The CENL Books and Audiences Network Group continues its mission to address the challenges of book exhibitions by exploring innovative and engaging methods. On May 8–9, 2025, curators, designers, collection experts  library and other professionals whose daily work is related to book exhibitions are invited to meet at the National Library of Latvia (Riga) for the conference ‘New Directions in Library Exhibitions’.

Over  two days, participants will join panel discussions, hands-on workshops, and inspiring expert talks. They will hear case studies from partner institutions, visit exciting exhibitions, and get the chance to network and explore ideas for collaboration. It’s all about raising awareness about the unique qualities of library exhibitions.

The full program is still being finalized and will be shared soon. The latest version can be found here.

Key conference speakers

• Emilie Sitzia is Special Chair at the University of Amsterdam (Word and Image) and Associate Professor Cultural Education at the University of Maastricht, Netherlands. She currently holds a Cambridge Visual Culture Visiting Research Fellowship to work on a project titled ‘Common Sense: (Re)inventing a Social and Sensory Museology of the Illustrated Book’, working with Suzanne Reynolds and other Fitzwilliam colleagues.
   
• Suzanne Reynolds is Senior Curator of Manuscripts and Rare Books at The Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge, and a widely-published specialist in European medieval illuminated manuscripts and early printed books. She is responsible for all the book and archive displays in the Museum.
   
• Julian Harrison is Lead Curator of Medieval Historical and Literary Manuscripts at the British Library. He has curated major BL exhibitions on Magna Carta (2015), Harry Potter (2017) and Medieval Women (2024-25), as well as on Shakespeare at the Library of Birmingham (2016).
   
• Peter Lester is a researcher and archivist. He holds a Masters degree in Archive Administration from the University of Liverpool and a PhD in Museum Studies from the University of Leicester. His research interests focus on the exhibition and display of archives, encounters with archival material and the design and experience of archival spaces. He is also a professionally qualified archivist with over ten years’ experience in the UK archives sector. His book Exhibiting the Archive: Space, Encounter and Experience was published by Routledge in 2022.