Research Library

Museums are not just places for looking at art. Curators, educators and others also conduct research on the museum collection, write papers and develop themes for exhibitions and catalogues. The DIA’s research library, founded in 1905, is critical to the scholarly activities of the museum. The collection contains more than 175,000 volumes and the museum subscribes to over 350 periodicals. The library's resources include items like DIA publications, auction catalogues, catalogues raisonnés, national and international museum publications, and monographs on artists. Foreign publications make up a substantial part of our collection.

Our research library is a member of the DALNET (Detroit Area Library Network) consortium of libraries and information providers comprised of special, academic, and public libraries and other information providers. Thanks to a DALNET digitization grant, the Detroit Museum of Art and the Detroit Institute of Arts' Bulletins and Annual Reports have been digitized and are now available as .PDF files. Click here to view.

Many generous donors support the research library. Please click here to access a listing of all our library donors (1993 - present).

Unfortunately due to museum renovation, the Research Library & Archives are temporarily closed.

Contact Information

Phone: 313.833.3460

Requests for permission to reprint published materials should be directed to the Detroit Institute of Arts Publications Department at 313.833.4838. Requests for images of works in our collection should contact the Detroit Institute of Arts Visual Resources Department at 313.833.7913 or search the DIA Collection.