Following in the footsteps of Art Museum Libraries and Librarianship edited by Joan M. Benedetti in 2007, which was the first publication to focus solely on the field of art museum librarianshipFootnote ¹, this book is an essential and timely state of the art handbook on the current issues and key topics that library and information management practitioners seek guidance on and solutions to, in their everyday work.

The book begins with a reflective and progressive preface written by the editors which outlines the significant changes happening in art museums and the wider cultural sector, and the need for art museum librarians to redefine their purpose, noting they can no longer put their energies into just preservation and display but need to develop ‘critical thinking about the “curatorial voice” and the impact that items held in collections and exhibited can have on visitors’ (p. xii).

The introduction written by Kristen Regina and titled “The Art of Transformation” is similarly forward thinking and sets the tone for the rest of the book, noting ‘It is the proper role of libraries and archives to enable conversations between the living and the dead, between the past and the future, between the object, its creator, and all those who observe it, write about it, or find in it some inspiration or beauty to continue, uninterrupted’ (p. 4). The book is then divided into four distinct parts, with a total of 20 chapters.

Part I is titled “Developing, Managing, and Caring for Collections” and provides sage advice on the location and storage of art libraries and archives, a useful summary on the complexities of collection development, a thought provoking chapter dedicated to decolonising the art museum library and the need for collection managers to show willingness to take responsibility for institutional and personal actions that uphold oppression, practical guidance on dealing with artists’ books and ephemera collections in both physical and digital formats, strategies for building web archive collections, and new approaches to preservation and conservation for art museums that anticipates the needs of the future art researcher.

Part II focusses on the key areas of “Access, Outreach, and Collaboration” and begins with a chapter on the growing significance of special collections in the art museum library and ideas on how to manage them, the importance of advocating for the inclusion of library metadata within institutional or collaborative discovery platforms, an illustrative study on reconsidering art reference collections and the spaces they hold, an exploration of past and present library exhibition practices, an inspiring chapter on programming in art museum libraries, and finishes with an exploration on the benefits of collaboration and consortia membership.

Part III advises on “Personnel in the Art Museum Library”, noting the need for art museum libraries to offer a choice of pathways into the sector and supporting continuing professional development, and the pros and cons of running volunteer and internship programmes. Part IV investigates the complex arena of “Digital Landscapes in the New Art Museum Library” with chapters on museum metadata systems, the impact of digitisation and digital repositories, the rise of Wikimedia as a tool to increase the reach of art museum library collections, and the vital role that art librarians can play in supporting Open Access initiatives.

The strength of the book is in the quality of the writing by each of the contributors, who are experts in their respective fields, and willing to share best practice in art museum librarianship based on their own experiences. For those librarians and information professionals who are recently qualified or have moved into the field of art museum librarianship from another sector, the book provides a thorough foundation on key aspects of our practice. For staff who have already been working for many years in art museum libraries or who may have qualified decades ago, the book provides an excellent refresher on new ways of thinking that could be shared with teams as a starting point for future discussions on how to improve services on offer to the wider art research community through their respective institutions.

For example, “Cultivating Wisely: Strategies to Keep the Collection Alive and Evergreen” gives a comprehensive overview on collection development. When read alongside the following chapters in Part I and Part II including the thoughtful treatise “Blood on the Walls, Blood on the Shelves, Decolonizing the Art Museum Library” the cumulative effect is to provide a series of potential solutions for those collection managers who are often struggling to match reduced resource with an increase for demand in library services, alongside the significant changes in how these resources are delivered to users and the radical shift we must all take in rethinking who those audiences should be.

Part III provides clear pathways to entering the profession, including the management of volunteers and interns, and highlights a common theme within the book: the generosity and willingness of art museum library professionals to share ideas and to help find solutions to common issues. Part IV broke down the complexities of the digital landscape we now operate in, and the many opportunities that technological changes in the past 10 years have afforded to art museum libraries. It was enlightening to see these benefits in not only the discoverability of our collections but also their preservation, and the strengths that collaboration and consortia can bring to art museum libraries.

One area that could have been helpful to explore in more detail is the impact of digitisation, including the choices art museum libraries make on what to digitise, as those collections made digitally available become more accessible through this process. By making some collections digitally available over others, we need to be careful to not further replicate cultural biases that may already exist within our physical collections and ensure that where possible, we engage with our existing and future users in the selection process.

The book could have been further enhanced with specific examples of innovative practices and key developments from art museum library communities around the world, not just limited to North America and mainly the United States, and from perhaps less established and historical institutions. It would have also been helpful to have seen greater reference to significant and recent events such as the Black Lives Matter movement and the Covid pandemic woven into specific chapters, or chapters dedicated solely to important issues such as the need to diversify our workforce. Librarians across the world and in all sectors have had to rethink the delivery of their services considering these events, and the art museum library is certainly no exception.

Overall, the book is both an inspirational and intellectual guide to art museum librarianship, with excellent references and notes, that can be read from beginning to end, or by dipping into specific chapters or sections to bring oneself up to date. It is a commendable achievement from the editors and contributing authors, and of great benefit to art museum library professionals, wherever they may be. It will be sitting on my desk as one of my go-to reference books for many years to come.