Bonnie Mak will join book artists, conservators, and archivists for a discussion of the future of the book at the symposium, "Codex: History, Art, and Practice." Hosted by the Ohio Preservation Council and the State Library of Ohio, the symposium brings together information professionals from across the state who are interested in the preservation of documentary heritage.
In her talk, "Publication, Post-Codex," Mak will offer a provocation on academic publishing beyond the single-authored book.
"Although innovative approaches to scholarship continue to be touted by university administrators, relatively little attention has been paid to how such work might be registered, disseminated, and preserved," Mak said. "I hope to stimulate further debate about what 'innovative' publications are, how institutional infrastructures can support them, and who will bear their costs."
Mak's discussants include bookbinder and conservator, James Reid-Cunningham, and letterpress printer and book artist, Macy Chadwick.
The symposium takes place on August 4 at the Jessing Centre in Columbus, Ohio.
Mak is an associate professor at the University of Illinois, jointly appointed in the iSchool and the Program in Medieval Studies. Her first book, How the Page Matters (2011), examines the interface of the page as it is developed across time, geographies, and technologies. A second book-length project, Confessions of a 21st-Century Memsahib, examines the digital texts and images that have become key resources for humanistic scholarship. Ongoing collaborations include an exploration of the card catalogue as a way of knowing.