Research Guides: Art History: Getting Started

Art History Library Research Guide

Welcome! This guide is here to help you get started with your research on topics in art history. This main page will describe some basics on starting your research.

The section on Reference Sources will recommend some very good starting places for your research. This is a great step if you are not entirely familiar with your topic. They will give brief overviews of your topic and recommended books and articles to read.
The section on Books has some advice on how to search for books in our collection.
The section on Articles will make some recommendations on where to search for articles on topics in art history.
The Call Numbers section briefly describes the different call numbers we use for organizing physical materials in the library and where to find those items.

Essential Resources

The following resources are the most used ones for conducting research on topics in art history. This is a good way to get started. The additional tabs located on the side of this guide will offer many more resources and directions if you need to find more, or want to conduct broader and more thorough searches.

Oxford Art Online This link opens in a new window
This is a great place to start your research, especially if you are not entirely familiar with your topic. OAO has a combination of traditional reference sources, including Grove Dictionary of Art, Benezit Dictionary of Artists, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms, Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, and The Oxford Companion to Western Art. Most entries include recommended books and articles for research on that topic. This database allows for 4-5 simultaneous users.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
A digital library of academic content in many formats and disciplines. The collections include top peer-reviewed scholarly journals as well as respected literary journals, academic monographs, research reports from trusted institutes, and diverse primary sources. Due to its archival nature, JSTOR does not include current or recent issues of journals.

SLU has access to all JSTOR archival journals and primary source content through the JSTOR Archival Journals and Primary Sources Collection. Click here for a complete list of the included collections...more.
Art Full Text This link opens in a new window
1977-present. Includes journal articles, yearbooks, and museum bulletins covering every type of art including advertising, antiques, history, computer art, graphic arts, and more....more.
SLUth - Search Plus This link opens in a new window
SLUth searches many of our research databases at once. This allows you to conduct a broad search across many resources. Search results are often numerous and need to be refined. Use the Subject tool on the left side of the screen in the Refine Results column. This will allow you to focus your search and eliminate search results that you do not need.
Saint Louis University Libraries Catalog This link opens in a new window
The library catalog contains the holdings of all Saint Louis University Libraries. It is the best place to locate books. If you found a book in the recommended reading/research list of OAO, enter it as a title search in the catalog to see if we have it. Otherwise, you can search the catalog to find books on the topic you are working on for your research.
Dissertations & Theses Global This link opens in a new window
1637-present. Replaces ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Full Text by including everything in that database plus a growing collection of dissertations and masters theses from international universities and national associations. Full-text is available for most dissertations from 1997 forward with strong retrospective full-text coverage....more