The Museum Library

Jump to

Hours and Information

Admission to the library is free of charge.

Phone: 508.793.4382
E-mail: library@worcesterart.org

History

The Worcester Art Museum Library, founded in 1909, is dedicated to the study and enjoyment of the history of art by collecting resources in support of the museum’s mission, exhibitions, and permanent collections. The Library is managed in association with the College of the Holy Cross, a collaboration that began in 2001. The Library is located on the second floor of the Museum. The reading room is the original Sculpture Gallery in the Museum's 1898 building and houses frequently used monographs and art publications.

Using the Library

The Library serves the staff of the Museum, and also extends its resources and services to the community, including teachers, students, faculty, collectors, museum docents, scholars, and the general public. Please be respectful of the library staff and other users of the library by adhering to the following guidelines:

• If you wish to use a book from our Rare Book Collection please contact a librarian to make an appointment
• Library staff are not able to scan documents for the public
• Library staff are not able to print out private correspondence or emails for the public
• Belongings may be checked at any of the Museum entrances
• Backpacks are not allowed
• Food and drink are not permitted
• Free WiFi

A photocopier is available ($.15 per page black and white, $.50 per page color) and a printer is attached to our public access computer terminals.

Digital Collections

The library provides on-line access to over 260 early Worcester Art Museum exhibition catalogs. The digitization of the catalogs was provided by the Digital Commonwealth and Boston Public Library and funded by an LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act) grant. The digitized exhibition catalogs are available on the Internet Archive.

Holdings

The Library's bibliographic collection encompasses all periods and media of art, with an emphasis on European, American, and Asian art. The collection includes:

• 65,000 books
• Online databases
• Auction catalogs dating back to 1887
• Artist files
• Special materials on the Museum's permanent collection
• Current subscriptions to 16 leading art periodicals

Library Lunchtime Lecture Series

Hosted by Friends of the Library

Meets at noon in the Conference Room.
Free and open to the public.
Bring your lunch! Coffee and cookies will be provided.

2019-2020 Schedule

• Friday, September 27, 2019
  James A. Welu. A Frans Hals for Worcester.
  Jim will talk about his essay published in the book, Inspired: Essays in honor of Susan Donahue Kuretsky about his acquisition of a painting by Frans Hals during his tenure as Director of WAM. The painting is the only known portrait of the painter Frans Post, the first European trained artist to paint landscapes of the Americas.
• Tuesday, January 21, 2020
  Peter Moriarity. Warm Room: Photographs from Historic Greenhouses.
  Peter Moriarity, a well-known photographer, with works in many major institutions, will discuss his newly published book, Warm Room: Photographs from Historic Greenhouses. The book is a unique portfolio of 56 gelatin-silver prints of distinctive greenhouses of major cities in American and Europe.
• Tuesday, March 3, 2020
  Whitney Scharer, author of The Age of Light.
  A captivating debut novel by Whitney Scharer, The Age of Light tells the true story of Vogue model turned renowned photographer, Lee Miller. Miller travels to Paris in the 1920's to learn the art of photography, apprentices to Man Ray and becomes his muse and lover.
• Tuesday, May 12, 2020
  This event was resheduled from November 12, 2019.
  Ramie Targoff, Professor of English and Chair of Italian Studies at Brandeis Univ. and author of Renaissance Woman. The Life of Vittoria Colonna.
  A biography of Vittoria Colonna, a confidante of Michelangelo, the scion of one of the most powerful families of her era, and a pivotal figure in the Italian Renaissance.