Blue Devil of the Week: A Meticulous Craftsman for the Libraries

Name: Tedd Anderson
Position: Conservation technician, Conservation Services Department, Duke University Libraries
Years at Duke: 4

What I do at Duke: The majority of what I do is create custom enclosures for Rubenstein Library archival materials. That can be run-of-the-mill enclosures, which protect books, and are corrugated board clamshell boxes or 20-point buffered card stock tuxedo boxes. The dimensions are based on the actual book. I’ve made enclosures for really strange cigarette rolling patent models from the nineteenth century. I also do treatment on circulating collections, such as rebinding books, sometimes resewing books and a lot of re-casing.

My first ever job: I worked at Nancy’s Pizza in Gurnee, Illinois, when I was 15. I made pizzas and rolled dough and operated the ovens.

When I’m not at work, I like to: do this obsessive, repetitive style of drawing on paper. (Tedd Anderson is a local artist who also leads drawing sessions at The Carrack.) I don’t ever plan anything out before I start a large drawing. Lately I’ve been really into color and design. I do like the low-brow, scrappy design aesthetic that’s very grounded and often seen in psychedelic comics and graphic novels.

One of Tedd Anderson's works, "There Was Nothing."

My dream job: There are a lot of illustrators that do zine and print fests all around the country. I’d love to be able to travel around the country and sell my art. I’d love to eventually make my own online shop for my wares. I’ve learned how to screenprint recently, so I’ve been doing a lot of screenprinting and making pins and buttons and patches.

The best advice I ever received: In my early 20’s, every time I met or was dating someone new, I would say it’s time to settle down and start having some kids. I was always joking about that. My mom would say, ‘There’s plenty of time for that.’ I think that is good advice, especially for someone trying to pursue a career in art.

What I love about Duke: This job is the best job I could ever have that accommodates my studio art-making practice. My schedule works out really well. My job is craft-oriented, so my art-making craft outside of work is always on-point. I can really trust my hands because I’m using my hands all the time for conservation and art-making.

Something most people don’t know about me: My dad was 60 years old when I was born. He was a total jokester. I got my sense of humor from him.

An interesting/memorable day at work for me: What really stands out to me is the luxury of being able to view the Libraries’ collection close-up. It can be really funny and interesting stuff and then also really disturbing stuff, so it’s like the duality of human nature all the time. Some days I’ll be making boxes for the History of Medicine Collections here about nineteenth century medical instruments, and I feel like I’m in that show “The Knick.” Other days it’s Nazi insignia and pictures of Ku Klux Klan rallies from the 1920s, and then there’s funny stuff like comics and this huge collection about Dungeons & Dragons.

A pet peeve: I generally have a weird fixation on finishing snacks. If I’m getting through a bag of chips and there’s only an eighth of a bag left, I can’t just leave it like that. I finish the whole thing.