The library's collection is composed of monographs, exhibition catalogues, sales catalogues, periodicals, CD-ROMS, etc. dealing with paintings, drawings and sculptures, from the end of the middle-ages to the present time. To a lesser extent, the library also has works devoted to engraving, architecture, photography and applied arts.

Specific collections:

• Works relative to Flemish and Dutch art
• Original surrealist documents and works devoted to surrealism
• 19th century sales catalogues

The documents comprise the following:

• 350,000 monographs and exhibition catalogues
• 57,000 sales catalogues
• 3,000 periodicals including 500 current
• 50 CD•ROMS (including Artbibliographies Modern, Art Index, Répertoire d'Art et d'Archéologie, International Repertory of the Literature of Art [RILA], Bibliographie d'Histoire de l'Art and Mayer International Auction Records)

Art Sales Catalogues
 The library of the RMFAB is co-operating to the enlargement of the data base Art Sales Catalogues of IDC Publishers/Brill. This research tool gives access to thousands of digitalized auction catalogues from the period 1600 – 1900. In a first stage some 1100 auction catalogues conserved in the RMFAB library will be filmed so that the catalogues themselves won’t be accessible for a while. Thanks to this co-operation, from now on, we do already have, in the reading room, an access to the on line version that contains 28,000 listed auction catalogues.  

If the library's principal objective is to help the museum's curators to carry out their work, it is also accessible to:

• professionals and specialists from the art world
• history of art researchers and students
• any person who can justify that he or she is carrying out specialised research work

There is a library membership fee. In order to enrol as a member, you must go to the lending desk, taking with you an identity card and a photo.

• Annual membership: 800.- BEF (19.83 euros);
reduced rates for students and art historians: 200.- BEF (4.96 euros)
• Monthly membership: 100.- BEF (2.48 euros)

The library's rules are available for consultation by readers. Any failure to comply with these rules will result in the reader¹s membership being cancelled with immediate effect.

Lending service:

• This is restricted for use within the library.
• Readers will only be allowed to consult files and borrow works if they present their membership card.
• Readers may not request more than 5 works simultaneously.
• The waiting time for a work requested is not more than 15 minutes.
• Readers may reserve, for not more than two weeks, the works that they have requested.

Photocopies: Photocopies may be taken only for personal research or study purposes.

Price: 10 BEF (0.248 euros) per copy

In order to facilitate research work, several catalogues are available to readers:

• authors catalogue in alphabetical order by author
• artists-creators catalogue in alphabetical order by artist
• topographic catalogue of exhibitions classified by countries, cities, museums (place of the exhibition), and dates
• systematic catalogue classified on the basis of the CDU system, adapted to the library¹s needs.

The library also has more specific catalogues (depending on the type of documents):
• catalogue of titles of periodicals
• catalogue of sales catalogues classified by countries, cities (place of the sale), and dates
• catalogue of museum publications (guides, catalogues of collections, etc.) classified by countries, cities, museums and publication dates

Finally, since 1990, the library has had a computerised catalogue (57,000 notes recorded thanks to the VUBIS software) which allows readers to search by title, authors or key words. This catalogue can be consulted on-line. Catalogues on microfiles, with the exception of the one for public sales, have therefore not been updated since 1990.