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Catherine Cooke exhibition

'Radio-orator' by G. Klutsis (p. 47 of 'Priemy leninskoi rechi' by A. Kruchenykh (Moscow : Izd. Vserossiiskogo soiuza poetov, 1928 (3rd ed.)) CCD.54.292

The University Library will be putting on an exhibition of treasures from its Catherine Cooke collection in 2012, running from July to December.

Dr Cooke bequeathed an incredible assortment of print material, posters, and ephemera to the Library. It reflects the focus of her own research and interests - architecture and design - and contains breathtaking items from late Imperial Russia and the entire Soviet period. The collection is kept together in its entirety as a Rare Books collection, and all material within it must be requested and consulted in the Rare Books room. The exhibition will allow the Library to share the delights of the collection with as wide an audience as possible. We hope to include in the exhibition items from the separate Cooke collection held in the Slavonic Studies department.

We are also delighted to share the news that the Departments of History of Art and Slavonic Studies will be running a symposium in conjunction with the Library and the exhibition. The symposium ('Design without frontiers: interdisciplinarity and collaboration in Soviet art, architecture and design') will take place in September 2012 and will be held primarily at CRASSH and partly in the Library. Click here for more details about the Symposium.

Plans for the exhibition are still at an early stage. Current plans are for it to feature examples of design and architecture relating to difference aspects of life in the Soviet Union, under the title 'A Soviet design for life'. These plans could change in the unlikely event of further and different inspiration. Further details will be shared as and when they are pinned down.