A Computerized Approach to Art Exhibition Catalogs.
Virginia C. Smith, William R. Treese · Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) · 1975
ART EXHIBITION CATALOGS are unusual items fi)r libraries to contend with: they are difficult to describe bibliographically and they are often overlooked as important source material, yet the! continue to proliferate and compound the libraries' problems.Exhibition catalogs are usually defined as the records of sho~vs of'art works, although many librarians treat catalogs of art collections (both public and private) as art exhibition catalogs.Although the exhibition catalog probably originated in collection inventories of the sixteenth century, the most important impetus was a decree by Louis XIV which led to the publication of the catalog of the Salon of 1673, i.e. of the exhibition ofworks by members o f t h e Academie Royale de Peinture et d e Sculpture.After that time the Salon Catalogs consisted of a listing of the paintings and sculptures exhibited at the annual Official Salon and occasionally included some general information about the artists.During the 1860s, other "salons" took place, and similar catalogs !yere printed for them.Catalogs gradually became more elaborate, including more complete information about the artist and the works, and containing more illustrations of works exhibited.As the catalogs became more diverse, critical material concerning salons increased, nurturing the generation of the littirateur.By the end of the century, the importance of the exhibition catalog was firmly established, as seen in the extensive publications commemorating the international expositions of art, industry a n d technology, which persevere to this day under a variety of names ("World Fair," "Expo," etc.).Catalogs today vary from simple listings of works to extensive research tools.Both kinds have several important functions.They are the most current source of information on a subject o r artist, often Virginia