The nucleus of the Conway Library is the private collection of Lord Conway of Allington, which came to The Courtauld Institute in 1932. Since then the library has been developed continuously as a teaching and research collection. It now contains over one million images: photographs and cuttings of architecture, architectural drawings and publications, sculpture (approximately 10,000 sculptors are represented), ivories, seals, metalwork, manuscript illumination, stained glass, wall paintings, panel paintings and textiles. Images are mounted on card and housed in boxes on open shelves.

Conway Library

Separate from the main library sequence and accessible by arrangement are the Conway’s holdings of historic photographs (mostly of architecture) and the late Edward B. Garrison’s collection of photographs of pre-1300 Italian painting.

Since its inception seventy-five years at The Courtauld the library has been built up by various means. Its stock of original photographs has been increased by donation and purchase of negatives, and the library has initiated much photography in Britain and abroad with the involvement of staff photographers. A large number of the photographs are the work of graduate students whose informed insights make the library an especially valuable instrument of research.

Organisation of the main sections of the library:

ARCHITECTURE
Pre-1800 (1830 for Britain), 19th century, 20th century, 21st century, and within each by location.

ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS
By century, school and artist.

ARCHITECTURAL PUBLICATIONS
By century of publication, country of publication and name of designer.

SCULPTURE
By century, school and artist.

MANUSCRIPTS
By century, school and book type.

Finding-aids available in the Conway Library include card indexes of architects represented in the 19th to 21st century architecture sections (with building lists), designers represented in the architectural drawings and publications sections, artists represented in the sculpture and applied arts sections. British church monuments by location, British fonts by location, and manuscripts by location.

The website: www.artandarchitecture.org.uk includes approximately 3% of the Conway Library’s images, selected from the architecture and sculpture sections and from the collection of historic photographs.

Rights and reproductions enquiries


Courtauld Images:
+44 (0)20 7848 2879
images@courtauld.ac.uk
www.courtauldimages.com

 

ACCESS and Opening Times


Access to the Conway and Witt Libraries is by reader’s card, arranged on arrival. Cards are available at £10.00 for one year (£7.00 for Courtauld alumni and Friends of The Courtauld), £5.00 for one month, or £2.00 for one day or one single visit.

Members of The Courtauld’s Samuel Courtauld Society (including Associates, Patrons and Director’s Circle members) receive complimentary entry and simply use their regular membership cards to gain access.

The library is open from Monday to Friday between the hours of 11am and 4pm, except when The Courtauld Institute of Art is closed at Christmas and Easter and during the Book Library closure period each August.

Library enquiries


+44 (0)20 7848 2743
conway@courtauld.ac.uk