Booth Western Art Museum Research Library

General Book Collection

Books in the Library’s database can be located by using the Library’s public access computers.  Please ask Library personnel for assistance with the on-line catalog.  The Library staff will be happy to assist you in locating books on shelves and in adhering to proper book handling guidelines.

The Library uses the Library of Congress Classification System to “classify” and shelve books by subject.  The Library floor plan shows the arrangement of books in the Library according to this hierarchical scheme.  Feel free to browse the shelves that interest you.  You may carefully remove books from the shelves for perusal, but please do not re-shelve any books.  Place them on the returned book cart for Library personnel to re-shelve.  In the Library of Congress Classification System, there are twenty-one main subject categories reflected in call numbers from A to Z.  The Booth Western Art Museum’s collection is found mainly in E-F - History and N - Fine Arts.

Gifts of books relating to the Library’s collecting scope are welcomed.  All donations of books and other library materials, require completion of a Deed of Gift Form available at the Reference Desk.  Each book donated will be acknowledged with a thank you letter, and, if requested, a bookplate.  Please see the Librarian for further information.

Special Book Collection

Books not located on the open shelves in their proper place in the Library of Congress Classification System sequence may be shelved elsewhere because of condition, value, size, subject, or technical processing (indexing, repair, bindery, etc.).  In addition to browsing the shelves, it is always best to refer to the on-line database for a list of all cataloged books in the Library, including those that may be located in special sections.  The Library personnel will be happy to assist with an on-line search of the database.  

Oversize books are those that are too large to fit on the regular shelves and have been placed in a special section of the library. 

Rare books are protected in locked cases.  A Research Request Form must be submitted to use these materials.

Reference books are shelved with general art encyclopedias, indexes, directories, biographical dictionaries, and other frequently used “Ready Reference” books.

Periodicals Collection
Periodicals include magazines, newspapers, and other serial publications available for browsing and research.  All holdings are listed in the Library’s on-line database.  Current issues are displayed in the Library, and back issues are shelved alphabetically by title, then in chronological order.  Some bound periodicals may be shelved with subject collections.  The Library subscribes to many Western American Art and general art magazines, Civil War history magazines and museum publications.  Back issues can be researched in the Art Index; Reader’s Guide, and other periodical indexes.  Please see the Library staff for assistance in using the Periodical Collection.

Special Research Collections
The Library staff must supervise access to each of the Special Research Collections.  These collections include valuable research information; much of it contained in fragile or one-of-a-kind materials.  Submission and approval of a Research Request Form is required for use of certain materials from any of the Special Research Collections, as determined by the Librarian.  It is often necessary to check more than one collection when searching for information on a given subject because each of these collections is distinguished by format (the physical form or nature of its materials) rather than by subject.  Special Research Collections include:
 

Artist Files

This collection includes biographical information, exhibition announcements, pamphlets, and brochures documenting the work and exhibition record of individual artists.  Published exhibition catalogs that are too small in size, too fragile in condition, or too unusual in format to be shelved in the regular book collection can be found in these Artists' Files.

Auction and Sales Catalogs – Art, antiques, and rare book catalogs from several auction houses (Christie’s, Sotheby’s,, and others) are available for reference.  These catalogs are filed by auction house and date of auction.  There is no general subject index to this collection; most are accompanied by sales results.

Manuscripts – The Manuscripts Collection includes movie scripts.

Multi media – The Multimedia Collection includes programs on art and artists, as well as documentary films of programs and lectures by the Museum.  All videotapes, DVD’s and CD’s may be used in the Library.  Museum personnel, volunteers, or educators may check out certain videotapes.  Please see Library personnel for assistance.

Oral histories – Copies of the Museum’s oral history collection are available through the Library.  This collection includes artist interviews, among other things.