Visitors of high-school age and above may consult the collections of the Ryerson and Burnham Libraries and the Art Institute of Chicago Archives by advance appointment only; walk-in appointments are not possible. Younger researchers should contact the reference staff at reference@artic.edu to inquire about access in advance of their visit.
Coats, jackets, and umbrellas must be checked in with staff prior to seating for your research appointment.
No food or drink is allowed.
Please turn off or silence your devices.
All bags, loose books and papers will be inspected when leaving.
Only pencils may be used. Use of pens, markers, or erasable ink is not permitted. Pencils are available at the service desks.
Tracing from, or writing on, collection materials is not permitted.
Do not write on books, mark pages, or use Post-Its on collection materials.
Laptops and tablets are welcome. Free Wi-Fi is available without a password. Outlets are available beneath all study tables.
Visitors consulting special collection materials and archival materials may require additional supervision with viewing and handling those items.
The library and archives attempt to make original documents available to visitors; but in some cases the fragility of the originals will necessitate providing a microfilm, photograph, or photocopy surrogate.
Visitors who are studying items in their collections are welcome to bring in photographs of those items, but should not not bring any art objects into the museum.
Processed archival collections are included in the catalog and are available to visitors by advance appointment only; walk-in appointments are not possible.
Visitors must complete the pre-registration process and submit their request for materials one (1) week prior to arrival on-site. Information regarding this process will be provided to visitors along with their appointment confirmation. If these steps are not completed one week prior to the scheduled appointment, the appointment will be canceled.
Archival materials must be consulted in the assigned locations in the reading room and may at no time be removed from the premises.
Collections may be unavailable for research due to incomplete organization or description; condition issues; possible violation of right to privacy or correspondents; or the Art Institute of Chicago’s reservation of first rights to publication of current projects.
Visitors agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Art Institute of Chicago, its officers and employees, from and against all claims and actions arising out of their use of our documents.