Report on activity of the Art and Museum Libraries Section for the period from August of 2009 through August of 2010.
From August of 2009 to the present, the Section is actively involved in organizing and conducting problem-oriented events. In October of 2009, the Section together with the Russian State Art Library held a seminar «History of the Russian Photography: names, events, dates». The seminar was devoted not only to collections of museums and libraries, but also to activity of the Russian photographers of the end of the 19th-early 20th centuries. Specialists of archives, museums, libraries, universities, researchers and journalists, as well as all those who work in the field of photography and is interested in its history took part in the study. All the reports attracted interest of the audience. Particularly it is necessary to mark out a report of S.P. Garanina «”Collection of the Russian places of interest" by S.M. Prokudin - Gorsky».
In November of 2009, members of the Art and Museum Libraries Section participated in the interregional conference “Library as a centre of conservation, development and promotion of cultural values”. The main organizers of the conference were the Novosibirsk State Regional Scientific Library, which celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2009, and the Art and Museum Libraries Section. Heads and specialists of libraries of Novosibirsk and the Region, museum experts, representatives of Novosibirsk universities, scientists of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, specialists of the Russian State Art Library, libraries of Siberia, Kazakhstan, and Germany became participants of the conference.
A round table “Work with the artist's book”, organized by the Rudomino All-Russian State Library for Foreign Literature and the Standing Committee of the Section took place in February of 2010. During the round table, problems associated with collecting, processing, storage and presentation of the artist's books kept in the collections of the Library and other libraries and museums of Moscow were discussed.
In April of this year members of the Section participated in the annual scientific and practical seminar “Museum libraries in the modern society”. In 2010 the seminar was entitled “Representation of book collections”. Participants considered problems of tradition and practice of book collections’ representation in museums and libraries, as well as related aspects.
Participation in the work of the XV Annual Congress of the Russian Library Association, which was held in May of this year in Tomsk, became an important event for the Section. Within the bounds of the Congress, the Art and Museum Libraries Section held a regular meeting, where acquisition of materials, use of information electronic resources in specialized libraries, library experience on disclosure of creative potential of the youth, etc. were discussed. The meeting was attended by 25 experts from libraries and other cultural institutions of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Tomsk, Seversk, Novosibirsk, Kemerovo, and Mezhdurechensk. The presented reports distinguished themselves by diversity and broad scope. A report of the Director of the St. Petersburg State Theatre Library A.G. Gai attracted great interest. It was dedicated to the archive of the choreographer M. Fokin, stored in the collections of the St. Petersburg State Theatre Library. The Section’s members noted importance and relevance of issues brought up in the report of the Director of the Russian State Art Library I.A. Kolganova “Stimulation of the specialized art library’s employees: experience of conversion to a new pay system”. A.V. Volkova, Head of the Printed Sources Department of the All-Russian Museum of Decorative Applied and Folk Art emphasized the need of developing Standard Regulations about the Museum’s Library. A report of the Sector’s Head of the Russian State Art Library M.V. Nevedomskaia “Methods of specialized library’s funds acquisition at the present stage” was devoted to acquisition principles of RSAL, which experience was found useful by all participants of the meeting. The report of N.G. Kostiukova, Deputy Director of the Tomsk Children's Art School #7 «”In the Unity of Muses”: experience of interaction between the creative society and libraries» disclosed a special role of the library in accustom children to reading. The Deputy Director of the Russian State Art Library I.A. Vaganova in her report “Analysis of the use of electronic resources at RSAL” gave analysis of readers’ access to the electronic databases of this library.
After the meeting was finished, the traditional Contest for the best report of the Section’s meeting was held. N.G. Kostiukova was awarded with the Section’s Diploma and free internship at the Russian State Art Library and other libraries of Moscow.
The participation of the Section in the XVII Annual International Conference Crimea 2010 (June, 2010) appeared no less important event. This year the Section's work was even more intensive than in the past years. The Section held three meetings, two of which were exit sessions. The first exit session took place in the Bakhchisaray Historical and Cultural Preserve. A seminar “Graphic material in the library practice” became a special event within the session’s frameworks. A report of the Head of the Iconographic Materials Complex Department E.G. Khaplanova “Fund of graphic materials in the library work. Acquisition and use” was perceived as a work-shop. The second exit session was devoted to opening of a new exposition at the Voloshin House-museum in Koktebel.
The Section paid considerable attention to the organization of trainings for winners of the Contest for the best report, which traditionally takes place at the Section’s meeting on the All-Russian Library Congress of the Russian Library Association. E.A. Katkova, winner of the Contest for the best report at the Section’s meeting on the XIV Congress of the RLA, took a study course in 2009. The course included acquaintance with the specific character of the RSAL departments and project activity of the library, as well as visiting museum libraries of Moscow.
As in previous years, the annual exhibition “Artwork of librarians” caused a great resonance, and not only in the library community. As always, it became a real celebration of the talent and creativity. The exhibition consisted of works of librarians from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Zelenograd, Ivanovo, Cheboksary, Kursk, the Yaroslavl Region and other regions of the Russian Federation. In total, the exhibition featured 330 works by 81 authors of 31 Russian libraries from 11 cities and areas of the country. There were interesting comments in the press and on television. The work of the Section during the reporting period has become an evidence of the increasing role of our specialized libraries in the professional community.
Chair of the Art and Museum Libraries Section,
Director of the Russian State Art Library
Ada Kolganova
