National Art Library

The National Art Library in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, UK.


The National Art Library (NAL) is a major reference library, situated in the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), a museum of decorative arts in London. The NAL holds the UK's most comprehensive collection of both books as art and books about art, which includes many genres and time periods.[1] The NAL is open to the public, and as a closed reference library, items must be requested through the staff and cannot be removed from the reading room.[2] The collections cover a wide range of art and design topics, including books about artists and art techniques, and consists of many different collections materials, including archival materials, artist's books, and children's literature.[2] The library also serves as the museum's curatorial department for book arts.[3] As a reference library, the NAL also serves as a training library for students, curators and museum staff, and the public.[4]

The current mission of the NAL includes making information about art history and practice widely available, and aims to serve both national and international communities.[5]

  1. ^ "The Burlington Magazine". www.burlington.org.uk. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
  2. ^ a b "V&A · National Art Library". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  3. ^ Victoria and Albert Museum, Online Museum (5 August 2011). "Book Collections". www.vam.ac.uk. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  4. ^ Meriton, John (2002). "Training and the National Art Library". Art Libraries Journal. 27 (1): 13–17. doi:10.1017/S0307472200019921. ISSN 0307-4722. S2CID 152259029.
  5. ^ van der Wateren, Jan (1994). "National Library Provision for Art in the United Kingdom: The Role of the National Art Library". Alexandria: The Journal of National and International Library and Information Issues. 6 (3): 173–192. doi:10.1177/095574909400600303. ISSN 0955-7490. S2CID 219986301.