Dr Karen Di Franco
banner
archivist23.bsky.social
Dr Karen Di Franco
@archivist23.bsky.social
Senior Lecturer, MA Curating & Collections | Programme Curator, Chelsea Space | Chelsea College of Arts, UAL 🍩 Archives, Reproduction (artists' publishing), Feminisms, Writing 📐 Personal account 📎

linktr.ee/karendifranco
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
I’ve written a piece on the curious lack of media and political interest in the issues faced by our national @britishlibrary.bsky.social. This is strange given we live in a world where ideas, knowledge and research are a long-term source of innovation and insight
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
The British library is in crisis: why does nobody care?
The widespread indifference to the British Library's crippling cyberattack demonstrates a perilous failure to value the knowledge infrastructure vital for national prosperity
www.cityam.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:27 AM
Niche posting as I’m well aware that the subject is not of wide interest BUT: I’ve contributed an essay on Peter Fuller’s critical writing on magazines as published in magazines across the 1970s and 80s for the latest British Art Studies Journal. Part of the ‘One Object’ series [continued]..
November 14, 2025 at 6:06 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
Amelia Acker: "Each chapter introduces data archiving processes that relate to the evolution of data sovereignty...: from magnetic tape + timesharing computer models from the 1950s,... to file structures + virtual containers in cloud-based information services over the past 40 yrs" — open access!
Archiving Machines
Archiving Machines advances our understanding of memory, information, and data by charting the struggle between the computing technologies that archive data ...
mitpress.mit.edu
November 11, 2025 at 11:28 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
"Veterans Say No. No ICE. No Cuts. No Occupation."
Today in Chicago. Photograph by Aaron Cynic.
November 11, 2025 at 10:04 PM
It’s still weird to me that people might read stuff I’ve published and find it interesting.
November 11, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Soft launching this second hand leather jacket I got at the weekend.
November 10, 2025 at 9:26 AM
This is kind of wonderful.
November 9, 2025 at 6:09 PM
It's taken a few weeks (due to life/work), but I've finally finished painting my bedroom. I just have half of the living room and the hallway to do now. My flat is tiny but somehow it's taking forever. I also took a long time to decide on colours.
November 9, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Very excited to spot a new bird in the tree today — not quite sure what it was — quite large, brown / beige with whiteish spots ?
November 7, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Bonfire Night/Mamdani celebrations 🔥
November 5, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Ooh I have this excellent book -- and hopefully can join this talk! (thanks Nick for posting) :-)
On 11/24, @nysnetwork.bsky.social is hosting a free online event for Women in Independent Publishing, the incredible collection of interviews with women editors & publishers assembled by Stephanie Anderson

feat. Maureen Owen, Patricia Spears Jones, & MC Hyland!

www.unmpress.com/978082636707...
November 5, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
On 11/24, @nysnetwork.bsky.social is hosting a free online event for Women in Independent Publishing, the incredible collection of interviews with women editors & publishers assembled by Stephanie Anderson

feat. Maureen Owen, Patricia Spears Jones, & MC Hyland!

www.unmpress.com/978082636707...
November 5, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
Thank you, New York City. Together we made history.

Now let’s get to work.

transition2025.com
November 5, 2025 at 4:58 PM
As ever, if yr accepting honours on behalf of the British Empire (!) you are aligning yourself with colonialism. You can’t have it both ways — it doesn’t help any causes it only reinforces the state. The only way to change it is to destroy it.
November 5, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Bon Appetit Your Majesty somehow manages to combine Korean medieval court intrigue and competitive cooking.
November 4, 2025 at 9:22 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
if you want to know what happened to Teen Vogue yesterday, my work wife @allegrak.bsky.social — who ran our politics section for 6 years until this past June — said it all in this.

can't even pull out a favorite part til I sign my separation letter lol, just read the whole thing.
What We Lost When Condé Nast Unceremoniously Shuttered Teen Vogue
This article is part of TPM Cafe, TPM’s home for opinion and news...
talkingpointsmemo.com
November 4, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
They're shutting down every enclave of independent and critical thought in big media.

From Vogue's announcement of its takeover:

"Teen Vogue will focus its content on career development, cultural leadership and other issues that matter most to young people."

In other words, teaching compliance
I was laid off from Teen Vogue today along with multiple other staffers, and today is my last day.

certainly more to come from me when the dust has settled more, but to my knowledge, after today, there will be no politics staffers at Teen Vogue.
November 3, 2025 at 8:08 PM
So warm outside it’s creepy.
November 3, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Hard to work because I keep getting distracted by the woodpeckers in the tree outside my window.
November 2, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Reposted by Dr Karen Di Franco
The ceasefire continues according to virtually every media outlet. Israel is demolishing entire neighbourhoods in Gaza to make sure Palestinians never go back.

The genocide is ongoing
Israel razes entire neighbourhoods east of Khan Younis: Report
<article data-history-node-id="430958" about="https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/israel-razes-entire-neighbourhoods-east-khan-younis-report" class="live-blog-update default clearfix"> <h2> <a href="https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/israel-razes-entire-neighbourhoods-east-khan-younis-report" rel="bookmark"> <span class="field field-title">Israel razes entire neighbourhoods east of Khan Younis: Report</span> </a> </h2> <div class="content"> <div class="field field-field-text"><article data-scroll-anchor="true" data-testid="conversation-turn-110" data-turn="assistant" data-turn-id="request-6901b48e-cf20-832a-9f2e-41bb2cc7fcbc-38" dir="auto" tabindex="-1"> <p data-end="277" data-start="76">Israeli occupation forces are bulldozing large swathes of land east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, destroying what little remains of homes and infrastructure after months of relentless bombardment.</p> <p data-end="447" data-start="279">Al Jazeera's correspondent on the ground reported that the army is conducting extensive demolition operations in the area, flattening residential blocks and farmland.</p> </article> </div> </div> </article>
www.middleeasteye.net
November 1, 2025 at 11:33 PM
It took all day yesterday to schlep over to Ikea and back on public transport, but today I have proper curtain rails and one more task is off the long list of home improvements.
November 2, 2025 at 9:42 AM
Can hear the very loud rumble from the firework display at Blackheath.
November 1, 2025 at 9:14 PM
Please stop sending Jonathan Jones to review stuff, it's embarrasing.
October 31, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Thinking about all the letters between Alison Knowles and Carolee Schneemann where they’re discussing their work, their lives, recipes and other such stuff. RIP Alison Knowles.
October 30, 2025 at 10:22 PM