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Collection Policy Statement Index
(Class N and sections of Class Z)
Contents
I. Introduction
II. Scope
III. Research strengths
IV. Comparison with other major research collections
V. General policy
VI. Collection levels for Fine and Applied Arts
I. Introduction
This Collections Policy Statement refers to monographs and serials which contribute to research in the theory, techniques, history, and criticism of architecture, sculpture, drawing, painting, prints, and the decorative and applied arts. It does not address the acquisitions of non-text formats such as fine prints, posters, reproductions, artists' drawings, and architectural drawings which are housed in the Prints and Photographs Division and are covered in the CPS Fine and Applied Arts: Non-Book Materials
II. Scope
Fine Arts as defined in the Library of Congress classification scheme class N includes painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture and decorative arts. Portions of class Z6000 and Z7000 also apply to these arts. Most material on photography from an aesthetic and technical perspective is found in class TR (see CPS Science and Technology: Chemical Engineering Group and Photography). In addition, most material dealing with the creation and fabrication of decorative objects (i.e. silver, clocks, pottery, etc.) will be found in various T subclasses (see CPS Science and Technology: Composite). Most material on Native-American art and culture will be found in classes E and F.
As museum, exhibit, and auction catalogs constitute a unique resource for study in the history of art, the Library of Congress collects these publications on an extensive basis. Substantial museum and exhibition catalogs are collected on a global basis, while the acquisition of auction catalogs is limited to several of the larger American and European houses.
Efforts are made to avoid the acquisition of repetitive and derivative works offering virtually no new information, including those consisting primarily of illustrations already available in other published sources. Additionally, "do-it-yourself" publications and other books for teaching purposes are acquired on a selective basis.
The broad class categories of class N are as follows:
N (Visual Arts General including the History of Art)
NA (Architecture)
NB (Sculpture)
NC (Drawing, Design, Illustration)
ND (Painting)
NE (Print Media)
NK (Decorative Arts, Applied Arts, Decoration and Ornament)
NX (Arts in General comprising material dealing with 2 or more of the arts in broadest sense; also includes other subjects such as funding for the arts).
III. Research Strengths
The Library's collections of fine arts monographs and serials are unrivaled in their general breadth primarily because of copyright deposit and exchange agreements with other institutions. Due to the comprehensive nature of its holdings on American culture, the Library of Congress is uniquely able to support interdisciplinary research in numerous aspects of American art. The general book and serial collections are supplemented by extensive holdings of doctoral dissertations and other microform collections related to art; for example collections of auction catalogs. The general collections and the Prints and Photographs Division are the two principal custodial divisions for Fine Arts materials. Other divisions, including the Asian, the African and Middle Eastern, and the Rare Book and Special Collections, also contain material related to Fine and Applied Arts.
Doctoral dissertations from U.S. institutions are collected comprehensively. Foreign dissertations in the field of fine arts are acquired on a very selective basis. The Library of Congress receives, on a very selective basis, masters theses from institutions with significant art programs such as Winterthur at the University of Delaware. Exhibit catalogs issued by commercial galleries and smaller art museums are acquired on a very selective basis.
IV. Comparison With Other Major Research Collections
Although many American research libraries have strong collections in a specific period and/or style of fine art, or in a geographic area, none are as strong in so many areas as the Library of Congress. Some that surpass the Library of Congress in specific fields or areas include the following institutions: the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Yale Center for British Art, and the Winterthur Museum. These institutions collect more extensively and in greater depth in their particular specialities. For instance, New York Public Library's holdings of certain kinds of material are more inclusive than those of the Library of Congress. These include auction catalogs, exhibit catalogs (especially those of 50 pages or less in length and those covering shows in the New York metropolitan area), and publications in the fields of design and fashion. On a local level, examples of significant research collections equal to or surpassing those of the Library of Congress include the following institutions: the National Museum of African Art (African art), the Freer/Sackler Gallery (Asian art), the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (modern and post-modern art), the National Museum of American Art (archival material relating to American art), and Dumbarton Oaks (pre-Columbian art).
V. General Policy
Overall, the Library collects at research or comprehensive levels (level 4 or 5 Collecting Levels) for the fine and applied arts. Material relating to all aspects of American art and specific art forms and media (e.g. prints, graphic design and illustration,) approaches a more comprehensive level (level 5). For non-book materials see also CPS's Fine and Applied Arts: Non-Book Materials and Photography.
The following section details some specific collecting levels for class N (Fine and Applied Arts). See Collecting Levels for a definition of these levels. When two numbers appear, the first refers to materials relating to the U.S.; the second to other areas of the world.
VI. Collection Levels for the Fine and Applied Arts
| LC Classification | Subject | Intensity |
|---|---|---|
| N | Visual arts, general including history of art | 4 |
| N5300 | General histories | 4 |
| N5310 | Prehistoric art | 5 |
| N5350 | Egyptian art | 5 |
| N5630-B5790 | Classical art | 5 |
| N6000-N6318 | Medieval, Islamic art | 5 |
| N6502 | Latin American | 5 |
| N6502.57.S87- N6538 | American art | 5 |
| N7800-N7840 | Early Christian | 5 |
| NA | Architecture | 4 |
| NA707-NA712 | American architecture | 5 |
| NA5695-NA2793 | Architectural drawing and design | 5 |
| NA7100-NA7884 | Domestic architecture | 5 |
| NB | Sculpture | 5/4 |
| NC | Drawing, design, illustration | 4 |
| NC845-NC915 | Graphic art material | 5 |
| NC950-NC996 | Illustration | 5 |
| NC1280-NC1284 | Printed ephemera | 5 |
| NC1300-NC1766 | Pictorial humor, caricature | 5 |
| NC1800-NC1850 | Posters | 5 |
| ND | Painting | 5/4 |
| ND2889-ND3416 | Illumination of manuscripts and books | 5 |
| NE | Print Media | 5/4 |
| NK | Decorative Arts | 5/4 |
| NX | Arts in General | 4 |
Approved August, 2000
