#mckeldin library

[discoholicmusic]

🎂 today is the:

- 7th anniversary of Illusion

- 2nd anniversary of Discoholics Anonymous

- 1st anniversary of Remixholics Anonymous!

thought it'd be fun to look back :)

[luna-eats-books]

Library Tour

I don't know where to start this essay. My relationship to libraries goes back further than I know how to describe. I don't have a story about my first time in a library, but if I concentrate I can feel the crushed loops of carpet. Libraries are, and have always been, my favorite places on earth. It’s interesting that my feelings towards these places are mostly unchanged, feeling the same feeling of relief as I have always felt walking to the library on a Saturday morning. I have felt known and welcome at libraries, and I painted this zine in an effort to create a reciprocity. I want the libraries to feel known by me in some small way. The libraries listed here are the ones I spent most time in, I’m excited to add more to the list some day.

I remember my elementary school library in great detail. I put the dewey decimal system to use, and kept track of the sections of greatest interest to me: animals, mythology, poetry. I'm sure the librarian got along well with every child she met but I kept my eyes glued on her whenever we were in the same room, even as my teacher stood by the projector and explained how to look things up in an encyclopedia. I remember feeling like she set aside books for me. I have no idea if that actually happened or not, but it felt like everything in the library was a special treasure for me to discover, and she was the library's keeper.

She hosted a book club for 4th graders during lunch, in the quiet central courtyard of the "O" shaped school. The only door to the courtyard was nestled in the corner of the library. Extra time in the most special place, I could not believe my luck.

That was also the year I read the Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, so the idea of sitting in a shielded Eden kept me up all night before the meetings. The edition of the Secret Garden I bought from the grocery store (?) came with a key pendent on a chain. I wore it every day until one day I felt it slip off my neck into my lap. The clasp had worn through from how often I touched and adjusted it.

Books are emotional and intellectual freedom manifest, for me and for all the weird little 12 year olds across the world. For me, libraries were access to that abstract freedom, but they offered physical freedom as well.

Germantown Library was the first place I was allowed to exist without parental supervision or pressure. I'd get dropped off on a weekend morning, with the expectation I'd spend the day studying, and when my parents returned to pick me up in the afternoon I was sitting on a bench with a stack of books with me. As I got older, I got more "rebellious:" leaving the library to get lunch with friends, or go on long walks by myself, but I was careful to get back to the designated pick up spot early and wait on the bench as always.

July 2015, I walked up to McKeldin Library for a student assistant job. My freshman year of college wouldn't start for another 3 weeks, but I had submitted my application to the assistant job as soon as I graduated high school. Academic buildings line the perimeter of a green grass mall sliced with walking paths in every direction, but McKeldin sits regally at the head of the table, dwarfing the other buildings. I spent some amount of time in that library every day for four years, sometimes it was only a 20 minute powernap between classes but more often it was 4 or 6 hour shifts pacing the quiet aisles or talking to patrons. I feel so proud of contributing to a space like McKeldin. I'd obviously always loved books-- in fact I cried during the interview describing how important books have been to me-- but working at the front desk in particular exposed me to a sense of community and belongingness I had never experienced. I credit that time with my commitment to community building and collectiveness now.

The third and fourth libraries pictured above are newer to me, but no less important. Upon moving to a new state for the first time in my life, I cannot explain the relief I felt signing up for a library card (first at Chapel Hill Public Library, and two years later at the Durham County Library) and plopping into a quiet corner. I am so glad I made the decision to move to North Carolina, but I felt untethered. It was terrifying being in a place where I knew no one, I didn't recognize street signs or landmarks or even really myself. But inside a library, I knew what I valued, I knew why I made the decisions I did. Libraries have made me feel at home over and over.

Holding a book in your hands, knowing that there are innumerable books through history. Clay tablets covered in cuneiform script, stored in temples; board books with bright, round, early learner letters tucked in cubbies; imposing buildings with white columns and austere, scholarly works. They all lead me to the same feeling of awe! Standing in a space knowing you're amongst members of your community; people who care about the same things; breathe the same air; look up at the same sky. Saying to yourself "I'm home."

[tonychenphoto]

McKeldin Library College Park, Maryland, US

[celebrateasimplelife]

McKeldin Mall on the campus of University of Maryland

[timewasjustadream]

At my undergrad university (University of Maryland College Park), there is a bronze statue of our mascot, Testudo, a diamondback terrapin, that students rub for good luck during exams.

Testudo was a gift from the class of 1933. He's been outside McKeldin Library (the main campus library) since 1965. Since the 1970s, students have been rubbing his nose for luck. I think I did it once freshman year.

At least he has a good view of McKeldin Mall.

You know how you can tell where people rub bronze statues by their most polished spots? Either because people think it brings luck or because they’re being pervs or just want to pet the animal?

Well in Odense there’s a statue that’s polished all the way down the middle

And it’s the cutest reason ever. It’s because children use it as a slide

[nyupreservation]

Over the course of the week, the Preservation Department staff have been delighted to share a wide array of films, images, and writing about our current work in celebration of Preservation Week. Last, but not least, we are introducing a brand-new podcast. Hosted by our very own Ben Moskowitz, Tales from the Archives, explores archival collections and the stories behind those collections through the people who work on them.

In this inaugural episode, Ben speaks to colleague Biff McKeldin about his background and work in the Division of Libraries. They discuss Biff's audio preservation experience, and the particular resonance of the recordings held in the Flaherty Film Seminar Archives held in NYU Special Collections. As today is May Day, it is the perfect moment to celebrate the contributions of one of our longest-standing Preservation Department staff members. Kudos to Ben and Biff and a very special thanks to the Library Lab for the support of this new endeavor! Listen here: Tales From the Archives, Episode 001

[reveal-the-news]

Maryland Today | Terrapin Tech Moves to St. John Center

Maryland Today | Terrapin Tech Moves to St. John Center

Terrapin Tech, the university’s one-stop shop for IT support, technology purchases and device repair, has moved from McKeldin Library to the ground floor of the Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center (ESJ 0398). Managed by the Division of Information Technology (DIT), the UMD community will continue to support, educate and deliver on all things technology while engaging with other…

[whitepolaris]

College Tales

Institutions of higher learning are all too often also institutions of higher storytelling. Anywhere you find masses of young adults in a new neighborhood, relishing their newfound liberation from high school, you’ll find folklore on a whole new level. Traditions and lore are passed down on an accelerated schedule, handed down from Sophomore to freshmen instead of generation to generation. 

UMD’s Point of Failure

Since it was established in 1896 as an agricultural college, the University of Maryland has undergone many changes, not the least of which was a fire that destroyed most of the original main buildings in 1912. The sixteen-year-old college caught fire on the night before Thanksgiving, and by the time it was over, twelve buildings were either destroyed outright or damaged beyond repair. The student records and other college paperwork had gone up in smoke, and so had the dormitories. There’s a map of the original buildings in the quadrangle called the Acropolis, showing the only building that survived intact: Morrill Hall. The fact that this hall housed the cadavers used by its medical students added a mysterious qualify to its survival. It’s a favorite story to say it’s haunted, but that’s not the legend we’re focusing on here. 

The most abiding legend is a superstition about the map of the old buildings in the Acropolis-specifically about the Point of Failure-with lines from the destroyed buildings converging to a single focal point. The lines also appear on the quadrangle’s floor, scored into the pavement where they meet in a single point in what was then the middle of the square. They call this the Point of Failure and say that the curse of the fire is concentrated into this point. Any student who steps on the Point of Failure will not graduate. Prospective students who step on it scotch their chances of getting admitted. And more horrifically, parents who step on it will not win financial aid. 

Fortunately, all is not lost if you do tread on the Point of Failure. You can always rub the nose of the university’s mascot, Testudo the terrapin, whose 1933 bronze statue stands in front of the McKeldin Library. Testudo seems to carry all the luck needed to defuse the curse. Even when he was kidnapped by rival students from Johns Hopkins in 1947, the UMD students who managed to retrieve him and then have a party were able to avoid capture by two hundred Baltimore police officers who were called in to break up the riot. Now that’s a curse antidote of legendary proportions. 

[mikemorganphoto]

Continuing my chronological series of work completed during the pandemic: After my morning shoot on August 10th at Pimlico I hurried down to College Park, Maryland, for a formal portrait of Dr. Adriene Lim, the new Dean of Libraries at the University of Maryland. I set up on the portico of McKeldin Library, the hulking edifice of brick and columns that looms over the lush and sprawling mall in the heart of the my alma mater. For COVID safety my client wanted everything shot outdoors, and I requested the portico location for a number of reasons: in the midday sun I wanted a spot where I knew I'd have shade but wouldn't have to tie down a large overhead butterfly and fight any potential wind; I'd have access to power for my laptop and for multiple lights capable of overpowering the ambient light; and finally, I'd be able to maintain a closed set that would keep the client at ease. I pre-lit a setup that would allow us three radically different shots within a ten foot radius: the main portrait overlooking the mall (a large @chimeralighting softbox on a boom); pivoting to the right for an ambient key light portrait along the columns (with fill from a head shot through a @matthewsgrip silk flag); and finally pivoting right once more for a "studio" shot, in front of the white flag lit from behind, with my trusty Softlighter for the key. Having worked so quickly, we had time to head out to the front of the library for some masked photos with Testudo (safety first of course!). I lit this with a medium softbox on a boom, an overhead flag blocking the sunlight. We had the dean in and out in record time, and happily on to her meetings - all proof that a little preparation and planning goes a long way. (at McKeldin Library, University of Maryland) https://www.instagram.com/p/CGXGZJOh2Dh/?igshid=1edeljiwpnff

[weirdnotes2k18]

View from McKeldin

[tairacaseyarts-blog]

Erasable! Improv performance in front of McKeldin Library October 11.

This was my first comedy show I’ve watched in person and it was a pretty good experience. I was impressed with how boisterous and brave the performers were. I would not be able to make things up on the fly in front of a large audience while still being funny. I was also shook because when I arrived to the show, they were doing a strange segment where they chanted something crude about babies and and dicks. College is such an interesting place. As a studio art major, hope I can become as fearless as these people in expressing myself through my paintings and presenting my work 

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

By Dave Zirin

Richard Collins III was about to graduate from Bowie State University on Tuesday. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the US Army. He was airborne certified. He was a son, a friend, and active in his church.

To Sean Urbanski, a University of Maryland student, he was black. At around 3 am on  Saturday, May 20, Collins waited for an Uber ride along with two friends who were students at UMD at an on-campus bus stop. Urbanski walked up to them, and, according to witnesses, said, “Step left, step left if you know what’s best for you.” Collins simply replied, “No.” He stood his ground. Urbanski then stabbed him in the chest and fled the scene. Collins died at the hospital.

 Make no mistake about it—this was a lynching, a lynching committed by a UMD student. A lynching 10 minutes from my damn house. Urbanski, as has been widely reported, is a member of a racist Facebook group called “Alt-Reich: Nation.” But that’s also not all he is. He’s a college student who grew up in the leafy suburban environs of Severna Park, Maryland. He hung out at Adele H. Stamp Student Union, studied at McKeldin Library, and wore his Baltimore Ravens gear around campus. He was not an interloper or an outsider. He is a homegrown terrorist who grew out of the soil of this college campus.

The sooner that the administration and the student body reckon with that reality, the better. The UMD campus has seen racist chalkings, nooses, flyers, and threats since Donald Trump took office. And yes, one would have to be willingly obtuse to not see a direct line from having open white supremacists in the Oval Office to the emboldening of the perpetrators—not just at UMD but, according to NPR reporting, at campuses across the country.

[charlesnyonga]

at McKeldin Library, University of Maryland https://www.instagram.com/p/BucQH1XnT6a/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=26w7jvtmt6k4

[weedwitch]

offerings to the turtle gods for good luck on finals 📑📖 (at McKeldin Library, University of Maryland)

[itsyunghomo]

For as long as I’ve known her, Ella has always worked unbelievably hard in school. Everyone who knows her knows you could find her at the lib 24/7 (even on the weekends). Today is her graduation day and I don’t know anyone who deserves to be moving onto this next chapter more than her. Congratulations to my graduate who only grows smarter and more accomplished everyday. Next stop Loyola! So proud of you bebe :) #YesMyGraduate #umdgrad #proudgf (at McKeldin Library, University of Maryland)

[mrarchivist]

Testudo. #mascot #umd (at McKeldin Library, University of Maryland)