Instructor: Justin Hanisch (Book Collector and Expert Curator). Description: We are inextricably linked to water. We build our cities near it, we rely on it as a medium of travel, we recreate on (and underneath!) it, and indeed, our bodies themselves are composed mostly of it. Given this vital relationship to water, it is perhaps no surprise that societies have long been fascinated by the organisms, especially fishes, that inhabit the world’s diverse aquatic realms. During this workshop, antiquarian book collector and curator, Justin Hanisch, will present select works from his collection of books on fishes, focusing on images of the animals from the 13th to 19th centuries. Justin will discuss some of the challenges illustrators and publishers faced “putting fish to paper” and provide examples of printing innovations used to help bring these fishes and their vibrant colours to life. Justin will also discuss the various ways he has used his collection as a source of scholarship and as an entrée into the larger world of bibliographic fellowship. Attendees will be invited to ask questions about fish, natural history, book collecting, and curation. This online workshop is open only to the University of Alberta community and is capped at 50 participants.

The website for Bruce Peel Special Collections offers detailed information about this series of workshops as well as information about research and exhibitions.