On Thu, 10 May 2001 10:28:38 EDT, Judy Donovan <[log in to unmask]> wrote: >Dear ARLIS Folks: > >I want to thank all of you who responded to my question about typical art >reference questions. My presentation at the graduate >Library School went very well largely due to the information I received >from ARLIS members. > >Several people suggested using Philip Pacey's "How Art Students Use >Libraries" (Art Libraries Journal, Spring 1982, pp33-38) >which I used as a springboard for my lecture. How I wish Philip Pacey >would write an update to this if only to prove that life >in art libraries has changed very little! > >Also suggested was Deirdre Stam's "How Art Historians Look for >Information" (Art Documentation, Fall 1997, v16 #2, p.27-30). > >After looking at all the questions, I was able to categorize them for the >students, then read examples of real questions. Then I went into specific >reference sources for handling each type. > >The categories are: >IMAGE REQUESTS--or the I-need-a-picture-of questions >REQUESTS FOR EXAMPLES OF ARTIST/DESIGNER/ARCHITECT's WORK (a more specific >version of image requests) >BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION REQUESTS for people in the arts >BUILDING QUESTS: need for site plans, elevations interiors, photos, history >of buildings >ART HISTORICAL QUESTIONS: who painted x? who were the impressionists? >PROVENANCE QUESTIONS: what's this object worth? who made it? has it sold at >Auction for what price? > >Below I've excerpted the actual questions and listed what institution they >came from. This was useful to the students in pointing out how museum >questions might differ from academic library and public library >questions. There were also some hilarious anecdotes that I've included as >well, and, were well received by the students. > > So here goes: > >"TYPICAL" QUESTIONS ASKED IN ART LIBRARIES (from ARLIS listserve) > >FROM DARTMOUTH COLLEGE: >"Where is your section on..." e.g. Michelangelo, or contemporary sculptors, >or Japanese art, etc. That is, something that is not made easy by the LC >classification scheme. People want to be able to browse all their books on >a subject, and not in several different places by artistic medium. >*Why aren't all books on art in the Art Library? i.e. why don't >non-Western/non-Asian art, ancient art, etc have N call numbers? (in a >system with branch libraries). >Why isn't the Library of Congress call number identical in all libraries >for a particular book? > >FROM JACKSONVILLE STATE UNIVERSITY: >"How do I look up books on an artist when I don't know >the title or author? I get this one all the time from upperclassmen. > >FROM WOODRUFF ART CENTER: >The usual one in an art and design school of course is "Do you have a >picture of .....?/I need a picture of...". These have ranged from a man in >a spacesuit to a line drawing of wood screw to a picture of a Conestoga >wagon to 1960s fashion trends. > >Another common question is for information on a local or currently >practicing artist about whom little has ever been written in major art >magazines. We have an registry for Georgia artists in the same building and >have resorted to referring students there or to contacting the artist >directly. > >A typical undergraduate question is "I need some information on Picasso (or >whomever)". This is truly an exercise in the reference interview since the >student has grasped onto a name and knows very little if anything on the >artist in question other than the name. Thanks goodness for Grove's >Dictionary of Art as a starting point > >FROM UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN: >I'm sure you'll get a lot of responses like this one, but when I was a >reference assistant at Kohler Art Library at University of Wisconsin, >Madison, my favorite questions always involved the general public. I >got many calls about identifying artists, and giving past auction sale >values (though I'd always refer them to the yellow pages "appraisals" if >they wanted to know more about the value of their >print/painting/ceramic.) My absolute favorite was the woman who had >found a Gainsborough portrait in her local antiques store. I told her >that the portrait was in London, and her response was "so you think it's >stolen?!" > >FROM THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART: >I think the most typical question we get from non-Museum staff is a >variation on "I found this painting/print/sculpture in my Aunt Annie's >closet/attic/basement. Where can I find information on the artist? I can't >quite make out the signature but I think it could be ...." This is usually >followed by "can you tell me what it's worth?", which is a question we are >not allowed to answer (Museum policy). > >FROM LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, Prints & Photographs Division >Where is the bathroom? >Do you have any photographs of the Titanic sinking, the hanging >gardens of Babylon, Jesus, etc. >If something takes place in 1865, why do we call it the 19th >century? >Why can't I xerox these fine prints by Durer and Rembrandt? >Seriously, we do get a lot of very good reference collections, but >they are all related to our division's collections (i.e. original >prints, drawings, photographs, etc.), so they might be too narrow for >your purposes. > >FROM FRICK FINE ARTS LIBRARY, PITTSBURGH >Where can I find a list of exhibitions showing in London (insert other >cities)? >My great aunt recently died and we are cleaning out her house. We found a >print (insert painting) by _______.Who was this artist? How valuable is >the print (painting)? >Requests for information on local artists, buildings, architects. In Pgh >people have to go to the Penna. Room or Art and Music Dept of the Carnegie >Library of Pittsburgh where they have clippings files that we do not have >the staff resources to create or duplicate. >Where can I find an image of ---------? > >FROM UNIVERSITY OF MANOA, HAWAII: >Message left on the phone machine of a colleague at 11:30am: > >"Please call me back before noon with all the information you have about >the following artists: Smith, Jones, Johnson, Baker." >[can't remember the actual artists' names, but they were far from >distinctive names such as Picasso, and no first names, countries or time >periods were given.] Typical are as follows: > >Floor plans AND ELEVATIONS of modern houses, such as, Villa Mairea >(Aalto), Kaufmann Desert House (Neutra), Robie House (Wright), Tugendhat >House (Mies), etc. > >Information on curtain wall construction WITH WALL SECTIONS > >Illustrations of specific, ordinary, non-art objects, such as, baby >carriages, barber chairs, keys > >Furniture from specific countries, such as, Philippines, Brazil, Kenya > >Construction details for water towers >(New York School of Interior Design) > >FROM DELAWARE ART MUSEUM >Ican definitely tell you what one of the most common questions I get in a >museum library is the "I have a painting in my attic, its kind of a >landscape with trees and houses, has some cattle in the lower right, signed >by CD or CB - do you have any information about it? i.e. what is it worth?" >I don't know if we can thank the Antiques Road Show for this but everyone >seems to be picking through their basements and attics for any hidden relics. > >FROM ONTARIO COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN >A reference librarian in an art & design school must be good at >"conceptualization" and "visualization" -- asking the student to describe >what they see in their head and then trying to put a name, a word, or an >image to it. > >The most typical request is "I need a picture of...." Art & design students >are interested in literally everything. Odd-ball questions are the norm. >Last semester, one student wanted a picture of a fetus's ovaries for a >painting series. We found images in our own library and in the UofT medical >library. Another student was doing a video on rape. We sent him to the local >rape-crisis centre to interview counselors. Just last week a graduate >student, who has produced large colour photographs of fishing flies, was >looking for critical perspectives on inanimate objects and gender >identification. In cases such as this one, neither the student nor the >reference librarian, knows exactly what they are looking for until they see >it or find it. Often we will show a student an article or a book and they >will say -- "I never thought of that - it's not exactly what I wanted but it >will do." > >One of OCAD first year assignments is to find opposing viewpoints on an >artist, an artwork, or an art movement....ie. two conflicting critical >perspectives. The purpose of the assignment is to force students to use the >library, the indexes, and to read a lot. > >I find design-related requests the most problematic. A typical request is >for "examples" of commercial illustration by xxxxx. Unlike "fine" artists >who exhibit and produce exhibition catalogues, commercial illustrators are >commissioned to produce work which is not exhibited in a gallery. Unless a >commercial illustrator is extremely well known, or at the end of his/her >career, it is unlikely there will be a monograph on his/her work. The only >way to locate examples is if, by chance, their work was entered in a design >competition and appears in one of the design award annuals -- OR if they >have a good website, or have purchased their own advertising space in >annuals like the Blackbook or Workbook. Specialized art & design schools >cannot afford to licence all the general-interest periodical indexes >required to thoroughly search for a commercial illustrator's production > > >FROM UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS: > >"I'm looking for a plan, cross-section, and elevation of XYZ building." >"I'm trying to find information about my house. When was it built and for >whom, who is the architect, what else has he/she done?" >"I'm working on a historic designation nomination for my church (town hall, >etc.). I need to know everything there is about XYX architect." >"I'm designing a XYZ (building type) and need to see precedents. I also >need standards, local building codes, and cost estimating information." >"I'm researching neo-traditional neighborhoods (or XYZ urban design topic) >and need to read about successes and failures of such neighborhoods. I >also want to see exemplary master plans." >"I need a scholarly article on XYZ building." >"I'm doing a research paper about XYZ (can be a specific monument, a style, >a time period, a construction method, a building type, an architect, a >place, a piece of furniture, etc.). Where do I start?" >"I'm having a house built. I'd like to see examples of "French Provincial" >homes (or whatever style....).' >(Once the wife of one of our Regents wanted a book about all the possible >variations in brick laying designs so she could show her builder what she >liked!) >"I'm redoing my kitchen (bathroom, etc.)---can you help me find sources of >inspiration? How about product catalogs?" >"What is the style of the buildings on campus?" >"Who built XYZ?" >"I'm looking for design competitions." >"Can you help me date this piece (furniture, lamp, etc.)?" > >Again, thanks to all those who contributed their questions. > >Judy > > > >Judy Donovan >Design Arts Librarian >Hagerty Library >Drexel University >33rd and Market Streets >Philadelphia PA 19104 >phone: 215-895-2768 >fax: 215-895-2070 >email: [log in to unmask] > >__________________________________________________________________ >Mail submissions to [log in to unmask] >Administrative matters (file requests, subscription requests, etc) > to [log in to unmask] >ARLIS-L Archives and subscription maintenance: > http://lsv.uky.edu/archives/arlis-l.html >Questions may be addressed to list owner (Kerri Scannell) at: [log in to unmask] __________________________________________________________________ Mail submissions to [log in to unmask] For information about joining ARLIS/NA see: http://www.arlisna.org//membership.html Send administrative matters (file requests, subscription requests, etc) to [log in to unmask] ARLIS-L Archives and subscription maintenance: http://lsv.uky.edu/archives/arlis-l.html Questions may be addressed to list owner (Kerri Scannell) at: [log in to unmask]