He tells me of his devastated city – houses in ruin, fire and dust, and amid the tumult, thousands of books saved from the rubble and reassembled in a refuge accessible to all of Daraya’s residents. He spends hours explaining this project to save their cultural heritage, born from the ashes of a town that won’t yield.
– Delphine Minoui, The Book Collectors
THURSDAY, MAY 22ND 2025
The class visited the Beach Conversation Lab, and attended a short lecture by the lead conservator about conservation and preservation. Being able to explore and discuss the preservation/conservation of books – especially books which are kept within a public institution such as an academic library, which might have more wear and tear than private collections – was especially relevant for the class focus on the book as an object. During this tour and lecture, students learned more about the changing physicality of the book and how these objects are maintained through the labor of trained conservators.
The Beach Conservation Lab itself contained various tools and equipment for book repair such as a cast iron standing press, small book presses, a microscope, a board creaser, and an antique paper/board cutter. The tour of the conservation lab introduced students to how these tools are utilized in mending books and other library materials as well as what types of damage these library materials face, and come to be mended for.
THURSDAY, MAY 29th 2025
The class was given a lecture on the science behind paper, and the preservation practices behind caring for paper. This lecture delved more into the science behind the chemical makeup of paper, and especially the aging of paper’s cellulose fibers, as well as the history of the materials which paper has been made up across different cultures and time periods. Accompanying this lecture, students were taught different methods in how to mend rips and tears in paper using wheat starch paste. Provided with bricks, paintbrushes, glue, paste, exacto knives, bone folders, and wax – students experienced firsthand the fragility of paper, and the delicacy and skill required in mending it.
Photo Gallery
All images by Jack Liu
