Some of you may be aware of the color-coding system the cultural historian Aby Warburg created for his library in the 1920s, which became part of the Warburg Institute in London. If memory serves, there were three stickers on each book: one to indicate the time period, one to indicate the geographic region, and a third for the discipline. Since the library was designed for open-stacks browsing, the notion was that a scholar who knew all about (say) Italian Renaissance painting could learn about Italian Renaissance philosophy by keeping two stickers the same and changing up the one. The library was organized to support this kind of activity because Warburg was fond of saying "the book you know is never the one you need." As a practical matter, however, the stickers faded quickly and fell off. Visitors to today's Warburg Institute will discover occasional vestiges of them.

Good luck to those of you embarking on modern-day versions of Warburg's system!

Derick Dreher, Ph.D.

On Wed, Aug 31, 2022 at 3:45 PM Kai Alexis <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Hi all,

This sounds really interesting. I hope you'll consider exploring color palettes that are accessible to those with low vision or color blindness and that you are thinking about where you put your signage, keeping in mind those with disabilities (ex. people that use wheelchairs, canes, service dogs, etc.). There are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) documents that you can review and best practices for developing wayfinding and signage that comply with ADA that can help you.

Here is one from Cornell Library: https://ergo.human.cornell.edu/AHProjects/Library/librarysigns.pdf
*The colors used in the slides are not accessible to those with different color blindness. However, most of the content is very informative and helpful.

Here is a link that can get you started thinking about a color accessible pallette:
https://davidmathlogic.com/colorblind/#%23D81B60-%231E88E5-%23FFC107-%23004D40

Hope you share what you develop with everyone.

With gratitude,

Ms. Kai Alexis Smith, MSLIS
www.kaialexis.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/kaialexissmith
Jamaican Art Research Guide
ORCHID ID: 0000-0002-3241-7930

“Activism is my rent for living on the planet.” Alice Walker

On Wed, Aug 31, 2022 at 2:38 PM To To <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Hi, Anna,

I implemented a similar system in the Fine Art Library at IU Bloomington. I based it in an article about the visual color coding system implemented at the former New Museum library that replaced their call numbers (the article may have been published in Art Doc or ALJ, I can’t remember). At IU I implemented several way finding signage designs to further enhance access.

Tony White
University Librarian
OCAD Iniversity

Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 31, 2022, at 12:25 PM, Liv Valmestad <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Hello Anna,

I did this years ago based on a presentation I saw at an ARLIS/NA conference (was in Denver 2007????). YAY Arlis! We have magnetic strips where coloured rectangles can be inserted and we place these at the end of the stacks. We also have coloured QR code squares around the library for promotion. It is a lot of fun and really helps our visual learners!

Liv

From: ARLIS/NA List <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Anna Simon
Sent: Wednesday, August 31, 2022 9:10 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [ARLIS-L] Color coding art library stacks

Caution: This message was sent from outside the University of Manitoba.

Hello,

I’m interested in using large color squares on the ends of our stacks to identify Library of Congress subject areas by subclass (N, NA, NB, NC, etc.,). Has anyone tried this who could share their experiences? I’m curious about what kind of peel and stick (removable) product might work and then how we explain the system to patrons (maybe a poster with the key, or a handout, or a QR code….).

We have a lot of art students who could benefit from more visually coded stacks signage!

I’ll share out what I hear back.

Thanks in advance,

Anna Simon

Head, Kohler Art Library

University of Wisconsin-Madison

https://www.library.wisc.edu/art/

608-263-2257

[log in to unmask]

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