See OneList (online reading lists) for current lists of recommended reading for your course / modules.
All ebooks, in OneSearch, provide online access from any location.
Art
Welcome to the subject page for Art. This page will help you to find information and resources for your studio practice as well as essays and dissertations.
Research is an integral part of the creative process that enables you to find inspiration and develop your ideas. For an introduction to research for studio practice, have a look at this online tutorial on An Introduction to Research for Creative Arts Students produced by the University for the Creative Arts.
Resources you may wish to use include
- Books
- Journals and art magazines
- Exhibition catalogues
- Online artist directories
- Museum and gallery websites
- DVDs
- Artists' blogs and websites
Use OneSearch to find everything that the library has to offer including print & electronic books, journals and more…
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Books & Ebooks
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Journals & Eresources
This section introduces you to a variety of resources other than books that are available through the library. Here you will find information on key journal titles and how to locate relevant articles, as well as digital resources that may be helpful in your creative practice. Click on the links below to find out more.
Key journals
The titles below are some key journals in your field of contemporary art. This is a small sample and there are many more publications in the Library and online that will help you in both your academic work and your studio practice.
Online Journal Collections
This is a large database encompassing all aspects of the arts including art, design, architecture, humanities, film/screen studies, music, performing arts, and more. Key titles in contemporary art are all accessible as PDF documents. A particularly helpful feature is the 'person' search where you can search for material on a specific artist.
More advanced researchers might want to make use of ARTbibliographies Modern (ABM) and the International Bibliography of Art (IBA) sections of the database which provide citation information of the contents of thousands of journals in art which can be found in our print journals archive or requested via inter-library loan.
For further information on using ProQuest Arts Premium, contact your Library and Academic Advisor.
Full text articles from JSTOR appear in OneSearch search results but there are many more articles on JSTOR that are normally not available as full text. Register and Read is a new service that allows you to save up to three articles that would normally be abstract only.
To use this service, you need to log on to JSTOR and create a personal account under MyJSTOR. Registration is free.
Relevant journal titles available via JSTOR include Afterall, American Art, Leonardo, MoMA and Women's Art Journal.
ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global
ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global is the world's most comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses from around the world with a very large number available as PDF full-text. The database covers all disciplines including a strong representation from the visual arts.
Finding a journal article from a reference
Sometimes your tutor might give you a reference or you may want to chase up an entry in a book's bibliography. If you have the details for a specific journal article, you can use the Journals A-Z to discover whether we subscribe to a journal, what years we have access to and whether it is in print or online. You will need to log in using your network username and password if you are not on campus.
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Streaming and visual resources
Academic Video Online (AVON)
Academic Video Online is a streaming service featuring videos on a wide range of subjects, all of which are of a suitable level of quality for use in academic assignments. Results from Academic Video Online will show in a OneSearch, but accessing the resource directly gives you additional features such as browsing and related videos.
A rich repository of British art documentaries from the 1950s to the present day, maintained by the University of Westminster. Access on-capus is direct but you may need to sign in off-campus by selecting your insitution and using your University username and password.
a-n Resources is the website that accompanies a-n Magazine and is a simply wonderful resource covering all aspects of art. Here you will find features on new artists, interviews, exhibitions and critical conversations. It also contains useful a toolkit containing practical advice on exhibiting and selling your work and developing your practice.
This visually-rich resource is an online archive of journals and periodicals in art and design from the late 19th and early to mid-20th Century. It also features the Arts + Architecture Profiles which bibliographical data of over 30,000 artists, architects and designers.
Especially useful for discovering new artists and craft practitioners, the Axis directory contains profiles of contemporary artists and their work. There are also podcasts and videos on topics such as promoting your work and preparing for degree shows.
Bridgeman Education is a copyright-cleared image database that includes images of works from the world’s major museums, galleries and private collections, from ancient history to the most recent exhibitions. The All Artists section allows you to locate images and works associated with specific artists which is especially helpful.
Visual Arts Data Service (VADS)
VADS is a carefully curated online archive of art and design. It comprises a wide variety of collections of images and text on all aspects of visual culture from paintings and sculpture to textiles and fashion. The archive can be searched by keyword or you can browse individual collections that pique your interest!
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Websites
A selection of useful and reputable websites have been collected together for you here. These sites have been evaluated for their quality and suitability for use in your studio work and assigments. Be aware that images on these sites tend not to be Copyright-free so be sure to attribute any images you use.
Councils, Government Bodies and Community
Design and Artists Copyright Association
C-art - Cumbria artists open studios
Galleries and Museums
Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead
Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Glasgow
Newspaper Arts Sections
Blogs and General Arts Websites
Luxonline - British Video and Film Art
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Images and Copyright
Remember that you need to provide references for any images of art works you use in your work.
Be very careful when using images in assignments and studio practice. Appropriation involves the reuse of images or works without making any changes to the original for creative or artmaking purposes. However, unauthorised or unattributed use of images of art works may mean you are in breach of copyright legislation which can have serious consequences. This video from LinkedIn Learning explains the difference between appropriation and copyright infringement.
Check out this InfosmART tutorial, produced by Learning Resources at the Glasgow School of Art, to learn how to make sure you are using images responsibly and ethically.
Photographs in particular can be a minefield in terms of attribution and copyright. The University of Leeds have produced this handy guide that explains some of the rules you need to abide by when using photographs in your work.