Databases & Guides: Art: Home

Best Databases & Websites for Visual Arts

JSTOR
JSTOR contains journal articles in various academic disciplines. Not all content is available full-text so it is recommended to choose the option of searching only content you have access to.
Arts & Humanities Database
This database provides "online access to 400 contemporary specialist arts titles combined with journals from related fields including ethnic studies, women’s studies, sociology, cultural studies, and more. Arts & Humanities Database titles include both scholarly peer-reviewed journals and selected trade and consumer titles relevant to applied arts and cultural studies."

Wkimedia Commons
Contains thousands of images available for use. They have several different licenses attached that may be attached to a give image.
Google Arts an Culture
"Google Arts & Culture is a non-commercial initiative. We work with cultural institutions and artists around the world. Together, our mission is to preserve and bring the world’s art and culture online so it’s accessible to anyone, anywhere." from website

Find Books in the Catalog

Try the subject headings:

Art
Art--History
Art objects—Conservation and restoration
Art museums <place>
- Art museums California
Art museums—Exhibitions <place>
- Art museums Exhibitions California

Find Books on the Shelf

Encyclopedias: N31 (check the reference section)

Art Schools: N325-335

Art Museums: N400-3990

Art Documentation and Provenance: N3998-3999

Art Exhibitions: N4390-5098

Art History: N5300-7418

Technique, compositions, etc.: N7429.7-7433

Criticism: N7475-7489.2

Visual Arts

The "N" section of the library is devoted to the visual arts. It starts with works about art in general, museums and exhibits, art conservation, and some artist biographies. Most works will go in a section of similar techniques/media. So all books featuring painting will be together, or all books on drawing. This means that often the work of an artist who works in multiple media will be separated into different sections of the library.

Some fields are closely associated with a craft or some kind of technology. These will be found in other sections such as: TR (photography & cinematography) and TP 845-869 (glass and glass making)

Local Museums

Bowers Museum
"Bowers Museum showcases art and artifacts from cultures around the world in 8 permanent collection exhibitions and rotating featured exhibitions." from website.
Orange County Museum of Art
"OCMA has an established reputation as an innovative art museum with a history of actively discovering and engaging with living artists at pivotal points in their careers. " from website.
Long Beach Museum of Art
"The Museum’s permanent collection is diverse with more than 3,200 works encompassing 300 years of American and European art in all media." from website.
Museum of Latin American Art
"The Museum of Latin American Art expands knowledge and appreciation of modern and contemporary Latin American and Latino art through its Collection, ground-breaking Exhibitions, stimulating Educational Programs, and engaging Cultural Events." from website

Sample Books in our Collection

Facts on File encyclopedia of art
Call Number: Reference (1st Floor) ; N31 .F33 2005

ISBN: 9780816057986

Publication Date: 2005

V. 1. Paleolithic art-Etruscan art -- v. 2. Roman art-early Christian art -- v. 3. Byzantine art-Ottonian art -- v. 4. Romanesque art-Romanticism -- v. 5. Realism-South African art.
ArtCurious by Jennifer Dasal
Call Number: Circulating Books (2nd Floor) ; N7460 .D37 2020

ISBN: 9780143134596

Publication Date: 2020-09-15

"From the host of the ArtCurious podcast, this book looks at the world of art history, revealing some of the strangest, funniest, and most fascinating stories behind the world's great artists and masterpieces. It demonstrates why art history is, and continues to be, a riveting and relevant world to explore"-- Provided by publisher
Fairy Tales, Monsters, and the Genetic Imagination by Mark W. Scala (Editor)
Call Number: Circulating Books (2nd Floor) ; N8217.F28 F35 2012

ISBN: 9780826518149

Publication Date: 2012-02-24

The curator of a new exhibition of conceptions of monsters at Nashville's Frist Center for the Visual Arts presents essays that discuss the historical context of anthropomorphism in many cultures' mythology and folklore that inspired the featured artists.
The art business by Robertson, Iain (Iain Alexander); Chong, Derrick, 1963-
Call Number: ebook

ISBN: 9786611786809

Publication Date: 2008

Drawing on the vast experience of Sotheby's Institute of Art, The Art Business exposes the realities of the commercial trade in fine art and antiques. Attention is devoted to the role of auction houses, commercial galleries and art museums as key institutions, with the text divided into four thematic sections