ARLIS/NA Ontario

2006 Annual Report

 

 

 

 

Executive Committee 2006

Chair

Michele Laing (University of Waterloo)

 

Vice-Chair

Janet Muise (CBC)

 

Secretary

Randall Speller (Art Gallery of Ontario)

 

Treasurer & Membership Secretary

Robert Fabbro (Ontario College of Art & Design)

 

Student Representative

Lawrence Stewart (University of Toronto)

 

Executive Committee 2007

Chair

Janet Muise (CBC)

 

Vice-Chair

Vacant

 

Secretary

Randall Speller (Art Gallery of Ontario)

 

Treasurer & Membership Secretary

Robert Fabbro (Ontario College of Art & Design)

 

Student Representative

Vacant

 

 

 

 

 

Overview

Like most Chapters, ARLIS/NA ON struggled with the question of signing the ARLIS/NA Affiliation Agreement. This issue figured prominently in meetings and online discussions beginning at the Banff conference and only ended in late November when those participating voted unanimously to sign the agreement. The ramifications of this decision are just beginning to be felt.

 

To soften the impact of two-tiered membership and encourage members to step forward as officers, it was agreed that the Chapter would pay 2007 ARLIS/NA membership dues for the Chair and Vice-Chair during this transition year. As of this writing, the Vice-Chair position remains open and we are awaiting news regarding the number of Ontario members who renewed their ARLIS/NA membership. The Executive Board also agreed to scale back the Chapter donation to the conference welcome party from US$500.

to US $100. We will contribute a raffle basket again in 2007.

 

ARLIS/NA ON has at its core a small group of hardworking, long time members committed to making the Chapter an important vehicle for sharing experiences and disseminating information, and for providing professional development opportunities to its members. Membership has remained fairly static over the past few years. As people begin to contemplate retirement, the challenge of increasing our membership, especially from underrepresented populations such as those in the early stages of their career, assumes increasing importance in shaping the activities of the Chapter.

 

Membership & Communications

As of March 2006, the Chapter numbered 48 members, 20 of whom were also members of ARLIS/NA. Last year’s goal of encouraging student membership through reduced rates for membership and meetings resulted in 5 students from the University of Toronto’s School of Information Studies joining the Chapter. One of these students, Lawrence Stewart, was elected to the newly established position of Student Representative on the Executive Board by his peers. Twenty members were also members of ARLIS/NA. Effort was made to ensure contact information for all members was up to date throughout the year. Discussions centred on the viable geographic reach of ARLIS/NA ON, compiling a list of potential new members and contacting them, attracting more student members, and chapter benefits we might offer that could stimulate membership. A survey, distributed at the Spring Chapter meeting and returned by 19 people, provided information helpful for planning future meetings. The majority:

• prefer Friday as a meeting day
• want to attend a meeting outside of Toronto (within 1-2 hours away) in either the spring or fall
• will pay up to $30. for meeting registration, and some are willing to pay more if needed
• prefer a catered lunch
• believe the demonstration of new resources or a focused discussion on an issue would further entice them to attend meetings
• About 50% of respondents receive institutional support for Chapter and meeting registration

 

The Executive Board maintained regular contact throughout the year via e-mail and met several times in Toronto to discuss issues and to plan Chapter meetings. Special messages regarding affiliation were sent to members for information and discussion prior to the official electronic vote in November.

 

It was decided to move the Chapter website from space provided by the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Information Science to a commercial hosting service. Simultaneously, the pages were updated and revamped to add missing content and to make them more legible and aesthetically appealing, courtesy of our webmaster, Eric Schwab. Creating a “members only” section of the website is also being considered. The ARLIS/NA ON newsletter, published twice in 2006, has become the primary organ for distributing news about upcoming meetings, past meeting minutes, and other items of interest to the membership. Under the creative guidance of editor, Daniel Payne, the newsletter now sports a colourful logo and layout. Janet Muise’s wonderful photo’s enliven the text and show what a truly congenial group we are.

 

Finances and Awards

The Chapter began the year with in excess of $6,000. revenue. To afford greater transparency of the distribution and spending of membership fees, fundraising and silent auction monies, the following was agreed upon:

• Creation of a contingency fund of $2,500.
• Travel Award(s) are funded through donations, fundraising, and meeting profits and recorded on a separate budget line each year; top up money to a total of $750./award will be taken from the regular account as required
• Membership fees are used for cover regular Chapter expenses

 

To show support to our colleagues hosting the Banff ARLIS/NA conference, the Chapter donated US$500. towards the welcoming party, contributed a basket of goodies to be raffled, and offered three travel awards each worth $750. to encourage as many of our members as possible to attend. The 2006 Travel Awards were given to:

Catherine Spence (Student, Faculty of Information Studies, University of Toronto and Library Assistant, Fine Art Library, University of Toronto)

Randall Speller (Reference Librarian/Documentalist, Art Gallery of Ontario) who gave a talk on “Canadian Books and Artists” for the session “Art Books, Book Arts, Books in Art: the Canadian Chronicle”

Heather Saunders (Student, Faculty of Information Studies, University of Toronto) who presented her paper on Internet art for the session, “New Voices in the Profession: Student Papers on Art & Visual Resources Librarianship”

 

More intense fundraising became necessary to raise money in support of these and future travel awards. To that end, a 50/50 draw based on the theme of well known art and architecture books was suggested and designed by Janet Muise and Lynda Barnett, both of the CBC Image Research Library. It was used three times throughout the year with great enthusiasm and success. Members also contributed books and items for silent auction. The Chapter ended the year with a healthy balance of $4,292.15.

 

Chapter Meetings and Events

The Chapter sponsored two formal meetings and one special meeting during the year.

 

Spring Meeting: 15 June 2006, York University, Toronto

Mary Kandiuk, Visual Arts, Design & Theatre Librarian hosted the event which was attended by 19 members.

As part of the business meeting, Marilyn Nasserden, Chair of ARLIS/Canada and our representative to ARLIS/NA, joined us to lead an informative discussion about Chapter Affiliation. Highlights of the afternoon included a guided tour of York’s new Fine Arts facilities, Accolade, a walking tour of campus art and new, award winning buildings, and a visit to the Stan Douglas exhibition on view at the Art Gallery of York University.

 

Affiliation Meeting:  13 October 2006, Ontario College of Art & Design, Toronto

All members were invited to attend this informal evening meeting to discuss the arguments for and against signing the ARLIS/NA Chapter Affiliation Agreement.

 

Fall Meeting:  20 October 2006, Anderson Gallery, University at Buffalo, Buffalo NY

Sixteen members plus guests traveled to Buffalo for a joint meeting hosted by the Western NY Chapter of ARLIS/NA shortly after that city had been devastated by a major storm. In spite of fallen trees and branches barring some streets and continuing power outages across the state, our hosts gave us a warm welcome and an excellent programme. The theme of the meeting was Frank Lloyd Wright in Buffalo. Prof. Jack Quinan, University at Buffalo, began the meeting with an entertaining and enlightening presentation by on FLW’s impact on Buffalo architecture and, more particularly, on the history of the Darwin D. Martin House.  Following a joint Chapter question and answer period relating to affiliation issues, each group separated to hold their business meetings. A tour of the recently restored Darwin D. Martin house and Visitor’s Reception Center, followed by an informal tea and cookies reception at the Albright Knox Gallery Library rounded out the afternoon’s activities.

 

Upcoming Events

Spring Meeting: 27 April 2007, Grimsby Public Library and Gallery, Grimsby

The theme is Public Art Galleries in Small Centres: Roles & Resources and coincides with the annual Wazgoose Bookarts Fair, a gathering of Private Presses from Canada and the United States held the following day.

Fall Meeting: There are tentative plans to hold a meeting in Ottawa or

Hamilton.

 

 

Report Submitted by Michele Laing, Past Chair

10 April 2007