Guide to Resources for Art

Reference Books

Reference books are a good place to start research. They can help you find background information, choose topics, and understand concepts and terminology. To access online resources from off campus you will need a your My Chemeketa user name and six-digit password; host provider students may obtain a login from the instructor or librarian.

Dictionaries

These dictionaries define specialized terms, identify important figures and concepts, and explain symbols. The most general printed dictionaries of art are found under 703 in the Dewey Decimal Classification.

The Concise Oxford dictionary of art and artists [online only]

A briefer version of the Oxford dictionary of art (see below).

Oxford dictionary of art terms [online only]

Succinct explanations of over 1,800 terms.

The Dent dictionary of symbols in Christian art [R 704.9482 Sp3]

Includes fewer personal names, but more scenes and symbols, than the The dictionary of symbols in Western art

Dictionary of architecture and landscape architecture [online only

"Architects, terms, periods, and styles, covering all periods of Western architectural history." Includes landscape terms.

Dictionary of modern design [online only]

Covers the past 150 years of international design.

Dictionary of subjects and symbols in art [R 704.94 H14]

Has few illustrations, but contains the most information about traditional scenes such as the Deposition.

The dictionary of symbols in Western art [R 704.946 C23]

Gives treatment not only of visual symbols, e.g., dice, but of persons and scenes frequently pictured, such as Gabriel. Coverage is selective.

A Dictionary of twentieth-century art [online only]

"Broad coverage of painting, sculpture, and graphic art encompasses all the major movements and styles of the twentieth-century, and includes entries on art schools, galleries, exhibitions, prizes, terms, techniques, collectors, critics, dealers and patrons."

The Hutchinson dictionary of symbols in art [online only]

A concise dictionary of symbols.

Illustrated dictionary of art terms: a handbook for the artist and art lover [R 703.21 R33]

Contains more technical terms than the Oxford dictionary, with illustrations.

Illustrated dictionary of symbols in eastern and western art [R 704.946 H14]

This is actually a visual dictionary, divided into thematic chapters, e.g., "Animals," with line drawings of each subject glossing the text. There is also a chapter on collectives, e.g., The Four Prophets, and an index.

Medieval Art: A Topical Dictionary [online only]

Hundreds of themes and scenes in the art of the Middle Ages, described.

The Oxford dictionary of American art and artists

A "biographical and critical guide to American art from colonial times to contemporary postmodernism," in 945 entries.

The Oxford dictionary of art [R 703.21 Ox2]

Contains many biographical entries as well as some technical terms. Online and print edtions.

Encyclopedias & Handbooks

Two subject encyclopedias are the 34-volume Dictionary of Art [703 D56], an excellent place to start any research project, and the Encyclopedia of world art [730 M17]; there are other specialized encyclopedias in the catalog.

Specialized encyclopedias, which cover a single subject area, have longer and more detailed treatments of subjects than either dictionaries or general encyclopedias.

Arts and Humanities Through the Eras [online only]

Arranged chronologically from antiquity to 1800, helps to relate art and the various disciplines of the humanities to each other, as well as to history and culture.

A companion to art theory [online only]

Theories of art explained in chronological order.

Encyclopedia of comparative iconography [R 704.903 En1]

Articles on themes and situations expressed in art, e.g., Light, Grieving/Lamentation, Shepherds, etc.

Gothic art [R 709.02 Er5]

A history with numerous illustrations and a detailed index.

[Janson's] History of art [R 709 J22]

A history with numerous illustrations and a detailed index.

Larousse encyclopedia of Byzantine and medieval art [R 709.02 H98]

Numbers in the margin refer to the numbered illustrations.

Oxford companion to Christian art and architecture [R 704.9482 M96]

A handbook explaining many themes and scenes

Oxford companion to the photograph [online only]

Technical and historical information, "photography as social and artistic practice," and over 800 biographical entries.

Oxford companion to Western art [R 709 Ox2]

Best for named artists and for concise overviews of styles, etc. Online and print editions.

Other aids are found in the reference collection under the Dewey Decimal Classification numbers 701-799.

More electronic books

netLibrary

To access these books from off campus you will need your My Chemeketa user name and six-digit password. There are many more e-books on art than are listed here. Two of special interest for career planning are:

• Careers for color connoisseurs & other visual types
• Great jobs for art majors

Finding other books and and audiovisual materials

Use the library catalog to look for additional materials. The catalog page includes instructions on using the catalog, as well as links to other library catalogs. You can search by key words, by authors, or by subject headings. A suggestion on where to find subject headings to use in the catalog is given below.

The Library of Congress has a Web site where you can search for subject headings. When you put in a search term, the results will list terms in a table. Those with a red button marked, "Authorized and references" are terms that the Library of Congress uses in subject catalogs. Clicking the button may show more specific ("narrower") terms.

Fig. 1. The catalog search

You may have to do several searches to find books that might be pertinent to your subject. Try the techniques shown in the table below.

TIP: When using keywords, try truncating: theor* finds theory, theories, theoretical, etc. (* is the truncation character for EBSCOhost).

Databases & Indexes

All the electronic databases listed in this section may be accessed by going to the library's Database Page. If you are accessing the databases from a location other than Chemeketa Community College, remember to click the link marked, "Off-campus users."

Journal Article Databases

These tools index and/or provide full text access to articles in magazines, newspapers, and scholarly or professional journals.

Printed indexes

Art Index, a printed index to art journals, is shelved in the library's reference section under the number REF 050 Ar7. Art Index has coverage of earlier years than most EBSCOhost databases.

Online indexes

Academic Search Premier [EBSCOhost]

The best source for art criticism.

You may need to use some special techniques in EBSCOhost Academic Search Premier:

You may need to combine multiple search terms to find articles on your topic. The EBSCOhost screen has find a form for entering multiple terms. Checking off "Chemeketa Periodicals" and "Full text" is helpful, too.

TIP: When using keywords, try truncating: theor* finds theory, theories, theoretical, etc. (* is the truncation character for EBSCOhost).

If you find an article that meets your needs, look at its description for additional terms you can use to search.

Search Suggestions

Here are some words to search with in combination, using those that apply to your work of art. Your textbook may suggest others.

Image Databases

"ARTstor is a digital library 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 for research and pedagogical purposes."

Special Guides

• Introduction to Art History
• Art History, Middle Ages to 1500

Internet Sites

See Useful Sites for Art.

Updated by Reference.