Purpose: The primary function of these collection areas is support the work of students in the B.F.A. and B.A. in fine arts degree programs. The N’s and TR’s encompass interdisciplinary study and are of interest to other humanities and social science disciplines; they also include material in the fields of culture, town planning, environment, design. Relatively heavy circulation of materials indicates use beyond the fine arts curriculum.
Existing Collection Strength: The N’s area of the collection are of limited strength. Though there have been efforts in the past of concentrating in certain areas (e.g., 19th-century painting), only some sections have reached the Selective (3) collection level.
Current Collecting Intensity: The areas of visual arts, sculpture, drawing/design, print media, painting, and photography should be collected at the Selective (3) level covering and maintaining a balance in the various media through historical periods, art criticism, and in current art exhibitions and trends. In other areas such as architecture, the decorative and applied arts, only Basic (1) collecting is expected.
Geographic Focus: Worldwide with a concentration on Western art.
Chronological Focus: All periods with an emphasis on contemporary art.
Languages Collected: Primarily English, though some French for Canadian coverage. Foreign exchange catalogues are often in other languages.
Formats Collected: Materials collected include books and periodicals. Videos and DVDs are naturally of particular importance for video and performance art. Slides are not purchased for this subject, since a slide collection is maintained by the Fine Arts Department. Formats collected require clarity of detail and expansive definition in graphic capability. CD-ROM and laserdisc technology are capable formats, though relatively little is available. There are many accessible, comprehensive fine arts web sites though graphic display on them only rarely attains the necessary standard.
Preservation Considerations: Materials are prone to mutilation (for the art works contained) and thus special consideration for replacement is needed. Large format and heavy special paper often require oversize shelving and extra mending. Flimsy items (e.g. exhibition catalogues) may require protective folders.
Access to Journal Articles: Art index is the major index
for the field; it is available in paper (1929-1998) and electronically
from 1984 to current. Because of the illustrative content of many
fine arts and photography journals, full-text in electronic format, where
available, is not usually a viable alternative to paper.
Date: May 1996, last revised June 2003
Selector Responsible: Peter Higham