Sender: Rare book and manuscripts <EXLIBRIS-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU>
Hope you'll drop in if you are in this neck of Penn's Woods!
The spring exhibition in Canaday Library, Intimate Devotion: The Book of
Hours in Medieval Religious Practice, will feature some of Bryn Mawr's most
gorgeous medieval manuscripts and printed books, and an extraordinary group
of novice curators. The exhibition is the work of the students in
Professor Martha Easton's undergraduate seminar last fall, "The Book of
Hours and the Art of Devotion." The exhibition will open on Thursday,
January 31st with a panel discussion featuring the student curators. The
program will begin at 5:00 pm in Carpenter 21, and will be followed by a
reception and viewing of the exhibition in the Rare Book Room of Canaday
Library.
Martha Easton, Lecturer in the History of Art, said she developed the
course so that the students could work with original objects, but also have
to think about how to present the subject to a wider public. "From the
beginning this has been their show," she said. "Collectively they came up
with the theme, decided what aspects of the Book of Hours they wanted to
highlight, and chose the objects and images they wanted to display. I have
been very impressed with the way they collaborated together in a
professional way, listening to divergent points of view but finding the
common ground between them, meeting deadlines, and commenting on each
other's work. The end result has been a cohesive and thoughtful examination
of the Book of Hours in medieval religious life."
Thirteen students were in the class, including eight from Bryn Mawr, four
from Haverford, and one from Swarthmore. The students are Bianca
Bromberger (HC), Jacob Carroll (HC), Jenny Castle (BMC), Erina Donnelly
(BMC), Brittaney Golden, (BMC), Talia Greenwald, (BMC), Kira Grennan
(SC), Lavanya Jayakar (BMC), Margaret Livingston (HC), Lindsey Merikas
(HC), Annie Morse, (BMC), Alex Solomon, (BMC), and Arianae Tsavaris,
(BMC). Working with the class has been Special Collections Librarian
Marianne Hansen, who provided expertise on the physical production of
medieval manuscripts, and also served as the exhibition coordinator.
The exhibition will be open from January 31st through May 30th. The
exhibition hours are 9:00 am 4:30 pm Monday through Friday. For
additional information contact the Special Collections Department at
610-526-6576.