The Special Collections at Chelsea College of Arts Library are used for teaching, learning, research and curating, and have a strong emphasis on modern and contemporary art.
African-Caribbean, Asian & African Art In Britain Archive
Description and origins of the archive
The archive contains a wide range of material documenting the work of contemporary artists practicing in Britain and of African-Caribbean, Asian and African descent. The collection was established in 1985 by Liz Ward and has links with the Institute of International Visual Arts (Iniva), the Diversity Art Forum (previously the African and Asian Visual Artists Archive) at the University of East London, and Panchayat, University of Westminster. Items in the archive date from 1970, with a in-depth coverage of the 1980s. It includes the archive of The Peoples Gallery (1984-87).
Extent: 10 boxes
Information about the archive
'Recordings: a select bibliography of contemporary African, Afro-Caribbean and Asian British art' (IPDF 18,418KB) by Melanie Keen and Liz Ward (London: Iniva, 1996) documents the collection up to 1996. All the published materials are listed on the library catalogue.
The film A Conversation about Recordings, made in October 2017, features a conversation between Recordings co-editors Melanie Keen, Director of Iniva, and Liz Ward, former Librarian of Chelsea College of Art. Here, they discuss and contextualise this important publication, the African-Caribbean, Asian & African Art In Britain Archive, and the documentation of Black Art in the 1980s, 1990s and now.
A Conversation about Recordings
Subjects
African-Caribbean artists, African artists, Asian artists, British art, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating
De Appel Archive
Description of the archive
This archive is a collection of papers and publications relating to exhibitions and performances at De Appel arts centre based in Amsterdam dating from its creation in 1975 to 1993. Material in the archive includes correspondence, catalogues, private view cards, press releases, magazine cuttings and issues of the De Appel bulletin.
Extent: 1 box
Work is currently being carried out to increase access to the archive but at the moment this is limited.
Subjects
Art ephemera, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating, Performance art
Artist Placement Group Archive
The Artist Placement Group (1966-) and Organisation + Imagination (1989-) group led by Barbara Steveni and John Latham, sought to reposition the role of the artist in society by arranging placements for artists to work in industry and government departments.
Description of the archive
This is a collection of papers relating to the activities of APG and to their work at Chelsea College of Art and Design between 1991-96, as an option on the BA Fine Art course. Material includes colour photographs made by Chelsea College of Art and Design students as part of the APG option. Complementary material, including the main Group archives, is held at the Tate Library & Archive.
Extent: 1 box
Work is currently being carried out to increase access to the archive, but at the moment it is limited.
Subjects
Art education, British art, Contemporary art
Artists' Books Collection
Description and origins of the collection
The collection documents the involvement of contemporary artists with the book, as a form of artistic practice from the early 1960s. Established in 1970 by Clive Phillpot in response to the production of books as 'democratic multiples' by conceptual artists such as Ed Ruscha, Lawrence Weiner, Sol LeWitt, Marcel Broodthaers and Ian Hamilton Finlay, it is one of the oldest and most prestigious collections in the UK. New material is constantly being added to reflect new developments both locally and internationally.
The collection was originally created for teaching purposes and is still used as a teaching collection, with works by current and former Chelsea students and staff well represented.
It also plays an important role in research and curating, with items frequently lent for exhibitions at galleries (Arnolfini, Baltic, Generali Foundation, Glucksman, Henry Moore Institute, MOT Internationl, Norwich Gallery, Showroom, Tate and Whitechapel, among others). The strengths of the collection are concrete poetry, European and American conceptual works and contemporary British artists.
Extent: ca. 3500 artists' books
Information about the collection
All artists' books are listed on the library catalogue, identified by the location ARTISTS' BOOK. In addition, "Artists' books: the book as a work of art, 1963-1995" by Dr Stephen Bury (Aldershot: Scholar Press, 1995), documents much of the collection up to 1995. See also his article, "1,2,3,5: building a collection of artists' books" (Art Libraries Journal, 2007, 32:2, pp 5-9).
Subjects
Artists' books, British art, Contemporary art, Concrete poetry, Conceptual art, Small presses
Artists' Multiples Collection
Description and origins of the collection
This is a collection of more than 500 original artworks by contemporary artists, produced in editions. Established in the 1980s by Librarian Stephen Bury, some of the items had been acquired during the previous two decades. Many acquisitions reflect the work of current and past students and staff of the College, such as Graham Gussin and Rose Finn-Kelcey. Items from the collection have been exhibited at the Whitechapel Gallery, Tate Modern, Barbican and other galleries in the UK and abroad. This unique collection for a library is particularly strong on Fluxus and contemporary British artists.
Extent: ca. 500 multiples
Information about the collection
The collection is listed on the library catalogue and can be identified by the location ARTISTS' MULTIPLE. A visual aid including photographs of all the items is available in the library. A handlist of the contents is also available. "Multiple choice: artists' multiples in the collection of Chelsea College of Art & Design Library" by Dr Stephen Bury (London: Flaxman Press, 1998), is an introduction to the collection at the time. A number of the multiples have also been used to illustrate his book Artists' multiples, 1935-2000 (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2001). See also Lalita Kaplish and Elizabeth Lawes' article, "In edition: artists' multiples in an academic collection" (Art Libraries Journal, 2004, 29:3, pp 37-42). Items from the collection are on display in the library.
Subjects
British art, Contemporary art, Fluxus, Modern art, Multiple art
Bow Gamelan & Paul Burwell Archive
Paul Burwell (1949-2007) was a musician and performance artist who studied at Ealing College of Art and the Royal College of Art. In 1975, he co-founded the London Musicians' Collective (LMC), an organisation for contemporary, experimental and improvised music.
The Bow Gamelan Ensemble was founded in 1983 by Anne Bean, Paul Burwell and Richard Wilson. The ensemble performed using found objects and altered junk as instruments and created theatrical, pyrotechnical performances.
Description of the archive
The archive contains material relating to performances by the Bow Gamelan Ensemble, featuring in particular a collection of handwritten scores and drawings for specific performances, and includes a 7" vinyl record of "When I grow rich" and "When will that be" from 1985.
Material relating to the LMC includes posters and ephemera for events and performances and two handmade booklets of photographs of performances at the Covent Garden Music Festival in 1984 and 1985.
The archive also features material relating to artists, musicians and ensembles that performed with Burwell, including David Toop, Stephen Cripps, Christopher Small, Richard Deacon and Bob Cobbing (abAna).
Extent: 3 boxes
Work is currently being carried out to increase access to the archive but at the moment this is limited.
Subjects
Art and music, Artists' collectives, British art, Contemporary art, Drawing, Experimental music, Performance, Sound art
CAB Gallery Archive
Launched in 1999 by London taxi driver Jason Brown, the CAB Gallery was a project co-curated by gallerist Paul Stolper that invited emerging and established artists to create site-specific works based in and on a black cab, using the space normally devoted to advertising. The project ended in December 2001 and a retrospective was held at the Essor Gallery Project Space in January 2002.
Description of the archive
Contents of the archive include: private view cards, press releases, receipt booklets produced for the CAB, a CD of sound works produced on the occasion of the retrospective, photographs of the gallery, a video of footage of the gallery from various sources.
Extent: 1 box
Work is currently being carried out to increase access to the archive, but at the moment this is limited.
Subjects
British art, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating, Site-specific art
Chelsea College Of Art Archive
Description and origins of the archive
In 1964 two existing art schools, the School of Art, part of Chelsea Polytechnic, and the Polytechnic School of Art based in Great Titchfield Street merged to create a new Chelsea School of Art in purpose-built premises at Manresa Road, Chelsea.
The archive contains records documenting the establishment of the new school and details of college activities to the present. Included are prospectuses, degree show and other catalogues and student publications. It does not include full details of past alumni. Items date back to the 1920s, but the bulk is from 1964 onwards. Records relating to the earlier history of the art school are held at Kings College London.
Extent: 82 boxes
Information about the archive
The archive is filed chronologically and published material is listed on the library catalogue.
Subjects
Art education, British art, Contemporary art, Modern art
Contemporary Art Slide Scheme (CASS) Archive
Description and origins of the archive
CASS was established in 1992 by curator Donald Smith and the late Stacy Billups. The scheme was run on a subscription basis, until it ended in 2007, providing sets of contemporary art slides documenting exhibitions in London for educational and research use. The archive comprises a complete set of the slides, all of which were photographed by CASS staff or sourced from private galleries and artists' archives.
Extent: ca. 3000 slides
Information about the archive
The archive is filed by artist and/or chronologically.
Subjects
British art, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating
Coracle Press Ephemera Collection
Coracle Press was founded by Simon Cutts (b. 1944) in the 1970s in Camberwell, South London. Coracle Press existed in various incarnations around the UK, until moving to South Tipperary, Ireland in 1996 where Cutts and Erica Van Horn continue to produce artists' books, ephemera and editions. Cutts had previously worked at Tarasque Press in Nottingham in the mid 1960s, with Stuart Mills, publishing avant-garde poetry. Coracle Press developed out of the same small press tradition established by Cutts and Mills at Tarasque.
Information about the collection
This collection comprises ephemera, private view cards and objects made and distributed by the Coracle Press and Tarasque Press (1960s-1990s), including a boxed selection of Tarasque and Coracle Press cards, 1968-1975 and a boxed selection of Coracle Press gallery publications 1976-1967. It also includes pieces from workfortheeyetodo - the gallery/bookshop run by Cutts, Erica Van Horn and Maggie Smith from 1992. This collection complements the library's holdings of Tarasque and Coracle Press artists' books and multiples.
Extent: 3 boxes
Subjects
Artists' Books, British art, Concrete poetry, Ephemera, Small Presses, Visual poetry
Delfryd Celf Archive
Description of the archive
The archive contains correspondence, private view cards and papers relating to exhibitions at the Delfryd Celf galleries in Caernarfon, Wales, and in Amsterdam, run by David Bellman, and the David Bellman Gallery, which he set up in Toronto in 1980. A significant portion of the archive is papers and plans for a 1988 exhibition of Hamish Fulton painted wall texts and photographs of the installation. Other material includes correspondence with Dan Graham, drawings by Stanley Brouwn and Lawrence Weiner, and other documentation relating to the exhibition 'Interventions' first held at Delfryd Celf (Caernarfon), then travelling to the Art Gallery of Ontario in 1990. The archive also contains installation shots, proofs for a private view card, hand drawn plans for the installation of an Alan Charlton show (Column paintings) at Delfryd Celf, Amsterdam (1989) and handwritten coded texts, typescripts and corrected proofs for 'Section 34', 'Second Set [1983]' and 'Section 42' by Ian Wilson, with correspondence from Wilson to Bellman instructing the production of the typescripts. A highlight of the collection is a telegram sent to the David Bellman Gallery in Toronto from On Kawara as part of the 'I am still alive' series (1982).
Extent: 3 boxes.
Work is currently being carried out to increase access to the archive, but at the moment this is limited.
Subjects
Artists' books, Artists' multiples, Conceptual art, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating, Text in art
Dom Sylvester Houédard Archive
Dom Sylvester Houédard (1924-1992), or dsh, was a pioneer of concrete poetry in Great Britain. Houédard used a typewriter to produce concrete or visual poems and created the 'typestract', a method of producing images using the signs available on a typewriter. The typestract is demonstrated in some of the letters in the archive. He co-edited with Bob Cobbing the sound poetry magazine 'Kroklok' (1971-1976), also in the library collection.
Description of the archive
This archive contains some of Houédard's artists' books, the poster poem 'Sand Rock Tide', exhibition catalogues and correspondence from 1971-1975. Amongst the correspondence are typewritten letters and postcards from Houédard to Christopher Carrell of the Ceolfrith Press in Sunderland and Edward Wright, Head of Graphic Design at Chelsea School of Art during this period. The correspondence relates to Houédard's exhibitions 'Visual poetries' at the V&A (1971) and a retrospective at the Laing Gallery, Newcastle (1972).Complementary material, including the bulk of his papers, is held at John Rylands University Library of Manchester.
Extent: 1 box
Information about the archive
Published items are listed on the library catalogue. A handlist for the archive is available.
Subjects
Artists' books, Concrete poetry, Galleries and curating, Graphic design, Text in art
Dorothea Rockburne Archive
Dorothea Rockburne was born in Montréal in 1932, where she attended the École des Beaux-Arts and the Montréal Museum School. She was awarded a scholarship to Black Mountain College in 1950 and studied there with artists such as Robert Rauschenberg and Cy Twombly. She moved to New York in 1955, where she lives and works. Rockburne's practice has been influenced by her studies in topology, mathematics and the golden section, and her training in dance and performance.
Description of the archive
The archive features correspondence with art historian and critic Robert Pincus-Witten, including postcards and letters sent from 1971 to 1975. Other material includes texts by Rockburne and Pincus-Witten on her life and work, beginning with her scholarship at Black Mountain College. The archive also contains exhibition catalogues, private view cards and press cuttings relating to exhibitions of Rockburne's work between 1973 and 1988.
Extent: 1 box.
Information about the archive
A handlist of the archive is available.
Subjects
Contemporary art, Mathematics in art, Women artists
Ephemera Collection
Description and origins of the collection
This collection consists of printed ephemera such as clippings, press releases, reviews, private view cards, artists' statements, CVs, invitations, correspondence and posters relating to artists and galleries. It is constantly being added to and is a source of information on new and lesser known artists, and the changing gallery scene in the UK. This predominantly British collection dates back to the 1960s, with London-based artists and galleries particularly well represented.
Extent: ca. 20 linear metres
Information about the collection
Work is currently being carried out to increase access to the collection, but at the moment this is limited. The collection is discussed in Alice Harvey's "Ephemera in the art library" (MA Thesis, City University, 2007) and the article by Elizabeth Lawes and Vicky Webb, "Ephemera in the art library" (Art Libraries Journal, 2003, 28:2, pp. 35-39).
Subjects
British art, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating, Graphic design, Printed ephemera
Facsimile Sketchbook Collection
Description and origins of the collection
This small collection contains facsimile sketchbooks, some of them very rare. It comprises works by 19th and 20th century artists, including Cézanne, Delacroix, Gauguin, Jackson Pollock, Mondrian, Picasso and Toulouse-Lautrec. Extent: ca. 40 sketchbooks
Information about the collection
Items in this collection are listed on the library catalogue.
Subjects
19th century art, Contemporary art, Drawing, Modern art, Sketchbooks
Gilbert & George Ephemera Collection
Gilbert & George began working together in 1967 when they met while studying sculpture at St Martins School of Art. Their practice encompasses performance ('living sculpture'), film, photography, mail art and artists' books, produced under the imprint Art for All. They live and work in London.
Information about the collection
The collection comprises mail art (or 'postal sculptures') published by Art for All, 'Gentlemen' (1972) and the set 'The red boxers' (1975) and ephemera (private view cards, invites) published on the occasion of exhibitions at the Nigel Greenwood Gallery, Anthony d'Offay, White Cube and other galleries, from 1971 to date. Some press releases and pamphlets are also included in the collection. Also part of the collection is a 3D cardboard maquette (46 x 46.5 x 7 cm) for the exhibition 'Photo-Pieces' 1980-1982, held at the David Bellman Gallery, Toronto, in 1983, detailing the layout and including miniature reproductions of the art works on display. Extent: 2 boxes
Subjects
Art ephemera, British art, Conceptual art, Galleries and curating, Mail art.
Henry Moore Archive
This collection relates to the bronze sculpture 'Two-Piece Reclining Figure no. 1' (1959) by Henry Moore (1898-1986) which was bought by Chelsea School of Art in 1963. When the new purpose-built school was opened on Manresa Road, it was proposed that a work of art should be acquired. The decision to buy a sculpture from Henry Moore who was the Head of Sculpture at Chelsea School of Art from 1932-1939 is detailed in minutes of the governors' meetings in 1963-1964.
The sculpture represents an important development in Moore's work, being the first time he separated the reclining figure into two pieces. He wrote:
"I did the first one in pieces almost without intending to. But after I had done it, then the second one became a conscious idea. I realized what an advantage a separated two-piece composition could have in relating figures to landscape. Knees and breasts are mountains. Once these two parts become separated, you don't expect a naturalistic figure; therefore you can justifiably make it like a landscape or rock." (Wilkinson, A., 2002, pp.287-288)
Information about the archive
Documentation in this collection includes London County Council architects plans of the plinth designed for the sculpture and its setting within the grounds of the school and black and white photographs of the installation of the sculpture on 25 March 1964. In addition there is correspondence to Moore and various third parties arranging the installation and subsequent moves of the sculpture.
Other material in the collection covers the loan history of the sculpture to various exhibitions, including the Tate Gallery retrospective in 1968, the Royal Academy in 1988 and Jeu de Paume in 1996 and colour photographs documenting several moves. A highlight of this collection of images and papers is a pencil sketch of the sculpture by Moore.
Wilkinson, A., ed. (2002) 'Henry Moore: Writings and Conversations'. Aldershot: Lund Humphries
Extent: 1 box
Subjects
British art, Modern art, Public art, Sculpture
Ian Hamilton Finlay Archive
Ian Hamilton Finlay (1925-2006) was a conceptual artist and concrete poet whose words appeared not only on paper, but also carved into stone and wood sculptures in gardens, notably Little Sparta in Dunsyre, Scotland. Finlay founded the Wild Hawthorn Press in 1958 and produced books, postcards and poster poems often in collaboration with others including Thomas A. Clark, Colin Sackett and Simon Cutts.
Description of the archive
The archive contains printed works by Finlay, including artists' books, cards, proposals, plays and poetry; correspondence and postcards; and exhibition catalogues, monographs and articles about the artist.
Extent: 6 boxes
Information about the archive
Published material is listed on the library catalogue. A handlist of other materials is available.
Subjects
Artists' books, British art, Concrete poetry, Ephemera, Text in art
Inventory Archive
Description and origins of the archive
This unique archive documents the development of 'Inventory' magazine and related art projects. 'Inventory' was first published in 1995 by Paul Claydon, Adam Scrivener and Damian Abbott, at the time postgraduate students at Chelsea. The archive was first deposited in 2001, with an additional major donation in 2003. A complete run of the magazine (14 issues to date) is held by the library.
The archive includes flyers, private view cards, Christmas cards, and letters including correspondence relating to various exhibitions, interventions and other projects. Examples of their limited edition artworks are also held in the Artists' Multiples Collection.
Extent: 5 boxes
Information about the archive
All published material is listed on the library catalogue. A handlist of other material is available.
Subjects
British art, Contemporary art
Jean Spencer Archive
Jean Spencer (1942-1998) was a member of the Systems Group, and her work was shown in the Systems exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery in 1972. Also a member of Arbeitskreis (the international workshop for systematic constructive art) and a founding member of Countervail, her artistic practice was firmly rooted in the use of mathematical and chromatic sequences and the relation of these systems with the object. Spencer began teaching art in the early 1960s and from 1988 taught at the Slade School of Art. Description and origins of the archive.
This unique collection, donated in 2001 by her sister Marian Waters, includes material from the Kleinsassen Project (1986), an Elephant Trust proposal and studies (1987), studies for Arbeitskreis Symposium, Kemi (1983), a study for the 'Double Square Painting' (1992). It also includes two colour matrix test sheets (1980), sketchbooks of studies for reliefs and correspondence, exhibition catalogues and publicity material (1970-2001). Complementary material is held at the Tate Library and MAKE (the Women's Art Library).
Extent: 2 boxes.
Information about the archive. Published material is listed on the library catalogue. A hand list of other materials is available. Items from the archive are on permanent display in the library.
Subjects
Abstract art, British art, Minimal art, Painting, Systems Group
Kurt Schwitters Archive
Kurt Schwitters (1887-1948) began producing abstract collages influenced by Dada that he named Merz pictures, also the title of the magazine that he published between 1923-1932. During this time Schwitters created the Merzbau in Hannover, an ordinary family home in which he considerably altered the interior space. The Merzbau was destroyed by bombing during World War II. Schwitters had already fled Germany to Norway after some of the Merz collages featured in the 1937 Nazi exhibition 'Entartete Kunst' ('degenerate art'). Schwitters lived in the Lake District in his last years, where he produced his last Merzbau which was later moved to the Hatton Gallery at Newcastle University.
Description of the archive
A collection of material relating to Schwitters' art works, including files of the Lord's Gallery, trial proofs, negatives of forgeries and record covers.
Extent: 3 boxes
Information about the archive
Published material is listed on the library catalogue. A handlist of other materials is available. Subjects, Collage, Dada, Modern art.
Lawrence Weiner Archive
Lawrence Weiner (b.1942) is a conceptual artist who works with language and typography. His work with Seth Siegelaub in the late 1960s and early 1970s produced a number of important artist's publications and installations, in particular 'Statements' and what is commonly known as the Xerox Book. Weiner also uses film, sculpture and performance. He lives and works in New York and Amsterdam.
Description of the archive
The archive contains correspondence between Lawrence Weiner and gallerist David Bellman, including postcards and letters with drawings by the artist. Documentation relating to exhibitions includes The Mere Interchange in Swansea in 1983, What is set upon the table sits upon the table at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, 1988 and Kunsthalle Bern, 1983.
Extent: 1 box
Information about the archive
A handlist of the archive is available. The contents of the archive are complemented by extensive holdings in the Artists' Books and Artists' Multiples collections.
Subjects
Conceptual art, Text in art
Mariko Mori Archive
Mariko Mori (b.1967) studied fashion in Japan and worked as a model before coming to London in the early 1990s to study BA Fine Art at Chelsea College of Art and Design. She has since produced film installations that reference imagery and spirituality of Eastern and Western culture and often feature the artist as a central character. Mori lives and works in New York.
Description of the archive
This is an archive of exhibition catalogues and ephemera from 1996-2000, donated by the artist and her mother, Dr. Yoko Mori. Extent: 1 box
Information about the archive. A hand list of the archive is available.
Subjects
Contemporary art, Japanese art
Nigel Greenwood Gallery Archive
Nigel Greenwood (1941-2004) was a gallerist and curator influential in the development of British art during the 1970s and 1980s. An early promoter of Conceptual art, he presented Gilbert & George's Underneath the arches and the first UK exhibition of Ed Ruscha's artists' books at his gallery at Glebe Place, Chelsea (1969-1971). After moving to a new location at Sloane Gardens (1971-1992) he continued to introduce new British and international artists, including Keith Milow, David Tremlett, David Lamelas and Marc Camille Chaimowicz.
He published artists' books in relatively large editions (ca. 1,000) to accompany exhibitions, rather than catalogues, and presented the seminal exhibition 'Book as artwork' in 1972. He curated the Hayward Gallery 'Annual Exhibition' in 1985.
Information about the archive
The archive comprises papers related to the exhibition 'Book as artwork 1960/1972', curated by Germano Celant, the first major survey of the use of the book by contemporary artists as part of their practice. It includes the accompanying book, 17 letters from Celant, and carbon copies of 7 letters by Lynda Morris, who assisted in the organisation of the exhibition and co-compiled the bibliography for its publication.
The archive also includes ephemera and documentation (private view card, press release, artists' CVs) related to the 1969 exhibition of the Stockwell group of sculptors. Greenwood, who had previously worked as gallery manager at Axiom, collaborated with the artists to organise this independent, artist-led exhibition in a former depot in South London.
The archive is complemented by seven artists' books and ten exhibition catalogues published by the Gallery between 1972 and 1990.
Extent: 1 box
Published material is listed on the library catalogue. A handlist of other material is available.
Subjects
Artists' books, British art, Conceptual art, Contemporary art, Galleries and curating
Peter Liversidge Archive
Peter Liversidge (b.1973) works in a wide range of media, most significantly, artists' books, multiples and performance. Liversidge studied at Montana State University, USA, between 1994 and 1995. This inspired a number of works for an exhibition titled 'The North Montana Plains'. Most recently Liversidge has produced proposals for actions and performances that have been published as artists' books. He lives and works in London.
Description and origins of the archive
This archive contains items posted by Peter Liversidge to Steve Bury, Liz Ward and other library staff at Chelsea between 1998 and 2000, a selection of correspondence and mail art projects and ephemera relating to exhibitions. The archive complements the holdings in the Artists' Books and Artists' Multiples collections.
Extent: 1 box
Information about the archive
A handlist of the archive is available.
Subjects
British art, Contemporary art, Ephemera, Mail art
Stephen Willats Archive
Stephen Willats (b. 1943) is a conceptual artist whose work often requires active participation by the audience, including a number of projects involving residents of public housing estates. His ideas on creative and social processes are discussed in Art and social function (1976, new ed. 2000). He lives and works in London.
Description and origins of the archive
The archive contains material relating to exhibitions and social and community projects by Willats, including documentation of the 'West London Social Resource Project' (1972-3). This includes questionnaires, photographs, audiotapes and exhibition display mounts. Items from the archive have been included in the exhibitions 'Conceptions: conceptual documents 1968-1972' (Norwich Gallery, Henry Moore Institute and Leeds City Art Gallery, 2001), 'How Society and Politics get in the Picture' (Generali Foundation, 2005) and 'Artlink' (Göteborgs Konsthall, 2006). Material is also held in the Tate Library and the National Art Library (Victoria & Albert Museum).
Extent: 7 boxes
Information about the archive
All published material is listed on the library catalogue. Hand lists of material relating to the 'West London Social Resource Project' (1972-3), and material relating to other projects (1971-1981) are available. Complementary material, including cards and printed ephemera, a complete set of posters designed by the artist, comprehensive collections of exhibition catalogues and artists' books, and a set of Control magazine (edited by Willats since 1965), is also held in the archive.
Subjects
British art, Conceptual art, Contemporary art
Women's International Art Club Archive
Description and origins of the archive
This is a collection of papers documenting the English activities of the international club from 1942 to 1976. The club was founded in Paris in 1900 and ceased to exist in 1976. The archive contains correspondence, exhibition catalogues, committee papers and photographs. MAKE (the Women's Art Library) has papers dating from 1929. Catalogues from 1899 to 1938 can also be found at the National Art Library (Victoria & Albert Museum).
Extent: 1 box
Information about the archive
A handlist of the archive is available.
Subjects
British art, Women artists
Rare books and periodicals
The library collection comprises a large number of rare 19th and 20th century art and design publications, from Der Blaue Reiter to Bauhaus publications, Futurist manifestos and examples of concrete and visual poetry.
The periodicals collection includes more than 1,200 titles, of which approximately 900 are historical or have ceased publication. These include first and limited editions, pilot issues of contemporary magazines, artists' publications and runs of rare titles such as Aspen, Avalanche, Documents, Internationale situationniste, Minotaure, Slimvolume, Words & pictures, etc.
Some of these items have been exhibited at the Victoria & Albert Museum, Hayward Gallery, Tate, Design Museum, British Library and other institutions in the UK and abroad.
Rare books and periodicals are listed on the library catalogue and can be requested for use at the library desk.
Catalogues Raisonnés
Defined by 'The Thames & Hudson dictionary of art terms' (London: Thames & Hudson, 2003) as a "complete annotated catalogue of the works of one artist, usually giving provenance and bibliographical references for each work and listing attributed or doubtful works as well as engravings after the artist" (p. 49), the library collection includes more than 300 catalogues raisonnés, from 'Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, dessiné et gravé de P. P. Prud'hon par Edmond de Goncourt' (1876) to 'Ilya Kabakov: paintings 1957 - 2008: catalogue raisonne# edited by Renate Petzinger and Emilia Kabakov' (2008).
This collection complements the approximately 30,000 modern and contemporary art exhibition catalogues held by the library.
Catalogues raisonnés are listed on the library catalogue, and a handlist is available. Items on closed access can be requested for use at the library desk.
Collections Guide
Our Special Collections Guide features a preface by Prof. David Garcia, Dean of the College, and a text by Maria Fusco, writer and academic, provides full descriptions of 27 collections. It is also available in print from the library (ISBN 978-0-902612-13-6). The first edition of the Guide (ISBN 978-0-902612-08-2) included an essay by art historian and curator Jo Melvin.