Throughout the spring semester, from March 5th to May 29th, the Norman and Carole A. Barham Rotunda in the Rosenthal Library at Queens College is home to an exhibition celebrating “The Bookplate: Imprints and Impressions,” curated by students in INFO 7990.1 Curatorial Studies.
At the event, guest speaker Corina Reynolds, Executive Director of the Center for Book Arts, opened the exhibition and discussed the organization’s mission to advocate for books as art, encompassing all aspects of the book, from paper to publishing. Having shared her personal experience creating a bookplate inspired by the silent film, “Seventh Heaven,” Reynolds emphasized the enduring significance of physical books in the digital age. Highlighting the collaborative effort behind publishing and the curatorial message of personal book collections.
“Once you put together a massive collection of books that you particularly find important, there is a curatorial message behind that,” said Reynolds. “Putting a bookplate in those books identifies them as part of that collection and at the same time is an opportunity for somebody in the future to discover that idea.”
A historic tradition originating in 15th century Germany, ex libris, or bookplates, indicate ownership, and are typically seen within a book’s front cover. Illustrative detailing, often featuring the owner’s signature or a personalized design in a decorative fashion, acted as early forms of personal branding.
The QC exhibition offers more than just a glimpse into historical traditions of book ownership; it provides a framework for understanding how we brand ourselves and protect what we value. Through intricate heraldry, mottos, and illustrations, book owners communicated their social status, intellectual interests, and personal identities to anyone who opened their volumes.
In accordance with the Queens College Library Blog Post, Cover to Cover, “The Bookplate: Imprints and Impressions” was co-curated by Myra Rodriguez Campolo, Skye Chilberg, Amerigo Cleffi, Karin Fjellman, and Karen Tiimko; with contributions provided by Nande Walters and Kit Moszynski, alongside the heart of this exhibit, the personal collection from Doctor James Lowry.
“Our students are training to be information professionals. I wasn’t surprised that they were able to dig up so much detailed information about the provenance and former owners of the bookplates in this exhibition. It was really impressive,” said Doctor Lowry, the current Ellen Libretto and Adam Conrad Endowed Chair in Information Studies, and Professor of Spring’s INFO 7990.1 Curatorial Studies.
Lowry added, “The School of Information Studies is deeply connected with libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions in New York, and those connections are growing as we launch new joint programs with Art History, English, Media Studies, and Urban Studies. It is an exciting time to be a Queens College graduate student.”
As an honorable mention, Natalia Maliga, a book conservator, shared her experience and wisdom from her background in printmaking and exhibition as a class contributor, which helped to design a narrative that resonates with a modern audience.
“It feels really great to be able to contribute and do something that’s really meaningful, and that the graduate students of the Library of Information Science program get to show off what we do,” said Natalia. “Bookplates are personal items, and there could be such rigid detail in the artist that’s placed inside the bookplate, and I hope that people take a moment to really point out the fine details in some of these items.”
So what is one imprint from this exhibition that every student at QC should see before it closes? When asked, Lowry encouraged members of the QC community to answer the question themselves: “That’s difficult to answer. The students did such a good job of selecting and arranging the materials in the exhibition that it’s hard not to think of it as a well-curated, cohesive whole. I hope visitors to the library will take a look and choose their own favorite pieces.”
The exhibition will remain on display in the Benjamin Rosenthal Library Rotunda throughout the Spring 2026 semester. Students, faculty, and visitors are encouraged to explore the display cases and consider what their own imprint might look like.
