The University of Reading Art Collection comprises around 1,500 artworks spanning the 16th century to the present, including paintings, sculptures, prints, and digital media. It combines internationally significant works with material connected to the University’s teaching, research, and community, making it a rich resource for interdisciplinary and digitally enabled scholarship.
The Art Collection is a key Digital Humanities partner, offering structured collections data, digitised resources, and opportunities for collaborative research, teaching, and digital interpretation.
We welcome queries, ideas and discussions about how you could embed both digital humanities and the Art Collection into your project.
The Art Collection and Digital Humanities
Explore the Art Collection
The online collections databases provide structured access to over 1,500 artworks and 80+ artist collections, enabling discovery, cataloguing, and metadata-driven exploration.
Find Inspiration with Past Online Exhibitions
A growing range of online exhibitions provides curated access to artworks and interpretive content, expanding engagement beyond physical displays. If you are considering developing a digital exhibition, the team are happy to assist you.
Use the Art Collection in your Research Project and Future Grant Proposals
Research Access
The Art Study Room enables direct access to artworks for research and teaching, supporting close material study alongside digital resources. The collection is accessible, by appointment only, and is housed in the same building as the Museum of English Rural Life and the Special Collections and MERL Reading Room.
All researchers should plan their visit to the Study Room.
Meet the Curator and Discuss your Project
Dr Hannah Lyons
Email: h.lyons@reading.ac.uk Telephone: +44 (0) 118 378 5514
Dr Hannah Lyons joined the University of Reading in the spring of 2023. She is responsible for caring for, developing and presenting the University of Reading’s Art Collection, as well as managing the University’s Public Art programme. Hannah is keen to work with researchers who are considering integrating digital humanities into their projects.
Her broad professional and research interests include British art, works on paper, as well as contemporary art and visual culture. She has a special interest in printmaking and eighteenth-century women artists, which was the subject of her AHRC-funded PhD.
Have a Digital Humanities project in mind? Get in touch to explore how the Art Collection can support research, teaching, and digital innovation.
Keep in Touch
For more information regarding the Art Collection, visit their website or contact the curator.
To stay updated about current projects, news and events, follow the Art Collection on LinkedIn.
Digital Humanities Projects
The formation of the new Interdisciplinary Research Centre in Digital Humanities, combined with the ongoing support of the Digital Humanities Hub, has provided new opportunities for collaboration with our specialised internal partners.
The Digital Humanities Officer is happy to meet with researchers who are considering using the Art Collection for a project or research proposal. This includes PhD students.
In the 2026-27 academic year, the IDRC DH plans to expand its provision and is considering the logistics of developing a new collaborative fellowship between collections and DH. More information will be provided in due course.