The Minnesota Slide Classification System was begun in
the late 1940s by Professor Dmitri Tselos, then newly arrived in Minnesota
after many years of teaching and experience with various slide systems in a
number of eastern colleges and universities. During World War II he had been
an itinerant art historian, traveling day-by-day to a group of colleges whose
art historical staffs were serving in the war.
His aim at Minnesota was to develop an alphabetized, non numerical method of
slide classification containing word categories and their abbreviations. The
system he established compliments the structure of art history courses and can
be easily understood and used by both the specialist and non specialist.
Professor Tselos's long career at Minnesota and his continuing interest in the
system contributed to its stability and consistency.
Professor Tselos published the Minnesota System in an abbreviated form in the
College Art Journal in 1959. The system has many descendants, each with its own
variations, due partly to the lack of a complete published manual and partly to
the special needs of its users.
