This was not a productive year for the International Relations Committee, due entirely to the Chair's preoccupation with Ottawa issues (for which he apologizes to both the Executive Board and the Committee members). This report reviews the Committee workplan for the year.

Affiliation

In early 1997 letters on behalf of the Executive Board proposing affiliation were sent to: Sous-section des Bibliothèques d'art, Association des Bibliothécaires français; Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Kunst-und Museumsbibliotheken (Germany); Japan Art Documentation Society; Moscow Association of Art Libraries, Associazione delle biblioteche italiane d'arte; and the Research Libraries Group. At the time of this writing an informal, enthusiastic response has been received from the Sous-section des Bibliothèques d'art. Further replies will be forwarded to the in-coming Chair of the Committee.

Thought might be given next to proposing affiliation with such allied organizations as the International Council of Archives (ICA), International Council of Museums (ICOM), International Council of Architectural Museums (ICAM), Comité international d'histoire de l'art (CIHA), Museum Documentation Association (MDA), etc.

Penney De Pas reported to the Chair that the publications of existing affiliates are received at Headquarters irregularly. She confirmed that Headquarters does send Art Documentation, Update, the Handbook and conference promotional literature to all affiliates. Courtesy letters could be sent to existing affiliates reminding them of the Society's wish to receive their publications.

Policy Manual

Revisions were drafted by the Chair for discussion at the Berkeley Executive Board meeting. Further revisions have been requested for consideration in San Antonio, specifically with regard to communication between the Committee and the IFLA Section of Art Libraries, and a more detailed elaboration of the privileges of affiliation.

San Antonio Conference

Claire Eike, Chair, North American Relations Committee and the IRC Chair will co-moderate a discussion group: The External Relations Committees: How ARLIS/NA Networks on Your Behalf, with participation by the Public Relations Committee and the Technology Relations Committee.

IFLA 2001

The Chair communicated with Duane Webster, Jan van der Wateren, Maggy Wishaupt and IFLA Headquarters in a search for guidelines governing the sponsorship and organization of an IFLA satellite meeting. It is clear from IFLA's Guidelines for IFLA Workshops and Satellite Meetings (1991) that full responsibility for organization of the satellite meeting would rest with ARLIS/NA; IFLA and the Section of Art Libraries act primarily in an advisory capacity. The meetings must be approved by the Section of Art Libraries and the IFLA Professional Board. A new Chair of the Section of Art Libraries will assume a four year term (1997-2001) at the IFLA general meeting in Copenhagen this August. It would be prudent for the Executive Board of ARLIS/NA to open discussion with Section Chair as soon as a commitment is made by the Society to pursue the Boston meeting. The IRC, or a sub-committee thereof, could play an important role in the organization of such an event; Boston 2001 would offer an extraordinary focus and challenge for the Committee.

IRC Homepage

The ARLIS/NA Strategic Plan (item 107) states, under the heading International Relations: "identify international and non-North American art organizations' information organs: newsletters, listservs, websites; establish procedures for monitoring and reporting; assign individual committee members to monitor specific source(s)". The Chair did not have the time to plan and implement this initiative, but did question the amount of effort which would be needed to organize and coordinate such an undertaking (between Headquarters, the IRC Chair and the Committee members) when weighed against the potential usefulness of the product. The results would not warrant the Committee's efforts unless thoroughness, timeliness and continuity could be guaranteed. The strategy suggested may well be unworkable in light of the annual changing of the Committee membership, and unrealistic if one continues to regard professional seniority as a sine qua non of IRC membership. The goal (or the methodology) may require review. (For example, perhaps a member for the Committee needs to be recruited specifically with this task in mind.)

Committee Terms of Reference

The development and maintenance of contacts with colleagues and organizations abroad requires negotiation and sustained contact. The Chair suggests that the Executive Board consider revisions to the IRC terms of reference which would result in a standing committee model, with membership appointments of longer duration. An annual change of the IRC Chair and membership will mitigate against the establishment of working relationships with foreign associations, and will frustrate initiatives such as the aforementioned IRC homepage.

Murray Waddington
Chair, IRC 1996-1997