The Thomas J. Watson Library is the main
research library
A research library is a library which contains an in-depth collection of material on one or several subjects.(Young, 1983; p. 188) A research library will generally include an in-depth selection of materials on a particular topic or set of to ...
of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
, and supports the research activities of the museum staff, as well as outside researchers. It is located in the Met's main building,
The Met Fifth Avenue
The Met Fifth Avenue is the primary museum building for the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, United States. The building is located at 1000 Fifth Avenue, along the Museum Mile, New York, Museum Mile on the eastern edge of Central Park ...
.
Description
Located on the first floor of the Met, the Watson Library can be visited without appointment. At the museum, each department also maintains its own internal library, most of which have materials that are requestable online through the Watson Library catalog. The collection is a closed-shelf reference library, and materials are not available for borrowing by the general public, but may be used in a secure reading room; some items may be borrowed by Met staffers.
In addition, the Met hosts the
Nolen Library on its ground floor, a collection of 10,000 items in an open-shelf, non-circulating collection intended for the general public, including children. The Nolen Library also includes a large collection of children's books, as well as specialized curriculum materials for educators.
The Watson Library's collection contains approximately 900,000 volumes, including monographs and exhibition catalogs; over 11,000 periodical titles; and more than 125,000 auction and sale catalogs. The library also includes a reference collection, a rare book collection, manuscript items, and vertical file collections. The library is accessible to anyone over 18, simply by registering online and providing a valid photo ID. Once a free account is set up, a researcher may issue reserve requests online, in advance of an on-site visit, and may also issue requests in person at the library.
The library houses several display cases which are used for temporary exhibits of books and publications from its collections. Exhibits may focus on a single artist, an artistic movement, a publication medium or style, or any other topic of interest. Items which are on exhibit are clearly flagged in the online catalog as temporarily unavailable for use.
The Watson Library is named for
Thomas J. Watson
Thomas John Watson Sr. (February 17, 1874 – June 19, 1956) was an American businessman who served as the chairman and CEO of IBM. He oversaw the company's growth into an international force from 1914 to 1956. Watson developed IBM's managemen ...
, former chairman and CEO of . Its committee is chaired by noted art historian
Olivier Berggruen
Olivier Berggruen (born 14 September 1963) is a German-American art historian and curator, described by the ''Wall Street Journal'' as playing "a pivotal role in the art world."
Early life
Born in Winterthur, Switzerland, Berggruen is the son of ...
.
Digital collections
The Digital Collections seeks to digitize rare and unique materials that have not yet been digitized anywhere else on the web.
Highlights from the Digital Collections include:
*Metropolitan Museum of Art publications
*Rare books in the Thomas J. Watson Library Collection
*
Brummer Gallery
Joseph Brummer (1883 – 14 April 1947) was a Hungarian-born art dealer and collector who exhibited both antique artifacts from different cultures, early European art, and the works of modern painters and sculptors in his galleries in Paris a ...
Records
*
Costume Institute
The Anna Wintour Costume Center is a wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's main building in Manhattan that houses the collection of the Costume Institute. The center is named after Anna Wintour, the longtime and current editor-in-chief of ''V ...
fashion plates
*Manuscripts
References
External links
Watsonline: the catalog of the libraries of The Metropolitan Museum of ArtDigital Collections from The Metropolitan Museum of Art LibrariesThomas J. Watson Library PortalThe Metropolitan Museum of Art website
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Libraries in Manhattan
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Research libraries in the United States