University of Massachusetts Amherst librarian Ann Kardos has organized an incredible embroidery project to highlight the work of metadata librarians. Check it out!
Unseen Labor is an international library community-organizing embroidery project created by University of Massachusetts Amherst librarian Ann Kardos. Metadata work is not typically seen as creative work, but work that is guided by national standards, best practices, policies and guidelines in order to produce and maintain standard records for library resources that can be shared between institutions and vendors. Metadata librarians and catalogers create and maintain millions of library resources for our patrons, with whom we may rarely (if ever) interact, and we provide valuable backend support for our front-facing colleagues.
Embroidery, designed and stitched by Stacy Gordon
“Our Russian Blue, Dewey, contemplates cataloging.”
Stacy Gordon is a technical services supervisor at the Anchorage Public Library in Anchorage, Alaska. Her piece shows a blue-gray cat with green eyes. The cat is standing on a log next to the letter “a” stitched in red. Read together, the cat plus the letter “a” and the log create the title of the piece, Cat-a-log!
Unseen Labor
