a floating zine library?

floatIs it “an experimental public art project” or a floating library of artists’ books and zines? Both, apparently, and maybe more. Planned for August 2013 at Cedar Lake in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As of today it appears that the design and contents of the library are still up in the air, with this warning:

PLEASE NOTE that by submitting your materials for access on the Floating Library you acknowledge that any of these things may happen to your printed matter:
-extensive water damage
-stepped on at the bottom of a canoe
-sand between the pages
-borrowed and never returned
-returned but tattered after being enjoyed by many people.

Thanks, Emily Lloyd!

Dorny and Padgett pyramid book

padgett 1padgett 2padgett 3

 

 

 

 

In May of 2013 we purchased a copy of Petite Ode à Jean François Champollion by Ron Padgett and Bertrand Dorny. We have number 8 of 24 copies signed by the author and the artist. Each copy is somewhat different, with hand-glued collages throughout. Both the original text and the collage materials (maps, etc.) are in French. The book can be stored flat or displayed in a pyramid shape. Our particular copy comes with typed instructions from Padgett himself on how to configure the pyramid. (It isn’t difficult to configure, but those of us who find spatial relations challenging — this Curator included — will be glad to have the instructions.)

We are the second U.S. library (with Yale) and the third world-wide (with the Bibliothèque Nationale) to own a copy of this book. We look forward to sharing it with students and scholars.

a Hulk statue at the library?

hulkstatueThe Northlake Public Library in Northlake, Illinois is hoping to raise money to purchase a nine-foot statue of the Hulk to promote its collection of graphic novels and comics. The perks for donating are pretty awesome, including, for just $20: “A librarian…will dress up as a comic character and take a picture of him/herself in random places in Northlake holding up a speech bubble. You send us what you want said in the speech bubble.” I wonder if the Incredible Hulk would get along with the Credible Hulk.

Thanks, Tom Mukite and ALA Think Tank on Facebook!

Lego librarians, Oranges and Peaches

legolibrarianLego recently introduced a librarian minifigure holding a copy of Oranges and Peaches, which is a bit of an inside joke for librarians (though really, in the age of Google, are there any truly inside jokes any more?).

Oranges and Peaches (a misunderstood Origin of Species) is an imaginary book made real; full story here. (The tale almost certainly originated in the 1995 movie Party Girl; a reference to it appeared in a scholarly article the following year.)

vikinglibrarianThe description of the Lego librarian leaves something to be desired: it contains references to overdue books and shushing, not most librarians’ idea of the important part of our work. But of course, the librarian minifig has already been repurposed: Kristin Bell has made a Lego Viking librarian (something we all need in our minifig collection). I might also like to see mash-ups with the Warrior Woman or Medusa, but maybe not the Street Harassment Construction Worker.

Thanks, Joan Petit!