Skip to main content

The Henry Moore Institute is closed for refurbishment until Summer 2024. Henry Moore Studios & Gardens is closed over winter and will reopen on Thursday 28 March 2024.

See & Do

What's in the research library?

The library contains over 30,000 books, with a particularly strong focus on British sculptors.

We also have unique collections of artists’ books, sculptors’ ephemera and audio visual recordings.

See it all at your leisure in our two beautifully appointed reading rooms.

Refurbishment of the Henry Moore Institute

The library and archive are open by appointment only until summer 2024, while the Institute is undergoing refurbishment work.

Unfortunately, this means there are access restrictions, which will make it difficult to accommodate everyone.

If you are a researcher who would like to use our resources while the building is closed, please first browse our online library collection and archive catalogue, then contact the Archivist and Librarian to discuss your needs in advance.

Books & exhibition catalogues

We have over 30,000 books on sculpture in the library.

One room is dedicated entirely to British sculptors, with a second covering sculptors internationally. A separate section explores sculpture by thematically.

Our collections are for reference only, we do not lend books out.

Art journals

The latest issue of over 30 current art journals are available to browse in the reading rooms.

We have extensive back issues available from the many specialist journals we hold, available on request.

Journals we have include:
Afterall, Art Monthly, Art Newspaper, Art Libraries Journal, Art Review, Burlington, Church Monuments, Flash Art, Frieze Magazine, The Medal, New Arcadian Journal, October, Oxford Art Journal, Sculpture, Sculptures: Etudes sur la Sculpture, Sculpture Journal, Sculpture Review, Victorian Society, Visual Culture in Britain, Walpole society.

Artists’ files

As well as books, catalogues and journals, we collect exhibition invitations, press cuttings and other ephemera on British sculptors.

You can check whether we have a file on a particular sculptor by searching the library catalogue.

Audio-visual library

Browse our extensive image, film and sound collections.

We have recordings of our past conferences and events, as well as a selection of documentaries on artists, which you can watch in our dedicated AV room.

The library also features an extensive collection of slide images, housed in purpose-built display units, that depict artworks, exhibitions and events from throughout the Foundation’s history.

Artists’ Lives project

National Life Stories was established in 1987 to document the lives of people living in Britain. Housed at the British Library, the Artists’ Lives series provides a unique resource for those exploring the lives of artists within the wider context of British society.

Our partnership with National Life Stories provides access to a number of interviews with sculptors, including Ivor Abrahams, Ralph Brown, Stephen Cox, Elisabeth Frink and Eduardo Paolozzi. The interviews offer an insight into a sculptor’s upbringing, their academic and working practices, while exploring the artist’s views on wider culture and society.

Research databases

We subscribe to a number of key online databases such as JSTOR and Art Full Text. These are available to consult from within the library, to help you find articles beyond our collections.

From the library you can also access our database to find images, audio and video resources. We have comprehensive records of past exhibitions and events held at the Henry Moore Institute and the Henry Moore Studio at Dean Clough (1989-2001). You can also find out more about public sculpture and works held in the Leeds Museums & Galleries Collections.

Please note these databases are only accessible from the Henry Moore Institute’s research library.

Art History – journal published by the Association of Art Historians. Full text access up to Vol. 34/5 (2011).

Henry Moore Institute Digital Library – database containing images, audio and video resources of:

  • Henry Moore Institute exhibitions and events;
  • exhibitions held at the Henry Moore Studio at Dean Clough 1989-2001;
  • works held in Leeds Museums & Galleries Sculpture Collection (including works on paper);
  • public sculpture;
  • works by British sculptors.

EBSCO – access to Art & Architecture Complete and Art Full Text. Includes online access to journal articles.

JSTOR – a full-text database of journal articles, including Art Journal, Burlington Magazine, October (1976-2011) and Oxford Art Journal.

October – full-text access from 2001 to present day.

Sculpture JournalSculpture Journal is Britain’s foremost scholarly journal devoted to sculpture in all its aspects from prehistory to the present across the globe. It provides an international forum for writers and scholars in the field of sculpture and public commemorative monuments, extending to commissions for contemporary sculpture.

Visual Culture in Britain – full text access (Vol. 10 (2009) to present).

Online research resources

Collaboration is at the heart of our research programme.

We have jointly funded and collaborated in a number of initiatives intended to consolidate primary resources for the study of sculpture.

Search our online research resources

Visit us

Henry Moore Institute

The Henry Moore Institute is currently closed for refurbishment until summer 2024.

74 The Headrow
Leeds
LS1 3AH
United Kingdom

T:  01132 467 467
E:  reception@henry-moore.org