Frick Art Reference Library Photoarchive, Art historical photo archive at Frick Reference Library, New York City, United States
The Frick Art Reference Library Photoarchive is a photographic collection housing around 1.5 million reproductions of artworks spanning from the fourth century through the mid-twentieth century. The archive documents works by approximately 40,000 different creators, capturing both renowned masterpieces and lesser-known works found in private collections and institutions worldwide.
Helen Clay Frick established this collection in 1920, creating a centralized archive of photographic art reproductions housed in the basement of the Frick mansion. Over the following decades, library staff conducted systematic expeditions across Europe and the United States to photograph artworks held in private collections and remote locations.
The collection reflects artistic production from creators across different cultures and time periods, showing how artists worked across continents and centuries. Visitors can trace connections between different artistic traditions and see how visual ideas spread and transformed globally.
The archive provides online access to over 400,000 high-resolution images through Frick Digital Collections, searchable from any computer with internet access. Researchers seeking additional materials can arrange to visit the library reading room for in-person consultation.
Many photographs document artworks that have since been altered, lost, or destroyed, making this archive an irreplaceable record of pieces that no longer exist in their original form. This quality makes the collection invaluable to art historians and conservators studying how significant works appeared before changes occurred.
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