Research

Online Catalogs

The Smithsonian American Art Museum has developed and makes available online a number of specialized art research databases in addition to its own collections information.

Inventories of American Painting & Sculpture

Together the Inventories of American Painting & Sculpture reference over 400,000 works in public and private collections nationwide, and include records from Save Outdoor Sculpture! Images are in the process of being digitized; however, many photographs are available for study in our offices.
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Photograph Archives

The Photograph Archives is a research and study collection of images documenting American art and artists. This catalog contains the records of the Peter A. Juley & Son Collection (127,000 photographic negatives) and the American Sculpture Photograph Study Collection (2,600 photographic prints). Over 14,000 digital images are available online.
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Pre-1877 Art Exhibition Catalogue Index

The Art Exhibition Catalogue Index has descriptive information on 136,494 artworks shown in 1,057 exhibitions held in this country and Canada up through 1876 (the Centennial year). Includes American and European artists and includes all media of artworks -painting, sculpture, prints, drawings, etc.
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Smithsonian Institution Library

The Smithsonian Library collection, which numbers more than 1.5 million volumes, is accessible via the Smithsonian Institution Research Information System (SIRIS). These holdings span topics such as art, history and culture, and natural and physical sciences. The catalog's art resources are particularly strong in American, African, Asian, contemporary, design, and decorative arts.
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