We Got Books
Another project that received a jump start during the pandemic and that was completed in 2022 was organizing the Library. Dina Gewing and Andrea Segall spent many hours sorting, cataloguing and arranging the Studio’s collection of books and ceramic magazines. For many years the books were tucked away in the dusty and inaccessible areas of the Studio and were only used by the handful of people that happen to know they existed. Five years ago, the campaign began to find a permanent and more suitable home for the varied and diverse collection of books. Dina and Andrea asked for shelving and an accessible place on the first floor that the books and magazines could call home. The kitchen/staff break room was offered and shelving units were purchased.
Once again, the downtime created by the Pandemic helped moved this project along while the Studio was closed. Staff brought all the books and magazines downstairs and assembled the shelves. Antonia painstakingly went through and organized the magazines removing duplicates and placing the periodicals in the chronologically labeled library boxes. Dina and Andrea brought their respective expertise to the table to plan and map out the library. Dina, using her extensive ceramics experience, culled through the collection identifying the specific category each book or resource should be assigned: history, instructional, western, contemporary, design or glazing. While Andrea brought her years of experience as a librarian to create a methodology for organizing and labeling the collection. It was a wonderful collaboration of ceramicist/art historian meets librarian.
Over the course of three to four months this summer Dina and Andrea met every Friday afternoon to sort, organize and catalogue the books. It did not take long for them to become lost in the bibliotique world and now, they frequently catch themselves trying to attach colorful stickers to random books or volunteering to organize personal libraries all around town. Instead of relying on the Dewey decimal system that would place these books in the 738 section of any library, they devised a user-friendly color-coded system, making self-maintenance and reshelving a breeze. Each week they spent hours sorting the eclectic collection into thirteen (13) different categories including but not limited to books on anatomy, surface art, sculpture, and glazing. This dynamic duo also checked to make sure the information in the books was safe (i.e. did not include glaze recipes containing lead) and current, but if dated, retained the resource if historically valuable to the overall collection. They not only branded the books with the “TPS” mark but when necessary, books were repaired so that they could continue to be a resource for students and members.
Dina and Andrea said this was a fun project and based on the amazing final product it was not only a labor of love but also clearly labor intensive. We have and will certainly benefit from their personal sacrifice of their Friday afternoons during the summer of 2022. We now have a well-organized library full of beautiful, creative and inspirational resources to enhance our personal pottery journeys. Although it is not a lending library, feel free to check out the books while in the studio. Who knows you may find your muse among the carefully catalogued books. When you do “check” out a book, please be sure to put it back in its place and honor the gift Dina and Andrea gave us by using and enjoying this wonderful resource housed in the kitchen/staff break room/library.
Members and Students can sit in the kitchen and browse the library every day after 3:00PM.
