On the 22nd of September, Samoa House Library opened to the public. The library is an open and evolving educational platform emerging in response to the closure of our arts libraries, with a collection that is built and organised by the community - those directly affected by the changes happening at the University of Auckland.
Samoa House Library first and foremost acts as an alternative Fine Arts library, but also functions as a place of community development and communal learning; hosting workshops, lectures, screenings, critiques, and events taught by, and for, our community. Our approach is open and democratic, with an emphasis on horizontality and peer-to-peer education.
Samoa House Library is;
-
A library collection based off donations from our community of; artists, collectors, publishing houses, writers, and galleries.
-
A calendar of group discussions, classes, lectures, workshops, screenings and office hours.
-
An open and inclusive study space, meeting place, and working site.
-
A reading room with internet access.
-
A continually redesigned and re-authored space. We welcome critique, feedback and requests, in order to establish collective ownership and wide servitude.
Samoa House Library's collection has been organised through alternative means, according to our community, meaning that we are seeking and relying on the donations of books which we catalogue and systematise in a way that cites its donor. We need your help in order to establish Samoa House Library. If you are able to help financially, with donations of texts that you feel are relevant to creative research, or with donations of quality furniture please visit our donation page.
From the outset, discussions about the Elam library closure have revolved around its tremendous value, not only as a collection, but as a place: one in which people from our communities can meet, learn, and discover. Places like this are incredibly precious! We’ve opposed the University of Auckland's action, but it seems equally urgent at this point to act on our opposition in a generative way.
Samoa House Library would like to acknowledge the fact that our lift has not been working reliably for the last few months. We would like to apologize to everyone who has been unable to access our space easily because of this.
Please email us if you would like to access something in our collection but have accessibility needs that our space doesn’t meet - we are happy to arrange loans or scans for anyone affected.
