Today we didn’t go into the city but rather met with Candace Reilly who is head of Special Collections at the United Methodist Archives on the Drew University campus. While we were there we learned about the different kinds of material that the archives stores ranging from rare books and bound/unbound manuscripts to Nazi objects and everything in between (such as the Black witchcraft collection, Chesler collection of Graphic novels and satire as well as the close to 7,000 Playboy magazines housed in the closed stacks). We also had the rare opportunity to see the art vault – which I had not been in since DSEM freshman year – as well as see the first floor of the Methodist archives. We learned about the creation of the art vault in the early 2000s and the care involved in maintaining the vault and specific pieces. The vault itself is a little underwhelming, as there isn’t a lot of art stored there but it does have a very interesting history. The majority of the art was spread throughout the campus and then thrown into an attic (pretty haphazardly) for storage. As a result of this mistreatment much of the artwork is in pretty bad condition. Unfortunately, the process of restoration is very expensive and is way too much for these paintings and prints to be restored. I also did not know that we have the work of the founder of the art semester in the vault – nor did I know how important and prominent of a figure she was.
We also learned about the process of acquisition for artworks and other objects within the archives. It was great to meet with such a knowledgeable individual, one who knows the collections inside and out. Although I work at the archives and am there a lot, it was a great experience and opportunity to talk more closely with Candace – who was a Drew student herself. It was also interesting to hear about how emergencies are handled. Candace explained that over the summer the air conditioner in the closed stacks broke and as a result, water leaked throughout the building. She also explained that the way to fix this is to freeze the paper materials so that the moisture is expunged – this is something that I did not know. I wish more people on campus knew the kinds of materials and events that the archives hold. They try extremely hard to provide relevant materials for students, including a number of interesting primary sources in a range of languages. In fact, Candace will often buy materials with specific classes in mind. In addition, students can stop by wherever they want to see materials – it is a great opportunity and recourse that should be taken advantage of.
