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Arts Department, Special Collections

Recently Digitized

Francisco de Goya (1746-1828). Prints Collection

Lluvia de toros = Pluie de taureaux

Allan Rohan Crite Collection

The tax announcements (Old State House)

Edwin Hale Lincoln Photograph Collection

Wild Flowers of New England

Charles J. Connick Studios
Gothic shaped window, urvilinear bands and leaves motif in shades of yellow

Boston Pictorial Archive

16th Convention, National Negro Business League, Boston, Mass., Aug. 18-20, 1915

This guide provides introductory information for each curatorial area represented in the Arts Department: fine arts, music, photography, prints and drawings. Each curatorial page offers overviews of major collections and provides options for general and more in-depth searching within these curatorial areas. 

 

SEARCH ART OBJECTS USING OUR ONLINE DATABASE

 

Many items and collections are still not yet cataloged online and are primarily searchable on-site and in print form only. Researchers are encouraged to contact the Arts Department. You are also very welcome to visit our Reading Room in person. 

Digitized Collections

Overview

Many digitized materials from the Arts Department's collections are available in two repositories: Digital Commonwealth and Internet Archive. Although a large amount of our collections have not yet been digitized, both databases are continually updated as collections become digitized. Read more detailed information about each repository below. 

Digital Commonwealth 
Digital Commonwealth is a database that provides digital images, image data, and, in some cases, downloads of high-resolution files directly from the database. This resource is the best place to start searching for digitized materials from the Fine Arts, Photography, and Prints & Drawings collections.

  • To search for specific images, works by particular artists, or to browse and get to know digitized collections, visit the Digital Commonwealth Entry Page for Boston Public Library.
  • All BPL holdings can be searched at the top of the entry page using the search box labeled "Search this institution's collections."
  • To search within individual collections, scroll down to "Digital Collections" and select a specific collection. *Please note that collection sets are organized alphabetically, by first name.*

Click here for general search instructions.

Internet Archive 
Internet Archive is a database containing digitized versions of library materials from Boston Public Library as well as many other libraries throughout the world. This resource is a good place to start searching for digitized music materials as well as historical publications relating to music and fine arts (such as books, journals, etc.).

Click here for general search instructions.

Copyright Info

Boston Public Library does not own the copyright to all of the materials in our collections. While we may provide copies of images, it is up to the user to determine if the image is in the public domain, secure permissions from the rights holder(s), or determine if the intended use may be considered exempt from copyright restrictions under the fair use section of U.S. copyright law. Further information about copyright for images is available through our image repository Digital Commonwealth. 
We do not apply any further licensing restrictions beyond those already asserted by the copyright holder. In order to help others locate published images, we require credit lines to include the Boston Public Library, Arts Department, as the custodial institution. 

For copyright-related questions, please e-mail specialcollections@bpl.org.

Harmful Content

Objects in historical collections reflect the attitudes, ideas, and norms of the era and culture in which they were created or collected. Therefore, some images or historic descriptions may contain potentially offensive imagery, language, or opinions, including disparaging portrayals or descriptions of persons based on characteristics such as race, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or religion. Some photographs may depict ceremonies, objects, or clothing from historically marginalized cultures in a disrespectful or exploitative fashion. Our efforts to repair outdated descriptions and to describe our collections in an equitable way are iterative and ongoing. These materials are presented for the purpose of preserving the historical record and do not constitute any endorsement of the viewpoints or sentiments expressed within them.

Read our statement on Potentially Offensive and Harmful Content here.