Special Collections and Archives

I'm in Special Collections and Archives. And, while the decision is still out, I think it still might be my favorite place.  (Although I really miss working on the reference desk.  I do, I do, I do!)  Some of the projects I'm working on are; finding a Content Management system for archives, (it looks like we'll be going with Archivists Toolkit), creating a collection development policy, (not the same as doing one for a class in library school -a lot more work), creating archive specific tutorials and digitizing photos.  We're also almost done putting together a Judaica display to celebrate the Baltimore Hebrew Institute at Towson that arrived last year. 

from the Matson (G. Eric and Edith) Photograph Collection at the Library of Congress.

There are some incredible original pieces that arrived in archives and it's nice that we can show them off.  This is my first display and I found it really enjoyable.  I feel like it's a cross between creating a finding aid, painting and research. Since the exhibit has to have some sort of organization and description it's like making a finding aid, but it also has to maintain a strong visual component that requires some creative design ability, like a painting. The design is definitely the super fun part when you have beautiful artifacts to work with. Research is the other important component when doing any culture or religious display, as not everything can be exhibited. It was a very intriguing endeavor. I hope I get to do more in the future!