Research Guides: Art: Online Resources

Start here for online research in the arts.

The below online resources focus on visual (image-based) research, interdisciplinary journals and databases available through the library, media studies (photography), performing arts (theater and sheet music), and art history.

If you are looking for online resources outside of arts and humanities to inspire your creative practice, check out our full library database list and learn how to choose a library database here: libguides.evergreen.edu/how/database

Journals, E-Books, & Literary Databases

Journals & Article Databases

Academic Search Complete
A broad, multidisciplinary database from EBSCO.
Fine Arts OneFile
A fine arts database from Gale focused on articles about drama, music, art history, and filmmaking.
Humanities Source
Humanities-focused database from EBSCO covering topics including art, classical studies, dance, film, journalism, philosophy, religion and much more. Content includes feature articles, interviews, obituaries and original works of fiction, drama, poetry and reviews.
JSTOR
A multidisciplinary database of scholarly journals, with an emphasis in the humanities and social sciences.
New York Times
Follow this link to sign up for a free New York Times account provided by The Evergreen Library.

Step 1: Click the link above.
Step 2: Search for and click “The Evergreen State College - Olympia, WA”
Step 3: Follow the steps based on whether you are On or Off Campus

If you already have an account with the NYT that you pay for, you will need to cancel your subscription before claiming this free access.
N+1
Magazine focused on literature, culture, and politics, published three times a year.

E-Books

ACLS Humanities E-Book
Digital collection of over 5,400 seminal books in literature, humanities, and related social sciences.
eDuke Scholarly Book Collection
Duke University Press books in the humanities and social sciences.
Wiley Online Library
Scholarly and professional books, handbooks, dictionaries, companions and landmark book series in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities.

Dictionaries, Indexes, & Encyclopedias

Dictionary of Literary Biography
Reliable information on authors and their works, placing writers in the larger perspective of literary history. To view the full list of publications included in this database, click on What's Inside.
Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia
Over 25,000 encyclopedic entries covering a variety of subject areas.
LitFinder
Full text literary works including short stories, speeches, and plays.
Oxford English Dictionary
A definitive guide to the meaning, history, and usage of over 500,000 words and phrases across the English-speaking world.

Visual Research

Images of Artwork & Architecture

ARTstor
JSTOR-powered image database including fine art, historical artifacts, and architecture from around the world.
AccessCeramics
A collection of contemporary ceramics images by recognized artists.

Art Images for College Teaching
Public domain images of art and architectural works focusing on ancient, medieval, and Renaissance European art and architecture.
Contemporary Art Library
A contemporary art database that includes around 910,000 images, documents, and videos representing more than 28,000 exhibitions, performances, and other projects.
Library of Congress: Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
Digital images from the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress including architecture, design and engineering, among other categories.
Smithsonian Open Access
2D and 3D images of work from the Smithsonian’s 21 museums, nine research centers, libraries, archives, and the National Zoo. Free to download, share, and reuse.
Visual Arts Data Service (VADS)
Images from over 300 art and design collections in the UK with a focus on fashion, craft, 2D design, and contemporary artists.

Image Reference Material & Public Domain Images

Biodiversity Heritage Library Flickr
Illustrative and historic images of flora and fauna from the Biodiversity Heritage Library.

Birds of the World
Images, audio, and comprehensive life histories of all bird species from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

MoMA.co.uk Public Domain Images for Artists
An article with links to numerous collections of images in the public domain.
National Archives Still Images
Digitized photographs and graphic works from the National Archives including military, civil rights, NASA, landscape, and other historic and contemporary photographs from the federal government.
NOAA Digital Photo Collection
Images from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) staff related to marine life and our changing environment.
Public Domain Image Archive
A collection of out-of-copyright works, free for all to browse, download, and reuse. This is a living database with new images added every week.
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Image Database
Public domain images of flora, fauna, and field work from the United States Fish and Wildlife.

Streaming Videos

Browsable Streaming Collections

All streaming videos are searchable in the library catalog, which is the best place to search for specific titles. If you are looking to browse, consider the following collections specific to arts and humanities topics in each platform.

Art21
A nonprofit organization which produces documentary films, resources, and public programs about contemporary art and artists.

Alexander Street
Our largest streaming media collection. To browse subject-based channels, search for a channel title using the search box or see below for some examples.

Docuseek
Documentary films from distributors like Bullfrog Films and Icarus Films. Mostly covering environmental justice topics.
Films On Demand
Similar to Alexander Street, this is one of our largest multidisciplinary platforms. Browse all subjects here or see below for a short list of relevant collections.

Kanopy
Well-known streaming platform featuring distributors like Criterion, A24, and Janus Films. Click "Browse" at the top to see all subjects or below for a selection to start.

Swank
A select number of new, feature films added by request.

Media Studies

Photography

Art Photo Index
Index of nearly 4,000 photographers and over 45,000 images in an easily browsable website.
International Center of Photography
This site contains three sections: Perspectives, Collections, and Interviews. The center focuses on contemporary photography and visual culture with an emphasis on "socially and politically minded images that can educate and change the world."
Modern Photographers Collection at UW
A selection of images from photographers active in the Pacific Northwest from the late 1920's to the present, including: Max Allara, Art Hupy, Ernest Kassowitz, Kyo Koike, Frank Kunishige, Charles Pearson, Mary Randlett, Don Wallen and others.
Museum of Contemporary Photography
More than 17,000 works by over 1,950 artists, fully searchable and browsable by artist and collection highlights.
Photographers' Index Catalog
Biographical data describing photographers, studios, manufacturers, and others involved in the production of photographic images. From the New York Public Library.
Photography Database
Database includes basic factual information about photographers and photography professionals, as well as public photographic collections, commercial galleries, photographic exhibitions in museums, and citations to the many published sources used to compile the data.

Performing Arts

Theater

Internet Broadway Database
The official database for Broadway theatre information, providing records of productions from the beginnings of New York theatre until today.

LitFinder
Full text literary works including short stories, speeches, and plays.

Playbill
News and resources for the theater industry, with a primary focus on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regional productions.
Spectra.Theater & Lortel Archives
Comprehensive archive of past, current, and upcoming U.S. professional, stock, amateur, and school productions.

Sheet Music

Historic American Sheet Music
Historic American sheet music from Duke University Press.
Music for the Nation
American Sheet Music from 1870 to 1885 from the Library of Congress.
Project Gutenberg Sheet Music
Find public domain sheet music, from Project Gutenberg.
Sheet Music Consortium
Open access to digitized sheet music available from participating libraries and archives collections.

Art History

Artcyclopedia
An encyclopedia of art history searchable by artist, artwork, museums, and news.
Dictionary of Art Historians
A biographical database of art historians of western art throughout time.
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Explore more than 1,000 essays on a wide range of topics, including artists, materials, movements, and themes.
Obelisk Art History
Interactive website and art history "textbook" with pages dedicated to artists, movements, mediums, and more.
Olympia Music History Project
Olympia's music history from 1980-2002, including oral histories, artwork, photos, and is a growing community archive.
SmARTHistory
Art history resource with videos, essays, open-access multimedia art history "textbooks", and more!