Books

The initial documentary collection of the center comprises more than 35,000 books published between the sixteenth century and the present. more than 3,000 predate 1950. Its origins are ancient museum libraries of Decorative Arts, the Museum of Ceramics, Textiles and Clothing Museum and the Cabinet of Graphic Arts in Barcelona. Other institutions that have integrated their libraries are BCD (Barcelona Design Centre), ADG-FAD (Association of Art Directors and Graphic Designers of the FAD), the Association for the Study of the furniture, the Association of Advertising and Public Relations of Catalonia and the area of ​​Urban Habitat of the City of Barcelona.

In these origins must be added many donations received throughout these years by professionals, individuals, institutions and companies.

A fact that reveals the uniqueness of this documentary collection and the value it brings to the research community is that 37% of the previous books in the twentieth century were not located in any other heritage library of our territory. Neither in Catalonia nor in the rest of the state. Much of this uniqueness comes from the legacy of excellent books of clothing from the Countess of Vilardaga (1967) and the donation of Mr. Manuel Rocamora.

The most part of the contemporary documentary collection is located in the reading room and is freely accessible. To organize it, the Documentation Centre has developed its own classification system: The IMAG.

The most valuable and ancient documents are situated in a reservoir located within the same building of the Museum of Design. The Documentation Center uses RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) to know exactly how many queries it receives each document. With this information, reference documents are always located in the consulting room, easily available.

The documentary collection is available through the library catalog of the Documentation Centre, and through the following catalogs:

New books

  • Ex-designer Project Bar : Martí Guixé, Pau Badia, Inga Knölke
  • Josep Collell : pintor, ceramista, maestro
  • 100 objectes d'IKEA que ens hagués agradat tenir a Vinçon
  • Joana Biarnés : moda a pie de calle
  • Escultura tímida : diálogo entre la joyería tradicional y la contemporánea
  • System process form : type as algorithm
  • Pentagram : living by design
  • Flow : the exhibition on menstruation : exhibition book
  • Cosas del diseño : teoría, estética e historia
  • El traje : forma, función y estilo
  • Women dressing women : a lineage of female fashion design
  • S'Agaró 1924-2024 : arquitectura, cultura, turisme i glamur a la Costa Brava
  • Woven histories : textiles and modern abstraction
  • Mood of the moment : Gaby Aghion & Chloé
  • Jeanne Lanvin : fashion pioneer
  • New product design : contemporary furniture, lamps and decorative objects
  • Los tejidos y el diseño de moda : manual de referencia, características y usos
  • Ralph Lauren : a way of living : home, lifestyles, inspiriation
  • Moving objects : a cultural history of emotive design
  • McQueen
  • El món d'ahir - Moda
  • Oh my gosh, I love your shoes! : a decade of head-turning heels
  • How to design a revolution : the Chilean road to design
  • L'ull de l'agulla : trenta anys fotografiant moda creada a Catalunya
  • ¿Qué me pongo?
  • Lo efímero de un instante eterno
  • You will be able to collage by the end of this book
  • Milton Glaser : pop
  • La moda es revolución : mujeres que han cambiado el mundo a través de sus prendas
  • The package design book, 7
  • La elegancia masculina : los secretos del guardarropa
  • Barcelona esgrafiada
  • Univers Jordi Cano
  • Fotografiar el patrimonio artístico : génesis e historia del Arxiu Mas
  • El retaule tabernacle de Santa Maria de l'Estrella de la catedral de Tortosa : lectures
  • Renombrar la arquitectura : en su evolución técnica, formal y ética
  • Vivir con color : una guia práctica e inspiradora para embellecer tu hogar
  • Catálogo de sellos y marcas de la alfarería española
  • Daniel Gil
  • Caracteres : un cómic sobre la formidable historia de los caracteres tipográficos y de sus autores

Ajuntament de Barcelona