Visiting the Archives

National Gallery of Art Archives collections form a rich body of primary source information about the museum’s past and development and the history and culture of the United States.

Conducting Research

Please contact [email protected] for information about our holdings or to request an appointment to consult our archival materials.

Selected finding aids–guides to collections of records and papers in the archives–are available online.We ask all researchers to review the research room rules (PDF 161KB) and complete a registration form (PDF 150KB) prior to their appointment.

Government-issued identification, such as a driver's license or passport, is required to gain entry to the research room, located in a nonpublic area of the West Building of the National Gallery of Art.

Rules for Use of the Research Room 

The National Gallery of Art Archives has established the following rules to ensure the protection and preservation of archival materials. All archival materials and containers must be handled with care. Improper handling and/or deliberate damage to archival materials may result in the suspension of research privileges.

  • We encourage you to leave heavy coats, umbrellas, and other large personal items in coat checkrooms at museum entrances. Please see the procedures for use of the coat checkrooms on the National Gallery of Art website.
  • Personal items that are brought to the archives research room must be placed in designated lockers and will not be permitted near research tables.
  • Please take personal belongings with you when leaving the research room. The National Gallery does not assume any responsibility for lost, stolen, or misplaced items.
  • Eating, drinking, or chewing gum is prohibited in the research room.
  • Archives staff reserve the right to inspect your personal belongings upon your departure from the research room.
  • Placing notebooks or other personal papers on a research table while archival materials are present is discouraged. We will provide you with paper if needed.
  • The use of pens is not permitted. We will provide pencils for notetaking if needed.
  • Cotton gloves are provided for handling photographs and other materials as necessary.
  • Only one archival box at a time may be placed on a research table.
  • Only one folder at a time may be removed from an archival box. We provide placeholders to mark the location from which a folder is removed. A folder must be returned to its proper location within a box before another folder is removed.
  • Keep folders in an archival box and all contents in a folder in their original order. If anything
    appears to be amiss, you should not attempt to rearrange materials, but should call it to the
    attention of the archivist on duty.
  • Erasing, tracing, marking, folding, or writing on archival materials or their folders and boxes is prohibited.
  • Keep all archival materials on a research table surface at all times.
  • We welcome the use of computers, laptops, tablets, and mobile phones in the research room for personal use. Digital devices must remain on table surfaces away from archival materials.
  • Mobile phones should be turned off or silenced while in the research room. Portable audio devices with the use of sound-proof headphones are permitted.
  • We encourage digital photography of archival materials for study purposes. We provide paper “targets” identifying the source of the archival materials and these targets must be included in every frame. We do not permit flash or supplemental lighting.
  • Any digital photography of archival materials may be used for personal research purposes but may not be reproduced without further permission. 
  • If you are unable to make personal digital copies, reproductions of a limited number of archival materials may be made by archives staff at their discretion and delivered to your designated address.
  • Archives staff may decline to reproduce material where the physical condition, format, size, or quantity of records makes copying prohibitive.
  • Self-service photocopying is not allowed.
  • Obtaining reproductions of archival materials is not authorization to publish. Written permission must be obtained separately in advance to reproduce archival materials from the holdings of the National Gallery of Art Archives for publication purposes.

Access Policy for Archival Materials

1.  National Gallery of Art Archives makes historical records and associated donated papers available for research use as soon as, and to the fullest extent, possible. We also recognize that certain materials must temporarily remain closed to protect the privacy of individuals or the legitimate needs of the National Gallery of Art, in accordance with institutional policy or donor restrictions.

2.  We are committed to making unrestricted materials accessible to all researchers on a fair and equitable basis. Materials that must be restricted temporarily, in accordance with institutional policy or donor restrictions, will be reviewed regularly and made available for research as soon as any restrictions are lifted.

3.  Researchers may view only those materials that have been processed and prepared for use by archives staff and for which there are finding aids available.  

4.  All requests for access should be sent via email ([email protected]) providing as much information as possible about the subject and purpose of the research, indicating the collections to be consulted, and describing the intended use of archival materials. Archives staff will respond to confirm available sources and to provide guidance on related materials of interest.

5.  We are committed to making information about our collections and their content available to researchers unable to visit in person. General inquiries concerning the nature and scope of records held in the archives, and those requiring limited research into the content of records are typically answered within five working days.  

6.  We are open to researchers by appointment only (Monday through Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), except federal holidays. We request a two-week advance notice for all scheduled appointments. All visiting researchers will be required to complete a registration form and review the research room rules.

7.  Researchers may request reproduction of archival materials for study purposes. We will provide details on request. Please note that obtaining reproductions of archival materials is not authorization to publish.

8.  Written permission must be obtained separately in advance from the National Gallery of Art Archives to reproduce archival materials for publication purposes. In giving permission to reproduce archival materials, the National Gallery does not surrender its own rights to publish the materials or to grant permission to others to publish them; nor does it assume any responsibility for infringement of copyright or of publication rights in the material.

9. The  National Gallery of Art may not be the owner of copyright or other literary property in archival materials. Archives staff will provide available information about copyright status. However, the researcher is responsible for obtaining any necessary permissions to publish or use from the holder of the copyright.

10.  Published citations must give the source of the documents as National Gallery of Art Archives. Scholarly publications must also include the collection and series titles from which the documents are drawn. Examples of the preferred form for citations will be provided on request.