About the Collection
Gallaudet University Library serves the Gallaudet academic community, which is primarily deaf or hard-of-hearing. The library is also part of the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC). Gallaudet has a collection of art, biographical information, and archival manuscripts related to deaf artists in the library and archives. The library’s small collection of artists’ books primarily consists of works by Joseph Grigely, a Chicago-based deaf artist. Students at Gallaudet or other DC schools who are interested in the intersection between art, books, communication, and language will enjoy exploring these works.
Finding Artists’ Books
Begin by searching the catalog for “artists’ books” in quotation marks, at Gallaudet only. Use the left-hand sidebar to refine your search. Under subject terms, select “artists’ books.” This will give you all the artists’ books at Gallaudet Library, along with some other resources.
How to Get There
800 Florida Avenue NE, Washington, DC 20002
By Metro, take the Red line to the NoMa-Gallaudet University station. Turn right on 2nd Street NE, then right on Florida Avenue. Located at 800 Florida Ave NE, the library will be on the left in about half a mile.
What to Expect
The location for Gallaudet University Library artists’ books, particularly the collection of works by Joseph Grigley, in the online public access catalog is “GA: UNIV DEAF Copy 1 Room (Non-Circulating).” Found on the basement level, these books do not circulate and may not be removed from the building. To access them, request the items from the desk. For questions, email . When researching the collection, it may be useful to know that the library uses the term “Deaf” to refer to a Deaf person in the Deaf community, and the term “deaf” to refer to a deaf person who does not associate with the larger Deaf community.
Other Resources
Gallaudet Library
Gallaudet Library Locations
Gallaudet Library Deaf Collections and Archives