Learning Places Fall 2017 SITE REPORT # 2 Visit to the Library / Interference Archive Bushra Zuhar Khan 06.19.2017 INTRODUCTION This report follows the two places we visited which were to the Interference Archive and the Brooklyn Public Library. Both visits were beneficial, as both places are information spaces and are known to visit if further research upon your topic of interest is required. The library has a broad scope of subjects you can focus on while each archive has its own personal matter that it centers on and brings light upon that problem. While the library is a private nonprofit corporation and is run by both private and public financing, the archive is entirely volunteer based and is run simply by the people who donate money and books and other materials. I feel like the archive gives more of a personal touch and taste to things and the library is more disciplined and refined.
SITE DOCUMENTATION (photos*) *At least 1 photo of library/archive space This is the picture of how the Brooklyn Public Library looks from the outside as you are about to enter it. I wanted to know what those sculptures on the front meant so I searched on the Central Library website and found the reason behind them. It says The dramatic entrance is adorned by fifteen bronze sculptures of famous characters and authors from American literature, framed by columns with a series of gilded bas-reliefs depicting the evolution of art and science. If anyone wants to further learn more about the Bronze entrance sculptures, they can visit the library website and it gives a detail description of each one. I also took a picture of the writings that are framed on the top of the opening doors, which I will show below. Morever if you look to the right wall of the building there is a statement and also to the left.
This picture shows the closeup of the quotes written on top of each door. The quote on the left says FARTHER THAN ARROW ~ HIGHER THAN WINGS ~ FLY POET S SONG AND PROPHETS WORD. The quote in the middle says WHILE MEN HAVE WIT TO READ AND WILL TO KNOW ~ THE DOOR TO LEARNING IS THE OPEN BOOK. One may noticed that the library was designed to look like an open book. The quote to the right says THE WORLD FOR MAN ~ WITH ALL IT MAY CONTAIN ~ IS ONLY WHAT IS COMPASSED BY THE MIND. I think these are very profound saying with deep meanings and it focuses a lot on knowledge and what our mind can reach if we read.
These two statements the one on the left and the one on the right can be seen as you enter the library. I took separate pictures of them because I thought the words were very valuable and it represented the goal and theme of the library very well. It portrayed what really is the purpose of a library and what can you find in there. This is a picture I took from the front of the archive room, as you can see the archive is not a big place, it is a small area with a lot of books, subject files, pamphlets and you can see pieces of fabric stitched with important words and drawings for a cause.
SITE DOCUMENTATION (Sources*) ARCHIVAL SOURCE #1 These two posters above informs people how to fight for their homes and protect their rights. The poster on the left shows a bulldozer which represents the demolishing of the people s homes. The poster on the rights invites tenants to participate in their union s rallies and stop their homes from being taken away. The picture on the left reminds me of how Robert Moses used bulldozers to single handedly destroy people s neighborhoods and the picture on the right reminds me of the movie My Brooklyn when people joined unions and protested against the gentrification of downtown Brooklyn but no one heard their voices.
ARCHIVAL SOURCE #2 This flyer depicts the issues caused by gentrification as you can read on top it states The WAR AGAINST THE POOR, gentrification is done to fit the needs of the upper middle class people and throw out the poor people who can t afford such places. It leads to Homelessness for those people that are displaced by gentrification because rents are so high that they have to sleep on the street. As you will read on the flyer next to a residential building it states The area would be renovated for a BETTER class people. This deal with problems regarding superiority and hierarchy, like a class system which is unacceptable. As you can see the keywords Spatial Deconcentration which is an urban Renewal plan to take poor people, people of certain race and minorities from the city and disperse them in small groups to suburbs.
Library Source #1 This is an aerial view of the Carroll Street Bridge. This picture is from the 1950 s of the Gowanus Canal along Carroll Street and union street bridges. As one can notice, there are tugboats docked on the lower left of the canal and industrial plants and warehouses are visible on both sides. There are residential buildings nearby with parked trucks and automobiles in front.
Library Source #2 This is the map of the olden town of Brooklyn. It covers the entire modern Kings County. It portrays events from the first settlement in 1841. It also shows 3 winds with faces blowing towards the county s cultural cartoons. From the text, it can be predicted that it was made in 1926 in honor of the first printing of the Brooklyn Eagle and Kings County Democrat in 1841.
GENERAL NOTES: Library and Archive are both organized in a specific way Every Archive has a purpose, an agenda Archive documents things related to a community at large Certain Archives deal with history of social movements, political movements Gentrification and Segregation could be systemic KEYWORDS/VOCABULARY & DEFINITIONS Depository: A place where things are stored Ephemera: Things created to be useful for only a short period of time such as pamphlets, notices or tickets Subject Files: A file that consists of letters, memorandums, attachments, reports and other related documents Pamphlets: A small booklet that contains information about a single subject Façade: The front or face of a building Hieroglyphics: A form of writing that uses picture symbols Letterhead Collection: A sheet of paper with one s address and name in the form of a letters Sanborn Atlases: Created to assist fire insurance agents to determine the degree of hazards to a particular property by showing the size, shape, and construction of buildings, windows, doors, sprinkler systems, and roofs; the widths and names of streets, property boundaries, building use, and house and block numbers; and the locations of water mains, fire alarm boxes, and fire hydrants. Stereoscope: A device by which two photographs of the same object taken at different angles are viewed together.
QUESTIONS for Further RESEARCH 1. Which form of information space do you think is much more helpful in assisting us with our podcast and why? 2. Has race and class always been part of gentrification since the beginning? 3. How much does being involved in your neighborhoods and communities help strengthen your voice against gentrification? 4. What steps can be taken to help minorities and poor people when they are a target of gentrification? References: https://www.merriam-webster.com/ https://www.bklynlibrary.org/locations/central https://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/brooklyncollection Young, J., and G. Currie. "A Map Of the Olden Town of Brooklyn." Brooklyn Public Library. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. Web. 15 June 2017.