This document provides an overview of research strategies for art historical research using Metropolitan Museum of Art objects as examples. It discusses different types of information sources like books, periodicals, indexes, databases and websites. It explains how to search tools like the library catalog, periodical indexes, full-text databases and Google to find information about objects. The document demonstrates searching for information about three example objects, with varying levels of initial information provided. It emphasizes discerning quality sources and using bibliographies to find additional relevant materials from different information formats and sources.

1. Research Strategies: Laying the Foundation for Effective Art Historical Research Robyn Fleming Lisa Harms Linda Seckelson September and October 2010

2. You’ve chosen your object, now you need to (choose one): Write a paper Give a tour Give a lecture Create a bibliography What next? Artist: Bronzino (Agnolo di Cosimo di Mariano) (Italian, Monticelli 1503–1572 Florence) Title: Portrait of a Young Man Date: 1530s Credit Line: H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929 Accession Number: 29.100.16

3. Where do you find information? How do you find books about the artist? What is the difference between an index and a full-text database? What is JSTOR? Can you find authoritative information in Google? How do I get started without a bibliography?

4. Information is everywhere! You just have to know how to get it.

5. What we’ll cover The different ways that information is packaged; Print and electronic resources; How to discern what is quality information; and Applying research strategies to real-life scenarios using Met objects.

6. We will not cover: The mechanics of online searching. Any one resource (e.g. JSTOR) in depth.

7. Information comes in multiple formats!

8. Where to start? Start anywhere! Library catalog (e.g. Watsonline) Book on the artist/subject Periodical article Bibliography Website Search engine (e.g. Google) Etc…

9. Information “Packages” Bibliography Citation/Reference Book/Monograph Periodical/Newspaper Index Database Website

10. Bibliography List of references to books, periodicals, other forms of information May vary in format but must be consistent within themselves

12. Citation Reference to published or unpublished information Can refer to any form of information: book, periodical article, letter, thesis, will Can be in any format: print, microform, digital

14. Book Citations Author (format can vary) Tltle Publisher (sometimes preceded by place of publication) Publication date Relevant pages (optional)

16. Book/Monograph Most common and most traditional Books can be in a variety of formats (paper, microform, digital) Books are referred to as monographs to distinguish them from periodicals

17. Periodicals & Newspapers Published in intervals which may be fixed or irregular Has an ever-changing selection of contents Articles are usually not listed in library catalogs

18. Periodical Citations Name of author Title of article Title of periodical Volume, number Date Relevant pages

19. Locating periodicals Library catalogs do not usually list periodical articles by title or author! Therefore, you must search the library catalog by the title of the periodical (and not the title of the article).

21. Finding periodical articles on your topic Periodical articles are usually not cited individually in library catalogs. Therefore, there is no access by article title or author in library catalogs. How do you find information in periodicals? Periodical and newspaper indexes enable researchers to find those individual works...

22. What are periodical and newspaper indexes?

23. Periodical/Newspaper Index List of individual articles or segments in periodicals or newspapers List by author, title, subject, or all three Online periodical indexes are searchable by all 3 simultaneously, and across the entire timespan covered

27. Indexes in electronic format Are searchable by Author Keyword Title Across all included titles Across entire time period covered by the index simultaneously

28. Art Index search

29. Art History-specific formats In addition to books (monographs) that treat biography, periods, styles and genres, there are: Exhibition catalogs Collection catalogs Checklists Auction catalogs Other formats (dissertations, conference proceedings, trade catalogs, etc.)

30. Exhibition Catalog Documents exhibition as an event Critical essays Information on and checklist of included objects Bibliography List of lenders May include other valuable addenda, such as chronology of the artist’s life, family tree, glossary, interview…

36. Collection Catalog Documents the permanent collection of an institution or individual Object information may be minimal or extensive

42. Checklist List of works with little or no information beyond basic identification

45. Auction Catalog Documents sales of objects at a specified time/place or under the aegis of a seller or institution Important for provenance research Sometimes includes important art historical information reflecting research done by auction house staff Price lists are sometimes included

48. Database Any collection of data that can be retrieved using organized search procedures.

49. Database types Index databases: those containing information about items, but not the items themselves. Full-text databases: Those containing the full text of the item you are seeking.

50. Index database Provides information about an article or book. If you don’t have a bibliography, they are often the best way to find out what’s been published on your topic.

51. Watsonline is an index database

52. Subject search in Watsonline

53. Using keywords to search a database Has its pros and cons Pros: searches across all fields so you do not have to think about where your term might be Cons: may give you too many results, many of which are not relevant

54. Keyword search in Watsonline

55. Other library catalogs

56. The downside of keyword searching

57. Worldcat A free database containing the holdings of thousands of libraries throughout the world. Verifies the existence of an item and where you can get it. If the item is not available locally, you may be able to get it through interlibrary loan.

61. Art history periodical indexes Art Index Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA) ARTbibliographies Modern Index to 19th-Century American Art Periodicals Etc.

62. Article index databases Subscription-based (i.e. not free) Provide information about articles that have been published on a given topic You still have to retrieve the article yourself Great way to start your research if you don’t already have a bibliography

63. Full-text database Contains the entire book or article in electronic form. Searching is the same as with index databases. Once you find what you want, you will be able to view, print or download the entire book or article from within the database. You can search the text of the entire book or article.

64. JSTOR

65. Other full-text databases American Periodicals Series Online Eighteenth Century Collections Online China Academic Journals Etc.

67. Databases available at the Met

68. Databases by Category

69. Websites

70. The Met’s website

71. Collection Database

72. Timeline of Art History

74. Extensive exhibition content on Museum websites

75. Monographs Periodicals Indexes Newspapers Books Journals Databases Websites

76. Using Google to conduct research (Or Bing, or Yahoo!, etc.) Does not take you to the content of subscription databases. Most results are unscholarly, unvetted, and irrelevant. Vetted: Reviewed for objectiveness and adherence to scholarly research methods by an authoritative body. You must look at the source.

77. Looking at the source Who wrote this content? Why did they write this? Can I trust this source?

79. Developing strategies for researching Met objects 3 examples with varying amounts of information Using the tools we just discussed, we will find information in a variety of resources You will be able to create research strategies for yourself!

80. Object 1 Artist: Jacques-Louis David (French, 1748–1825)Title: Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier (1743–1794) and His Wife (Marie-Anne-Pierrette Paulze, 1758–1836)Accession Number: 1977.10

81. Bibliography in Met’s Collection Database

82. Search the Library Catalog

83. Timeline of Art History

84. Search by accession number in the Works of Art page

85. Contextual information may also be available

86. Object 2 Artist: El Anatsui (Ghanaian, b. 1944) Title: Between Earth and Heaven, 2006 Accession Number: 2007.96

87. Starting without a bibliography Check the Met’s website Timeline of Art History, Collection Database Search for material in WATSONLINE Search for material in JSTOR Search for bibliographies in subject-related published material Search for articles in periodicals indexes

88. Search in WATSONLINE by keywords

89. Request titles through WATSONLINE Read relevant sections Use bibliography or references to find additional information Next Steps

100. Search Indexes for articles

101. This article is written by a curator from the Met.

102. Object 3 The Astor Court

103. The Astor Court No bibliography A Museum space with multiple objects Not much published information What next??

104. Find contextual information Use keyword searches in WATSONLINE, indexes, and full-text databases to find relevant material. Use bibliographies that you find in relevant material to find more information. Searching Google can produce relevant results, but these results must be vetted.

105. In WATSONLINE, look for subject headings in your results

106. Click on subject headings to locate more books with contextual information

107. Search JSTOR for articles about your subject

108. This Bulletin article has an extensive list of references for further reading

109. A Google search may produce relevant results, but you must look at the source

110. Let’s review… Information is packaged in different formats such as books and indexes. Printed and online content may or may not overlap and each has pros and cons. You must discern what is quality information by looking at the source. Often, you must check several resources of different formats to conduct comprehensive research.

111. Questions?

112. Don’t forget! Please remember to sign in with your email address! Class guide available online (http://libmma.org/portal/class-guides/) Fill out our forthcoming survey to help us make our classes even better!

113. Thank you! Robyn Fleming Lisa Harms Linda Seckelson Thomas J. Watson Library The Metropolitan Museum of Art