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ARTS 1301: Studio I & II: Articles & Databases

A course guide to library research & inspiration resources for art students in Studio I & II

Performance Art Related Databases

Reference Databases

Credo Reference  Alkek reference source for ideas on keywords and background information. Has images and concept map too. See the tutorial below and more info about Credo Reference below.

E-Reference Sources at Alkek Library full list of our e-reference resources: full-text subject encyclopedias and dictionaries

Grove Art Online

Oxford Reference Alkek reference source for ideas on keywords and background information

Periodical List

You can search for a specific journal/magazine/newspaper using Periodical List

Featured Database!

The featured database is Art Search. It contains 3 different resources, Design Abstracts Retrospective (DAR) for abstracts of journal articles, Design ProFILES (DP) for biographical information on artists, designers, craftspeople, and architects, and ReVIEW for full-text 19th and early 20th century art journal articles. Recently added to DesignInform are Research Guides. Check it out!

Suggested Art & Design Databases for Finding Articles & Images

If you want a little background information on your topic or need help identifying possible search keywords, check out the library's reference materials.

Reference materials are the place to go if you need factual information. Think encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauri—simple, straight-forward information, presented in an easy-to-navigate format.

Here are a few that may be good for art terms:

Try searching our new Start Your Research tool! It searches multiple databases for articles and the library catalog for books and other materials. This tool can be good if your topic is cross-disciplinary and you are looking for different types of materials like images!

After you do an intial search in the box pictured below, look to the right to see related images. Under the Refine Your Results drop down on the left, click Show More to select Image Quick View Type, at the bottom of the refine search pop-up page. Please ask for help with this new tool if you need it!


 

Art and Design Databases

These resources can be found on the Library Home Page through the Databases link and then under the Art & Design. Most of these are for finding articles. Also refer to the Library's Image Collections resources. If you are not in the library you will be prompted for your Texas State username and password. Use the Images tab on this guide for more about finding images.

Communication Studies Databases

Communication Studies Databases could also be another good source for articles since they can cover visual communication theories.

Image Databases

Also refer to the Library's full list of Image Databases. Use the Images tab on this guide for more about finding images or see the Finding Images Research Guide.

Newspaper Databases

You could also check out our newspaper databases, especially the historical ones, for good resources on art. Newspaper articles from the time period of the work of art can be considered a primary source material. Exhibition catalogs from the time period of the art are primary sources too!

Understanding a Journal Citation

You'll see something like this:

It's important to know the parts of a citation so you can interpret it correctly. You must have at least the Journal name, volume, issue, and page number to be able to locate the article.