On January 17, the Brizdle-Schoenberg Special Collections Center in the Alfred R. Goldstein Library opened the Sketchbook Library exhibition. Featuring 60 sketchbooks by Ringling College students, Sketchbook Library invites viewers to flip through artists’ raw thoughts, as transcribed onto paper. The sketchbooks encompass a variety of mediums, styles, and subject matters by students across all majors.
Ringling College of Art and Design students Muling Tzai ’26, Computer Animation, and Kiu Cheung 1’26, Motion Design, organized the show in collaboration with Special Collections Librarian and Archivist Cheri Marks. The exhibition was inspired by the two students’ shared passion for sketchbooks—a place for messy doodles and initial concepts that precede a finished work.
As objects taken on their own, the books tell non-linear stories about the places the students have been, the families they surround themselves with, and the mundane events and activities that are so relatable, like eating and washing hands. They monumentalize those small moments through their documentation.
Librarian Cheri Marks described the unique nature of the exhibit, “While our traditional setup involves works from the vault displayed in glass cases, the sketchbooks in this exhibit are laid out across tables in the Reading Room, inviting a more hands-on approach. This setup offers visitors an intimate experience, allowing them to explore each artist’s unfiltered thoughts, subjects, and personal stories as they turn the pages.”
The Sketchbook Library exhibition will be on view through February 14, 2025, in the Brizdle-Schoenberg Special Collections Center on the 2nd floor of the Alfred R. Goldstein Library.
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