Although the CFP has been previously circulated, we wanted to post it here for easier distribution to anyone you think may wish to contribute or attend.

As Dunedin celebrates its tenth anniversary as a UNESCO City of Literature, the Centre for the Book proposes to think collectively about what books and cities have to do with each other.  As well as considering the epiphenomena of books in cities, and if and how cities support or undermine book-based culture, we also want to think about what it might mean to be a “literary city,” by keeping in mind the city as (Latin) civitas, and asking in broad terms what books have meant and can mean for the lives of cities and their citizens.

Possible topics might include but are not limited to:

• Bookshops in (particular) cities, and their contribution to the ecology of print
• Newspapers, ditto.
• School policies, reading practices and distinctive Dunedin approaches
• Publishers and publishers of works about cities and their literary lives
• Libraries (public, private) in cities
• Other institutional structures supporting authors, writing and reading in cities: Festivals, Fellowships, Residencies
• Scholarship, books and essays in Dunedin
• City-based literary tourism
• Events associated with books: signings, launches, readings, book groups, exhibitions, etc.
• Handpress printing in Dunedin or other cities
• Guidebooks to cities and their writers and publishers
• Depictions in film and literature of books and book-related activities in the life of cities
• Books and urbanity (urbs = [Latin] city, geographical; walled town); books and politeness (polis = [Greek] citadel, city, or community)
• Books and civility /civilisations /citizenship (civitas = [Latin] city, social and political): that is, the values appropriate for life in cities.

Dates and details

Call for Papers issued Mon. 1 July
Proposals for papers by 1 Sept., to books@otago.ac.nz
We hope to send acceptances by 15 September.
The Symposium will be on Thurs (evening), Friday (all day), 21-22 November
The venue will be the Otago College of Education Tower Block, Theatre G07.

“Wind Between the Pages”:
David Elliot Exhibition
Reed Gallery, Dunedin Public Library
22 August to 27 October 2024

 What a Treat!

Award-winning Dunedin illustrator and writer, David Elliot, has delved into the art of 3D drawing, an exciting and original way of ‘lifting illustrations’ from the pages of the books he loves.

David’s re-imaging of illustration showcases a range of well-known titles, including Melville’s Moby Dick, Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and his own, personal response to Lewis Carroll’s The Hunting of the Snark.

Whatever is going on, these models and drawings are essentially about his on-going fascination with books and the imagined worlds they contain. Many of them also celebrate where David lives on the edge of the wild Otago Coast and delve into the literature of the sea. Winds howl through their pages, storms rage against their bindings, tiny ships are flung across their pages and strange creatures are cast up onto their margins.

David will also give a talk on August 22nd at 5.30 p.m. on the genesis of his creations and reveal the hows and whys of this original artform.  All are welcome to attend.

The Bibliographical Society of Australia and NZ is proud to release its newest Occasional Publication, Carlo Dumontet’s Collation, Reference Notation & Statement of Signing: A Workbook, available directly from the Society.

For more details, see this PDF flyer.

Intended for all book lovers who have occasionally been mystified or daunted by collation statements describing the physical structures of books, Dumontet’s volume includes exercises and numerous illustrations to dispel the confusions that sometimes accompany the art of collation statements.  Distilled from the authoritative sources, this book makes the topic approachable in a much more user-friendly format.