Outline of this guide: Style Guides Reference Works Images & Reproductions Books & Catalogs Articles

Related guides: Book Review Sources The Dewey Decimal System: An Outline The Library of Congress Classification System: An Outline Narrowing or Broadening a Topic RefWorks RefWorks: A Guide Research Log Research Planner Scholarly Articles: How to Identify Them Text a Librarian

• Office hours:
  • Monday 1:00-3:00 pm
  • Tuesday, 3:00-5:00 pm
  • Wednesday, 1:00-2:00 pm
  Location: Consultation Room (directly behind the reference desk)
• Also available by appointment.

Style Guides

• Chicago Manual of Style. 16th ed. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 2010.
  Little Library Reference Desk: REF Z253 .U69 2010
  Note: up to ten people can search the online version at any one time; if you are unable to log in, simply wait a few minutes and try again. Please remember to log out or close your browser window when you are through using the online version.
  See also the Chicago Citation Quick Guide.
• Additional details about Art Bulletin's style recommendations are available online.
  To see specific examples of notes and bibliographies, consult issues of Art Bulletin; the library has a complete run of this journal. Issues from the past year are shelved in the Current Periodicals section on the main floor; issues from earlier years are shelved in the Bound Periodicals section on the lower level of the library.
• You can also use RefWorks to generate in-text citations and reference lists in Chicago format.

Reference Works

• Art History: The Key Concepts. Jonathan Harris. New York: Routledge, 2006.
  REF N5300 .H278 2006
• ArtSpeak: A Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords, 1945 to the Present. Robert Atkins. 2nd ed. New York: Abbeville Press, 1997.
  REF N6490 .A87 1997
• ArtSpoke: A Guide to Modern Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords, 1848-1944. Robert Atkins. New York: Abbeville Press, 1993.
  REF N6447 .A85 1993
• Atlas of World Art. Ed. John Onians. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2004.
  Reference Atlas Area R 702 O98a
• Classified Directory of Artists’ Signatures, Symbols, & Monograms. Ed. H.H. Caplan. Detroit, MI: Gale, 1976.
  Reference R 927 C244c
• Concise Encyclopedia of Symbolism. Jean Cassou. Secaucus, NJ: Chartwell, 1979.
  Reference R 709.03 C345c
• Credo Reference: Art Resources
  Contains the full text of over fifteen quick-reference books covering art and architecture, including the following:
  • The Bloomsbury Guide to Art. Ed. Shearer West. London: Bloomsbury, 1996.
  • The Thames & Hudson Dictionary of Art Terms. Edward Lucie-Smith. 2nd ed. New York: Thames & Hudson, 2004.
    Reference R 703 L937t
  • The Thames & Hudson Dictionary of Art and Artists. Ed. Herbert Read. Rev. Ed. New York: Thames & Hudson, 1994.
  • The Thames and Hudson Encyclopaedia of British art. Ed. David Bindman. New York: Thames & Hudson, 1985.
• Dictionary of Modern Sculpture. Ed Robert Maillard. New York: Tudor, 1962.
  Reference R 730.3 D55d
• Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art. James Hall. 2nd ed. Boulder, CO: Westview, 2008.
  Reference R 704.94 H177d 2008
• Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art. Ian Chilvers. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1998.
  Reference R 927 C538d
• Encyclopedia of American Art before 1914. Ed. Jane Turner. New York: Grove’s Dictionaries, 2000.
  Reference R 709.73 E56
• Encyclopedia of Twentieth-Century Photography. Ed. Lynne Warren. 3 vols. New York: Routledge, 2006.
  Reference R 779 E56
• Encyclopedia of World Art. 17 vols. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1959–1983.
  Reference R 703 E56
• European Artists: Signatures and Monograms, 1800-1990. John Castagno. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1990.
  REF N45 .C38 1990
• International Dictionary of Art and Artists. Ed. James Vinson. 2 vols. Chicago: St. James Press, 1990.
  Vol. 1 (Artists): Reference R 927 I61
  Vol. 2 (Art): Reference R 709.2 I61
• Nineteenth-Century European Art: A Topical Dictionary. Terry W. Strieter. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1999.
  REF N6757 .S77 1999
• Oxford Art Online
  Contains the full text of:
  • Dictionary of Art. Ed Jane. Turner 34 vols. New York: Grove’s Dictionaries, 1996.
    Reference R 703 D554
    Note: Oxford Art Online also contains updated entries and bibliographies for the Grove Dictionary.
  • The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms. Michael Clarke and Deborah Clarke. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2003- .
  • The Encyclopedia of Aesthetics. Ed. Michael Kelly. 4 vols. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1998.
    Reference R 111.85 E56
  • The Oxford Companion to Western Art. Ed. Hugh Brigstocke. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2001.
    REF N33 .O923 2001
  • ... and over 5,000 images.
• Oxford Companion to Art. Ed. Harold Osborne. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1984.
  Reference R 703 O98
• The Oxford Companion to the Photograph. Ed. Robin Lenman. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2005.
  Reference R 770.3 O98
• The Oxford Companion to Twentieth-Century Art. Ed. Harold Osborne. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1981.
  Reference R 709.04 O98
• The Oxford Dictionary of Art. Ed. Ian Chilvers. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2004.
  Reference R 703 O981 2004
• Phaidon Encyclopedia of Surrealism. Rene Passeron. Oxford: Phaidon, 1978.
  Reference R 709.04 P287p
• The World’s Master Paintings, from the Early Renaissance to the Present Day. Comp. Christopher Wright. New York: Routledge, 1992.
  Reference R 750 W948w

• AKL: World Biographical Dictionary of Artists (Allgemeines Künstlerexikon Internationale Künslterdatenbank). München: K.G. Saur, 2000–.
  CD-ROM: Please ask at the Circulation Desk.
  Allgemeines Lexikon der Bildenden Künstler von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart. Ulrich Thieme and Felix Becker. 37 vols. Leipzig, Germany: W. Englemann, 1907–1950.
  Reference R 927 T43a
  Allgemeines Künstlerexikon: Die Bildenden Künstler aller Zeiten und Volker. Ed. Gunter Meissner. 41 vols. (to date). München: Saur, 1992– .
  Reference R 927 A435
  A highly-respected biographical reference. Allgemeines Lexikon includes entries on nearly 50,000 artists from all time periods and countries. Most entries include bibliographies and information about the location of works of art. This work is being updated and expanded, but the new edition is not complete. Indexes are available in Reference (R 927 A4351 and R 927 A4352).
  Note: The entries in the CD-ROM are often more detailed than those in the print editions.
• Bénézit Dictionary of Artists. Ed. Christopher J. Murray. 14 vols. Paris: Gründ, 2006.
  Reference R 927 D5542
  This is the English-language edition of Emmanuel Bénézit's Dictionnaire critique et documentaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs de tous les temps et de tous les pays; the library also has the French edition (new ed.; 10 vols.; Paris: Grund, 1976), shelved in Reference at call number R 927 B46d.
• Biographical Dictionary of Artists. Ed. Lawrence Gowing. Rev. ed. New York: Facts on File, 1995.
  Reference R 927 B615
• Biographical Dictionary of Women Artists in Europe and America since 1850. Penny Dunford. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1989.
  Reference R 927 A27b
• Biography Reference Bank. H.W. Wilson, 2003- .
• Index to Artistic Biography. Patricia Pate Havlice. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow, 1973-2002.
  Reference R 016.927 H388
• Jacobsen's Biographical Index of American Artists Native to the United States or Working in the United States from 1606 to 2002. Ed. Anita Jacobsen. 4 vols. New Carrollton, TX: A.J. Publications, 2002.
  Reference R 927 J17j
• Twentieth-Century Artists on Art: An Index to Writings, Statements, and Interviews by Artists, Architects, and Designers. Jack S. Robertson. 2nd ed. New York: G.K. Hall, 1996.
  REF NX456 .R59 1996
• Other sources include the specialized encyclopedias listed in the General Works section above.

• American Women Artists: A Selected Bibliographic Guide. Eleanor Tufts. 2 vols. New York: Garland, 1984-1989.
  Reference R 016.704 T914a
• Les Fauves: A Sourcebook. Russell T. Clement. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1994.
  REF ND548.5 .F3 C59 1994
• Feminist Art Criticism: An Annotated Bibliography. Cassandra Langer. New York: G.K. Hall, 1993.
  REF N72 .F45 L360 1993
• Henri Matisse: A Guide to Research. Catherine C. Bock-Weiss. New York: Garland, 1996.
  REF N6853 .M33 B630 1996
• Picasso: A Comprehensive Bibliography. Ray Anne Kibbey. New York: Garland, 1977.
  Reference R 016.7 P586k
• Symbolism: A Bibliography of Symbolism as an International and Multi-Disciplinary Movement. Ed. David L. Anderson. New York: New York Univ. Press, 1975.
  Reference R 016.7 A546s
• Women Artists: An Historical, Contemporary, and Feminist Bibliography. Sherry Piland. 2nd ed. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow, 1994.
  REF N8354 .B280 1994
• Women Artists in the United States: A Selective Bibliography and Resource Guide on the Fine and Decorative Arts, 1750-1986. Paula Chiarmonte. Boston, MA: G.K. Hall, 1990.
  REF N6536 .W60 1990

Images & Reproductions

• Image Collections
  • ARTstor
    A collection of over a million images covering art, architecture, and archaeology from a wide range of cultures and time periods as well as tools to manipulate and analyze those images.
  • The Bridgeman Art Library Archive. London: Bridgeman Art Library, 2003.
    Part of the Credo Reference: Are Resources collection.
  • CAMIO: The Catalog of Art Museum Images Online
    A collection of over 95,000 images of fine and decorative artworks dating from prehistoric times to the present.
• Indexes to Reproductions
  • Index to Reproductions of American Paintings. Isabel Stevenson Monro and Kate M. Monro. New York: Wilson, 1948.
    LC Reference: REF ND205 .M57 1948
    See also the Supplement at REF ND205 .M57 1984
  • Index to Reproductions of European Paintings. Isabel Stevenson Monro and Kate M. Monro. New York: Wilson, 1956.
    LC Reference: REF ND45 .M6 1956
  • World Painting Index. Patricia Pate Havlice. 2 vols. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1977.
    See also the Supplement volumes, which cover 1973-1980, 1980-1989, 1990-1999.
    LC Reference: REF ND45 .H38

Books & Catalogs

General search tips:

• Use Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) to connect terms/concepts
• In most databases, the truncation symbol is a *
• Enclose phrases in double quotation marks " "

• Library Catalog
  Lists books, catalogs, and journals, magazines, and newspapers in our Library.
  
  • To locate works about an artist, do a subject search for the artist's name (last name first).
  • To locate bibliographies about a person or topic, do a keyword search and add the following: su bibliography.
  Tip: truncation symbol: $
• ebrary
  A collection of over 46,000 e-books published by over 220 academic, trade, and professional publishers; covers all subject areas. Also includes tools that allow you to create your own virtual bookshelf, bookmark pages, and add and save notes and highlights.
  Note: for full functionality, you need the ebrary Reader. This plugin is on all library and ITS computers, but if you are using your own computer, you can download it from the ebrary home page.
• WorldCat
  Lists books, catalogs, periodicals, and other materials held by libraries around the world. You can submit an interlibrary loan request to borrow books that aren't available at Davidson.
  • Identify relevant Library of Congress Subject Headings in the Library Catalog first; you can then do a subject search in WorldCat to find additional items with these subject headings.

Articles

Starting Points | Core Databases for Art | Other Journal Databases

General search tips:

• Use Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) to connect terms/concepts
• In most databases, the truncation symbol is a *
• Enclose phrases in double quotation marks " "

• Academic Search Premier
  (1975 to present) Indexes popular and scholarly articles in a broad range of subject areas; also includes citations to book reviews and citations to articles in several national newspapers.
• OmniFile Full Text Mega
  (1982 to present) Indexes articles from over 3,000 scholarly and popular periodicals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences; also includes the full text of selected articles from over 1,650 of these periodicals.

• Art Abstracts
  (1929 to present). Indexes over 600 periodicals, including journals, yearbooks, and museum bulletins. Subjects covered include art history, archaeology, architecture, decorative art, film, folk art, graphic art, industrial design, interior design, landscape architecture, museology, photography, and sculpture.
• ARTbibliographies Modern
  (c. 1960s to present) Indexes articles, essays, exhibition catalogs, books, and doctoral dissertations on topics related to modern and contemporary art from the late nineteenth century to the present. Covers traditional media such as paintings and sculpture as well as photography, artists' books, ceramics, body art, electronic art, ethnic arts, fashion, performance art, and video art. International in scope.
• Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA)
  (1975-2007) Includes citations to journal articles, books, conference proceedings, essays, exhibition catalogues, and other materials on the history of art in Europe and North America from antiquity to the present. BHA covers both the fine and the decorative arts. Contains records from RILA (International Repertory of the Literature of Art).
  Note: BHA uses Library of Congress Subject Headings.
  Tip: truncation symbol: ?
• Web of Knowledge
  (c. 1900 to present) A multidisciplinary resource that provides citations to articles in thousands of journals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences.

• Bibliographic Index
  (1984 to present) A bibliography of bibliographies; indexes bibliographies published in books, pamphlets, and more than 2,800 periodicals. Includes citations to literature reviews and serial bibliographies.
• Essay & General Literature Index
  (1900 to present) Indexes chapters and essays in edited collections.
• Humanities Abstracts
  (1907 to present [publication date of articles indexed]) Indexes journal articles and some book reviews on all humanities subjects, including history, classics, art, archeology, literature, philosophy, and religion.
• LexisNexis Academic
  (Approx. 1980 to present) Includes the full text of articles from local, national, and international newspapers, magazines, and trade journals; can be a useful source for reviews of exhibitions.
  Tip: click on "all news" for more search options.
• JSTOR
  A collection of the back issues of over 1,200 electronic journals in the humanities, sciences, and social sciences. Note: JSTOR does not usually contain articles from the most recent 3-5 years.
  Tips: truncation symbol: +
• Periodicals Index Online
  (c. 1665-1995) Indexes journal and magazine articles as well as book reviews in a broad array of humanities, social sciences, and science subjects.
• Project Muse
  A collection of over 400 electronic journals in the humanities and social sciences.