Exhibits

  • Handmade book created by spring 2025 Buchanan Library Fellow Zhihe Zhang.

    Heard Libraries exhibit explores art and craft of bookbinding through historical texts

    A new student-curated exhibit at the Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries explores the exciting world of book arts, with a focus on the intersection of art, craftsmanship and literature. Read More

    Apr 30, 2025

  • Dante exhibit poster

    Pop Up Exhibit: Dante’s The Divine Comedy

     “Dante Behind Bars: Not Made to Live Like Brutes.” The Annual Dante Lecture the Vanderbilt editions the Divine Comedy Created in the Fall of 2022, the Annual Dante Lecture at Vanderbilt celebrates the life and works of Dante Alighieri, one of the greatest poets in world literature. This lecture… Read More

    Oct 26, 2023

  • Vanderbilt University

    Miniature Books from the Vanderbilt Libraries

    New Exhibition in Special Collections: Miniature Books from the Vanderbilt Libraries by Molly Dohrmann A new exhibition, opening this fall in Special Collections, highlights some of the smallest books in our collections. For centuries miniature books have captured the imagination of readers around the world. Miniature books require specific skills… Read More

    Sep 16, 2022

  • Vanderbilt University

    Pop Up Exhibit: Octavia Butler

    Octavia Butler: Grand Dame of Science Fiction Central Library Lobby May-July 2022 Octavia Butler (1947-2006) was an American science fiction author.  In her early publishing career, she was one of the few Black women authors in a field dominated by white men.   Extremely shy as a child, she… Read More

    May 13, 2022

  • Vanderbilt University

    West Side Row: Vanderbilt’s First Dormitory

    Written by Elizabeth Mosiman When Vanderbilt University first opened in 1875, students lived in university-approved boarding houses near campus. The closest the university came to having a dormitory was Wesley Hall – a former boarding house – which served multiple purposes: housing faculty and divinity students; providing classroom space for… Read More

    Jul 1, 2021

  • Ediciones Vigia

    Curator’s Talk 1/23: Found in Cuba: The Ingenuity and Creativity of Ediciones Vigía

    Join the Special Collections Library for fascinating talks this semester led by librarians, archivists, and curators. Topics this fall will range from Cuban publishers to the history of paper making. The talks take place monthly in the Special Collections Reading Room on the second floor of the Central & Divinity… Read More

    Jan 22, 2020

  • Vanderbilt University

    Gorey and Grandville: curator’s talks explore two new exhibits featuring famous illustrators

    G is for Gorey: The Remarkable Worlds of Edward Gorey Vanderbilt University Central Library, 4th Floor Lobby February 3 – May 24, 2020 American illustrator and writer Edward St. John Gorey (1925-2000) rose to prominence in the late 1950s for his macabre slant on humorous fiction featuring Victorian and… Read More

    Jan 8, 2020

  • Vanderbilt University

    Curator’s Talk 12/5: Moon Walk: A Viewing of the July 21, 1969 Evening News

    Join the Special Collections Library for fascinating talks this semester led by librarians, archivists, and curators. Topics this fall will range from cookbook collections to the 1969 Moon Walk. The talks take place monthly in the Special Collections Reading Room on the second floor of the Central & Divinity Libraries… Read More

    Dec 2, 2019

  • Vanderbilt University

    Curator’s Talk 11/7: Black Studies As (A) Movement: Exhibiting Fifty Years of AADS @VU

    Join the Special Collections Library for fascinating talks this semester led by librarians, archivists, and curators. Topics this fall will range from cookbook collections to the 1969 Moon Walk. The talks take place monthly in the Special Collections Reading Room on the second floor of the Central & Divinity Libraries… Read More

    Nov 4, 2019

  • Vanderbilt University

    Exhibit Opening: All Hallows: Witches, Magic, and Things That Go Bump

    Halloween is a holiday traditionally celebrated each year on October 31.  The tradition dates to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain.   The Celtic new year began on November 1st, and October 31st was viewed as the dividing line between the end of the harvest season and the onset of winter. … Read More

    Oct 29, 2019