Laurence Byrne, Leila Kassir (Senate House Library) & Hudda Khaireh (Thick/er Black Lines)

In collaboration with artists / publishers OOMK and Thick/er Black Lines, Senate House Library created a workshop based on a typical library induction. The idea was to use this format to invite participants to interrogate the nature of custodianship, accessibility, the library as a disciplining technology and the historical construction of the humanities as an academic discipline. The workshop was aimed at non-library card holders and those who found the idea of using an academic library daunting or unwelcoming.

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The workshop invited people who are outside the traditional academic structure into the physical space of the library, and also provided a space for them to offer a critique of the library both as a physical space and a disciplining technology (i.e. intimating building, place with many rules, esoteric / out-dated classification systems that marginalise particular histories). In addition, participants collaboratively produced a ‘scrapbook’ publication based on their experiences during the day, which was added to the library’s collection. Thus the workshop attempted to intervene in the contested space of the academic library, and leave behind a kernel of critique which can hopefully be expanded upon.

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The presentation proposes to discuss this workshop as a potential model for engaging audiences outside the traditional academic context and also how we this can be an invaluable opportunity for critiquing our own day-to-day practice as librarians. Although Senate House Library is not an art library, this workshop utilised the practices of art librarianship and self-publishing in order to collaboratively produce a pamphlet that will be added to the library’s collections.

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Laurence Byrne works at Senate House Library.

Leila Kassir is Research Librarian for British, US & Commonwealth Literature at Senate House Library, University of London. Prior to this she worked in various roles in the libraries of the London College of Communication (UAL) and the London School of Economics and Political Science. She recently wrote the opinion piece and co-wrote an article for the Art Libraries Journal special issue on Zines and Libraries in the UK.

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Hudda Khaireh is an independent researcher whose focus is on the political position of Black people globally. She is a member of the group Thick/er Black Lines (http://thickerblacklines.com/about) She is also an associate of OOMK Zine and Numbi Arts.

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