When the Bibliothèque Nationale moves into the new Bibliothèque de France, leaving behind only six specialised departments, the opportunity will arise to use the buildings of the Rue de Richelieu site to bring together a group of art history libraries and research centres. Priority will be given to the remaining Departments of the Bibliothèque Nationale, which need more space than they presently occupy; they will be joined by the inter-university library of art and archaeology from the Rue Michelet, the central library of the national museums, from the Louvre, and the older collections of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts. The architectural holdings of the latter might be identified as the foundation for a major architectural collection to satisfy the demand for such a library in Paris. The collections thus brought together will not be merged, but will be exploited by means of shared services, including a union catalogue, and will be developed by means of a common acquisitions policy This concentration of resources on one site will not in itself constitute a ‘national art library’, but will provide a central node for a wider network. (An English version follows the original French text).

A time traveller visiting a British art school library in the 1840s, the 1970s, and the 1990s, would recognise a significant degree of continuity linking the library of the 1840s with that of the 1970s, but would be startled by the changes which have taken place in the last 20 years. Rapid change has resulted from several factors: increasing numbers of students; a growth in the demand from the public for art information; changes in the content and delivery of the curriculum; and not least, new technologies. This rapid pace of change is destined to continue into the foreseeable future, so much so that, instead of adapting to change bit by bit, librarians need to envisage and plan the new art libraries of tomorrow.

Britain’s National Art Library at the Victoria & Albert Museum joined the OCLC network in 1986, and from 1987 to 1990 created catalogue records in MARC format on the OCLC database pending the introduction of a stand-alone computer system. The Library now employs a Dynix minicomputer system for cataloguing, acquisitions, circulation, serials control, and the provisions of OPACs. About 15% of the Library’s records are available online. Retrospective conversion of older records is proceeding and may be completed by the year 2000. The online catalogue is networked internally within the Museum, and is likely to be accessible to external users via JANET in the future. A number of bibliographic and image databases are also provided in CD-ROM and videodisc format. Future developments will include interface between Museum/image and Library/documentation databases.

In the course of researching the life and work of a 19th century British artist, Henry Courtney Selous, several London museums and libraries were visited during 1993. The Royal Academy and the National Portrait Gallery yielded some information, but at the Guildhall Library the author’s attention was drawn to a diary held at the National Art Library which on perusal seemed undoubtedly to have been compiled by Selous. The Library has subsequently revised the diary’s catalogue entry to incorporate this attribution.