Find Images...
...in books or other print formats in the library:
Include the phrase “pictorial works” in your keyword search. (This will help you find illustration, art, or photography on a wide range of subjects.)
Example: Bible AND “pictorial works”. Or “Vietnam War” AND “pictorial works”.
Include the word “exhibitions” in your keyword search. (This works best when looking for images from a specific artist or movement in art history.)
Example: Kandinsky AND exhibitions. Or impressionism AND exhibitions.
Do a subject search to find indexes of paintings, illustrations, sculptures, or photographs in print.
Example: subject search for “painting—indexes”. Or “pictures—indexes.” Or “photographs—indexes.
Do a subject search using the phrase “in art” following the subject you wish to find imagery of.
Example: death in art, dogs in art
Make an appointment to visit our Department of Archives and Special Collections. Among the treasures housed in our library, we have one of the largest collections of postcards in the United States. This rich visual resource is organized by theme and geography, and is available for you to browse!
...in Library databases: (links will open in a new browser window)
America's Historical Newspapers
Cover-to-cover full text and page images of scores of newspapers from all 50 states, covering 1690-1876. Includes: Early American Newspapers, Series I (1690 - 1876) and Early American Newspapers, Series II (1758 - 1900). Good source for early journalistic photography and turn of the century advertising imagery.
Art Full Text
Index to over 300 international arts periodicals, with full text in over 100. Includes Art Index Retrospective, with indexing back to 1929. This is best used as a tool to point you to periodicals where you can find reproductions of specific works of art. To use this feature, click the "document type" drop down menu, and select "art reproduction" before conducting your search.
ARTstor
Searchable database of more than 500,000 digital images of art throughout history and across cultures. Includes the fields of architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, decorative arts, and design.
Grove Art Online
Comprehensive art encyclopedia covering art from around the world from prehistoric times through the present. Contains links to images of over 45,000 works.
LMU Digital Collections
A growing collection of images from the Department of Archives and Special Collections
Oxford Reference Online - Maps and Illustrations
Source for world maps and flags, as well as the fully illustrated "Oxford Visual English Dictionary".
...on the Internet: (links will open in a new browser window)
American Memory at the Library of Congress
American Memory provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity. These materials, from the collections of the Library of Congress and other institutions, chronicle historical events, people, places, and ideas that continue to shape America, serving the public as a resource for education and lifelong learning.
Artcyclopedia
A comprehensive index of every artist represented at hundreds of museum sites, image archives, and other online resources. Has links to over 8500 artists and 180,000+ works of art.
Library and Archival Exhibitions on the Web
Hosted by the Smithsonian Institution, this site features links to online exhibitions that have been created by libraries, archives, and historical societies, as well as to museum online exhibitions with a significant focus on library and archival materials. The scope is international and multilingual. The online exhibitions in this guide are keyword-searchable by title, subject, and the name of the sponsoring institution.
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
The Prints and Photographs Online Catalog (PPOC) contains catalog records and digital images representing a rich cross section of still pictures held by the Prints & Photographs Division and other units of the Library. The Library of Congress offers broad public access to these materials as a contribution to education and scholarship.
The Museum of Online Museums (MoOM)
The MoOM is organized into three sections. "The Museum Campus" contains links to brick and mortar museums with an interesting online presence. Most of these sites will have multiple exhibits from their collections (or, in the case of the Smithsonian, displays of items not on display in the Washington museum itself). "The Permanent Collection" displays links to exhibits of particular interest to design and advertising. "Galleries, Exhibition, and Shows" is an eclectic and ever-changing list of interesting links to collections and galleries, most of them hosted on personal web pages. In other words, it's where all the good stuff is.
NASA's Visible Earth
An impressive catalog of NASA images and animations of Planet Earth.
NYPL Digital Gallery
NYPL Digital Gallery provides access to over 550,000 images digitized from primary sources and printed rarities in the collections of The New York Public Library, including illuminated manuscripts, historical maps, vintage posters, rare prints and photographs, illustrated books, printed ephemera, and more.
Online Archive of California (OAC) Image Search
A core component of the California Digital Library, the Online Archive of California (OAC) is a digital information resource that facilitates and provides access to materials such as manuscripts, photographs, and works of art held in libraries, museums, archives, and other institutions across California. The OAC is available to a broad spectrum of users -students, teachers, and researchers of all levels. Image search provides digital access to tens of thousands of photographs, paintings, graphical materials and other types of images.
Want more? (lots more?)
Digital Librarian's Guide to Images on the Web
Directory of Web Image Sites
Online Sources for Images
A few words about copyright:
Just because an image is found on the internet, it doesn't mean that it is there for you to use without permission. Although student work can often be considered Fair Use of a copyrighted work, it is good practice to always look for a statement of permissible use and/or a suggested credit line before using the image. (See this link from Boston University for some good examples of what to look for.) Can't find any? If possible, contact the copyright holder to ask permission (hey, it never hurts!), or failing that, find an alternative resource.
For a great overview of Copyright and Usage Guidelines for Online Resources, please take a look at this page from Otis College of Art and Design. (Scroll down past the links for guidelines on educational use of copyrighted materials.)
For more about copyright:
LMU University Copyright Policy
Copyright and Fair Use (Stanford University)
How to cite images:
Dartmouth College Guide to Citing Images
Simon Fraser University Library Guide to Citing Images
University of Cincinnati Library Guide to Citing Images
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