Grey Fine Arts Library and Study Center

General Information

The Grey Fine Arts Library and Study Center, a resource of the Department of Fine Arts, New York University, provides teaching and research support for faculty and students of the Department. The collections have developed over many years and at present number approximately 270,000 images (35mm slides and photographs) and approximately 50,000 volumes (books and periodicals). The main strength of the collections is in art of the western world, although there is growing depth in the art and architecture of eastern traditions, as well as pre-Columbian. The primary function of the collections is to acquire, organize and provide effective access to scholarly texts and images of works of art that are addressed in the areas taught by the Department. These areas include survey courses in the history of art, which are directed to non-art history majors, and major concentrations within the Department, which include the Art History major, as well as History of Architecture and Urban Design tracks. Funding for acquisitions and collections development is derived from the Department's operations budget, interest from a small endowment, in-kind donations, and limited project-specific allocations from the Dean of the Faculty. The collections are housed in close proximity on the third floor of Silver Center, which has been dedicated since 1979 to the teaching of Art History. Slide collection circulation is approximately 65,000 slides per year; approximate circulation from reserve readings only is 20,000-25,000 texts per year.

Special effort is made to ensure that all materials acquired are of the best possible quality, that they are maintained in a manner conducive to longevity, and that they are cataloged accurately and completely, and classified in a manner that provides logical physical access. Because slides and texts in the collection are needed on-demand to support the teaching needs of the faculty in the department, resource-sharing with other areas of the University is necessarily limited.

The Grey Fine Arts Library and Study Center is open from 9AM to 8PM, Monday through Thursday, whenever the University is not on holiday. In addition, the reserve reading room is available until 8PM, Monday through Thursday and 12PM to 5PM on Friday and Saturday during each academic semester.

User Information

The Grey Fine Arts Library is a teaching resource of the Department of Art History of New York University. The primary mission of these collections is to supply visual resources and scholarly printed materials to meet the teaching needs of the faculty offering regularly scheduled classes in the Department of Art History. Because great demands are placed on these collections, circulation policies have been established by the Department of Art History. The purpose of these regulations is to ensure that the necessary support materials are available to members of the Department of Art History. Requests for use of the collections may be made to the Librarian/Slide Curator. The Grey Fine Arts Library is a non-circulating reserve library. NO BOOKS OR PERIODICALS MAY LEAVE THE PREMISES.

COPYRIGHT RESTRICTIONS: Slides and photographs from this collection may not be reproduced in any form by individuals, departments, or institutions. Books are not photocopied.

Student User Information

All students are expected to use the collections according to departmental rules and regulations. In most cases, there is no reason for students in regular and advanced (other than Seminar) courses to use the slide collection. If a faculty member wishes particular students to use slides for class reports, that faculty member should pull the slide for the student using the appropriate circulation card and return the slide immediately after the student's report. Students using reserve reading collections must request the appropriate material from the library proctor who will retrieve it from the locked stacks. Only material placed on reserve by the faculty is available to a student in that class. Library proctors may not supply books which do not appear on a course reading list. Any other requests must go through the Librarian/Slide Curator. Only Seminar students have access to the stacks. All other students must request materials through the library proctors. All students must surrender their NYU ID cards to the proctor in order to use reserve materials. Student IDs are returned when reading materials are returned. IN NO CASE WILL BOOKS BE REMOVED FROM THE RESERVE READING ROOM. No books, or sections thereof, may be photocopied. If it is necessary to photocopy reserve assignments for student use, the library staff will have done so. Photocopied materials may be removed from the reading room to recopy at a commercial photocopy establishment. The original copy must be returned, immediately, to the library. Reading materials may not be kept overnight, saved in student lockers, or reserved for later use! Violations of these regulations may result in denial of library privileges.