looted by the

national socialists. Many books were reunited with

their owners but those whose owners could not be

found were stored in the Offenbach Depot. These

so-called ‘orphaned’ books were then distributed

to libraries across Europe and North America. The

way in which these texts came together shapes the

collection as a whole and puts them in a sometimes

unlikely relationships with one another.

As with any rare or antiquarian book collection,

the individual book is also acknowledged as having

an intrinsic value as material object beyond the

content it holds, providing readers with another

parallel narrative. In being immersed within the

book’s anatomy (and the visceral vocabulary

that comes with it - binding, gutters, bleeds) I

have become all the more sensitive to the book

as a structure and this physical presence. The

workshops organized around this collection also

seize on the book’s materiality, as they put them

directly in the hands of high-school students and

ask them to decipher the experience itself.

Antiquarian collections such as the JPL’s can

often seem remote, given the “weight” of

their content or the physical vulnerability that

comes with their uniqueness. However, with the

opportunity to interact with the medium itself or

to think of individual titles as part of an uneasy

whole, additional entry points invite us into the

collection. Accessibility in its most tangible, literal

sense has offered me a renewed perception of

these old and enduring books.

The exhibit and catalogue A Roomful of Dwellings:

The Antiquarian Collection of the Jewish Public Library

will launch at the Jewish Public Library the evening

of May 14th and run until June 13th. For additional

information on the collection, workshops or

exhibit please contact the Jewish Public Library’s

Head of Bibliographic Services, Eddie Paul:

eddie.paul@jplmontreal.org.

This project was generously supported by Dr. Michael Paul, the Jewish Community Foundation, the Weissman and Winant Endowment and Canadian Heritage.

a roomful of dwEllingS: thE antiQuarian CollECtion of thE JEwiSh PuBliC liBraryDaniela Ansovini, Archivist Jewish Public Library

8

The winter semester has been a busy one for archives stream students

at the McGill School of Information Studies. Continuing the positive

momentum generated at the Canadian Archives Summit held in

Toronto this past January, the McGill Chapter of the Association of

Canadian Archivists (ACA) and newly formed group, the Association

of Moving Image Archivists McGill Student Chapter (AMIA), both

hosted events at McGill. If there was one theme to be taken from the

Archives Summit, it was the need for more collaboration. With the

theme of collaboration in mind, these two associations spearheaded

these events, bringing together students, faculty and professionals

to McGill to share ideas.

The McGill ACA Chapter hosted their Annual Winter Colloquium

event on February 21st, 2014. The Colloquium saw a mix of first and

second year archives stream students, McGill faculty, as well as a

number of professional speakers. The presentation themes ranged

from post-modernist theory in current archival practice, to the more

practical experiences encountered by those working in the field.

Professional speakers were invited to Montreal to deliver their

presentations. Jeremy Heil, Digital Archivist from the Queen’s

University Archives shared his day-to-day experiences, allowing

future archivists a sneak-peak at what the job of a Digital Archivist

entails. Another professional, Patti Harper, Department Head for

Carleton University Archives and Research Collections, presented

her on-going thesis research on capturing archival narrative through

blog entries in the Canadian archival context. Finally, Gordon Burr,

Senior Archivist at the McGill University Archives, presented on the

McGill Remembers project. This project highlights McGill University’s

contribution to the First and Second World Wars.

Student presentations were delivered on a variety of topics, ranging

from experiences processing archival collections to post-modern

theory in archives. Student presenters included Samuel Sfirri, who

explored issues relating to audio preservation; Linda Pasquale, on

the archiving of ethnic records; Amber Parker, on her experiences

working with the Homestead Records at the Saskatchewan Archives

Board; Carolyne Ménard, who presented her research on the archival

profession in the postmodern era; Naomi Endicott, who looked at the

role of crowdsourcing in archives; and recent MLIS graduate Rhiannon

Herbert, who spoke about her experience with Young Canada Works

job placement (most recently with the McGill Remembers project

discussed by Dr. Burr).

AMIA held their first symposium on April 8th, which brought

together student and professional speakers to the McGill School of

Information Studies. The goal of the symposium was to give students

a forum to discuss the latest issues affecting the field of moving image

archives. The symposium featured two professionals from Montreal:

Phil Spurrell, proprietor of Le CineClub Film Society, and David

Stevenson, Conservator at the Canadian Centre for Architecture.

Both events were very well attended by the McGill community as

well as other interested observers. These events successfully built

upon the discussions that emerged at the Archives Summit and

helped foster a sense of collaboration between both groups. Bringing

students, faculty and professionals together helped to successfully

create a sense of community among McGill University archival

students. In this regard, the event was highly successful, and is

regarded as a model for future collaborative endeavours.

John Richan, MLIS IISchool of Information Studies, McGill University

thE imPortanCE of CollaBoration: lESSonS lEarnEd from thE mCgill aCa and amia ColloQuiumS

9

I recently completed the TD Internship in Art

Librarianship offered through the Library and

Archives of the National Gallery of Canada (NGC).1

This afforded me the wonderful opportunity of

working in Reader Services under Peter Trepanier

and with Annie Arseneault and Michael Saunders,

who were all incredibly helpful, supportive and

always willing to share their knowledge and

expertise.

As one of the frontline staff welcoming visitors

to the Library and introducing them to the

collection, my duties included assessing clients’

research needs, explaining the Library’s

organization, and demonstrating the effective

use of the online catalogue and electronic book

request system. We also showed users the NGC

website’s online feature, linking works in the

collection to related materials in the Library and

Archives. This proved to be especially helpful

for undergraduate students doing preliminary

research for their essays on works in the Gallery.

I assisted in the processing of monographs,

paging, and shelving, all of which helped me to

become more familiar with the collection.

Responding to the constant stream of in-person

and electronic reference questions was another

very enriching task. Usually involving a bit

of sleuthing, reference work always provided

an opportunity to learn more, not only about

the National Gallery’s history and collection,

including the abundant and diverse resources

maintained by the Library and Archives, but

also about graduate student research projects,

upcoming exhibitions and other art research

centres and cultural heritage institutions in

Canada and abroad.

While the National Gallery of Canada’s Library and

Archives is essential to the work of the Gallery’s

curatorial, conservation, research, and education

staff, it also serves a diverse clientele including

international and Canadian scholars, gallery

docents, art collectors and dealers, students,

artists, and the general public. Reference

enquiries could involve supplying definitions and

resources for art historical terms, identifying an

artist’s work by referring to his or her catalogue

raisonné, supplying auction results or providing

contact information for other institutions and

collections when the scope of the question was

outside the resources of the NGC. Visitors to

the Gallery would also often find their way to

the Library and ask for additional information

on particular works within the collection that

intrigued them.

The starting point in the search for information

was usually the reference section with its

extensive collection of artist dictionaries,

institutional directories, and art society

exhibition histories. As general reference has

moved more towards on-line resources, the

reference collection at the NGC Library is suited

to its purpose and includes materials on art

conservation practices, art education, prints, art

reproductions, the history of photography, and a

wide range of topics relating to art history, with

a special focus on items with Canadian content.

Many enquiries from the general public were

about lesser-known Canadian artists, and

often the only information available on their

careers and individual artworks comes from

unpublished materials, such as exhibition

invitations and announcements, newspaper

clippings, and printed ephemera. These items,

as well as information sheets filled out by

artists themselves or on their behalf, are kept

in documentation files housed in the NGC’s

Archives. Though some material from the

files is digitized and available through the

online catalogue, the majority of information

is accessible only to patrons who can actually

peruse the file; therefore it is often up to the

Library and Archives staff to act as short-

term research assistants for those who cannot

physically come to the library.

“to furthEr knowlEdgE, undErStanding and EnJoymEnt of art”:thE rolE of rEadEr SErviCES at thE national gallEry of Canada liBrary and arChivES

Jessica Stewart, MLISDalhousie University

10

rEfErEnCES1. The quotation used in the title of my article comes from part 1, section 5 of the Museum’s Act, S.C. 1990, c. 3: http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/PDF/M-13.4.pdf

“to furthEr knowlEdgE, undErStanding and EnJoymEnt of art”:thE rolE of rEadEr SErviCES at thE national gallEry of Canada liBrary and arChivES

Jessica Stewart, MLISDalhousie University

During my internship the Artists in Canada

database hosted by Canadian Heritage

Information Network (CHIN) was down for

maintenance, forcing us to rely on off-line

resources. Consequently, we scanned or

summarized the entries on specific artists

from Colin S. MacDonald’s A Dictionary of

Canadian Artists and referred to the printed

version of Artists in Canada: A Union List of

Artists Files, compiled by Cyndie Campbell and

Sylvie Roy, which allowed us to direct clients

to institutions that have files on the artists

they were researching. This experience clearly

illustrated the importance of maintaining

select analog materials even when electronic

versions are available.

This reaffirmed appreciation for the analog

medium informed the central task of my

internship, which was a review of the reference

collection under the direction of Peter, as

well as Jonathan Franklin, Chief, Library and

Archives. This process involved reviewing

titles for de-selection, removing superseded

or out-dated materials, looking for gaps in

the collection, determining if titles could or

should be replaced by electronic versions, and

cataloguing reassessed materials under the

guidance of Kathleen O’Reilly. Before beginning

this challenging task, I performed a literature

review of articles on best practices for weeding

reference collections and familiarized myself

with the Reference Collection Weeding Policy,

which is tailored specifically to the NGC Library,

and emphasizes the relevancy of reference

materials in relation to the overall collection.

At the behest of Peter, I also read the Library and

Archives Collection Development Policy by Jo Beglo

(1996), which, for me, was an unexpectedly rich

document describing not only the collection in

great detail, but also the history of the collection,

outlining institutional objectives, and the

fundamental role that the Library and Archives

has in the realization of the Gallery’s mandate

under the Museum’s Act (1990). There is also a

section in the Policy entitled The National Gallery

Library and Other Libraries which describes the

interconnectedness of the NGC Library and

Archives with other research centres, indicating

how these institutions take into consideration

related collections as they develop.

Very much like an ecosystem, where if one

flourishes it is to the benefit of all, and if one is

diminished, all feel the effects; cutbacks within

library and cultural heritage communities have

a wide ranging negative impact, affecting the

quality of service they are able to provide to the

public. This is especially true of the loss of the

indispensible service and institutional memory

provided by long-term staff that have developed

and know their collections inside and out. Even

with the instruction received during my MLIS

and an extensive knowledge of library catalogues

and databases, there were materials essential for

answering reference questions that I just would

not have found without the help of experienced

staff.

The training I received during my internship has

been invaluable, in part because of the example

set by the high level of service provided by the

staff. Working with the team in Reader Services,

who are the public face of the National Gallery’s

Library and Archives, highlighted the importance

of ensuring the availability of services that enable

institutions like the National Gallery of Canada

to fulfill their mandates of fostering public

engagement and understanding of national and

international cultural heritage within and beyond

their walls.

11

12

La journée du 24 janvier a débuté avec une

présentation des fondateurs du Studio Feed,

Raphaël Daudelin et Anouk Pennel. Ils aiment

les livres et ceux-ci leur sont une source

d’inspiration. La preuve, ces questions qui ont

alimenté leurs réflexions. De combien d’espace

un livre a-t-il besoin pour vivre ? Un livre qui

existe seulement dans notre tête est-il un livre

? Des pages blanches reliées ensemble forment-

elles un livre ? Les livres sont-ils faits de d’autres

livres ? Où s’arrête une bibliothèque ? Raphaël

Daudelin collectionne les livres ayant des pages

blanches, où on trouve des fantômes ou des

dédicaces. Il voit la page blanche comme une

pause, un silence, un marqueur de temps, un

repos pour les yeux. Comment ne pas être inspiré

par de tels propos ? Comment ne pas être touché

par cette vision toute personnelle et inhabituelle

de l’univers livresque ? Nous, personnel de

bibliothèque, s’est-on déjà posé de telles

questions ? Pour ma part, ce n’est certainement

pas au cours de ma MLIS…

La matinée s’est poursuivie par une table ronde

qui a tourné autour de l’éducation, de la recherche

et de la création.

Le collectif Hôtel Jolicoeur a raconté la petite

histoire qui a mené à la publication de l’ouvrage

du même nom. Cette aventure se décline sous

le mot «  auto  »  : auto-financement, auto-

publication et auto-promotion. En résumé  :

auto-touttt ! Le livre est un recueil de textes et

d’images inspirés de l’ancien hôtel du même

nom, jadis un célèbre bordel et voisin de l’actuel

Lion d’or, rue Ontario Est.

Ce projet rejoint directement les intérêts de

Catherine Métayer, une récente diplômée en

édition de la University of the Arts London.

Son mémoire porte sur How a renewed ethos of

craftsmanship is inspiring a wave of creative businesses

within independent print publishing (http://

cargocollective.com/catherinemetayercv/filter/

MA-Thesis/The-New-Craftsmen). La présence

du créateur transparaît dans la publication de

ces imprimés indépendants. «  La culture de

l’artisanat  » (cf. Richard Sennett) retrouve

ses lettres de noblesse et nourrit une nouvelle

génération de créateurs de livres et de revues.

That new design smell (http://thatnewdesignsmell.

net/all-about-page/), un tout nouveau magazine

dans le domaine du design, est publié par Michèle

Champagne. Très récent, en effet, car seul le

numéro 0 a paru à ce jour. Physiquement, il se

distingue par une plateforme web, des capsules

vidéo et… un magazine imprimé. Sa ligne

éditoriale incite au dialogue ; les conversations

sont compilées sur la plateforme web pour ensuite

être imprimées dans un magazine tangible, bref

un objet que l’on peut tenir entre les mains.

Ont également participé à cette rencontre Daniel

Canty, écrivain, commissaire et collaborateur

occasionnel avec le Studio Feed, Sarah Watson,

directrice d’Artexte et le Studio Feed.

Je déplore que la prise de parole de chaque

intervenant ait pris le dessus sur la discussion.

La raison d’être d’une table ronde est d’engager

des débats, mais faute de temps ceux-ci ont

été relégués au second plan. Pour pallier à ce

désagrément, la consultation du site web (http://

lachoseimprimee.com/) peut faire place, à sa

manière, à un autre type de discussion.

13Complémentaire au bilan de la journée de

réflexion, le site web est à la fois un journal de

bord et une carte de chasse aux trésors, faisant

de lui une œuvre difficile à résumer. On écrit

rarement sur les projets web. Mais pourquoi pas ?

Surtout lorsque le projet reflète les rapports entre

l’imprimé, le numérique et le livre… Au fait, ce

projet serait-il lui-même une chose imprimée

? Voici quatre idées pour susciter votre intérêt à

consulter cette trace numérique.

L’interface – De prime abord, l’interface est

inattendue. Elle provoque des questionnements

et se réjouit de ne pas donner toutes les réponses.

Elle attire l’attention sur elle. Ses lignes grises

mettent de l’avant ses concepteurs de manière

inhabituelle. C’est le processus qui prime,

reflétant justement ce que le projet documente.

L’expérience – Déstabilisante par moments, il

faut renoncer à vos attentes et l’expérience vous

emballera. À quand remonte la dernière fois

qu’un site web ait provoqué une telle réaction

en vous ? Sa structure rappelle celle du site web

de l’exposition Design and the Elastic Mind1, qui

a eu lieu en 2008 au MoMA. Les deux explorent

le même concept philosophique du rhizome,

développé par Gilles Deleuze et Félix Guattari.

Avec ses multiples points d’accès, on peut

facilement se perdre et être frustré. Ou alors,

on se laisse aller dans les méandres de cette

structure  ; cette «  image de la pensée  » n’est

pas linéaire, mais va dans tous les sens, s’arrête

et reprend. Pourquoi est-on encore déstabilisé

lorsque, dans une expérience numérique, le

contrôle nous revient ? Design and the Elastic Mind

proposait, aux dires d’un critique2, de créer une

barrière avec laquelle il faut lutter afin de gagner.

La conception web de La chose imprimée y fait

écho.

Le contenu – Riche et profond, on y rassemble

les points de vue d’une diversité d’étudiants,

de professeurs et de spécialistes. On y explore

différents sujets, tels que l’évolution de la

typographie, la lecture en braille, la neuroscience

en rapport avec la lecture, les techniques

d’impression et de reliure, la création d’une police

modulaire et la couleur. Cet impressionnant

projet documente les multiples facettes de la

chose imprimée.

Les livres – Tout en respectant le concept de

multiplicité dans la philosophie du rhizome, ce

projet de recherche produit des livres imprimés

d’une qualité spectaculaire. Colorimétrie, conçu

par le designer graphique Nicholas Ménard dans

la première phase du projet, est décrit comme

étant «  un mélange ludique de formes et de

couleurs générées par les mathématiques3. » Le

livre est aussi présenté sous un format d’affiches

sérigraphiées. Le tout dernier projet imprimé,

nommé Résidus visuels, est bien résumé sur le

site. «  Partant d’une réflexion approfondie sur

la tactilité et les matériaux, l’équipe de La chose

imprimée a conçu un livre sans encre qui propose

une expérience de lecture croisée entre voyants et

non-voyants4.  » Le livre a remporté la 2e place

dans la section «  Édition à tirage limité » au

concours canadien « Awards for Excellence in

Book Design in Canada. » Celui-ci prendra sa

place parmi les plus beaux livres du monde à la

foire du livre de Francfort et à celle de Leipzig en

2014.

Même si la journée de réflexion est derrière nous,

cette trace numérique mérite d’être revisitée

à maintes reprises, car elle est une réflexion

continue en soi.

la ChoSE imPriméEAdèle Flannery, Bibliothécaire et Gisèle Guay, Bibliothécaire

Bibliothèque des arts, UQAM

BiBliograPhiE1. http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2008/elasticmind/2. Moroz, Brian. “Archinect Reviews: Design and the Elastic Mind.” Accédé le 30 mai, 2014. http://www.archinect.com/features/article/75138/archinect-reviews-design-and-the-elastic-mind3. “La Chose Imprimée.” La Chose Imprimée. Accédé le 30 mai, 2014. http://lachoseimprimee.com/journal.4. Ibid.

2014

The MOQDOC editorial committee would like to extend our congratulations to the winners of the 2014 ARLIS/NA MOQ professional

development awards:

14

nSCad univErSity liBrary art + fEminiSm wikiPEdia Edit-a-thon Rebecca Young, Director of Library Services

NSCAD University

I first heard of the Art + Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon (http://

artandfeminism.tumblr.com/) event via the ARLIS-listserv, and

thought it would be terrific for the NSCAD University Library to act as

a satellite location. The Edit-a-thon (also called an “edit-sprint”) was

held on February 1, 2014, and we had about a dozen or so participants

throughout the day, including students, faculty, and some special

guests. Most of us were complete amateurs, and had to start from

scratch, with the help of Wikipedia’s very clear and concise training

modules.

The Edit-a-thon originated from the apparent gender gap inherent in

Wikipedia’s content and creation. In 2011, the Wikipedia foundation

published its first Editor’s Survey, which reported that 91% of its

contributing editors are male.1 With an editor base that is so strongly

skewed to one gender, it seems inevitable that certain topics, articles

and biographies follow suit. The idea for the event was envisioned

by Siân Evans of the ARLIS’ Women and Art Special Interest Group,

and Jacqueline Mabey of the Eyebeam Art and Technology Center in

Manhattan. Art is just one of the many subjects in Wikipedia that

under-represents the role of women, and this particular event was

created as a way to remedy this deficiency. A similar event, Ada

Lovelace Day was held at Brown University in 2013 as a way to increase

the representation of women’s contribution to science.

From the beginning, there was a lot of support from my colleagues at

NSCAD. I contacted the Director of NSCAD’s Anna Leonowens Gallery,

Eleanor King to co-host with me, and we brought Dr. Jayne Wark’s

Feminism and Postmodernism class on board. Dr. Wark created an

assignment based on the event, and her students worked in pairs

to create biographies of artists who had not yet been written about

on Wikipedia. The list included artists who all have a connection to

NSCAD or the Nova Scotia region: Susan McEachern (Photographer),

Kim Morgan (Sculpture / Installation Artist), Ursula Johnson

(Sculpture / Performance Artist), Sylvia Hamilton (Filmmaker), and

Toshiko MacAdam (Textiles). Most of the articles created have been

published and are now live on Wikipedia, although some articles still

require additional editing before being published.

The participants had a great time; it was a positive event that made

use of the Library’s print and online reference resources, and we

received a fantastic amount of attention from the local media. Library

staff members were on hand to help out, we had a very well stocked

refreshment table, and an active Facebook event page to post photos

and follow updates from other events. The Edit-a-thon allowed us

to raise issues pertaining to art, gender equality, and information

literacy. Additionally, we had a lot of discussion about the nature of

Wikipedia and how it is viewed as a frequently used but contentious

arliS/na moQProfESSional dEvEloPmEnt awardS

miChEllE gauthiEr travEl award:

Pierre B. Landry,

directeur  général d’Action patrimoine and

current president of ARLIS/NA MOQ.

daPhnE dufrESnE mEmBErShiP award:

David Sume,

librarian and active contributor to ARLIS/MOQ through

his involvement in several projects and committees.

15

nSCad univErSity liBrary art + fEminiSm wikiPEdia Edit-a-thon Rebecca Young, Director of Library Services

NSCAD University

1. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/

Editor_Survey_Report_-_April_2011.pdf

reference source. By calling attention to how articles are written and

edited for a community based source like Wikipedia, allowed students to

compare how other authoritative reference sources are produced. There

was a constructive feeling of shared effort, knowing that we were only one

of many satellite locations on that date across North America

and Europe. The other Canadian event hosts were ACAD in

Calgary, the Klondike Institute of Arts and Culture in Dawson

City, Eastern Bloc artist-run centre in Montréal, and Art

Metropole in Toronto. We will continue to participate in this

ongoing project, and continue to encourage similar activities

and events in the Library.

Le comité de rédaction MOQDOC tient à féliciter les lauréats des bourses de perfectionnement professionnel d’ARLIS/NA MOQ 2014 :

arliS/na moQBourSES dE PErfECtionnEmEnt ProfESSionnEl

2014

la BourSE dE voyagE miChEllE gauthiEr:

Pierre B. Landry,

directeur général d’Action patrimoine et actuel président

d’ARLIS/NA MOQ

la BourSE d’adhéSion daPhnE dufrESnE:

David Sume,

bibliothécaire et membre impliqué dans plusieurs projets

et comités dans le cadre d’ARLIS/NA MOQ.

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19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

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30

JU

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AUG/AOUT 1 2

3 4

5 6

7 8

9 10

11

12 13

14 15

16

17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

28 29

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31

SEPT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

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OCT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 ... 30 31

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SPECial liBrariES aSSoCiation annual ConfErEnCE

Vancouver, British Columbia

June 8 – 10, 2014

sla.org/attend/2014-annual-conference/

aSSoCiation of Canadian arChiviStS 39th annual

ConferenCe

June 26 – 28, 2014

Victoria, British Columbia,

archivists.ca/content/annual-conference

amEriCan liBrary aSSoCiation annual ConfErEnCE

& ExhiBition

June 26 – July 1, 2014

Las Vegas, Nevada

ala14.ala.org/

SoCiEty of amEriCan arChiviStS annual mEEting

Washington, DC

August 10 – 16, 2014

archivists.org/conference

ifla gEnEral ConfErEnCE and aSSEmBly

August 16 – 22, 2014

Lyon, France

conference.ifla.org/ifla80

SoCiété dES muSéES du QuéBEC, CongrèS Et ColloQuE

30 septembre au 2 octobre 2014

Sherbrooke, Québec

smq.qc.ca/publicsspec/smq/activites/congres/index.php

aSSoCiation of moving imagE arChiviStS annual

ConfErEnCE

October 8 – 11, 2014

Savannah, Georgia

amiaconference.com/

aSSoCiation for information SCiEnCE and

tEChnology 77th annual mEEting

October 31– November 4, 2014

Seattle, Washington

asis.org/asist2014/

16

2014CALenDAr of eVenTS 06-10

CALenDrIer DeS ÉVÉneMenTS 06-10