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Engaging Archives: Activating our collections for new audiences

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 June 2019

Caroline McBride
Caroline McBride*
Affiliation:
Librarian/Archivist, E H McCormick Research Library, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Cnr Wellesley and Kitchener Streets, Auckland 1141, New Zealand Email:[email protected]
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Abstract

In recent years we have noticed a substantial increase in interest in our archive collections at the E H McCormick Research Library at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki. With circulation figures for print publications generally reported to be on a downward trend for libraries, unique material is being eagerly sought out.

Who are our new audiences and how do they engage with archives in varying ways? What specific approaches have contributed to achieving this positive shift? Including observations from other research librarians and archivists, this article provides a view of art archive use and users, as well as the mechanisms that are proving successful. Our aim is to increase the visibility of our special collections to facilitate the unlocking of their powerful potential for the understanding and, sometimes, making of art.

Type
Research Article
Information
Art Libraries Journal , Volume 44 , Issue 3 , July 2019 , pp. 132 - 138
Copyright
© ARLIS, 2019 

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References

1. Wells, Peter, Dear Oliver: Uncovering a Pākehā History (Auckland: Massey University Press, 2018), 194Google Scholar.

2. Matthew Tso, “Bookworms Defy the Drift to Digital,”Sunday Star Times, July 8, 2018.

3. Wilson, Kirsty and Mountifield, Hester CAI Libraries Review (unpublished report, Auckland: University of Auckland, 6 December 2017) 4Google Scholar.

4. Women's Art Archive Interview Project, E H McCormick Research Library Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of Lita Barrie, 1984.

5. Tony Fomison Studio Papers, E H McCormick Research Library Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of Mary Fomison, 2009.

6. Gerard O'Regan, “He Ana, He Whakairo: Examining Māori Belief of Place Through the Archaeological Context of Rock Art” (PhD diss., University of Auckland, 2016).

7. Giovanni Intra exhibition at Michael Lett, Auckland 21 March-21 April 2018.

8. Alex Davidson, “Giovanni Intra,” Artforum 4 April 2018 https://www.artforum.com/picks/giovanni-intra-74893.

9. Ruth Buchanan Artist Project: The Curtain Auckland Art Gallery 13 February-11 April 2013 was an exhibition based on ‘Ilse von Randow's ‘Auckland City Art Gallery Curtains’, 1957–8 Archive, E H McCormick Research Library Auckland Art Gallery, gift of Douglas Lloyd Jenkins, 2012.

10. Bad Visual Systems Ruth Buchanan in the exhibition Walters Prize 2018 at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, 18 August 2018-28 January 2019.

11. Thank you to individuals from the following libraries for participating in my informal questionnaire: Elam Fine Arts Library, University of Auckland; Christchurch Art Gallery Library Te Puna o Waiwhetū ; Hocken Collections, Dunedin; Art Gallery of New South Wales Library and Archive; National Art Gallery, Canberra; University of Brighton Design Archives and National Portrait Gallery, London

12. Steven Miller, Head Library Services, Art Gallery of New South Wales, in communication with author 24 July 2018.

13. Tim Jones, Librarian and Archivist, Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, email communication with author July 25, 2018.

14. A search on the artist Fiona Connor results in the following for example: https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/search/archive?keywords=fiona+connor&sort=title%2Casc accessed 15 August 2018.

15. “Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, E H McCormick Research Library,” Community Archive, accessed August 15, 2018, http://thecommunityarchive.org.nz/node/70340.

16. For example works on paper that form part of the John Weeks Archive, https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/archives/19637 accessed August 15, 2018.

17. For example, the photobooks of Harvey Benge https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/archives/22144 and the ‘artist books’ of Fiona Connor https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/archives/20136 (accessed August 15, 2018).

18. For example, Caroline McBride, “The Very Picture of Generosity,” published on the New Zealand government's World War One commemorative site https://ww100.govt.nz/partridge-gift accessed August 15, 2018.

19. This occurred in 2004 and was the result of a Lotteries grant, as reported by Anna Blackman, Head Curator Archives, Hocken Collections, in email communication with author August 1, 2018.

20. Sue Breakell, Archivist and Senior Research Fellow, University of Brighton Design Archives, in email communication with author August 3, 2018.

21. Andrea Bell, Curator Art, Pictorial Collections, Hocken Collections, in email communication with author July 31, 2018.

22. Anonymous, in email communication with author August 10, 2018.

23. Sue Breakell, email communication with author August 3, 2018.

24. Bryony Millan, Senior Archive and Library Manager, National Portrait Gallery, London in email communication with author July 27, 2018.