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November 2012 Archives

Collaborative course showcases innovative student work in 'Portrait as Community' through Dec. 9 at Anderson Gallery

Posted November 26, 2012 4:40 PM in Exhibits and Events, Homepage Top News, Special Collections

rsz_portrait_image_final.jpgA collection of student multimedia projects documenting communities in and around Richmond runs Nov. 30-Dec. 9 at Anderson Gallery.

"Portrait as Community" is the culmination of a special course inspired by Growing Up in Civil Rights Richmond: A Community Remembers, a project organized by the Anderson Gallery with South African photographer Zwelethu Mthethwa and American Studies scholar Laura Browder. Students from the VCU Departments of Photography and Film and Art Education examined historical examples, research methodologies, ethical concerns and artistic strategies related to the representation of communities. They selected and worked with Richmond communities over the semester to create their projects. 

This collaborative course was offered by the Department of Photography and Film, VCU Libraries and the Anderson Gallery. Teachers were Yuki Hibben, assistant head, Special Collections and Archives, James Branch Cabell Library, and Michael Lease, head of exhibitions and design, Anderson Gallery.

The show is on view during regular gallery hours: Tuesday-Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.

More The opening reception, Friday, Nov. 30, 5-8 p.m., is free and open to all. 

Student projects on display are by:

  • Jaclyn Brown
  • Casey Collier
  • Kate Fowler
  • Lauren Lyon
  • Jessica Overcash
  • Mark Strandquist
  • Breonca Trofort
  • Michael Weinheimer

VCU Libraries' collections tied to annual symposium on architecture and decorative arts

Posted November 15, 2012 1:05 PM in Exhibits and Events, Homepage Top News

Nov. 16 marks the 20th year for an annual conference organized by Charles E. Brownell, Ph.D., the head of VCU's Architectural History Program. Traditions IV: 20th Symposium on Architecture and Decorative Arts was scheduled to take place at the Virginia Historical Society. (Above: a detail from a book cover by the Richmond publisher Engelhardt.)

In the words of Brownell, the conference was created "to air valuable work by current and recent VCU graduate students, as well as important research by other members of the VCU family circle." Ray Bonis, archives coordinator at Cabell, was scheduled to present on "Griffin and Randall, American Masters" and University Librarian John E. Ulmschneider chaired a session on "Twenty Years of Research at VCU." 

For 20 years, Dr. Brownell, professor in VCU's Art History Department, has deposited copies of his graduate students' research papers on architectural history topics to Special Collections and Archives at James Branch Cabell Library. More than 300 of these papers exist and they offer a deep scholarly imprint on Richmond's architectural history. Many of these papers develop into topics for master thesis and others are turned into papers presented at the VCU Annual Architectural History and the Decorative Arts Symposium. About the papers 

Some of the most architecturally significant buildings of 19th and 20th century Richmond are located on, or adjacent to, the campuses of Virginia Commonwealth University. A focus has been on documenting the architecture of what is known today as Richmond's Fan District and especially the buildings of VCU's Monroe Park Campus. More about the collection

New "chat" service fields research questions in real time

Posted November 6, 2012 3:40 PM in Homepage Top News, Top News, Updates and New
Having trouble locating articles for your research project? Not sure how to focus your search? Wondering about library hours and services?

Now, you can get help in real time no matter where you are--at home chatnow_180.pngor at lunch, in the campus connector bus or on the quiet floor at Cabell with your backpack, laptop and notes scattered around you.

To access chat: Go to the "Ask Us"  web page and click on the chat bubble. A chat "box" will open for you to type in your question. A research librarian will help you. 


Chat Hours

  • Monday-Thursday 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.
  • Friday 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
  • Sunday 6 - 10 p.m.

VCU Libraries has been testing the new chat service for months and it now makes its official debut. Chat, or instant messaging, is a fast track for answers. VCU Librarians also take questions by email, phone and, of course, face-to-face. Questions asked by email or left on voicemail are answered within 24 hours, except on weekends. Chat is anonymous: If you end the chat session before you're ready or get cut off, come back online. 

Users are invited to give their feedback about the chat service by using chat. 

Nov. 8: VCU Cabell First Novelist recipient speaks and takes questions

Posted November 1, 2012 9:53 AM in
Justin Torres will be honored on campus as the 2012 recipient of the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award, which honors an outstanding debut novel published during a calendar year. His winning book, "We the Animals," is a powerful coming-of-age novel about three brothers growing up with the chaotic and destructive love of their working-class parents. 

Torres, who is getting national attention for this book, will be on campus Nov. 8 for a reading at 7 p.m. at the Grace Street Theater, 934 West Grace Street. After his reading, Torres will discuss the journey of his novel from its original idea to the published book. A book sale, signing and reception will follow. The event is free and open to all, but audience members are asked to register. Registration assists us in planning and facilitates seating. 

Torres was one of three finalists for the prize, now in its eleventh year. The other finalists were Alexi Zentner for "Touch" and Peter Mountford for "A Young Man's Guide to Late Capitalism."

Published in August 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, "We the Animals" is narrated by the youngest sibling in a voice that is both compelling and urgent and prose that is brutally honest and beautifully poetic. Composed in short, disjointed chapters, the novel swiftly moves through six years in the tumultuous childhood of the three brothers as they claw their way toward adulthood. More 


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