Visual Resources Collection

The Visual Resources Collection comprises the Decorative Arts Photographic Collection, the Photographic Index of American Art and Design, and the Slide Library.

The Decorative Arts Photographic Collection (DAPC) is a unique research resource containing more than 112,000 photographs of decorative arts objects made in America prior to 1920 and now located in public and private collections throughout the United States and England. This ever-expanding collection is a visual file that documents the work of individual craftsmen, workshops, and manufactories. Images of furniture and silver are particular strengths of the collection. Indexes in the collection provide basic biographical and bibliographical information-culled from newspaper advertisements, city directories, and major secondary sources-on woodworkers, silversmiths, jewelers, clock- and watchmakers, and potters.

The Photographic Index of American Art and Design (PIAAD) is the fine arts counterpart to the DAPC and contains 53,000 photographs of American paintings, sculpture, graphic arts, drawings, Fraktur, gravestones, and architecture.

The Slide Library contains more than 140,000 images of objects in the Winterthur collections as well as objects in public institutions and private collections. Although the Slide Library is intended to serve the education programs at Winterthur, it may also be used by visiting researchers.

Reference contact: 302.888.4853