Exhibits and projects: Special Collections and Rare Books

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 Physical exhibits

Special Collections and Rare Books welcomes visitors to view our physical exhibits throughout the year, presented in flat cases at the entrance of Special Collections reading room and in vitrines on the third floor of WAC Bennett Library.

Admission is always free.

What’s on at the W.A.C. Bennett Library (SFU Burnaby)

 3rd floor (entry level)

The Power of IMAGeNation: Materials from the Indigenous Media Arts Group Archive

The Indigenous Media Arts Group, or IMAG, was a Vancouver-based organization founded in early 1998 to promote the development and dissemination of Indigenous media, arts, and culture. IMAG organized the highly successful IMAGeNation Aboriginal Film and Video Festival, which was held annually in Vancouver from 1998 to 2006.

The exhibit includes publicity materials, photographs, film festival programs, and materials related to the administration of IMAG

September–December 2023

 7th floor (outside SCRB)

Indigenous Storytelling from the Lutz Collection

Indigenous storytelling is a traditional way to pass on the ancestral teachings and knowledge to new generations. The stories provide teachings about Indigenous beliefs, customs, values and relationships, ceremonies and practices. In other words, storytelling is form of teaching and a way to transfer knowledge about ways of knowing and being.

This exhibit features a selection of books from the Hartmut Lutz Collection of Indigenous Literature, donated to SFU Library's Special Collections and Rare Books in 2018.

September–December 2023

 

What’s on at the Belzberg Library (SFU Vancouver) 

From Draft to Book: A Journey Through The Publishing Process

SFU Library is home to a variety of material that represents every stage of the publishing process.

The archival fonds of writers like Eden Robinson, Lynn Coady, Michael McClure, Daphne Marlatt, and many more include early drafts of published poetry and fiction.The fonds of publishers like Douglas and McIntyre, Barbarian Press, New Star Books, Nightwood Editions, Talonbooks, and more offer example of the business activities of a publisher and the journey of a work from submission to publication.

On display are examples from a range of holdings representing the process of publishing a physical book.

September–December 2023

 

 

 

Previous exhibits

Learn about past exhibits curated by SCRB staff, as well as faculty and students in the SFU community.

 Online exhibits and projects

Explore our online exhibits, featured digitized collections, and ongoing projects featuring the rare and unique materials from the holdings of Special Collections and Rare Books.

 

Archives of Lesbian Oral Testimony Web Archives
Oral histories, testimonies, and stories from same-sex + same-gender attracted women.
Arjan Singh Brar Collection (Komagata Maru)
Chronicling the history of South Asians in Vancouver.
Blair Henshaw HIV/AIDS Philatelic Collection
Stamps, post cards, and more from the stamp collector and AIDS activist.
Canadian Farmworkers Union Project
Collective action and farmworker advocacy from the 1970s to the 2000s.
Canadian Union of Public Employees BC Historical Collection
History, advocacy, and collective action of British Columbia's largest labour union, CUPE BC.
Dispatches from the Poetry Wars Web Archive
Interactive web archive of the lively and often contentious literary site.
Fisherman Publishing Society Fonds
Nearly 45,000 photographs from the biweekly labour newspaper.
Force Four Entertainment Collection
Scripts, films, and tapes from of the Vancouver-based production company.
Gerry Gilbert radiofreerainforest Collection
A weekly art literary broadcast during the 1980s and 1990s.
Gordon E. McCaw Photograph Collections
Photos of the local punk rock scene and street art in Vancouver.
Grace McCarthy Scrapbook Collection
A snapshot of the MLA’s political career and contributions.
Harrison Brown Collection
Brown's photos from Scandinavia, the USSR, Japan, Korea, and China, 1936-37.
Judith Marcuse Dance Collection
Documenting Marcuse's career and changing ideas about the role of dance and art.
Lake District Collection
Travel guides, maps, rare postcards, and other items by and about William Wordsworth.
Looking For Oneself Web Archive
Internet anthology of Ralph Maud's periodical, “Minutes of the Charles Olson Society."
Pacific Tribune Photograph Collection
More than 40,000 images covering one of the most active periods in B.C. labour history.
Perry Giguere "Perry the Poster Man" Collection
Over 800 posters for cultural, social, and political activities in Vancouver, 1980–2015.
Richard Harwood (Dick) Chambers Alpine Photograph Collection
Mountaineering culture and local mountains, late 1940s–1960s.
Robert Coupe William Morris Collection
Extensive collection of rare books, pamphlets, and other items by and about William Morris.
SpokenWeb Project at SFU
Literary sound recordings in our Contemporary Literature Collection, 1960s to present.
Unarchiving the Margins Collection
Literary audio tapes of women, queer writers, and writers of colour.
Vancouver Punk Collection
Digitized posters, LPs, 45s, zines and periodicals, ephemera, and photographs.
Wosk-McDonald Aldine Collection
The life and work of editor, printer, and publisher Aldus Manutius (1452-1515).