FOR RELEASE: February 21, 2002




			AMICO Press Release: Easing Rights Clearance:Ê AMICO Launches On-line Reproduction Request Form Download this document as a .PDF file For Immediate Release: February 21, 2002 AMICO Headquarters The Art Museum Image Consortium (AMICO) furthers its mission to enable the use of museum documentation through the launch of an on-line Reproduction Request Form, linked to the public Thumbnail Catalog of The AMICO Library™. Anyone, including scholars whose institutions do not yet subscribe to The AMICO Library and commercial users ineligible for AMICO educational licenses, can now request reproductions directly from AMICO Members in a consistent and automated format. A Sample Form is available. Finding reproductions and negotiating rights to reproduce works of art is reputed to be a complex and frustrating process. Scholars, and even commercial users whose job it is to locate images, often don’t know whom to contact, and rights holders are frustrated when the information they receive isn’t complete enough for them to evaluate the request. A standard reproduction request form that includes clear identification of the work in question and the desired use of the reproduction will streamline the process for everyone involved. Each work in The AMICO Library is represented in the Thumbnail Catalog available at http://search.amico.org. A rights link in the work’s description opens a customized Reproduction Request Form that includes a small image of the work and its full citation. Once completed, these requests are routed directly to the appropriate office at an AMICO Member institution. Martha King of the National Gallery of Canada and Chair of the AMICO Rights Committee says, “There’s no possibility of confusion about the work requested when a user completes the on-line form. This removes a cause of frustration for us and of delays for those who want to use reproductions from our collection. There are many ‘landscapes’ in our collection and often we invest a lot of time trying to figure out which one a request references.” Brad Nugent, Associate Director for Imaging for The Art Institute of Chicago concurs, “We want to be able to fast-track scholars’ requests while also maintaining our commercial revenue streams. The ease and utility of the on-line Reproduction Request Form meets those needs perfectly, by giving us the information we need, in a concise and consistent manner.” To use the Rights Request Form simply visit the Thumbnail Catalog on the AMICO public Web site http://search.amico.org. Use either the Simple or Advanced Search options to find a work. Click on the Rights hyperlink in the work’s description, and complete the customized on-line form. Submitted forms are forwarded directly to the appropriate person at an AMICO Member Institution, and when necessary, are also copied to the rights society representing the artist or estate. Users whose institutions subscribe to The AMICO Library – a digital resource that includes works of contemporary art for which AMICO pays royalties – continue to have rights for a range of educational uses, as defined in the AMICO Library license. The on-line Reproduction Request Form provides these users with a simple means to request further rights, including those for publication. About AMICO The Art Museum Image Consortium (AMICO) is an independent non-profit corporation with 501 (c) 3 designation from the IRS.Ê Founded in 1997, the Consortium today is made up of over 35 major museums in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.Ê It’s an innovative collaboration – not seen before in museums – that shares, shapes, and standardizes digital information regarding museum collections and enables its educational use.Ê Membership is open to any institution with a collection of art. Together AMICO Members build The AMICO Library, a compilation of multimedia documentation of works in their collections made available to universities, colleges, schools, and public libraries.Ê The 2001-2002 edition of The AMICO Library documents approximately 78,000 different works of art, from prehistoric goddess figures to contemporary installations.Ê More than simply an image database, works in The AMICO Library are fully documented and may also include curatorial text about the artwork, detailed provenance information, multiple views of the work itself, and other related multimedia.Ê “Subscribers find The AMICO Library valuable because it combines the immediacy and accessibility of the Web with the persistence and academic weight of traditional library reference sources,” states Ms. Trant. The AMICO Library is accessible over secure networks to institutional subscribers including universities, colleges, libraries, schools, and museums, and now serves over 3 million users on four continents, including faculty, students, teachers, staff, and researchers.Ê Educational institutions may subscribe to The AMICO Library by contacting one of its distributors.Ê These include RLG, Inc., SCRAN, H.W. Wilson, and VTLS.Ê Custom-created deliveries exist for members of Ohio Library and Information Network (OhioLINK) and the University of Michigan system.Ê A subscription to The AMICO Library provides a license to use works for a broad range of educational purposes.Ê Potential subscribers may preview a Thumbnail Catalog of the AMICO Library and get further information at http://www.amico.org. Contact Information: Jennifer Trant Executive DirectorÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ Art Museum Image Consortium ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ Phone: +1 412 422 8533ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ Email: info@amico.orgÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ Web: http://www.amico.orgÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ Current List of AMICO Members: Albright-Knox Art Gallery Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Institute of Chicago Asia Society Gallery Center for Creative Photography Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute The Cleveland Museum of Art Dallas Museum of Art Davis Museum & Cultural Center, Wellesley College Denver Art Museum The Detroit Institute of Arts Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco The Frick Collection and Art Reference Library George Eastman House J. Paul Getty Museum The Library of Congress Los Angeles County Museum of Art Louisiana State Museum The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Minneapolis Institute of Arts The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego Museum of Fine Arts, Boston National Gallery of Canada National Museums of Scotland The Newark Museum Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Philadelphia Museum of Art San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Smithsonian American Art Museum Terra Museum of American Art Victoria & Albert Museum Walker Art Center The Walters Art Museum Whitney Museum of American Art
			In June of 2005, the members of the Art Museum Image Consortium voted to dissolve their collaboration. This site remains online for archival reasons.