Research Sources at the National Academy The archives of the National Academy are open to the public by appointment to students and serious scholars pursuing research specific to the Academy. Basic biographical sources on artists and on American art history are available elsewhere. The archives of the Academy pertain almost exclusively to the history of the institution and the day-to-day operation of its business. This includes vertical files with basic biographical information on the 2072 artists who have been elected to membership in the Academy since its founding in 1825. The Academy has no biographical information on artists who were not members of the Academy. An updated list of members of the Academy is available on this website. The staff of the Academy, which is accredited by the American Association of Museums, does not provide appraisals or valuations for works of art, nor does the Academy purchase works of art. The major primary sources for research within the Academy’s archives are: Minutes of the meetings of the Academy’s governing Council (1826-present) Student records from the Academy’s school (1826-1944) Please note: The first group of these records (1826-1899) is available on microfilm at the Archives of American Art and must be consulted there. Catalogues of the Academy’s annual exhibitions (1826-present) and their published indices (1826-1860, 1861-1900, 1901-1950), which are available in many major libraries and through interlibrary loan. These indexes are: National Academy of Design Exhibition Record 1826-1860. 2 vols. New York: The New-York Historical Society, 1943. Maria Naylor. The National Academy of Design Exhibition Record 1861-1900. 2 vols. New York: Kennedy Galleries, Inc., 1973. Peter Hastings Falk. The Annual Exhibition Record of the National Academy of Design 1901-1950. Madison, Connecticut: Sound View Press, 1990. Two histories of the Academy have been published. These are generally available in major libraries and through interlibrary loan. Although both are long out of print, copies are often available on Internet web sites such as Bibliofind.com or Bibliophile.org. Thomas S. Cummings. Historic Annals of the National Academy of Design. Philadelphia: George W. Childs, Publisher, 1865. Eliot Clark. History of the National Academy of Design, 1825-1953. New York: Columbia University Press, 1954. Every effort will be made, as time permits, to answer basic statistical questions concerning the history of the Academy, its members, and its collections.