At the recent conference on ‘user education’ it struck me that there was a tendency in librarianship as a whole to see courses of instruction in isolation and to look upon this work done by the librarian as the sole teaching that he or she does. I come from an average Polytechnic and run fairly conventional, even orthodox, formal courses on library use linked with a rather bureaucratic compulsory library tutoring system for dissertations.

Seen in isolation such courses can be given an exaggerated importance when they are, in fact, only a minor part of the process. Supporting and acting as a vital example to such tuition is everything from an initial orientation tour through to information work, to literature guides, to stock selection and relegation policies, indeed the whole library. The long term objective of a Polytechnic Library must be about introducing and promoting an ‘eyes open’ approach to information-seeking in the real world beyond the educational institution. The question that should be asked is, “Is the Polytechnic Library as a whole conceived in such a way as to be as relevant as possible to its prime objective of educating its users — or is it there because-it is there?”

How exactly does one interpret the term ‘User Education’ and how is it best done? These are questions which still puzzle me after two years of working at them.

Rigid interpretation of User Education as chalk and talk stand-up teaching (‘class contact’) can reduce it to apolitical hour counting activity, useful for promotion but guaranteed to get least response from students.

Whilst I think that teaching methods are all important in User Education I would argue that they must be appropriate to the activity and not imposed for the sake of form. You can’t, for example, write a series of Information Retrieval lectures into a course submission document and expect them to work because they have a degree of legitimacy. The activity may be best treated informally.

As convenor of the ARLIS Working Party on Co-operative and Co-ordinated Acquisition, I am delighted to accept the hospitality of these pages and the opportunity to discuss current problems in co-operation.

For some time now it has been obvious that art librarians as a whole have been aware of a need to co-operate at all levels. This is a healthy sign of maturing awareness and self-identification as librarians with common problems.

The background to this issue of the ALJ begins with the ARLIS International Conference at Sussex University in 1976. For a number of years Judy Hoffberg, at that time Executive Secretary of ARLIS/NA, had been envisaging the formation of an international art libraries organisation and this Conference gave interested librarians from a number of different countries the opportunity to discuss the matter. A decision was made to form a committee of international representatives appointed by the various national groups to formulate the structure of ARLIS/International. This committee was to report its findings within one year.

The information needs of practising designers are only rarely to be found in the traditional printed sources. Rather the designer requires current data such as details of product availability and exact specifications. Documentary library services may meet some of these needs but the ideal library from a designer’s point of view would contain not only a comprehensive coverage of design history information in monograph and periodical form but also a large collection of product samples and an extensive referral service to sources of expertise in industry and in research organisations.

(Based on a paper presented to the ARLIS Seminar on User Education held at Leeds Polytechnic, 7–8 April, 1978.)

In the section ‘Plan for Action for Librarians’ a great deal is asked of the library service for what it is suggested is in the short run a formidable if not impossible task. The intention is to raise many issues in the hope that individual libraries or other organisations might pursue those activities for which they have resources.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Design Council.

Within higher education courses are being designed which emphasise the acquisition of learning skills rather than the absorption of ‘blocks’ of subject knowledge. Such courses indicate the way in which library-based learning skills can be developed alongside other learning skills, and also show the necessity of the librarian’s involvement in course design teams. This approach to library teaching has been developed most, perhaps, in art and design libraries where the demands of the ‘hidden curriculum’ have always been felt, if not overtly acknowledged.

(The text of a paper presented at the ARLIS Seminar on User Education held at Leeds Polytechnic, 7-8 April, 1978.)

The needs of the researcher in the fine arts are considered. The nature of inter-lending in the field is outlined, and in particular, the role of the British Library Lending Division and its ability to supply this material are examined, together with an appraisal of its current stocks and acquisitions policy.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of the British Library.

The first meeting of a new section of IFLA, the Art Libraries Section, was held at the IFLA Conference in Brussels on 8th September, 1977. This was the outcome of several years’ work, both in various different countries and within IFLA itself.

It was at the 39th IFLA Conference (Grenoble, August 1973) that I first suggested to a Special Libraries Division meeting the benefits for IFLA of establishing a group within which art libraries could effectively co-operate. This idea made slow progress, and we had had to arrive at a point where art libraries throughout the world were on the verge of setting up an International Association of Art Libraries, independent of IFLA, before the Special Libraries Division decided to pursue their well justified request.

A brief description of the historical origins and present policies of the British Architectural Library.

A variety of elements go to make up the cost of the average academic book, quite apart from the profit margin which must itself be divided between the author, the printer, the publisher and the bookseller. The problems of the economics of book publishing are discussed, together with the implications of technological achievements and limitations. An alternative approach to the sponsoring and marketing of scholarly art books is suggested, one which could result in better produced books at lower prices.

This paper was delivered to the Association of Art Historians Conference at Cardiff on 1 April 1978. Anyone knowledgeable about the technology of printing or the economics of publishing will recognise short cuts and oversimplifications in the argument. I am only too aware of these deficiencies, but I believe that the thesis put forward is still essentially correct. J.N.

User education is a field of activity in which there are a number of problems that would benefit from detailed study, particularly because of its multidisciplinary nature. Such research must be initiated, reported upon, and not least communicated to librarians in the field who may subsequently be able to implement it.

(The text of a paper presented at the ARLIS Seminar on User Education held at Leeds Polytechnic, 7 – 8 April, 1978.)

This article on a classification scheme for an art school library with a strong emphasis on ‘modern’ art, updates a previous article, and draws particular attention to the revised notation.

The modern image library, with its large collections in a multiplicity of formats, requires sophisticated systems of classification, indexing and information retrieval. Alongside the traditional art historical approach to the reproductions it contains, iconographic indexes are being developed which treat art as a language and analyse signs, symbols and meanings. Given the increase in iconographic and iconological research there is a need for the co-ordination and standardisation of indexing techniques at an international level.

Definitions are offered of the terms ‘fine arts’ and ‘special libraries’. The scope and organisation of fine art libraries are described, followed by a history of the growth of art library societies in various countries, and the movement towards international co-operation. Art libraries are demonstrated to be a suitable category to constitute a new Section in the Special Libraries Division of IFLA.

(The text of a paper presented at the Special Libraries Division Program Meeting of IFLA in Brussels, 8 September, 1977.)

Given the complexity and diversity of resources in art history, the research student needs a thorough and systematic programme to guide him through the range of information sources from catalogues and indexes to esoteric and elusive art works and individuals. Such a programme is described in detail and also a survey made of the literature on bibliographic instruction in art history.

Special thanks are extended to Phillip Heagy for bibliographic assistance and manuscript preparation and to Sue Ramage for manuscript review.

An exhibition of ‘forgotten’ 19th century Dutch history paintings titled Het Vaderlansch Gevoel: vergeten negentiende-eeuwse schilderijen over onze geschiedenis, was shown at the RIJKSMUSEUM, AMSTERDAM (24 March – 25 June 1978). The substantial 302p. catalogue which accompanied it carries illustrations of all 134 exhibits (all b/w), plus notes and a bibliography for each work, brief biographies of the artists (many of them lesser known), and introductory essays.

An exhibition organized as part of the celebrations of the 200th anniversary of Bartolini’s birth in 1977, titled Lorenzo Bartolini: mostra delle attività di tutela, was shown at the PALAZZO PRETORIO, PRATO (February – May 1978). The 303p. catalogue, published by Centro Di, has sections on the gallery of plaster casts, archival documentation and the drawings of Bartolini, plus black and white illustrations of sculptures and drawings.

The Library of the Victoria and Albert Museum has always collected primary source material. This consists of artists’ letters, diaries, sitters’ books and various personal papers. Or it may be material of a more general kind: inventories, bills, unpublished articles, recipes for paints and varnishes and similar items of use to the Museum departments or to other readers. Occasionally in the past we have been offered material relating to a firm, a person, or a society, which consisted of a mixture of printed matter, photographs, original drawings, manuscript letters etc., which, when received in the Museum, would be divided among the relevant departments — the Library and the Department of Prints and Drawings in particular. The Library continues to acquire manuscript material of the kind mentioned above, and indeed in the last two years has pursued an active policy in this field. As a result we have acquired such varied items as the wardrobe accounts of the Empress Josephine for 1809 (2 large boxes of them), a 16th century herald’s sketchbook, an unpublished history of jade, and a letter from Sir William Nicholson to Siegfried Sassoon agreeing to illustrate ‘Memoirs of a fox-hunting man’. A list of the English accessions is published annually, and all acquisitions are notified to the National Register of Archives. Most of the items were acquired by purchase (e.g. from booksellers’ lists or auction sales), but there have also been some welcome donations.

Some reflections on the life and home of S.C. Hall, founder of the Art Journal, his wife Anna Maria, and their literary explorations of the Thames.

Definitions are suggested of the nature and role of the special library, and reasons outlined for the need for international cooperation. In particular it is suggested that the heterogeneous formats and wide subject fields embraced in art literature inevitably compel libraries to seek co-operation. Parallel developments in the field of music literature are mentioned. In conclusion the moves towards art library co-operation started in 1976 are seen as exemplifying the dual role that special libraries can play both through subject expertise and by virtue of their contribution to international librarianship.

Acknowledgements are due to Trevor Fawcett, University of East Anglia Library, who kindly allowed the writer to draw on material published in a report presented to the British Library, Research and Development Department, and also from certain articles written by him.