In the seven years that have passed since the publication of the first edition of this handbook, the world of art and design libraries has been rocked by rapid advances in technology, an explosion in social media, the release of new standards and guidelines, shifts in the materials and processes of contemporary art, innovative developments in publishing models, expanding roles of librarians, new perspectives surrounding library spaces, and the evolving needs and expectations of art and design students. What has not changed is each library's deep commitment to art, which manifests itself as collections that are developed around images and objects; library instruction with an emphasis on visual literacy; and a student body consisting of artists, designers, art historians and art educators who approach the use of the library in unexpected and creative ways.

The goal of this second edition is the same as the first: to present a selection of essays that take a careful look into the world of academic art and design libraries, whether they are part of universities or support independent art and design schools. A few of the essays are revised and updated from the first edition, but most are new to this book and present topics that are now gaining prominence in the profession. Throughout the handbook, authors were asked to maintain an international perspective in their research and examples.

The volume is divided into six sections with three to eight chapters in each. Part I, ‘Roles and responsibilities’, considers several management concerns faced by art and design librarians. These include the general governance and administration of the library, evolving trends in the field, the changing roles of the art librarian, accreditation procedures and design thinking. One of the characteristics that distinguish art and design libraries from other libraries is their unique collections. Authors in Part II, ‘Materials and collection management’, explore visual resources, digital collections, archives, special collections, artists’ books and materials collections in the context of the library.