You may have overlooked the Libraryís smallest branch library, the
Art
Slide Library (ASL), located in the List Art Center. From
its name, you may have judged it to be irrelevant to your work or
assumed that access is restricted to those teaching art. Neither
of these is true. Anyone is welcome to use these visual resources
for a Brown course. The scope of the collection is, perhaps, more
accurately described as "visual culture," and the slides hold a
wealth of imagery that can enliven lectures or student presentations.
For instance, Prof. Guha of the Department of History, a regular
user of the ASL, comments: "History requires us to engage with the
lives of people who are often remote in both time and space. The
slide library allows me to present them far more vividly than would
otherwise be possible. A slide showing a building, an artifact,
or a burial allows students to take a look at evidence for themselves.
Furthermore, looking at deliberately produced representations like
paintings and cartoons allows them to think about people in the
past and how they perceived themselves and others." Students in
language courses often borrow slides for short presentations that
require them to speak about some aspect of the history or culture
of the country they are focussed on. Images may also support the
study of literature, especially writings from times and places foreign
to our own experience. During the 2000-2001 academic year, representatives
of thirty-one different departments borrowed slides.
The slides are physically arranged in a classified scheme that facilitates
browsing, especially for those approaching them from an art historical
perspective. For onsite users, the database catalog, IRIS,
provides alternate means of access, especially through extensive
subject indexing. Staff members will assist with searches in IRIS
or teach users how to conduct their own. A web interface called
Anita
enables remote access to part of the database from the Libraryís
homepage. Best results, however, are usually obtained by consultation
with a staff member who is familiar with the collection and the
database, particularly because Anita
lacks records for acquisitions prior to 1990.
Weekly slide production, in response to requests from faculty and
students, supplies new images for use in the classroom and, selectively,
for the permanent collection. Guidelines approved by the Universityís
General Counsel govern this "copywork" production, so that additions
to the collection can be justified as "fair use" under copyright
law. The policies and procedures for borrowing from the existing
collection and for requesting new slides may be found at: http://www.brown.edu/library/libs/art/index.html
Individual slides and slide sets are also purchased from vendors,
museums, galleries, institutions, artists, and photographers in
order to build the collection in support of the curriculum. Every
slide is individually cataloged and integrated into the classified
order of the collection. In addition, a copystand is available for
those who wish to shoot their own slides from books or other flat
copy. A camera, as well as a lens adapter kit for a personal camera,
may be borrowed. Instruction on the use of the equipment is offered
by appointment. To the best of their ability, staff will offer advice
on seeking permission to reproduce copyrighted images. ASL staff
will also assist in obtaining non-circulating books from other Library
locations for slide-making purposes. Media Services loans projection
equipment for a presentation, if it is in a classroom where it is
not already installed.
General art reference service is offered by the ASL staff, in addition
to advice based on their specialized knowledge of image resources.
A small, non-circulating reference library is available for onsite
use. The staff can also assist with searching the Library's art-related
electronic and Internet resources. Please stop by, call for more
information or schedule a formal orientation.
-
Norine Duncan
http://www.brown.edu/Facilities/University_Library
