Christopher Walsh

Christopher Walsh

I am a PhD candidate in Communication, Information, and Media at Rutgers University’s School of Communication and Information, in the Library and Information Science concentration. I received a Master of Information, concentrating in Archives & Preservation, from Rutgers in 2021. My research interests center on how documents are used in the construction of memory, heritage, culture, and identities, how communities circulate, understand, and re-contextualize physical records and books, and the role of cultural and information institutions in organizing document and artifactual knowledge.

Research & Dissertation

My current research focus is on the organization and exchange information in manuscript and printed book forms, how it is transferred, catalogued, and classified in digital community archival projects, and the networks of translation and physical practice that inform community identity and development. I explore the relationship between rare books, contemporary heritage production, embodied practice, and affective experience.

My dissertation, “‘Bringing Back to Life the Dead Arts’ : Reconstructing the Past and Building the Present in the Book Culture of Historical European Martial Arts” is a study on the development and activities of community book cultures and the production and circulation of digital and physical textual corpora. I combine historical approaches with bibliography, Discourse Analysis, and visual methods to analyze the formation and development of a textual heritage community of martial arts scholars and practitioners in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, with a special focus on 19th century foundations of book collecting and martial arts revival that underpin the modern movement.

I am advised by Dr. Marija Dalbello.

Education

  • PhD Candidate, Communication, Information, & Media (Library Science Department), Rutgers University, School of Communication, Information, and Media (2021-present).
  • Master of Information, Rutgers University – New Brunswick (2021). ALA-accredited. Archives & Preservation concentration.
  • BA in History, Michigan State University (2011). Asian Studies Specialization.

Additional Education

London Rare Books School, IES, SAS, London

  • Recognising and Dating English Bookbindings, 1450-1850 (2021)

London International Paleography School, IES, SAS, London

  • Introduction to the Codicology of Medieval Manuscripts (2022)
  • Introduction to Palaeography and Medieval Manuscript Studies (2021)
  • Early Modern English Palaeography 1500-1700 (2021)

Mandarin Training Center, National Taiwan Normal University

  • Intensive Program (2015) in Mandarin Chinese

Conference Presentations

  • Walsh, C. (2025, September) The Modern Translation, Circulation, and Publishing of Historical European Fight Books [paper presentation]. Trextuality 2: Material Turns in Translation – Intermediality and Circulation. Galway, Ireland
  • Walsh, C. (2025, July) Nostalgia for an Imagined Past: Martial Arts Book Publishing & (Re)Building [paper presentation]. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing: Communities & Values of the Book. Rochester, United States
  • Walsh, C. (2024, July). “Look up with Renaissance eyes”: Facsimiles, Authenticity, and Aesthetic Reading in Communities of Readers [paper presentation]. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing: Global Book Cultures. Reading, United Kingdom
  • Wingate, A., Constantinou, M., Forget, E., Walsh, C. (2024, July). Meeting in the Middle: Collaborations between ILS and Book History [roundtable panel]. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing: Global Book Cultures. Reading, United Kingdom
  • Walsh, C. (2024, June). Discover, Retrieve, Edit, Publish: Finding & Reading Historical Martial Arts Books Online [paper presentation]. Researching the Reading Experience in the Digital Age. Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Walsh, C. (2023, June). Historical European Martial Arts as a Textual Community of Practice: Surveying Sites of Learning, Meaning, Identity. Society for the History Authorship, Reading, and Publishing: Affordances and Interfaces. Conducted online.
  • Walsh, C. (2023, February ). “Mutable Deceptions:” Prop Newspapers, Truth, and Lies in Chaosium’s “Call of Cthulhu [paper presentation]. Print: Theories, Histories & Futures. 25th Annual Comparative Literature Conference. Hybrid/University of South Carolina
  • Walsh, C. (2022, September). Crowdfunding Digital Fight Books: A Historical European Martial Arts Case Study [paper presentation]. DH+BH: An Interdisciplinary Conference on Digital Humanities and Book History. Conducted online.
  • Walsh, C. (2022, July). Rare Book Facsimiles in Communities of Practice: Authenticity, Heritage, and Feeling [paper presentation]. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing: Power of the Written Word, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
  • Walsh, C., Wingate, A., Brown, S., Jacobson, C., St. Jean, M., Murray, G. (2022, July). Being Bookish Online: Digital Platforms & Building Community During COVID-19 [roundtable panel]. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing: Power of the Written Word, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
  • Walsh, C. (2022, April). Playing the Real: Creating Documentary Authenticity in Chaosium’s “Call of Cthulhu” [paper presentation]. Pop Culture Association 2022 National Conference. Online.
  • Walsh, C. (2021, July). Rekindling Tradition: Fight Books, Digital Archives, & Heritage in Historical European Martial Arts [paper presentation]. Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing: Moving Texts. Online.
  • Walsh, C. (2021, June). Bringing Back to Life the Dead Arts: Medieval and Early Modern Books and the Making of Heritage in Historical European Martial Arts [paper presentation] EMREM 2021 Annual Symposium. Conducted online.

Awards & Recognition

  • Library and Information Science Support Fund Award, School of Communication & Information, Rutgers University (2025)
  • SC&I Deans’ Excellence for PhD Students Award, School of Communication & Information, Rutgers University (2025)
  • The Grolier Club Library William H. Helfand Fellowship, The Grolier Club (2025). Research project title: “’Private gentlemen devoted to the noble science’: Combat, dueling, and fencing books in private collections and public auctions”
  • Caxton Club Fellowship for Midwestern Bibliographers, The Bibliographical Society of America (2025) Research project title: “‘A Midwest Maestro’s Library:’ The Fencing Book Collection of Charles R. Schmitter.”
  • Distinguished Achievement as a Teaching Assistant award, Department of Library and Information Science, School of Communication & Information, Rutgers University (2024)
  • SC&I Fellowship, School of Communication and Information, Rutgers University, 2021-2022
  • Sambrook Award Bursary. London International Paleography Summer School, IES, SAS, London (2021, 2022)
  • Outstanding Academic Achievement award, Department of Library and Information Science, School of Communication & Information, Rutgers University (2020)

Teaching

17:610:580 Knowledge & Society (Instructor of Record, 2024-2025)

This course provides an introduction to the production, dissemination, and consumption of knowledge in society, related to roles of information professionals and the functions of libraries and other information institutions. Differences among disciplines in how knowledge is recorded and transmitted. Global issues and trends in society that have affected scholarly communication and the access to information for the public.

A foundational requirement for the Archives & Preservation concentration in the Master of Information program at Rutgers University-New Brunswick School of Communication and Information.

04:547:200 Social Informatics (Instructor of Record, Fall 2023. Teaching Assistant, Fall 2022 & Spring 2023)

This course provides a survey of the key social issues related to information technology development, decision-making and use. Its focus is on the critical analysis of social, cultural, philosophical, ethical, legal, public policy and economic issues relating to information technologies, and how these interactions shape workplace decisions and technology use.

A required course in the Information Technology and Informatics major at Rutgers University-New Brunswick School of Communication and Information.

Additional Experience

Board Member, American Museum of Magic, Marshall, Michigan.

  • Board Secretary (2022), Vice Chair (2022-2023)
  • On the Collections Committee, I contribute to library and museum collections development and cataloguing, coordinate archival collections preservation and processing, and oversee some archival and library volunteers.
  • On the Grant Committee, I assist with funding projects to sustain the operations of the museum, support staff, and develop new exhibits and programs, including a $25,000 IMLS grant application in 2024 for the expansion of the Museum’s physical preservation and collections organization capabilities.
  • I oversaw the implementation of Catalogit.app as a digital cloud-based collections management software.

Memberships

  • Bibliographical Society of America (BSA)
  • Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing (SHARP)
  • The Caxton Club
  • The Early Book Society
  • Beta Phi Mu, Omicron Chapter

Languages

  • English (Native)
  • Mandarin Chinese (conversational, reading. Traditional and Simplified)
  • Japanese (basic)
  • Korean (basic)
  • Latin (basic)