Guide to Research Online

Looking For Printed Books And Articles
(compiling a bibliography)

Return to Guide Index

Use the following databases and online catalogs to compile your bibliography. If a library nearby does not have the book or journal you want, submit an Interlibrary Loan (ILL) request for it. Check with your library about resources labeled Subscribers Only below.

• Databases available through FirstSearch - SUBSCRIBERS ONLY (ask your institution about access):

• WorldCat: A general database of books and other materials in libraries worldwide. It includes records of any type of material, even manuscripts written as early as the 12th century, catalogued by Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) member libraries. Items can be searched by author name, title, subject, publisher, place, etc.

• ArticleFirst: An index of articles from nearly 12,500 journals.

• AHSearch: Arts & Humanities search. Records referencing many of the world's leading arts and humanities journals.

• ArtAbstracts: Key international English-language arts publications. Includes periodicals, yearbooks, museum bulletins, competition and award notices, exhibition listings, interviews, film reviews, and more.

• Searching Online Public Access Catalogs (OPACs)

Many libraries worldwide provide free access to their catalogs. Select large libraries for your initial search. Also search the catalogs of specialized libraries. Here are some selected examples:

• Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

• IRIS: Online Catalog for the Research Library of the Getty Research Institute

• Thomas J. Watson Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

• CATNYP: The Research Libraries Online Catalog of the New York Public Library

• The British Library

• National Art Library Catalogue, London

• Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris

To locate art libraries in particular, use Yahoo's list of university libraries:

• Arts Libraries

Besides FirstSearch (see above), articles can be searched for using:

• Art Index and Art Abstracts, which include a total of 378 periodicals with the full text of 93 journals back to January 1997, are available through H. W. Wilson - SUBSCRIPTION ONLY.

Additional book searches can be conducted using:

• Books in Print - SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

• Amazon.com

Specific bibliographic references and abstracts:

• The Grove Dictionary of Art - SUBSCRIBERS ONLY; includes a bibliography of sources with each article.

• Britannica Online - SUBSCRIBERS ONLY; includes a bibliography of sources with the longer entries.

• Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA) is the most comprehensive art history bibliography available worldwide, covering European and American art from late antiquity to the present. BHA includes and extends the coverage of two predecessor art indexes, RAA (Répertoire d'Art et d'Archéologie) from 1973 to 1989 and RILA (International Repertory of the Literature of Art) from 1975 to 1989. At present BHA is NOT available online, but see the Research Libraries Group for more in formation.