Art Research Guide

Open Web Resources

American Institute of Graphic Art –AIGA is committed to advancing the value and impact of design, both locally and globally, and working together to inspire, support and learn from each other, at every stage of our careers.

Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online– The AAT is a resource from the Getty that includes information relating to fine art, architecture, decorative arts, archival materials, and material culture.

Art Images for College Teaching

ArtCyclopedia– An index of online museums and image archives: find where the works of over 8000 different fine artists can be viewed online.

ArtsEdge– All of the Kennedy Center’s arts education resources all in one place.

ArtsJournal: Daily Art News– The site is a digest of some of the best arts and cultural journalism in the English-speaking world.

ArtSource– “As a service to art librarians, Mary Molinaro began putting together a page that listed art resources that were becoming available on the WWW via Mosaic. At the time she thought it would be a comprehensive list. As usage of the WWW exploded it soon became apparent that a comprehensive site would be highly impractical and she realized that a selective site would be much more helpful to users.”

Artsy– A free online platform for collecting and discovering art. Artsy’s search engine and database draw connections and map relationships among works of art.

Index of American Design– “Conceived as an effort to identify and preserve a national, ancestral aesthetic, the Index of American Design comprises 18,257 watercolor renderings of American folk and decorative arts objects from the colonial period through 1900.”

International Foundation for Art Research– “A nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to integrity in the visual arts.”

The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History– Pairs essays and works of art with chronologies, telling the story of art and global culture through the Museum’s collection.

MoMA Glossary of Art Terms– A comprehensive glossary resource from the Museum of Modern Art.

Smarthistory– “Smarthistory unlocks the expertise of hundreds of scholars, making the history of art accessible and engaging to more people, in more places, than any other publisher.”

WebMuseum– “The WebMuseum was not made as part of any official or supported project. There’s not grant behind that, it is total pleasureware ™. I decided to start working on this exhibit because I felt more artistic stuff was needed on the Internet, so the WebMuseum took over my free time (nights and week-ends…) since mid-march 1994.”

Museums

Center for Creative Photography Digital Collections – “The Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, is recognized as one of the world’s finest academic art museums and study centers for the history of photography.”

Contemporary Arts Museum – Houston-“Contemporary Arts Museum Houston continues to look forward with exhibitions that exemplify the art of today. From German painters to South African videographers to Houston sculptors, the Museum is proud to show work by artists from many different cultures and backgrounds.”

The Frick Collection and Frick Art Reference Library– “Welcome to The Frick Collection. Internationally recognized as a premier museum and research center, the Frick is known for its distinguished Old Master paintings and outstanding examples of European sculpture and decorative arts.”

The J. Paul Getty Museum– “Visual art and cultural heritage for Los Angeles and the world.”

Holocaust Museum – Houston – “Charged with educating students and the public about the dangers of prejudice and hatred in society, Holocaust Museum Houston opened its doors in March of 1996. Since that time, impassioned notes, poems, artwork, and other gifts, from school children and adults alike, attest to the life-changing thoughts generated by just one visit to this unique facility.”

Kimball Art Museum – Fort Worth– “The Kimbell collection today consists of about 350 works that not only epitomize their periods and movements but also touch individual high points of aesthetic beauty and historical importance.”

The Louvre-“Heir to the century of the Enlightenment and the French Revolution, the Louvre was quickly accepted as the “museum among museums;” and since then it has remained a model and a recognized authority.”

Museum of Fine Arts – Houston– “I hope you find mfah.org an inspiring guide to the wonderful experiences in store for you at the Museum, and I am delighted to invite you to explore all of the exceptional exhibitions, installations, and virtual programming.”

National Gallery of Art– “During the temporary closure, visit the Gallery virtually through video tours of current exhibitions, in-depth looks at highlights of the collection, online learning opportunities, audio and video recordings of lectures by artists and curators, and more.”

San Francisco Fine Arts Museum Thinker Imagebase– “Our organization oversees two unique museums—the de Young in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park—and stands as one of the most visited arts institutions in the United States.”

Saatchi Gallery Online– “Great resource showcasing art from the gallery and resources from around the world, including grant and funding opportunities for artists.”

Birmingham Museums and Art Galleries Pre-Raphaelite Online Resource– “Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery has an unrivalled collection of Pre-Raphaelite art. This includes some 2000 fine and decorativeart works ranging from oil paintings, tapestries, drawings, sketchbooks, stained glass and related cartoons, to prints, illustrated books, watercolours, ceramics, and archive material. The scope of this public collection has made Birmingham a central resource for the study of the founder members of thePre-Raphaelite Brotherhood – John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and William Holman Hunt – as well as the slightly older Ford Madox Brown and the Birmingham-born Edward Burne-Jones.”