Mar 04, 2020 Interdisciplinary Storytelling

By Anthony Sams

The University of Utah’s Marriott Library has a long-standing precedent for interdisciplinary collaboration. I have worked on visual storytelling projects with Book Arts, Preservation, The Writing Center, and the University of Utah Press, to name a few. The sharing of tools, knowledge, and personal skill sets is critical to creating momentum for the Marriott Library’s ongoing mission.

We recently finished a collaborative project with the Preservation Department documenting the restoration of the State of Idaho’s Constitution. Being in the presence of this one of a kind document was pure joy. The restoration of the Constitution made big waves around campus and across the State of Utah, bringing together both Governors from Utah/Idaho as well as President Ruth Watkins. Along with the Idaho Constitution, the Preservation Department also worked on the State of Utah’s Constitution. Having both documents side-by-side was the first time two state Constitutions were in the same room together.

My participation in the project included planning, scouting, and filming B-roll (supplemental footage) for Idaho’s PBS documentary on the creation of the State of Idaho’s Constitution. The documentary is scheduled to air on Friday, March 8th (preview documentary). Although this was not my first visual storytelling project with the Head of Preservation, Randy Silverman, it was a unique opportunity to not only collaborate with his staff, but also a chance to really get to know and understand the critical work that they do daily.

Working side-by-side with the paper conservator, Stacey Mei Kelly, I documented the process of restoring the text block. Her work not only focused on cleaning the pages of the Constitution, but also removing a laminate from several pages from an older restoration project. Jeff Hunt’s work as a Book Conservator ranged from resewing the Constitution’s text block to creating a one-of-a-kind process to reconstruct the document so that it is able to open and close with little stress on the document.

Crossing disciplines can sometimes be a tricky endeavor with communication and scheduling always an issue. Working directly with the staff of the Preservation Department, I worked around our busy schedules by creating open filming times and relying on texting for on-demand work. This type of interdisciplinary work makes work-life very fulfilling.

Anthony Sams | New Media Projects Specialist
Creativity & Innovation Services
tony.sams@utah.edu