Archival Silences Working Group: Language In/Of the Archive

In many ways, access to archival material hinges on the work of description and cataloging in order to make the opaque, clear. How collections are described, however, changes the way in which they are perceived, approached, and imagined. In conversation with catalogers, archivists, and curators, this discussion will ask questions of how we use language in the archival apparatus, the consequences of that use, and the future of archival description.

In conversation with Jennifer Garcon (Princeton University Library), Cait McKinney (Simon Fraser University), Miranda Mims (University of Rochester), and Brian M. Watson (Ph.D. student, University of British Columbia), we will discuss how the language used to describe the archive can act as both an open and a closed door, encouraging discovery for some and discouraging it for others.

Now in its third year, the Archival Silences Working Group presents a public webinar series highlighting work that redresses the blind spots of institutional repositories.

For more information, please contact organizers Emma Sarconi (Princeton University Library) at esarconi@princeton.edu or Kinohi Nishikawa (English; African American Studies) at kinohin@princeton.edu.

Archival Silences is presented by the Princeton University Humanities Council.

Register in advance for this webinar.