Illustration by Ariel Davis

Editors Note

Welcome to the seventh issue of Acid Free, a quarterly online publication of the Los Angeles Archivists Collective. 

While for many, the word “space” automatically conjures outer space, it turns out that archivists are often concerned with concepts of space much closer to home.

As collections are increasingly available digitally, archivists are aware of the labor that goes into what might seem to some the space-age magic of being clicks away from visiting the American Museum of Natural History as it was in 1956. And more material going digital hasn’t meant less concern for physical materials (at least, not less concern from archivists). The Wende Museum’s new home has impacted how the public views both the institution’s exhibitions and its archives, which is fitting for a museum devoted to how delineations of geographic space during the Cold War affected other ideological spaces as well. Several other Los Angeles-area repositories share their experiences with renovating or moving, creating new spaces more hospitable for both collections and staff.

We also see in this issue that even for archives housing collections concerned with galaxies far far away, the position of the archives within the more immediate constellation of campus buildings and conversations is an important

factor. Outer space-related archival collections in academic settings can connect to students looking to the past for Sci Fi inspiration, as in the case of one Star Trek collection. Finally, the theme of this Acid Free issue is further explored by two authors writing about the intersections of physical, geographical, and geopolitical spaces with artists and archives, whether through landscapes of the American West or memories of the Lebanese Civil War.

We hope you enjoy this issue, and as always we would love to hear from you! Email Acid Free at acidfree@laacollective.org, or give us a shout out @laacollective.

Spatial Dynamics

What space does the archives occupy in an institution focused on science and technology?

Wandering Through Time

Bringing the Historic Halls of the American Museum of Natural History into the digital age.

Spaces of Memory

Lori Dedeyan explores the role of archives in three artists’ projects dealing with the history and legacy of the Lebanese Civil War.

Exhibition Review

For it's inaugural exhibition in a new building, the Wende Museum explores how the Cold War shaped spaces geographic and ideological

Star Trek Publications @ UCI

A UC Irvine archival collection inspires new forays into Sci Fi on campus.

Space Renovations

Case studies of space renovations or moves recently undertaken by several LA-area repositories.

Archiving the J.B. Jackson Collections as Creative Research

Finding artistic inspiration in landscape studies collections.

Masthead

Editors
Jennie Freeburg and Melissa Haley

Outreach
Grace Danico and Courtney Dean

Web Production
Caroline Bautista and Alyssa Loera

Art Direction & Design
Grace Danico