Online Programs

Join us for these upcoming programs that will be streamed on Facebook and YouTube.

Billy Collins
Virtual Poetry Reading and Conversation

• Thursday, Dec. 3, 5 p.m. - Online

Billy Collins, one of America’s most celebrated and widely read poets, will read from his new collection Whale Day (Penguin Random House, 2020) and will then discuss his poetry with Ransom Center Director Stephen Enniss. U.S. Poet Laureate from 2001 to 2003, Collins is the author of 12 collections of poetry, including The Rain in Portugal, Aimless Love, Horoscopes for the Dead, Ballistics, The Trouble with Poetry, Nine Horses, and Sailing Alone Around the Room, among others. His new collection brings together more than 50 poems that highlight his deft mixing of the playful and the serious. Collins has said, “It is a good idea to get poetry off the shelves and into public life, ” and his “Poetry Broadcasts” on social media have infused poetry into the daily life of many during the COVID-19 pandemic, exemplifying the accessibility of his poetry.

The program will stream live on Facebook and YouTube. Have a question or comment for one of our speakers? Simply post them in the comments section.

Collection Connections

Hear intriguing stories in this online program series that connects remarkable items and personalities from a variety of library and museum collections. Join us every month to learn something new, discover one-of-a-kind collection items, and participate in live Q&A sessions.

Collection Connections: What Did Gutenberg Invent?

• Thursday, Dec. 10, 4:30 p.m.- Online


The Gutenberg Bible, famous as the first major book printed using moveable type in Europe, is one of the most recognizable objects at the Ransom Center. But what exactly did Gutenberg invent, and what was it good for? In our next virtual conversation across collections, we will explore the early history of printing by putting the Center’s Gutenberg Bible in conversation with a remarkable book in the UCLA Library Special Collections: a 16th-century volume printed in China that reproduces an 11th-century pharmacology treatise. Join Aaron T. Pratt, the Ransom Center's Pforzheimer Curator of Early Books and Manuscripts, and Devin Fitzgerald, UCLA’s Curator of Rare Books and History of Printing, as they contextualize Gutenberg’s innovation within the long and vibrant history of woodblock printing in Asia.

Facebook Event

The program will stream live on Facebook and YouTube. Have a question or comment for one of our speakers? Simply post them in the comments section.

Curatorial Perspectives: A look at Frida Kahlo’s Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird

• Tuesday, Dec. 15, 7 p.m. – Online

Same iconic painting, two very different museum exhibitions. Learn how Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird by Frida Kahlo has been interpreted in recent exhibitions at the New York Botanical Garden and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Housed at the Harry Ransom Center, the painting is one of Kahlo’s best-known artworks and has been exhibited worldwide. Join Ransom Center Curator of Art Tracy Bonfitto, who will host a discussion with curators Adriana Zavala and Layla Bermeo to explore how varied curatorial choices and contextual environments may enhance our understanding of Kahlo and her work.

This program will be posted on the Ransom Center Facebook page and YouTube channel. Be sure to like or subscribe to our accounts for notifications when new videos are posted.

Frida Kahlo (Mexican, 1907–1954), Untitled [Self-portrait with thorn necklace and hummingbird], 1940. Oil on canvas mounted to board, 62.5 x 48.0 cm. Courtesy Harry Ransom Center. © 2017 Banco de México Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museums Trust, Mexico, D.F. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York