"The Grolier Club Collects II" is an exhibition of books, manuscripts and works on paper drawn from the international membership of the Grolier Club, on show at The Grolier Club in New York City from December 9 through February 6, 2016. Terry Belanger, Founding Director of the Rare Books School, gave this poetic address at the opening of the exhibition, on which occasion he was also invested as the Poet Laureate of The Grolier Club. (Note: For each item Belanger cites, the lender's name can be found to the left, including quite a few ABAA members.) Proem Collecting isn't shopping. Discipline Is key: lack it and you're flying blind. What subjects are you interested in? Whatever they are, they need to be defined, The titles rare, perhaps one of a kind, Or printed skillfully, with illustrations, Or nicely bound in calf, and gilt, or signed: ... [more A Sentimental Library: Grolier Collects II]
Blog posts by Terry Belanger
Terry Belanger has been active on the American rare book scene since the early 1970s, when he established a program at Columbia University for the training of rare book librarians and antiquarian booksellers. He founded Rare Book School in 1983. He is University Professor Emeritus at the University of Virginia and a 2005 MacArthur Fellow.
Summary of a report by Terry Belanger on the conference “Acknowledging the Past, Forging the Future: National Colloquium on Library Special Collections” Organized by the Kelvin Smith Library at Case Western Reserve University 21-22 October 2014 Rare book and special collections librarians tend to be creatures of habit, with traditional migratory patterns. They flock (1) to the annual Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS) pre-conference, generally held in late June, shortly before (2) the annual conference of the American Library Association (ALA); and – especially for mid-level members of the profession – (3) to ALA's midwinter conference, generally held at the end of January, when it sometimes annoyingly competes with the various tribal shrieks of (4) Bibliography Week in New York City. Those on the archival side of the roost... [more Acknowledging the Past, Forging the Future]