Sunday, December 6, 2015

Research Guide for Class Distinctions: Dutch Paintings in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer

Welcome to the Metropolitan Museum of Art guide to resources on the exhibit, Class Distinctions: Dutch Paintings in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer. The information featured here will provide an overview to The Metropolitan Museum of Art's resources as well as guides to using their online catalog, a sampling of available databases, and brief description of books that might be useful for researchers and docents interested in expanding their knowledge on topics and artists associated with Class Distinctions exhibit.
Art Library Resource: Thomas J. Watson Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art 
  • The central research library for The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Thomas J. Watson Library contains more than nine-hundred thousand volumes of books, periodicals, exhibition catalogues, and auction catalogues; eleven thousand periodical titles; autograph letters; artist files; and papers relating to the history of The Met. 
  • WATSONLINE
    • The official catalog encompasses the thirteen libraries of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Can also use WATSONLINE to search auction catalogs, periodicals, E-resources, and digital collections. Features various methods of executing search inquiries

      • Basic Index: Can search → Keyword; Title (beginning with…); Author (last name first); Subject; ISBN/ISSN; Material/Document Type; Call Number
      • Advance Search: Can limit by →  Location; Language; Year (after and before); and Publisher; OCLC Number; LC Call Number
      • Auction Catalog Search: Can search → Title of Auction House; Title of Auction Catalog; Keyword; Date of Sale (yyyymmdd); Sale Code
      • Researchers can limit their search by specifying which of The Met’s libraries collection’s they would like explore.
  • Digital Collections from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries
    • Can search → Title; Subject; Description; Creator; Publisher; Contributors; Date; Type; Format; Identifier; Source; Language; Relation; Coverage; Rights; Audience
    • Can limit → All of the words;  Any of the words; The exact phrase; None of the words
    • Can sort → Title; Subject Description; Date
    • Can narrow → Creator; Date; Subject
  • Online Resources from the Lita Anneberg Hazen and Joseph H. Hazen Center for Electronic Information Resources
    • The following is just a sampling of a few of the resources accessible through the Hazen Center for Electronic Information Resources. The Center has divided their collection of databases into categories. Some resources require registering with the Thomas J. Watson Library.
    • RKD Databases: The Netherlands Institute for Art History (Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie) features multiple art related databases that cover a wide range of subjects within the world of art. Can access database in both English and Dutch.
        • RKDartists contains information on the 360,000 Dutch and other artists housed within the RKD collection.
        • RKDimages contains about 85,000 descriptions and images of Dutch and Flemish works from the 14th to the 19th century.
        • RKDportraits features descriptions and images of portraits from the RKD collection.
    • Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon (World Biographical Dictionary of Artists): Extensive and authoritative art-history reference database. Features information on visual arts from throughout the world, covering an expansive length of time. Must register with library to use this source
    • IFAR Catalogue Raisonné Database: Database of published catalogue  raisonnés and catalogues in preparation. These can be searched by artist’s name, artist’s country of birth/death, and author’s name.
    • Oxford Art Online: Resources includes Grove Dictionary of Art, Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms, Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, and Oxford Companion to Western Art. Offers users a wide assortment of authoritative online art resources, including reference works such as articles and bibliographies. Must register with library to use this source

Text Resources Available through the Thomas J. Watson Library: The following lists features as assortment of scholarly works, exhibition catalogs, and collections catalogs. These sources contain high quality reproductions of Dutch art, profiles of artists, and critical essays that explore themes, symbols, and other aspects of the art from various analytical perspectives.

Interesting Reads
Haak, Bob. The Golden Age: Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century. Trans. and ed. by Elizabeth Willems-Treeman. New York: Stewart, Tabori, and Chang, 1996.
  • Details the history of 400 Dutch painters of the golden age with more than 1,000 illustrated works. An excellent resource for docents interested in learning more details about Dutch society during the 17th century and how they provided Dutch patrons and artists new subjects to feature within their paintings.
Salomon, Nanette. Shifting Priorities: Gender and Genre in Seventeenth-Century Dutch Painting. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2004.
  • An examination of 17th century Dutch genre painting/ Written through a feminist lens, Salomon explores familiar and unfamiliar paintings, looking for clues that will help readers make sense of Dutch social roles and gender values. Considering the themes features within the traveling exhibit, this book could be useful for docents looking demonstrate the information that one can infer from these paintings.
Exhibition & Collection Catalogs
Bailey, Colin B. Rembrandt and his School: Masterworks from the Frick and Lugt Collections. New York: Frick Collection, 2011.
  • An analysis of Rembrandt paintings from the collection of Henry Clay Frick an Frederik Johannes Lugt. The book is structured to offer readers insight to how both Frick and Lugt perceived the importance of these paintings. An intriguing read for those curious to see the cultural impact that Rembrandt has had on others.
Baer, Ronni. Class Distinctions: Dutch Painting in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer. Boston: MFA Publications, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2015.
  • The associated exhibition catalog to the Dutch Painting in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer exhibit. Includes discussions of observed details of daily life featured within the portraits, genre scenes, and landscapes. A must read for all docents since it is directly related to the exhibit. 
Liedtke, Walter A. Frans Hals: Style and Substance. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2011.
  • Features portraits and genre paintings by Frans Hals. Book features eleven major works and an assortment of prints and paintings from The Met collection. Liedtke explores Hals unique style and assess the place of Hals work within the broader context of the Early Baroque movement occurred in the 1600s.
Wieseman, Marjorie E. Vermeer and Music: The Art of Love and Leisure. London: National Gallery London, 2013
  • Known for creating paintings that depict everyday Dutch life, this book focuses on the role music had in inspiring the art of Vermeer. Of his thirty six surviving paintings, twelve contain musical themes. The book also contains art by Jans Steen, Gabriel Metsu, and Gerard ter Borch. Wieseman contextualizes the relationship between music and visual arts.
Additional Online Art Resources Worth Exploring for More Information on Dutch Art
  • Can search the collection for information on specific artists and their works. Can view high quality of these works without paying or registering with The Frick.  Has information on 17th century Dutch artists such as: Frans, Hals, Rembrandt van Rijn, and Johannes Vermeer. The presented short biographies would be useful for those in need of a quick overview of the artist’s lives as well as access to high quality images of their work.
  • Hosted by the National Art Gallery in Washington DC. Features information about the subject of 17th century Dutch paintings including its sub-topics: landscape, genre paintings, still lifes, portraits, and historical. Includes educational material, audio and video content, and links to online exhibits.
  • Has extensive information on Dutch art. Features an informative timeline outlining Dutch history with the inclusion of art from various time periods. Can easily search the collection by artist, artwork title, and subject. Fantastic source for those looking for examples of works of art as well as information on the subjects that were popular during the 17th century Dutch art movement. 

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