Here is news of an exciting development for the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. They have completed retrospective cataloguing of both their library and artworks collections.
Best wishes,
Erica Foden-Lenahan
Tate Library & Archive
Michiel Nijhoff <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Subject: RE: [OKBN-L] retrocatalogisering bibliotheek Stedelijk Museum
Date: Fri, 2 Feb 2007 11:39:48 +0100
From: "Michiel Nijhoff" <[log in to unmask]>
To: "Erica Foden-Lenahan" <[log in to unmask]>
In january 2007 the last remaining titles of the library of the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam were added to the on-line catalogue. It concerns 110.000 pre-1991 exhibition catalogues. From 1991 all acquisitions were catalogued in the automated system Tinlib, a collection that was converted to the Adlib system in 2003. The 25.000 monographs and books (as in ‘not exhibition catalogues’) were retrocatalogued in 2005 and 2006. These were catalogued and indexed as normal acquisitions are, and can be found in various ways, author, title, artists’s name etc. The descriptions of the 110.000 exhibition catalogues from before 1991, a vast treasure with many very rare items, is yet to be upgraded to full descriptions. The descriptions are data-entried from hand written index cards and contain many faults and misspellings. They can be searched on words from the title, and on exposition data. If one wants to find out how many publications there are in the library on
Christian Boltanski, the search should be for Boltanski in the subject field ‘artist’. Then all books and catalogues from 19991 and all monographs and books from before 1991 are found (128 hits, including group exhibitions). To include the pre-1991 exhibition catalogues in the search a second search should be made in the title field for ‘Boltanski’ (some 40 additional hits; the soloexhibitions will be covered more or less, the group exhibitions cannot be found in this way). Of course the idea is to add the artist’s indexes to the solo and group exhibitions, but due to lack of personnel this project will take a long time completing. Nevertheless this is the first time in the history of the library that all titles are together within one system.
We now know that the total collection counts 167.000 titles. That includes the 1500 documentary video’s and DVD-s the library houses. There are also 1200 review titles (of which 220 ongoing subscriptions). Not included are the 25.000 binders with artist’s press clippings. These also will be made accessible in the near future.
The past few years the museum has put a lot of effort and funding in cataloguing the library and the collection. The collection of the museum now has about 90.000 objects and will be completely registrated in july 2007. The library and the collection are in two separate databases using the same software. The two are linked, using shared files for artists names, exhibition data, a thesaurus, geographical names etc. One can can find the documentation on a sculpture by Karel Appel in the collection of the museum by searching the collection database. In the library catalogue one will find exactly which sculptures owned by the museum are in the book ‘The complete sculpture of Karel Appel’. As yet the library database is on-line accessible for the public through the website www.stedelijk.nl . The collection databse is not yet accessible. The whole operation is a prelude to the new libarry/information centre, that will open at the end of 2008 in the new building at Museumplein.
The Dutch architectural firm Benthem Crouwel, also designer of Schiphol Airport for example, designed a new wing for the 19th century building that is being renovated now. The library of the museum, officially opened in 1957, will get a prominent and very accessible place in this new wing.
Drs. Michiel Nijhoff
Bibliothecaris Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam
Postbus 75082
1070 AB Amsterdam
tel. 0031-20-5732911
tel.0031-6-23976557
fax.0031-206752716
Voor routebeschrijving en openingstijden bibliotheek raadpleeg
www.stedelijk.nl en klik op 'bibliotheek'
For directions and opening hours of the library consult
www.stedelijk.nl click on EN for English and go to 'library'
-----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
Van: Erica Foden-Lenahan [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Verzonden: woensdag 24 januari 2007 12:01
Aan: Michiel Nijhoff
Onderwerp: Re: [OKBN-L] retrocatalogisering bibliotheek Stedelijk Museum
Dear Michiel,
Congratulations on this news! What a huge project to complete. I wanted to pass this message on to the ARLIS/UK & Ireland discussion list, but am a bit uncertain about some of the finer points (my Dutch is okay to translate the basics). Would you be able to do a short summary of this exciting development, please? I wouldn't ask normally, but I haven't seen the announcement in English anywhere and it will be eagerly anticipated. I know for my own work, it is very useful to be able to check your own catalogue records as many of the early exhibition catalogue records in Tate's on-line catalogue are not as complete as they could be.
Thank you for your help and, once again, congratulations on the retrospective conversion.
Best wishes,
Erica Foden-Lenahan
Tate Library & Archive
Michiel Nijhoff <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Verleden week werden de laatste 110.000 titelbeschrijvingen toegevoegd aan de
on-line catalogus van de bibliotheek van het Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. Het
zijn beschrijvingen van tentoonstellingscatalogi van vóór 1991. De titel- en
tentoonstellingsgegevens werden van handgeschreven kaarten overgenomen door
Ingressus en omgezet in data-entry, later ingelezen in Adlib. Met deze stap
is het totale boekenbezit van de bibliotheek van het Stedelijk ingevoerd. De
collectie telt 167.000 banden weten wij nu. Met enige vertraging zullen deze
titels ook via de website van het museum toegankelijk zijn. Voorlopig is het
slechts mogelijk die nieuw toegevoegde titels te zoeken op (woorden uit) de
titel. Er is op het moment een klein probleempje met de personele bezetting,
en het toevoegen van trefwoorden en kunstenaarsindexen aan 110.000 titels is
een behoorlijke klus. Wie zoekt naar literatuur over Boltanski kan dus
on-line zoeken op Boltanski als persoonstrefwoord, en vindt dan alle
publicaties van ná 1991, en alle 'gewone'boeken van vóor dat jaar (samen 128
hits), wie ook de tentoonstellingscatalogi van voor 1991 wil vinden, moet
zoeken via woord uit de titel naar Boltanski (103 hits, waarvan 43
retrotitels met oude tentoonstellingscatalogi). Nog niet perfect dus, maar
een grote stap op de goede weg. Nog niet ingewerkt zijn de veilingcatalogi,
hiertoe bestaan ook geen plannen. Wel wordt gewerkt aan het invoeren van de
ruim 20.000 knipselmappen met documentatie over kunstenaars. Deze worden als
map beschreven in de boekencatalogus. Hierbij worden ook knipsels gekoppeld
aan tentoonstellingen bij het Stedelijk ingevoerd. Via het zojuist in gebruik
genomen intranet van het museum worden actuele knipsels over het museum en
zijn tentoonstellingen en activiteiten full text beschikbaar gesteld.
Drs. Michiel Nijhoff
Bibliothecaris Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam
Postbus 75082
1070 AB Amsterdam
tel. 0031-20-5732911
tel.0031-6-23976557
fax.0031-206752716
Voor routebeschrijving en openingstijden bibliotheek raadpleeg
www.stedelijk.nl en klik op 'bibliotheek'
For directions and opening hours of the library consult
www.stedelijk.nl click on EN for English and go to
'library'
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