The Collecting Practices for Art Exhibition Catalogs at Academic Libraries in the United States and Canada

Abstract

Reporting on the results of a survey conducted in spring 2017, the author offers insight into the contemporary trends and challenges of collecting US, Canadian, and European print and digital art exhibition catalogs by academic art librarians in the United States and Canada. Findings demonstrate that for academic institutions with programs in art history, fine arts, or design, exhibition catalogs are a collection priority. Due to the variety of publishers of art exhibition catalogs, specialized knowledge to identify and acquire these resources is required. introduction Selecting and acquiring art exhibition catalogs has always been a collection development challenge for art librarians. Learning about a catalog and then obtaining a copy in a timely manner can be an obstacle since print runs are often limited, and distribution channels are not always well-established. Art exhibition catalogs provide pertinent information for art scholars and have expanded from a printed list of artworks to publications that include scholarly essays, detailed explanations of objects, bibliographies, and illustrations. Sources for catalogs have also evolved. Museums, galleries, commercial publishers, private curators for exhibitions, and major academic presses may all be involved in distribution. The formats of art exhibition catalogs have also expanded to include digital publications. The author conducted a survey in spring 2017 to explore current practices in the selection and acquisition of art exhibition catalogs at US and Canadian academic institu-Andi Back is the fine arts and humanities librarian,