Art
From Simmons Library Research Guides
We have selected these resources to help you find relevant information on your research topic. Please contact a librarian for help using the resources listed in this guide or for help with your research process.
Contents |
Reference and Background Information
Search for Reference sources that contain information about your specific research topic here:
You may also consult the resources below for overviews of the topic that you have chosen to research. Use these resources to help you to put your topic in context and give you the big picture of what information exists about your topic. These resources may have bibliographies at the end of each entry that can help further your research.
- ARTstor
Simmons Eresource
ARTstor is an online database of nearly one million images in the areas of art, architecture, the humanities, and social sciences with a set of tools to view, present, and manage images. It is also used by faculty in the Art Department who may create their own image collections and create presentations for class. - Oxford Art Online
Simmons Eresource
This online database includes integrated, searchable, fulltext of the following reference sources:- Grove Dictionary of Art
Simmons Eresource
Now part of Oxford Art Online, Grove is an encyclopedia of 41,000 articles covering art and artists worldwide. It is a "comprehensive art reference work covering all forms of the visual arts: painting, sculpture, architecture, graphic and decorative arts, and photography, from prehistory to the 1990s" (publisher's web site) This resource provides online access to the entire printed text of The Dictionary of Art (1996, also available in print Level 1 Reference N31 .D5 1996, including art images from galleries and museums around the world. - Oxford Companion to Western Art
- Encyclopedia of Aesthetics
- Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms
- Grove Dictionary of Art
- Artwords: A Glossary of Contemporary Art Theory
Level 1 Reference N71 .P32 1997
This source provides definitions of the words and concepts commonly used by art critics and scholars.
- Benezit Dictionary of Artists
Level 1 Reference N40 .D5213 2006
This 14-volume work features information on painters, sculptors, designers and engravers from antiquity to the present. In use for over a century, this first English translation is an indispensable reference for art historians, museum curators, dealers, and collectors. Entries include artist biographies, descriptions of museums and galleries, graphics (including artist signatures, monograms and stamps of sale), auction records, and scholarly bibliographies.
- Biographical Encyclopedia of Artists
Level 1 Reference N40 .B535 2005
A four volume set of encyclopedias that give biographical information about artists from all historical and artistic periods, along with images of their work.
- Contemporary Artists
Level 1 Reference N40 .C66
Published in 1996, this volume contains profiles of over 800 artists of the post-WWII era. Painting, graphics, sculpture, mixed media, video and computer art is covered. Biographical data, exhibitions and critical essays included.
- Facts on File Encyclopedia of Art
Level 1 Reference N31 .F33 2005
A five volume encyclopedia set that provides extensive information about art movements, artistic periods, and different types of art, such as Romanesque Art and early Christian art. There are also many pages of colorful images to go along with each entry. The entries are organized chronologically.
- Oxford Dictionary of American Art and Artists
Simmons Eresource
This resource provides biographical and critical information on American artists from colonial times to the present, as well as entries on notable American institutions, organizations, schools, techniques, styles, and movements. Entries can be browsed alphabetically or searched.
- Oxford Dictionary of Art
Simmons Eresource
Comprised of historical fact and critical appraisal, this resource covers facets of Western art including painting, sculpture, and the graphic arts from classical times to the present. Entries can be browsed alphabetically or searched.
- Timeline of Art History
Free Online
The Metropolitan Muesum of Art provides chronological, geographical, and thematic exploration of the history of art from around the world, with description and images in each entry.
Finding Articles
Below are suggested databases and indexes for articles on the topic that you have chosen to research. These databases include articles from newspapers, magazines and scholarly journals. Articles are shorter and more narrowly focused than books or reference materials so you should use them after you have narrowed your topic.
- Art Full Text
Simmons Eresource
A searchable database of citations, abstracts, and full-text articles from art periodicals, Yearbooks, and museum bulletins. Citations can be found going back to 1984, and full-text coverage begins in 1997.
- Art Retrospective
Simmons Eresource
A searchable database of citations, abstracts, and full-text articles from art periodicals, Yearbooks, and museum bulletins. Coverage includes items published from 1929-1984, and is continued by Art Full Text.
- Art and Archeology Technical Abstracts (AATA)
Free Online
A comprehensive database of over 100,000 abstracts of literature related to the preservation and conservation of material cultural heritage.
- Bibliography of the History of Art
Simmons Eresource
This comprehensive source lists art-related books, conference proceedings, dissertations, art exhibition catalogs and dealer's catalogs covering Western art from late antiquity to the present. Coverage begins in 1973.
- Humanities Fulltext
Simmons Eresource
A database of article citations on topics in the Humanities, some available full-text. Includes content from more than 300 key humanities publications, including feature articles, book reviews, interviews, obituaries, bibliographies, original works of fiction (including dramas and poems), and reviews of plays, operas, ballets, dance, musicals, movies, and television and radio programs.
- Academic Search Complete
Simmons Eresource
Academic Search Complete is a great place to start your search for both popular and scholarly articles, no matter what your topic is! It contains journals from almost every topic and is designed specifically for academic institutions. It provides more than 5,300 full-text periodicals, 4,400 of which are peer-reviewed journals. This resource also features content as far back as 1865.
- Academic Onefile
Simmons Eresource
Academic Onefile contains 8,000 academic journals, the majority in full-text, available in HTML and PDF formats. In addition it contains hundreds of podcasts and transcripts from NPR, CNN, and the CBC.
- Expanded Academic ASAP
Simmons Eresource
From arts and the humanities to social sciences, science and technology, this database meets research needs across all academic disciplines. Access scholarly journals, news magazines, and newspapers - many with full text and images. Updated daily.
TIP: Use the Advanced Search for a more precise search!
- Arts and Humanities Citation Index -- ISI Web of Science
Simmons Eresource
This source is an index of citations and abstracts of scholarly articles from over a thousand arts and humanities journals.
Note: Full text of the cited articles is not available through Social Science Citation Index. Click the link that says "Check for Full-Text Availability" to determine if the library has access to the article. Remember, if we do not have the entire article, it can be requested through Interlibrary Loan.
- JSTOR
Simmons Eresource
JSTOR offers both multidisciplinary and discipline-specific collections. Provides full-text backfiles of many core scholarly journals, some dating back to the 1800s. However, JSTOR is not the database for current issues as it focuses on older journals.
- Project MUSE
Simmons Eresource
Offers nearly 250 quality journal titles from 40 scholarly publishers. As one of the academic community's primary electronic periodicals resources, Project MUSE covers the fields of literature and criticism, history, the visual and performing arts, cultural studies, education, political science, gender studies, economics, and many others. Project MUSE is setting the standard for scholarly electronic journals in the humanities and social science.
Searching the Web
Simmons librarians have created a customized search engine that allows you
to find Art information on the free web.
Use this Art Google Custom Search Engine box to search all select, quality free web sites at the
same time:
You may also wish to go directly to, or bookmark, the Art Google Custom Search Engine
Tips for Searching the Internet:
- Use the advanced search function, which is available from most search engines:
- Google - See also "Advanced Search Tips"
- Ask - Click "Advanced." See also "Advanced Search Tips"
- Live (MSN) - See also "Options"
- Exalead - See also "Exalead FAQ"
- Yahoo! Search
- Limit your search to .edu and .gov sites. These often provide quality research, statistics, and commentary. Sites ending in .org often have good information, too, but are likely to espouse a strong stance or bias on the issues they cover and may not be objective.
- Try Scandoo, which presents search results from Google, Yahoo! Search, or Live (MSN) with an evaluation about the objectivity, credibility, and overall reliability of the site.
- Consider using a directory of pre-screened, annotated sites:
Writing Style and Citation
For more information on style and citation for this discipline, please contact the Simmons College Writing Center
You may also consider consulting these resources:
- Writing Resources
Free Online
The Writing Center provides online resources for citing your research. If you are unsure of which citation style to use, consult your professor and consider the following:- Use APA (American Psychological Association) when your topic is in the Social Sciences
- Use ASA (American Sociological Association) when your topic is in Sociology
- Use MLA (Modern Language Association) when your topic is in the Humanities
- Use Chicago/Turabian when your topic is in Literature, History or the Arts
- Use CSE (Council of Science Editors) when your topic is in the Sciences
- RefWorks
Simmons Eresource
RefWorks is a great program for organizing articles, books, and other materials you need for research. You can also use RefWorks to create bibliographies, create in text citations in your paper (Write-N-Cite), and share your research with others. Access RefWorks from the A-Z list of resources on the library's web page, and then follow the instructions to create your own username and password. We hold RefWorks Clinics throughout the semester. For more information, ask a reference librarian
