Treatment of Mutilated Art Books: A Survey of Academic ARL Institutions

Abstract

Mutilation is an enduring problem faced by librarians worldwide. The authors in this study investigate how both main and departmental art libraries at academic ARL institutions in the United States handle one specific type of damaged materials—mutilated art books. Findings reveal that librarians at surveyed ARL libraries report a problem with mutilated art books almost universally. These librarians have developed a number of strategies for dealing with damaged art books, ranging from ignoring the mutilation to replacing the book to restricting future access to the item. Factors such as cost, importance of the work, and amount of mutilation help librarians decide what actions will be taken on mutilated art materials. Few libraries have color photocopiers available for patron use and rely more heavily on black-and-white photocopies than color photocopies for replacement pages.