LibGuides: AHIS 3642: North American Art & Culture: Books & Catalogs

Call Numbers in the Arts

Library of Congress Classification System

The Library of Congress Classification System (LC) arranges areas of study so that researchers can browse areas of the stacks (library shelves) to find similar information. Most visual arts research can therefore be found in the N call number ranges. There are inherent biases baked into the classification system. As an example: Indigenous art forms from the Americas are found in the E & F call number ranges (History of the Americas). See the LC Classification Guide for additional areas of study.

Library of Congress Call Numbers	Subjects
N N1-58 General N61-72 Theory. Philosophy. Aesthetics of the visual arts N81-390 Study and teaching. Research N400-3990 Art museums, galleries, etc. N4390-5098 Exhibitions N5198-5299 Private collections and collectors N5300-7418 History N7420-7525.8 General works N7560-8266 Special subjects of art N8350-8356 Art as a profession. Artists N8510-8553 Art studios, materials, etc. N8554-8585 Examination and conservation of works of art N8600-8675 Economics of art N8700-9165 Art and the state. Public art	Visual Arts
NA NA1-60 General NA100-130 Architecture and the state NA190-1555.5 History NA1995 Architecture as a profession NA2000-2320 Study and teaching. Research NA2335-2360 Competitions NA2400-2460 Museums. Exhibitions NA2500-2599 General works NA 2599.5-2599.9 Architectural criticism NA2695-2793 Architectural drawing and design NA2835-4050 Details and decoration NA4100-8480 Special classes of buildings NA9000-9428 Aesthetics of cities. City planning and beautifying	Architecture
NB NB1-50 General NB60-1115 History NB1120-1133 Study and teaching NB1134-1134.4 Competitions NB1135-1150 General works NB1160-1195 Designs and technique NB1199-1200 Restoration of sculptures NB1203-1270 Special materials NB1272-1291 Mobiles, color, sculpture gardens, etc. NB1293-1895 Special forms NB1910-1952 Special subjects	Sculpture
NC NC1-1940 Drawing. Design. Illustration NC1-45 General Including collective biography NC50-266 History of drawing NC390-670 Study and teaching NC673-677 Competitions NC703-725 General works NC730-758 Technique NC760-825 Special subjects NC845-915 Graphic art materials NC930 Conservation and restoration of drawings NC950-(996) Illustration NC997-1003 Commercial art. Advertising art NC1280-1284 Printed ephemera. Imagerie populaire NC1300-1766 Pictorial humor, caricature, etc. NC1800-1850 Posters NC1860-1896 Greeting cards, postcards, invitations, book jackets, etc. NC1920-1940 Copying, enlarging, and reduction of drawings	Drawing, Design, Illustration
ND ND25-3416 Painting ND25-(48) General ND49-813 History ND1115-1120 Study and teaching ND1130-1156 General works ND1288-1460 Special subjects ND1290-1293 Human figure ND1300-1337 Portraits ND1340-1367 Landscape painting ND1370-1375 Marine painting ND1380-1383 Animals. Birds ND1385-1388 Sports. Hunting, fishing, etc. ND1390-1393 Still life ND1400-1403 Flowers. Fruit. Trees ND1410-1460 Other subjects ND1470-1625 Technique and materials ND1630-1662 Examination and conservation of paintings ND1700-2495 Watercolor painting ND2550-2733 Mural painting ND2889-3416 Illuminating of manuscripts and books	Painting
NE NE1-3002 Print media NE1-978 Printmaking and engraving NE1000-1352 Wood engraving NE1400-1879 Metal engraving NE1940-2232.5 Etching and aquatint NE2236-2240.6 Serigraphy NE2242-2246 Monotype (Printmaking) NE2250-2570 Lithography NE2685-2685.8 Lumiprints NE2690 Engraving on glass NE2800-2880 Printing of engravings NE3000-3002 Copying art. Copying machine art	Print Media
NK NK1-(9990) Decorative arts NK1-570 General NK600-806 History NK1135-1149.5 Arts and crafts movement NK1160-1590 Decoration and ornament. Design NK1648-1678 Religious art NK1700-2195 Interior decoration. House decoration NK2200-2750 Furniture NK2775-2898 Rugs and carpets NK2975-3049 Tapestries NK3175-3296.3 Upholstery. Drapery NK3375-3496.3 Wallpapers NK3600-9990 Other arts and art industries	Decorative Arts
NX NX1-820 Arts in general NX1-260 General NX280-410 Study and teaching. Research NX411-415 Competitions NX420-430 Exhibitions NX440-632 History of the arts NX650-694 Special subjects, characters, persons, religious arts, etc. NX700-750 Patronage of the arts NX760-770 Administration of the arts NX775-777 Voluntarism in the arts NX798-820 Arts centers and facilities	Arts in General
Other Useful Call Numbers	Subjects
D	World History (Arts of non-Western cultures)
E & F	History of the Americas (for Native American art)
TR	Photography
TT	Handicrafts. Arts and Crafts

Research Librarian

Meredith Wisner

She/Her

Email Me

Contact:

Meredith Wisner
Librarian for the Arts, French, and Italian
mwisner@barnard.edu
Office: 306 Milstein

212.854.7652

Subjects: Architecture, Art History, Classics & Ancient Studies, Comparative Literature, Dance, English, Film Studies, First-Year Writing, French, Italian, Medieval & Renaissance Studies, Music, Theatre

Large Library Catalogs

Columbia Libraries Catalog

CLIO
CLIO catalog allows you to search the complete holdings (books, e-books, media materials, journal databases, and journal articles) within the Columbia Library system.

Museum Library Catalogs

Metropolitan Museum: Watsonline
Thomas J. Watson Library is the central research library of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Its collection of books and periodicals relating to the history of art is one of the most comprehensive in the world. The primary mission of the library is to support the research activities of the Museum staff; in addition, it welcomes a broad range of students and researchers college age and above.
New York Historical Society Library
New-York Historical’s Patricia D. Klingenstein Library is one of the oldest, most distinguished research libraries in the United States and a vital center of research into the history of New York and the nation.

Art History Research At Columbia Libraries

Barnard Library

Barnard Library's Art History Collection is on the third floor, on the library's south side. While our collection is much smaller than Avery Library's, it is a circulating collection - meaning you can check out anything you find for a full semester. You'll find me on the same floor in room 306 if you need help.

Avery Library

Avery Library is a world-class art and architecture library. Since it's an entire library devoted to art and architecture the folks at Avery can collect more deeply than we can at Barnard. One thing to keep in mind is that most of Avery's collections do not circulate. If you find a book only at Avery that you would like to check out you can always use Borrow Direct.

Avery uses two call number systems to organize its books, which makes browsing a little challenging. Avery uses three different systems to organize its collections (Avery, Avery Fine Arts, and Avery-LC). Avery and Avery-LC use the Library of Congress classification system. Here are some maps for navigating Avery Library.

CLIO Virtual Browse

You can browse a virtual shelf in CLIO to see what items are organized in LC together. Books across the Columbia Libraries system, in print and digital, will appear in Virtual Browse.

Finding Exhibition Catalogs

Finding exhibition catalogs through known item searches

An exhibition catalog, like any book, can be found in CLIO by its title using what is called a "known item search."
Simply enter the exact title in quotation marks to find the catalog you are looking for

To Find exhibition catalogs using Advanced Search

In CLIO select catalog from the menu of options on the left side
Select advanced search (to the right of the search box)
In the first search box select "Subject" from the dropdown menu and enter exhibition catalogs in the box (no quotation marks)
In the second search under "All Fields" use the topic of your search. This could be a museum itself, or a general topic of interest