UC Davis Library

Thank you to everyone who participated in the library’s dedication of our new mural last week! It was a joyous occasion celebrating a joyous and inspirational work of art by students, for students.

Drawing on the Chicanx tradition of muralism and collective strength through storytelling, the mural was created during spring quarter by undergraduates in the Mural Workshop (ART 171/CHI 171) taught by Jose Arenas, director of Taller Arte del Nuevo Amanecer (TANA), through the UCD Chicana/o Studies Department.

A special thank you to student artists Brandon Cortes Cardenas, Sharick Gomez and Samuel Cervantes, who shared their experiences working on the mural, and to Jose Arenas, who discussed the creative process behind the design. You have truly left your mark with this beautiful and uplifting artwork, which will be enjoyed by generations of Aggies for years to come.

Image description:
UC Davis undergraduates Samuel Cervantes, Brandon Cortes Cardenas and Sharick Gomez stand in front of a colorful, floor-to-ceiling mural.

Have you seen the Fleetfield Gallery Dog Art Display at Shields Library? It’s un-fur-gettable!

Located on the lower level of Shields (head down the main staircase and look to your right), the display features a rotating selection of dog-themed art and books donated by the Sheila Grant Fleetfield Dog Museum and Library.

Sheila Grant (1950-2017) was an animal behaviorist, professional dog handler, lifelong dog lover, and longtime volunteer with the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

The current selection features a couple dozen pieces from the collection of more than 500 works of art, mostly greyhounds and Afghan hounds, Grant’s favorite breed. It also shows how dog art can be incorporated into functional objects, including a door knocker, candle holder, walking cane, and a 1958 Afghan hound TV lamp. Can you spot them all?

Check out the display and learn more about the collection: https://bit.ly/fleetfield-2026

Image Description:
1. Three ceramic dog figurines: a reclining Afghan hound, a dog in a floral dress holding a small white dog, and an Afghan hound in a red vest holding a pom-pom.
2. Silver souvenir spoon with a greyhound head on the handle, stamped with text reading “Greyhound Hall of Fame, Abilene, KS.”
3. Wooden walking cane with a brass band and a carved dog head handle.
4. Bronze-colored sculpture of a dog with its paws on a chair, looking at a black cat sitting on the seat. Small greyhound figurines and a ceramic Afghan hound surround it.
5. Green ceramic lamp base shaped like two greyhounds running over swirling waves, with a painted greyhound tile in front.

It's time to apply for the 2026-27 UC Davis Library Graduate Student Prize!

Currently enrolled UC Davis graduate students, professional students and postdoctoral scholars can win up to $1,000 for their research using library resources.

Learn more and apply by December 4: https://buff.ly/uixJXxW

Image description:
Photo of two 2025-26 Library Graduate Prize winners holding award certificates on teal blue watercolor background with white text that reads Library Graduate Student Prize, Prizes up to $1,000!, Apply by December 4, bit.ly/GradPrize, with UC Davis Library logo.

The Library Journal recently interviewed University Librarian and Vice Provost of Digital Scholarship William Garrity about UC Davis Library's role as a "third place" — where Aggies can learn and build community beyond their homes and classrooms.

"The library is helping set students on a successful academic trajectory, in a place where they can be really comfortable."
- William Garrity, UC Davis Library

Read the interview, "Student Belonging and the Library as Third Place": https://www.libraryjournal.com/story/academiclibraries/arl-unbound-student-belonging-and-the-library-as-third-place

📷️ : Gregory Urquiaga

Image description:
William Garrity stands in front of the Academic Assistance and Tutoring Center space at Shields Library, with his hand resting on a sign for tutoring sign ups. Behind him is a tutoring schedule on a whiteboard, students sitting at tables and a sign for chemistry drop-in tutoring.

Happy National Coffee Day! ☕

Exciting to see this new partnership between the UC Davis Coffee Center and the Specialty Coffee Association to support the next generation of coffee researchers here at UC Davis!

The library is proud to have the SCA Records, which preserves the history of the Specialty Coffee Association, as part of the library’s growing Coffee and Tea Collections.

Check out our online exhibit to learn more about the evolution of the coffee industry: https://buff.ly/Scak564

A $1 million investment in the future of coffee science will support the next generation of researchers at the UC Davis Coffee Center in the College of Engineering. ☕️

The Specialty Coffee Association has established the Specialty Coffee Association Endowed Fellowship in Coffee Science, providing ongoing support for graduate students conducting research across disciplines including engineering, chemistry, sensory science, brewing, roasting and postharvest processing.

The fellowship will also expand opportunities for international scholars, particularly students from coffee-producing regions, bringing new perspectives and experiences into coffee research at UC Davis.

Read more about the endowed fellowship: https://ow.ly/IRNF50ZPTNb



Image description: William Ristenpart, founding director of the UC Davis Coffee Center, and Yannis Apostolopoulos, CEO of the Specialty Coffee Association, sit together in the Coffee Center near roasters. They hold coffee cups up and sit with various coffee-related items.

Happy 100th anniversary, Nugget Market! 🎉

Nugget Market opened its first store in Woodland in September 1926. Known for its passion for produce, partnerships with regional farms and producers, and community and employee engagement, Nugget today serves Woodland, Davis, Vacaville, the greater Sacramento area, Marin County and Sonoma Valley.

We’re excited to offer a glimpse of this local food history in our collections:

📷️ "Students shopping at Nugget Market, December 12, 2002." Neil Michel Axiom Photograph Collection, AR-195.
Nugget Markets are a staple grocery store for Davis residents and UC Davis students alike. Here, UC Davis students shop the aisles for fresh produce and pantry staples.

Neil Michel, co-owner of Axiom, was the principal freelance photographer for UC Davis from 1991-2008, covering campus events and promotional photography needs.

📷️ "Nugget Market Booth Dressed by Future Farmers, undated." Paul W. Hollingshead Photography Collection, D-742.
Nugget Market has awarded prizes to participants in its promotions since its early years. This undated photograph shows a window display created by Future Farmers that won $10 from Nugget Market.

The Paul W. Hollingshead collection documents life in Northern California from the 1930s-1960s including photographs of Woodland.

📷️ "Nugget Market's Chinese Kitchen (Woodland, CA) announcement featuring Ladd Wong, Head Chinese Chef, ca. 1989." Chicago Cafe Records, D-822.
In June 2000, Nugget Market opened its new concept “Super-Store” in Davis on E. Covell Blvd. The new store featured Nugget’s signature efforts to offer high-quality, fresh, prepared foods from a range of cuisines to customers including a delicatessen, made-to-order sushi, a coffee-and-juice bar, Boulangerie bakery, and a Chinese Kitchen, featured here at the other Davis location.

The Chicago Cafe Records consist of photographs, menus and ephemera from one of the oldest continuously operating Chinese restaurants in the United States, located in Woodland, California. View the digital collection here: https://buff.ly/w8FocIK

Image descriptions:
Left: Two students wearing UC Davis sweatshirts smile in Nugget's produce section, one weighing bananas on a scale.
Top right: Window display featuring cow figurines, canned goods, and illustrations of cows.
Bottom right: Announcement for Nugget's Chinese Kitchen and take out led by Head Chef Ladd Wong, on yellow background framed with bamboo illustration.

The UC Davis Library offers research travel grants in the amount of $2,500 to support use of our distinctive collections in Archives and Special Collections and/or our Food and W**e collections.

Our 2027 travel grant application period is currently open. Independent scholars and academics working at institutions other than UC Davis are invited to apply by Thursday, October 1.

Learn more: https://buff.ly/k0MiNKF

📷️ : 2026 Research Travel Grant recipient Keri Matwick (UC Davis Library/Kevin Miller)

Image description:
A woman smiles holding a backpack in front of the glass door entrance to the UC Davis Library Archives and Special Collections Department. Next to her is a large red banner that reads "Archives and Special Collections" above four book illustrations. White text overlay on a navy blue background reads "Apply Now: 2027 Research Travel Grants."

Wendell Berry, a giant among environmental writers, has passed at the age of 92.

Our Archives and Special Collections Department holds an important collection on environmental writing, which includes writings and correspondence from Berry in the personal papers of Jordan Fisher Smith, George Sessions and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Gary Snyder, a UC Davis professor emeritus of English.

Author Chad Wriglesworth accessed Berry's letters in the Gary Snyder Papers to produce his book Distant Neighbors: The Selected Letters of Wendell Berry and Gary Snyder (2014).

Image description:
Book cover of Distant Neighbors on sage green background, with title in black italic above a black-and-white group photo that includes Wendell Berry smiling with crossed arms next to a bearded Gary Snyder in front of a building with signs reading 'Grimblefinger' and 'Transcript Printing Office.' Below the image, "The Selected Letters of Wendell Berry and Gary Snyder, edited by Chad Wriglesworth" appears in black and gold lettering.