The National Gallery of Australia Research Library supports the research needs and educational program of the Gallery and serves as Australia’s national research collection in the visual arts. Collections are international in scope, encompassing all aspects of Australian and New Zealand art and selectively in Asian, Pacific, European and North American traditions.
The collections have special strengths which mirror those of the Gallery’s art collection.
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art
- Australian and New Zealand visual arts
- Significant book collection on Asian textiles
- South and Southeast Asian art
- Ballets Russes
- Contemporary art worldwide
- Pacific art
- 19th and 20th century reference works on the history of photography as an art, including Asia-Pacific
- 19th century technical publications related to photography
- Noteworthy collection on materials conservation
- Extensive collection of watermark publications
- Significant collection of Paris salon catalogues
- James Gleeson Oral History Collection
The Library also holds key National Gallery of Australia ephemeral materials relating to exhibitions and events.
Searchable holdings (9/2010):
The Library holds 130,000 books and exhibition catalogues, 1,500 catalogues raisonnés and a comprehensive collection of art related ephemera with strength in contemporary Australian artists including 49,000 Art & Artists Files (ANZ including Indigenous) and 36,000 Art & Artist Files (International), of which over 10,000 have been catalogued so far. The Library also holds 2,400 titles of art related serials and 150 titles of rare art serials. It holds 3,500 rare monographs and a comprehensive collection of reference material related to the visual arts.
Interlibrary loan: The National Gallery of Australia Research Library is a participant in the Libraries Australia Document Delivery system.
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