Digital Studies Research Meetings

Absent a brick-and-mortar writer’s museum for James Baldwin (1924-87) in the U.S., this presentation introduces an open-access digital collection entitled “Chez Baldwin.” Mounted and maintained by the University of Michigan Library, it will recreate Baldwin’s house for the public through digital imaging, GIS mapping, 3D printing, architectural blueprints, and a hand-made architectural model of the historic structure. The first digital collection of this kind focusing on black queer domesticity and an internationally recognized African American literary figure, it will provide accessible information about the writer’s everyday life and writing routines that remain opaque to academic and non-academic audiences alike.