California Rare Book School

This course examines the Jewish diaspora experience through books and media, highlighting their adaptation to dominant cultures. We’ll explore case studies from antiquity to the digital era, focusing on the significance of material objects in cultural transmission.

Prepare to safeguard our heritage against climate risks. In this course, you can gain essential skills: understanding climate science, tackling governance challenges, addressing climate grief, assessing local impacts, & utilizing data visualization tools.

Consider how feminist narratives enhance our engagement with texts through inclusivity & critical reflection. Through discussions and hands-on work, gain tools to ask feminist questions & enrich your understanding of rare books.

Dive into the evolution of the Greek book!

Explore how manuscripts transitioned to print, revolutionizing Greek literature and science. Join us at UCLA to uncover Renaissance innovations in typography and scholarship. Secure your spot now!

Practice the art of rare book cataloging

Refine your cataloging skills for rare materials at UCLA. Perfect for catalogers ready to dive into DCRM(B) standards and special collections. Enroll now to secure your spot!

Interested in how film, fandom, and commercial “bookish” aesthetics construct and distort the material history of the book?

Join Allie Alvis in considering these very things!

Climate change reshapes the future of archives and cultural heritage. Consider how climate science, governance, disaster risk, relocation planning, impacts long-term preservation, while building skills in climate data visualization and mapping tools.

Reimagine descriptive and analytical bibliography through the lens of Black print culture. This course applies material analysis to Black writing, publishing, and resistance.

Explore artists’ archives, books, box sets, and zines as primary research materials. Through aesthetic analysis, discussions of access and conservation, participants will engage community and activist archives firsthand.

As special collections evolve, how can the field move beyond Eurocentric traditions toward community-centered cultural stewardship? Students and professionals in this course will rethink value, authenticity, and historical practice through a social justice lens.