Shelf Life

In this episode, we’re joined by scholars Bill Wallace and Isabella Magni to dissect a letter written by Michelangelo in 1545. But we’re less interested in what the letter says than in the way it was written. What does Michelangelo’s style of handwriting reveal about who he was as an artist and how he saw himself in Renaissance Italian society? 

Non-lexical vocables—your fa-la-la’s and hey-nonny-no’s—didn’t originate as nonsense filler-syllables for brightening up a song. In Renaissance England, they were used to advance a song’s satirical critique of society or as a lyrical surrogate for something that couldn’t be expressed explicitly.    Newberry research fellow Katie Bank tells us all about the history and legacy of non-lexical vocables.   Host: Newberry Fellowships Manager Keelin Burke

Copies of the Gutenberg Bible weren’t always prized collectors’ items. During the Reformation, which emphasized the importance of vernacular translations of the Bible over the canonical Latin version, many Gutenberg Bibles collected dust or worse: disbound and scattered to the winds, their pages were used to bind other books or to wrap and protect archival documents. Eric White, Curator of Rare Books at the Princeton University Library (and author of "Editio Princeps: A History of the Gutenberg Bible"), tells us about his quest to find these fragments, two of which are right here at the Newberry. Eric speaks with Jill Gage, the Newberry’s curator of printing history.

Newberry conservators systematically intercept spiders, ants, book lice, and other bugs before they can reach the treasures in our collection. We speak with conservation staff about this important (and kind of gross) work, and then we join them as they patrol the deepest recesses of the library for pests. 

Book historian (and esteemed Twitter user) Sarah Werner discusses memes, reaction GIFs, and the promise and peril of being a library on social media.

“Not only does the wearing of black protect the mourner from unnecessary levity; but it reminds everyone else that they’ll eventually be in that position, too, and it stirs empathy.” Debra Mancoff, a scholar of art, culture, and fashion, walks us through the conventions and sartorial semiotics of mourning in Victorian England and America, and tells us how attitudes toward death and dying have changed over the years. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

Daniel Burnham may have made Chicago beautiful. But Edward Brennan made it logical. The unsung hero of Chicago urban planning was a concerned citizen who obsessively brainstormed ideas to make the city easier to navigate and live in. His proposals, once adopted, became features of the city we take for granted today but can’t live without, like the standardized directional numbering system for addresses and the fact that Chicago no longer has 13 streets called Washington. In this episode, we speak with Bill Savage, a scholar of Chicago history, about why Brennan is so important, why Burnham is overrated, and how you can read the city like a text. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

The 1862 International Exhibition, held in London, is an oft-overlooked event within the pantheon of 19th-century world’s fairs—and for good reason. Occurring just 11 years after the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London, the 1862 rendition came off as derivative, and a cloud hung over it due to Prince Albert’s recent death, Queen Victoria’s prolonged period of mourning, and the American Civil War. Despite it all, the 1862 exhibition altered the world’s fair template in ways that would influence other such events held in the United States later in the century. In this episode, Ruth Slatter, scholar and co-creator of the Visit 1862 Project, resurrects the world’s fair visitor experience and discusses the legacy of the 1862 International Exhibition. She speaks with Elizabeth Cummings, Public Programs Manager at the Newberry. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

Educator, poet, and comic-book creator Lee Francis IV (Laguna Pueblo) discusses how comics can fill a gap in Indigenous-created literature, while at the same time serving as a vehicle for presenting Native stories and identities in modern, dynamic settings rather than the ahistorical past in which pop culture often portrays Native characters. Lee joins us over the phone from Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he is CEO and publisher at Native Realities Press and owner of Red Planet Books and Comics. He speaks with Will Hansen, Curator of Americana at the Newberry. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

Genealogist Tony Burroughs breaks down the procedures for finding African American ancestors and discusses why a unique set of research tools is necessary for doing African American genealogy. According to Tony, the same institutional forces that marginalized black Americans in the past also buried traces of their lives in the historical records that genealogists count on to fill out their family trees. Navigating the legacies of slavery, segregation, and discrimination is part of the process of finding one's African American ancestors. Your host for this episode is Keelin Burke, Fellowships Manager at the Newberry. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

So-called “limp parchment” bindings were essentially the paperbacks of their day. In the early modern era, binding books in parchment was a cheaper alternative to binding them in wooden boards covered by leather (it was also a practical way to manage the explosion of books occasioned by the printing press in the 15th century). Melissa Moreton, Assistant Professor with the University of Iowa’s Center for the Book, is in the midst of an ambitious survey of these types of bindings. After assembling an extensive data set, Melissa hopes to discover patterns regarding book production, commercial networks, and reading habits among 15th- and 16th-century Europeans. Your host for this episode is Keelin Burke, Fellowships Manager at the Newberry. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

Two experts on the history of public housing discuss the challenges and opportunities involved in telling this long and complex story. Our guests are historian Brad Hunt (who is also the Newberry’s Vice President for Research and Academic Programs) and Lisa Lee, Executive Director of the National Public Housing Museum in Chicago. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

“The fair is gorgeous, splendiferous...but garish.” That’s how 12-year-old Claire Lieber, writing in her diary, described the Century of Progress World’s Fair held in Chicago in 1933. When she was alive, Claire was the go-to source of family history for her grandson, Sam Crews. But she rarely told Sam stories about her own life. After finding Claire’s diary in the Newberry’s collection recently, Sam discovered a whole new side of his grandmother. He discusses the emotional impact the find has had on him, and how it’s reinvigorated his connection with the past and with the city he calls home. --- View images from Claire Lieber's scrapbook at https://www.newberry.org/shelf-life. --- Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap

During the antebellum period, Americans went crazy for coral, using it in jewelry and medicine, referencing it in art and literature, and adopting it as a metaphor for understanding the complexity and interconnectedness of the natural world. We speak with scholar Michele Navakas about America's erstwhile fascination with coral and coral reefs. Along the way, Michelle shares a discovery she recently made in our collection: a song by "Mary Had a Little Lamb" author Sarah Josepha Hale that holds coral up as a lens through which to view both nature and human society. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap; other music: "The Coral Branch" by Sarah Josepha Hale, performed by Ian Crockett and Gene Navakas) --- Learn more at http://www.michelenavakas.com/thecoralbranch/

In the 18th century, botany was a contested space: on the one hand, an acceptable discipline for women to engage with; on the other, a treacherous field of study beset by (gasp!) the perils of intellectual rigor and plants' sexual reproduction. We speak with Katie Sagal, a research fellow at the Newberry, about how women authors and scientists navigated the botanical terms of engagement to expand their roles in scientific and literary communities. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

Do we have a treat for you: Scholar Sarah Kernan breaks down the history of chocolate, from its origins in the Americas and popularity among European monarchs (apparently Charles II of England was a bona fide chocoholic) to its mass production and eventual association with Valentine’s Day. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap) --- Learn more about this episode: https://www.newberry.org/brief-history-chocolate

The recent announcement that Cleveland’s professional baseball team would remove the controversial Chief Wahoo logo from its uniforms has, for now, renewed the national debate over American Indian mascots in sports. In this episode, we speak with Julie Pelletier, Acting Director of the McNickle Center for American Indian Studies at the Newberry and a member of the Maliseet and Mi'kmaq tribes, about how American Indian mascots both reflect and promote deep-seated cultural ideas and why pro-Chief Wahoo tweets can be revealing. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

Silent-film organists could "gig the film" or "Mickey Mouse" it (play in ironic contrast with the images on screen or in ham-handed correspondence with them, respectively). But the most successful found the harmonious middle between the two. We talk with musicologist Kendra Preston Leonard about these musicians and why women, in particular, were so central to the art, culture, and values surrounding silent film. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap) --- Visit www.newberry.org/shelf-life for more information about this episode.

In this spoiler-free episode, Newberry seminars instructor Harrison Sherrod discusses how Star Wars helps us understand history, religion, and humanity's place in the world. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap) --- Visit www.newberry.org/shelf-life for more information about this episode.

Performing early music today is a feat of historical reconstruction as much as musical adaptation. Adding to the musical-historical challenge is the fact that some songs (by Bach, for example) were tailored to the strengths of particular choirs and weren’t intended to outlive their creators. In this episode, we speak with Matt Dean, managing director of Schola Antiqua early music ensemble, and Ikumi Crocoll, Newberry reference librarian, about what goes into reviving early music, why it’s worth the effort, and how there are technical reasons for medieval and Renaissance music being as catchy as Top-40 pop songs. --- (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap) --- Visit www.newberry.org/shelf-life for more information about this episode.

According to Peter Stallybrass, an obscure typeface called civilité offers us a way of thinking about both the history of printing and the development of the bureaucratic nation-state in Western Europe. Peter, who is Annenberg Professor in the Humanities at the University of Pennsylvania, spoke with Jill Gage, the Newberry’s curator of printing history, about why civilité was designed to simulate handwriting, why it was the chosen typeface to print “junk mail” from King James I, and why it eventually faded into obscurity. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

Historian Woody Holton has a novel way of looking at the American Revolution: it was the British—not the Americans—who were the underdogs on the battlefield. In this episode, Woody argues his case. And, while he’s at it, he discusses how race, class, and gender factored into the war and its aftermath. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

Print helped fuel the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, which in turn fueled major developments in the printing industry. As people were exhorted to read the Bible, new tools emerged to help them navigate its pages: page numbers, indexes, annotations--basically, all the features of the "apparatus of the book" that we take for granted today. We speak with Newberry President David Spadafora and curator of printing history Jill Gage about the reciprocal relationship between religion and print in the early modern era. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

If Instagram encourages us all to be the curators of our accounts, does that make actual library and museum curators ideal Instagrammers? In this episode, we speak with Lauren Hewes, the American Antiquarian Society's curator of graphic arts and Instagrammer extraordinaire, about the parallels between designing an exhibition and posting to Instagram, what it means for individuals to "curate" their social media presence, and how she's cultivated the persona of (in her words) a 205-year-old grandma as the voice of the AAS Instagram. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

Curator of Maps, Jim Akerman, discusses the rhetoric of driving, how road maps have portrayed car travel differently over time, and whether or not Google Maps is making us lose our way in the world. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

We shadowed Max Grinnell, aka the Urbanologist, as he researched Chicago's Dill Pickle Club in our Special Collections Reading Room. Leafing through photos, handbills, and brochures, Max discusses the "unsanctioned space" that the bohemian group carved out for itself, and how the fate of the Dill Pickle and other urban vestiges speaks to a complicated cycle of rebirth and renewal in Chicago. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

According to Monica Trinidad, co-founder of For the People Artists Collective, "Art is not an afterthought, it is essential and integral to organizing." Artists don't just translate activism into a visual language; they can actually create an environment in which activism is possible. Monica recently visited the Newberry to view our Never the Same Collection of political art. While she was here, she talked with us about how art can make difficult ideas more accessible, what happens to art when it becomes part of an archive, and why it's important to preserve different artistic perspectives in an institution like the Newberry. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

In honor of the 100th anniversary of Gwendolyn Brooks's birth, Liesl Olson, Director of Chicago Studies at the Newberry, recreated the poet's signature frozen fruit salad. The concoction offers a mayo-streaked window onto the culinary predilections of mid-20th-century America: whipping cream, cream cheese, and the afore-mentioned mayonnaise combine with maraschino cherries, canned pineapple, and walnuts to create a dessert that's as textured as Brooks's poetry. But the recipe, which Brooks shared with Chicago writer Jack Conroy after a dinner party in 1961, also reveals the social connections among the city's literary community. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

In this episode, we ponder one of the most important listicles of all time. Chris Fletcher, the Newberry's major projects fellow, discusses what Martin Luther originally hoped to accomplish with the 95 Theses, how he marketed religion to a larger audience, and why he had some regrets after empowering people to read and interpret the Bible for themselves. For information on how the Newberry is commemorating the 500th anniversary of the 95 Theses, visit www.newberry.org/religious-change. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

As part of her study of feminine crime in turn-of-the-century Chicago, Newberry Graduate Scholar in Residence Rachel Boyle scoured more than 200 boxes of 100-year-old court records, collecting information on every homicide involving a female suspect she could find. Faced with a bounty of data about arrests and convictions, she plotted these crimes onto historical maps of the city to make sense of her findings. In this episode of "Shelf Life," we talk with Rachel about her research and the larger conclusions she was able to draw about society's response to criminal women in the past, as well as today. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

In this episode of "Shelf Life," we discuss a dastardly chapter from the annals of fake news: the Popish Plot, a conspiracy theory promoted by a man named Titus Oates. According to Oates's writings in the late 1670s, a cabal of Catholics were conspiring to kill King Charles II and replace him with a Catholic ruler. Even though Oates was a notorious liar and had little to no evidence to support his claim, the story lodged itself in the public's imagination and led to the execution of dozens of people. How did this happen? And what parallels can we draw between 17th-century print culture (the vehicle for spreading Oates's lies) and the media environment we live in today? (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

In this episode of “Shelf Life,” we talk with Newberry archivists Martha Briggs and Catherine Grandgeorge about how and why they’re crowdsourcing an archive of modern protest. Following the Women’s March held in Chicago and other cities on January 21, the Newberry began collecting protest signs and personal accounts from the people who took to the streets. While the Newberry’s collection contains plenty of materials documenting activism in history, this is the first time the library has collected such materials in the moment. (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)

The Newberry's exhibit "Hamilton: The History Behind the Musical" is open through March 9. In this episode of "Shelf Life," we talk with the exhibit's curator, Will Hansen, about how he placed the exhibit in dialogue with the musical, the scourge that is "founder's chic," and his favorite piece of Hamiltonian wisdom: "half-confidence is always bad." (Intro music: "Two Types of Awakenings" by Nheap)