HISTORY OF ART A guide to resources
St John’s College Library www.joh.cam.ac.uk/library
Resources for History of Art BOOKS Works on art and architecture are located on the First Floor (Chapel Wing), with classmarks beginning N-NX. The oversize sequence precedes the main sequence. The general arrangement is as follows:
N
Visual arts (includes theory, collections, conservation and special subjects)
NA
Architecture
NB
Sculpture
NC
Drawing, Design, Illustration
ND
Painting
NE
Print media
NK
Decorative Arts
NX
Arts in general (including patronage and administration)
Various art reference works (dictionaries and encyclopedias) can be found in the Reference Section on the Ground Floor and the Garden Basement, under the classmark REF.9.ARTS. Reference volumes are not borrowable.
JOURNALS Details of the Library’s journal holdings, listed by subject, are available via the website: www.joh.cam.ac.uk/journals
Relevant titles include:
Classmark:
Holdings:
The Architectural Review
[Ground Floor]
Current year only
ARC (in Basement)
Vol. 1199- (1997-)
CRO (in Basement)
Various - check shelves
El Croquis
Recent, unbound issues are shelved in the Periodicals Area on the Ground Floor. Runs of bound journals are generally shelved in the Penrose section on the First Floor (before the main sequence). Older volumes are shelved in Chapel Basement, arranged alphabetically by title or by name of issuing institution. E-journals can be searched via Cambridge LibGuides (see overleaf for more information).
ART CATALOGUES An extensive collection of art sale and exhibition catalogues (including publications from Christie’s and Sotheby’s) can be found in Chapel Basement, for use anywhere inside the Library.
SPECIAL COLLECTIONS The Old Library contains a wide range of material that might be of interest to historians of art and architecture. Many of its manuscripts contain fine examples of medieval illumination. There are also early printed volumes featuring important woodcuts by artists such as Albrecht Dürer, as well as early editions of works of importance to art history, from Francesco Colonna's Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (1499) to Humphrey Repton's Observations on the theory and practice of landscape gardening (1805). Among the Personal Papers collections are the papers of Johnians Cecil Beaton and Samuel Butler, which include original artworks and extensive photographic collections. Both the Library and Archive hold material relating to the architecture of the College, most notably the 16th-century plans of Second Court. The 17th-century Upper Library is itself a fine example of Jacobean Gothic architecture and woodcarving. More information can be found on the website: www.joh.cam.ac.uk/library/special_collections. Please contact the Special Collections Librarian, Kathryn McKee (km10007@cam.ac.uk) if you would like to explore these resources.
ELECTRONIC RESOURCES The Faculty of Architecture and History of Art Library provides links to a range of resources on its website: www.aha.cam.ac.uk/Library
Cambridge LibGuides provide a complete guide to all subjects and electronic resources, such as ejournals, e-books and databases available across the University: libguides.cam.ac.uk
Recommended resources include:
A&AePortal
Artstor
RIBA Library
VADS - Visual Art Data Service
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Other libraries you may find useful:
University Library
Faculty of Architecture and History of Art Library
Fitzwilliam Museum Reference Library
Hamilton Kerr Institute Library
Recommendations The College Library aims to provide all works necessary for Part One courses, and a selection of the most important works required for Part Two. We receive reading lists from the departmental libraries in advance of each academic year, and continually update the Library collections in response to requests from directors of studies, supervisors and students. You can recommend an item by using the online recommendation form (www.joh.cam.ac.uk/item-recommendations) or by filling in a recommendation form at the Issue Desk. All reasonable requests will be considered. If texts you require for your course are not available in the College Library, please talk to a member of Library staff.
Staff If you have any difficulty in tracing the material you need, whether in printed or electronic format, please ask a member of Library staff for assistance. The Issue Desk is staffed Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm.