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Loyola University Chicago Libraries

FNAR 199: Introduction to Art and Visual Culture

Art History Research Tools

The following types of research tools may be especially useful for this assignment:

  • Art Encyclopedia

An art encyclopedia is made up of entries that provide an overview of a particular artist, art movement, artistic technique, or style and then point you to additional reading on that topic.

For example:

Macy, Laura William., Michael Clarke, and E. (Emmanuel) Bénézit. Oxford Art Online. Basingstoke, England: Macmillan, 2002.
 
  • Catalogue Raisonne

A catalogue raisonne, or "reasoned catalog" is a major scholarly work that traces an artist's career, documenting all authentic and documented works by that artist in detail. Entries contain all known information for a work, including a critical description and analysis of the work; the title, medium, and dimensions of the work; the current location; the ownership history; an exhibition, conservation, and publication history for the work; and a bibliography.

For example:

Bernstein, Roberta, Jasper Johns, Heidemarie Colsman-Freyberger, Caitlin Sweeney, Betsy Stepina Zinn, and Jasper Johns. Jasper Johns : Catalogue Raisonné of Painting and Sculpture. First edition. New York: The Wildenstein Plattner Institute, 2017.

  • Collection Catalog

A collection catalog documents all of the artworks that have been compiled into a permanent collection by a collector or institution. Collection catalogs may contain individual entries that are as detailed as those in a catalogue raisonne, or may contain essays that discuss the artworks in terms of the scope or themes of the collection.

For example:

Ades, Dawn, Margherita Andreotti, and Adam Jolles. Surrealist Art : The Lindy and Edwin Bergman Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago. Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1997.
 
  • Exhibition Catalog

An exhibition catalog describes a temporary exhibition of works in a gallery or museum. In addition to a checklist of the works on display, exhibition catalogs usually contain curatorial essays and extensive bibliographies. They may also include chronologies of the works, lists of the donors to the exhibition, technical information on how the works were created, and artist statements. Exhibition catalogs are usually lavishly illustrated. Exhibitions may cover only one artist's work, or may include the work of several artists; they may be based on a specific time period, medium, or theme.

For example:

Cecchi, Alessandro, and Andrea del Sarto. Andrea Del Sarto : The Renaissance Workshop in Action. Edited by Julian Brooks, D. (Denise) Allen, and Xavier F. Salomon. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 2015.
 
  • History

A history usually covers a particular artistic movement, a specific period, a specific type of artwork or technique, or the art of a civilization or region.

For example:

Taft, Maggie, Robert Cozzolino, Judith Russi Kirshner, and Erin Hogan. Art in Chicago : A History from the Fire to Now. Chicago: the University of Chicago Press, 2018.
 
  • Monograph

A monograph is a detailed scholarly work, usually by a single author, that covers a specialist theme in depth.

For example:

Garrard, Mary D. Artemisia Gentileschi and Feminism in Early Modern Europe. London: Reaktion Books, 2020.
 
  • Article

Articles are available in print or online serial publications, and may review an artist's work or exhibition, interview an artist, or present new scholarship on an artist or artistic movement.

For example:

Nochlin, Linda. “Edward Hopper and the Imagery of Alienation.” Art Journal (New York. 1960) 41, no. 2 (1981): 136-141.
 
  • Artist File

Artist files are compiled by art libraries and include ephemera on artists, including exhibition announcements, clipping files, gallery notices, photographs, and exhibit brochures. These are good sources for compiling an exhibition history of an artist, or for seeing how the artist described her own work over time. In Chicago there are collections of artist files at the following libraries:

Chicago Public Library Artist Files

Ryerson and Burnham Libraries, Art Institute of Chicago

Where are the books and journals?

The Loyola Library catalog includes a variety of resources, including books and print journals, but where do you locate the physical item in the library?

Cudahy Library, on the Lake Shore Campus, contains the print collections for art history. You can find:

Loyola uses the Library of Congress classification system; materials on art are located in Class N in the following call number ranges, if you would like to browse the stacks:

  • N: Visual Arts
  • NB: Sculpture
  • NC: Drawing, Design, Illustration
  • ND: Painting
  • NE: Print media
  • NX: Arts in general
  • TR: Photography

Use the "Find Books & E-Books" link below to easily access the catalog and start searching for books!

Use the "Find Journals" link below to easily access the catalog and start searching for journals!

Searching Beyond Loyola's Collection

Worldcat and other local institutions can also be searched for resources.