Research

Delve deeper into the Brooklyn Museum and its sweeping collection by perusing extensive resources for researchers. Also discover the Museum’s integral commitment to scholarship through its work on conservation, publications, provenance, and much more.

Three people examine an object in the Brooklyn Museum's Conservation department

Collection online

Discover a wealth of information about many works in the Brooklyn Museum’s rich holdings. Need an image? Visit the image services page.

Browse the collection online

Libraries and Archives

The Libraries and Archives provide research resources about the Brooklyn Museum—its history, objects, and exhibitions—as well as general art and cultural history, from antiquity to the present. Staff are here to help local and international scholars and researchers find answers to their questions. The Libraries and Archives are also dedicated to promoting equity by expanding access to the Museum’s historical narrative.

The Archives contain more than 50 collections documenting the history of the Museum from 1823 through the present day. Totaling over 3,200 linear feet of records, these collections include letters, photographs, exhibition catalogues, and ephemera created by employees in all the Museum’s departments, from Audiovisual to Visitor Services.

A tattooed hand pulls a book titled "The Dinner Party, Judy Chicago" from a bookshelf.

Hours

Wednesdays and Thursdays

Open by appointment, 2nd floor

1–4 pm

Appointments

Wednesdays and Thursdays Open by appointment, 2nd floor	1–4 pm
Appointments	Request Libraries appointment Request Archives appointment

Libraries online

Search books, journals, images, and databases.

Browse Libraries

Archives online

Browse through finding aids.

Browse Archives

If you have questions about these resources, contact the Libraries and Archives:

Libraries collections: library@brooklynmuseum.org
Archives collections: archives.research@brooklynmuseum.org

Conservation

The Brooklyn Museum is proud to have been one of the first U.S. art museums to institute an in-house conservation department. Starting with paintings conservators, the Conservation Lab has expanded to include specialties in paper, photography, objects, and even time-based media conservation. It now serves as a teaching lab training future conservators around the world.

Publications

Brooklyn Museum Publications produces meaningful and important books that speak to the Museum’s mission, vision, and values as a local and a global institution. These daring and trailblazing publications create a lasting legacy of the Museum’s scholarship, exhibitions, and collections.See all exhibition catalogues currently available in the Shop.