Bridgeman Art Library
Encyclopedia
The Bridgeman Art Library, based in London
, Paris
, New York
and Berlin
, provides one of the largest archive
s for reproductions of works of art
in the world. Founded in 1972 by Harriet Bridgeman
, the Bridgeman Art Library cooperates with many art galleries
and museum
s to gather image
s.
s, art collections and artist
s throughout the world by providing a central source of fine art
for image users.
The company's aim is to make these images accessible for users on a commercial
basis; each one has been catalogued with full picture data and key-worded to simplify the search process. A full research service is also provided whereby expert researchers can select images to the customer's requirements.
In addition to fine art, design
s, antiques, map
s, architecture
, furniture
, glass
, ceramics
, anthropological artefacts
and many other media are featured in the collection.
Bridgeman also provides customers with reproduction licensing and offers advice on how to clear artist’s copyright, if additional permission is needed. Copyright holders receive remuneration in the form of half the reproduction fee paid by the customer.
In addition to supplying images to consumers, Bridgeman works with copyright holders to creates high quality reproductions of artists' works using the latest imaging technology.
Over 500 new images are added to the Bridgeman archive each week. Museums represented in the archive includethe British Museum
; the British Library
; the National Galleries of Scotland
, Sweden and South Africa
; the Hamburg Kunsthalle; and the Barnes Foundation.
, in which the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
ruled that exact photographic copies of two-dimensional works in the public domain
cannot be copyrighted, even if making the image takes considerable effort, because the resulting works lack originality.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, provides one of the largest archive
Archive
An archive is a collection of historical records, or the physical place they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or organization's lifetime, and are kept to show the function of an organization...
s for reproductions of works of art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
in the world. Founded in 1972 by Harriet Bridgeman
Harriet Bridgeman
Victoria Harriet Lucy Bridgeman, Viscountess Bridgeman is the founder of the Bridgeman Art Library, which encompasses the world's largest collection of fine art images....
, the Bridgeman Art Library cooperates with many art galleries
Art gallery
An art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...
and museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s to gather image
Image
An image is an artifact, for example a two-dimensional picture, that has a similar appearance to some subject—usually a physical object or a person.-Characteristics:...
s.
The library today
The Bridgeman Art Library is a company that represents museumMuseum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s, art collections and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
s throughout the world by providing a central source of fine art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
for image users.
The company's aim is to make these images accessible for users on a commercial
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
basis; each one has been catalogued with full picture data and key-worded to simplify the search process. A full research service is also provided whereby expert researchers can select images to the customer's requirements.
In addition to fine art, design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
s, antiques, map
Map
A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes....
s, architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, furniture
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
, glass
Glass
Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...
, ceramics
Ceramic art
In art history, ceramics and ceramic art mean art objects such as figures, tiles, and tableware made from clay and other raw materials by the process of pottery. Some ceramic products are regarded as fine art, while others are regarded as decorative, industrial or applied art objects, or as...
, anthropological artefacts
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
and many other media are featured in the collection.
Bridgeman also provides customers with reproduction licensing and offers advice on how to clear artist’s copyright, if additional permission is needed. Copyright holders receive remuneration in the form of half the reproduction fee paid by the customer.
In addition to supplying images to consumers, Bridgeman works with copyright holders to creates high quality reproductions of artists' works using the latest imaging technology.
Over 500 new images are added to the Bridgeman archive each week. Museums represented in the archive includethe British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
; the British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
; the National Galleries of Scotland
National Gallery of Scotland
The National Gallery of Scotland, in Edinburgh, is the national art gallery of Scotland. An elaborate neoclassical edifice, it stands on The Mound, between the two sections of Edinburgh's Princes Street Gardens...
, Sweden and South Africa
South African National Gallery
The South African National Gallery is the national art gallery of South Africa located in Cape Town. The collection began in 1872 with the donation of Sir Thomas Butterworth's personal gallery....
; the Hamburg Kunsthalle; and the Barnes Foundation.
Bridgeman Art Library v. Corel Corp.
The company was involved in the case Bridgeman Art Library v. Corel Corp.Bridgeman Art Library v. Corel Corp.
Bridgeman Art Library v. Corel Corp., 36 F. Supp. 2d 191 , was a decision by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, which ruled that exact photographic copies of public domain images could not be protected by copyright in the United States because the copies lack...
, in which the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York is a federal district court. Appeals from the Southern District of New York are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case...
ruled that exact photographic copies of two-dimensional works in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
cannot be copyrighted, even if making the image takes considerable effort, because the resulting works lack originality.
External links
- Bridgeman Art On Demand
- Bridgemaneducation.com
- Images of Monet for licensing and reproduction at Bridgeman Art Library