Dada News

Where, when, why and how do you consult Dada à Paris ?

In view of its appearance, contents and purpose, the new CNRS edition of Dada in Paris stands apart from the many studies, often of great interest, devoted to the Movement in the last few years.

Dada à Paris is something else. It has become a classic, the unavoidable basic book because of its hundreds of unpublished documents, both original and copyright. It is the source book one must first acquire before starting a Dada collection of the many books on the market which reveal a marked preference for illustrations over text. However, even though its price is quite reasonable, some students will find it problematic to purchase the latest edition of Dada à Paris for themselves.

Since purchasing all of these complementary books would necessitate a greater expense than most readers can afford, Dadart, as is normal in Anglo-Saxon countries, urges students, researchers and institutions to make intensive use of libraries. They are great sources of information -- numerous, easy to find but too often little known and badly exploited :

Examples of accessible libraries :

I. University libraries (central, departmental or section), mainly in literature or art history

II. "National" libraries (BNF, Arsenal, Sorbonne)

III. Municipal libraries and/or mediathèques

IV. Museum libraries (public or private)

V. Specialized research libraries (Fonds Doucet, Paris)

VI. High school and college documentation centres, public or private

VII. Private lending libraries

There are two possibilities : either Dada à Paris 2005 CNRS is already in the catalogue and can be taken home or examined on the site.

On the other hand, if Dada à Paris 2005 is not in the catalogue of the institution (which can often be found on the Internet), we recommend that the researcher fill out an acquisitions request for the library to buy it from the publisher.

Very often a written request from several potential readers is enough to encourage the institution to put the book on its list of acquisitions.

Of course, for a specialized researcher, nothing can compare with possessing one's own book. As for the rest of us, a rapid skimming of a public document is largely sufficient.

If our readers encounter any difficulties, please let us know.