MOME Library & Archives

Since 1896 the library of the National Royal Hungarian Museum and School of Applied Arts was the most important applied arts library in Hungary for half a century. When part of the institution was moved to the Zugligeti street building in 1954, the library was split into two: 

one collection at the Zugligeti campus that comprised material for education and literature on contemporary product and spatial art and design, and another selection remaining at the museum, essential for further research, including most books on the history of applied arts.

The collection has nowadays more than 60 000 documents and the number of printed journals is currently 174. The MOME Library has a prominent place among art libraries in Hungary, however its primary role is to serve as a university establishment. It is responsible for granting a sufficient background for education and research by providing the academic literature. The library’s objective is to gather all Hungarian publications on applied arts, and to also compile a selection of foreign language works and publications on fine arts. 

The library has followed the continuous expansion of the institution’s educational profile: besides the literature of spatial art, product design and visual arts, the fields of art and design pedagogy and management have also become important segments of the collection. 

The computer-based, electronic processing and the provision of online databases are important achievements of the last decade. The Electronic Information Service (EISZ) is maintained by a 20 student cabinet. The library furthermore cooperates with the largest university and art libraries in Hungary to establish a common document supply system. MOME Library is part of the National Document Supply System (ODR).