UCLA Center for 17th- & 18th-Century Studies

04/30/2026

HECAA is soliciting applications for the biannual Mary Vidal Memorial Award in the amount of $500, which is intended to defray costs associated with research travel, conferences in which the recipients are presenting, or publication permission fees. The spring deadline is May 15. HECAA members who are graduate students or who have completed the Ph.D. within the past three years are eligible to apply.

We are now soliciting applications for the biannual Mary Vidal Memorial Award. The spring deadline is May 15. The award amount is $500.

HECAA members who are graduate students or who have completed the Ph.D. within the past three years are eligible to apply. Named in memory of Professor Mary Vidal, the funds are intended to defray costs associated with research travel, conferences in which the recipients are presenting, or publication permission fees.

In recognition of emerging scholars’ increasing needs for more significant external funds, and in response to member feedback, we have prioritized enhancing the Vidal award so HECAA will offer substantial awards this cycle of $500.

The HECAA Board is also undertaking a concerted fundraising effort dedicated to the Vidal Award to ensure that we can maintain this more substantial amount, and with a goal of being able to offer more awards at this amount in future cycles. If you are able, please consider adding to our funds now by making a donation: https://hecaa18.org/donate-to-hecaa/ (Select Mary Vidal Memorial Award from the drop down menu.)

Applicants should send a single PDF with a CV, a brief description of the project (approx. 400 words), including a 1-2 line summary of how the funds will be used, and a simple budget charting how the amount requested will be spent, by May 15 to [email protected]. Questions can be addressed to Jennifer Van Horn at [email protected].

If you are a previous Vidal Award recipient, you may apply again two cycles (fall and spring) after your initial award. In other words, if you won an award in or before the Spring 2025 cycle, you may apply again this spring.

Image: detail from Decorative Painting with Plants and Animals, 1760-1799, 218 cm x width 46 cm, oil on canvas. Rijksmuseum.

04/28/2026

Today is Bruin Giving Day! From April 28 through tomorrow at 9 p.m. PDT, the UCLA community is joining together to make a difference through the power of philanthropy.

During the campus-wide giving challenge, consider a contribution to the Center for 17th- and 18th-Century Studies and Clark Library. This academic year, the research center marks its 40th Anniversary at UCLA!

The support and engagement of community members like you have been essential to sustaining the Center & Clark's place as a hub for research, exhibition, performance, culture and community for the past four decades.

During Bruin Giving Day, there is a unique opportunity to maximize your impact: Professor Bronwen Wilson, Director of the UCLA Center for 17th- & 18th-Century Studies and William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, has generously committed $30,000 in challenge funds to encourage your support. Join Professor Wilson and help us reach our goal of 30 donors to unlock this special gift and celebrate 40 years of excellence.

Visit the UCLA Humanities Bruin Giving Day page, find the"40th Anniv. Challenge - Ctr. for 17th- & 18th-Century Studies" under the "Humanities Challenge" header and click the "Match Gift" button to show your support today!

https://bruingivingday.ucla.edu/pages/humanities-landing-page-1?appeal_id=69cedb4bcda9f4cbd5c6bfbf

04/22/2026

In this Illuminated Lecture from theatre dybbuk, Professor Barbara Fuchs (former Center & Clark Library Director and current Core Faculty member) addresses La Celestina, an extraordinary text from an extraordinary time.

Written in Spain at the turn of the sixteenth century, soon after the expulsion of the Jews, La Celestina gives powerful voice to marginal characters somehow central to every exchange and transaction— wily go-betweens, panders, and disaffected servants. Along the way, it asks radically uncomfortable questions of its society and our own: what do we owe each other, especially across lines of class or gender? How do we make room for ourselves, when society has already decided on our place? In a time of profound dislocation, how do we find meaning in the world? A mix of manifesto and cautionary tale, b***y story and philosophical meditation, La Celestina haunts us with its devastating insight.

This event combines scholarship about this classic presented by Dr. Barbara Fuchs with performances by actors from theatre dybbuk. For details and tickets, visit

In this Illuminated Lecture, Professor Barbara Fuchs addresses La Celestina, an extraordinary text from an extraordinary time.

04/14/2026

We can’t wait until Box Tale Soup’s next visit to the W.A. Clark Memorial Library in May 2027! In the meantime, check out the vlog from their most recent visit to Los Angeles, and learn about their next Center & Clark commission!
https://youtu.be/JvxFApdNUYw?si=OuQeUfKbAt23m_N3

Last year, we had the great pleasure of hosting . They made a vlog about their time here featuring some interesting objects from our collections. Check it out via the link in our bio!

04/14/2026

Applications are now open for the newly created position of Marketing & Communications Specialist for the Center for 17th- & 18th-Century Studies and the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library. The Specialist will collaborate with staff, librarians, faculty, fellows, and students to raise awareness of the Center and Clark through digital content creation, visual assets, and social media content.

Learn more about the position and apply here:

UCLA is hiring a Marketing Specialist in Los Angeles, California. Review all of the job details and apply today!

04/10/2026

Did you know that the UCLA William Andrews Clark Memorial Library is home to more than 300 books featuring recipes and cooking from the 16th to the 21st century, including many handprinted volumes from before 1820?

Using these resources at the W.A. Clark Memorial Library, Alfons Rosales, a fourth-year English and religious studies major, researched differences between English cuisine of the medieval and early modern periods. He also hoped to assess how recipes evolved between the 15th and 18th centuries, and to learn how difficult it would be to replicate dishes from texts that were hundreds of years old.

The end result was a tasty plate of meatballs that he cooked by adapting a 300-year-old recipe! Read all about Alfons' research and cooking process at the link below.

UCLA Department of English

Using resources from the Clark Library collection, fourth-year student Alfons Rosales prepared a tasty dish from a 300-year-old recipe.

04/07/2026

The priority deadline to apply for California Rare Book School 2026 is fast approaching: Wednesday, April 15! After that date, applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until seats are filled (12 participants for in-person courses and 15-20 for online courses).

In-person courses will be held at locations in Mexico City, New York, and Los Angeles, including at the UCLA William Andrews Clark Memorial Library. Visit https://www.calrbs.org/ for full details, including course offerings, faculty bios, schedules, formats, locations, and fees.

A limited number of scholarship awards are available to librarians, archivists, scholars, booksellers, collectors, graduate students, and others. All course applicants are eligible to apply. The deadline for scholarship consideration is Wednesday, April 15, 2026. After that, rolling applications will remain open until all scholarships are awarded.

W.A. Clark Memorial Library UCLA School of Education and Information Studies - Undergraduate Programs California Rare Book School

Founded in Los Angeles in 2005, the California Rare Book School (CalRBS) is a non-degree education program dedicated to providing the knowledge and skills required by collectors and professionals working in all aspects of the library, special collection, archives, museums, and rare book community, a...

04/02/2026

We're thrilled to share that the UCLA William Andrews Clark Memorial Library was featured on CBS LA's terrific feature, "Look at This!" The video features an aerial view of the library and grounds, and a voiceover from Desmond Shaw that provides ample information about the Clark's history, its founder, and the collection. We hope you enjoy watching the video as much as we did!

The Clark Library's grounds are open to the public Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., no appointment needed. Come explore our lovely five acres of landscaped grounds right in the middle of the city! We have ample free parking on site, and leashed dogs, accompanied by their watchful guardians, are welcome (please be sure to bring baggies and pick up after our furry friends!).

The Clark Library's Reading Room is currently open by appointment to researchers who would like to consult the collections Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. though 4:30 p.m.

And don't forget our many public events, including conferences, lectures, and concerts held at the Clark Library! Most programs are free of charge. Check our Events calendar here on Facebook and be sure to follow us for all of the latest updates!

W.A. Clark Memorial Library

Desmond Shaw flies to West Adams for tonight's Look At This! For video licensing inquiries, contact: [email protected]

03/10/2026

On the 200th anniversary of the American Revolution in 1976, Americans celebrated it as the story of a struggle for liberty which culminated in the creation of the world’s first democratic republic.

As we approach the 250th anniversary in 2026, things are very different. While the public continues to think about the Revolution in democratic and egalitarian terms, historians no longer take the nation as the starting point for their research. Nor are they so confident that the Revolution ushered in an age of liberty.

"The Meaning of the American Revolution in 2026" is a one-day conference at the Clark Library organized by Professor Craig Yirush (UCLA) and Brad A. Jones (California State University, Fresno) that will gather a group of leading scholars to see where scholarship about the Revolution is fifty years later, on its 250th anniversary. Through their own research, they’ll address the many and exciting ways we’ve come to rethink this important event, including its broader continental and even global reach, and its racial and ideological underpinnings.

Unlike a traditional academic conference, these talks will be addressed to a mostly non-academic audience of students and members of the public. In doing so, we hope to show non-scholars new ways historians are currently thinking about the meaning of this seminal event in U.S. and world history.

The conference is free to attend with advance registration, and will be held in-person at the Clark Library. Register and learn more about the speakers and paper topics at https://www.1718.ucla.edu/events/american-revolution/ .

Presentations will be recorded and made available on the Center's YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/-c1718cs) following the conference.

UCLA History Department California State University, Fresno W.A. Clark Memorial Library

03/04/2026

We are delighted to share that The Ahmanson Lecture on Clark Library Legacies is now available to watch on our YouTube channel.

This event, featuring Tracy Wolk (Landscape Designer), Stephanie Landregan (Landscape Architect and Director of Altadena Green), and Brian Brodersen (Landscape Architect and Principal/Owner Brodersen Associates), explores ideas for reimagining how the early 20th-century character of the historic gardens of the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library can be reimagined for a future grounded in sustainability, resilience, and respect for heritage.

This lecture is presented in recognition of Lee Walcott, whose enduring support through the auspices of the Ahmanson Foundation continues to nurture the Clark Library and its living legacy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ut4AUFLOg_E&t=35s
W.A. Clark Memorial Library UCLA Extension Landscape Architecture Program

Date/TimeTuesday, March 3, 20264:00 pm PST – 5:30 pm PSTLocationUCLA William Andrews Clark Memorial Library & via Livestream2520 Cimarron Street Lecture by T...

03/02/2026

Details on the Career Advancement Award from HECAA - Historians of Eighteenth-Century Art and Architecture

We are excited to invite applications for the inaugural Career Advancement Award. We invite eligible HECAA members to apply and ask that all members share widely in your networks to help get the word out about this opportunity.

HECAA is pleased to offer a grant in support of those members who are in non-tenure track positions (or their equivalent in museums and arts non-profits). Individuals must have completed their PhD at least 3 years prior . For the 2026 Career Advancement Award, individuals should have received their Ph.D. in 2023 or any date prior to 2023. Funds are intended to defray costs associated with research travel and other research-related expenses, conferences in which the recipient is presenting, or publication permission fees. Funds may also be used to defray indirect costs associated with professional advancement (i.e. childcare or eldercare) to support conference attendance or research travel.

Applicants should send a single PDF with a CV, a brief description of the project (approx. 400 words), including a 1-2 line summary of why the funds are needed and how the funds will be used. Applicants should also produce a separate budget of up to $1000, which should include other sources of funding to which you have applied and/or have access. In addition to the quality of the proposed project, need will be a major criteria for selection.

For 2026, the Career Advancement award will dispense a total of $2000, with a maximum given award of $1000. (i.e. the committee will decide whether to dispense two awards of $1000, or other amounts to more individuals based on applications and budgets). Award recipients will be ineligible to reapply for 3 years.

Applications are due March 15, 2026.

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

If you would like to support this award fund we welcome any and all contributions at: https://hecaa18.org/donate-to-hecaa/ (please write Career Advancement Award in the comments—since this is the inaugural year there is no drop down menu option yet.)

📷️: Kitagawa Utamaro, Picture Book of Selected Insects, vol. II, 1788, woodblock printed book, Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

01/22/2026

Applications are now open for the 2026-27 Instruction and Engagement Fellowship at the UCLA William Andrews Clark Memorial Library. Applicants must be a currently registered PhD or Master’s student at UCLA during 2026-27 academic year and meet additional qualifications.

This fellowship is ideal for someone who is eager to learn about incorporating primary sources into curriculum and outreach in libraries, contributing to the W.A. Clark Memorial Library's strategy and mission, and developing professional skills.

The Instruction and Engagement Fellowship offers a $36,500 stipend plus standard tuition and fees (excluding nonresident supplemental tuition and professional degree supplemental tuition). Applications are due by March 1, 2026. For more information and to learn how to apply, visit the link below.

The Instruction and Engagement Fellowship comes with a great deal of responsibility, ideal for someone who is eager to learn about incorporating primary sources into curriculum and outreach in libraries, contributing to our strategy and mission, and developing professional skills. We are seeking an....