Art History
This is a guide for research in Art History.
Selected Reference Sources
Encyclopedia of Comparative Iconography by
Discusses "...how various mythological, Biblical, and literary themes have been treated in literature, art, music, and the performing arts... "
Call Number: MAC Stacks Lower Level N7560 .E53 1998 (2 vol.)ISBN: 9781579580094Publication Date: 1998-04-01
The Grove Encyclopedia of Materials and Techniques in Art by
Addresses "...deals with all aspects of materials, techniques, conservation, and restoration in both traditional and nontraditional media, including ceramics, sculpture, metalwork, painting, works on paper, textiles, video, digital art, and more."
Call Number: MAC Lower Level N8510 .G76 2008ISBN: 0195313917Publication Date: 2008-10-06
Styles, Schools and Movements : the essential encyclopaedic guide to modern art by
A visual map of the period in the form of an 8 page fold-out is followed by articles on 100 of the most significant movements of the modern period.
Call Number: MAC Lower Level N6490.4 .D45 2010ISBN: 0500288445Publication Date: 2011-02-15
- Oxford Art Online This link opens in a new windowAccess to the "The Dictionary of Art" (formerly known as "The Grove Dictionary of Art") and "The Oxford Companion to Western Art." Offers additions of new and updated articles, thumbnail art images and line drawings displayed in the text of articles.
Resources for researching contemporary art
Reviews and News Sources
- Access World News: Research Collection This link opens in a new window
International, national, regional, state, and local newspaper articles and video clips. Includes over a thousand international news sources from scores of countries on six continents, translated into English when written in other languages.
- US Newsstream (ProQuest) This link opens in a new windowCurrent and archived news from United States and international news sources, including the Star Tribune, New York Times, The Times of London, and The Wall Street Journal. Coverage is different for each title. For earlier newspaper coverage, see our historical archives, such as the New York Times Archive, which goes back to 1851. Good for finding exhibit and gallery reviews.
- Newspaper Source This link opens in a new windowFull-text coverage of hundreds of national, regional, and international newspapers, as well as newswires and TV and radio news transcripts.
- New York Times Archive This link opens in a new windowSearchable full text of the New York Times from the first issue in 1851 to 4 years ago. Includes full page and article images. Most recent years of the Times can be searched in US Newsstream or New York Times - Digital Microfilm.
- The Times Historical Archive, 1785–2014 (Gale Primary Sources) This link opens in a new windowFull-text and full-image archive to the Times of London beginning in 1785.
Articles, Book Chapters, Dissertations, Book Reviews
- America: History and Life This link opens in a new window
Index of scholarly journals, books, and dissertations covering the history and culture of the United States and Canada from before European contact to the present.
- Art Full Text This link opens in a new window
The main database for research in art and art history. Includes both popular and academic titles.
- Arts and Humanities Citation Index This link opens in a new window
Provides article references for journals across the arts and humanities disciplines, including art and art history, archeology, architecture, dance, music, film and theater, history, humanities, literature, and religion. Offers cited reference searching.
- Film & Television Literature Index with Full Text This link opens in a new windowCovers film & television theory, preservation & restoration, writing, production, cinematography, technical aspects, and reviews.
- Historical Abstracts This link opens in a new windowWorld history database, focused on outside of North America. Can limit searches by era covered.
- MLA International Bibliography (Ebsco) This link opens in a new windowThe primary database for literary and film scholarship. Includes performance studies, particularly those using literary narratives.
- RILM Abstracts of Music Literature This link opens in a new windowProvides access to international publications on music and other performance arts, such as dance. Includes a variety of publication types including journal articles, ethnographic recordings, and reviews. Relevant for research on performance studies, education, literature, and more.
Museums and Galleries
- Metropolitan Museum of ArtIncludes more than 400,000 high-resolution digital images of public domain works in the Museum’s collection which may be downloaded directly from the Museum’s website for non-commercial use, including in scholarly publications in any media, without permission from the Museum and without a fee.
- The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)Link to the list of artists with work in MoMA's collection or who have been included in a MoMA exhibition. It is updated continually.
- Walker Art Center"Since its founding in 1940, the Walker Art Center has collected the visual, performing, and media arts of our time. A reflection of our multidisciplinary mission and the increasingly cross-disciplinary practice of artists, Walker Collections reflect a diverse range of artistic output, including painting, sculpture, films, performances, books, artist archives, and more."
- Midway Contemporary Art LibraryLocated in Minneapolis, "the Midway Contemporary Art Library serves to document, present, and preserve the recent history of contemporary visual art in a public context. Founded in 2007, its objectives are to research, collate, and catalog published material in an effort to provide the most comprehensive and accessible resource for research into contemporary art in the region."