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GLOBAL BOOK LAB

Global Book Lab (Spring 2023)

Professor Anna Klosowska (French), Rachel Makarowski (Libraries), and Laura Stewart (Richard and Carole Cocks Art Museum)

The lab offers hands-on encounters with rare books and artworks in Miami’s Special Collections and the Richard and Carole Cocks Art Museum.  Guided by a team of experts, student lab members will explore, curate, display, and write about ancient manuscripts and other rare artifacts in the university collection.

Supervised by Professor Anna Klosowska, Special Collections Librarian Rachel Makarowski, and Richard and Carole Cocks Art Museum Collections Manager Laura Stewart, the Lab will be a one-credit sprint course in Spring 2023.  

Students in the lab will:

  • Explore ancient books and rare historical artifacts in Miami's rich Native, Ethiopian, and European collections.
  • Experiment with techniques used in ancient manuscripts and artifacts through hands-on work with gold leaf, historic pigments, stucco, clay tablets, and more
  • Research ancient books and their makers. Critique imperial and colonial legacies of museum collections. Shape new exhibits and outreach strategies. Contribute to blogs and catalogs.
  • Contribute to a collaborative lab project such as launching a social media campaign on rare books; designing a new course; curating a library exhibit; or making a manuscript or  material object inspired by the collection.
  • Develop research and public outreach skills helpful in graduate school applications and careers in areas such as law, libraries, education, and arts management.

Courses (spring 2023):

  • FRE 430/530 (Anna Klosowska)
  • Students from other classes are welcome to enroll in the Lab.

Lab (spring 2023) 

  • HUM 320, M or W 4:25-6:15, March 6-May 5, 2023. Interested students are strongly encouraged to register or write expressing interest to the Humanities Center.