Doing Research in Art History

Learn about the core resources in Art History research, and how to find and use them at Williams.

Museum Catalogs

Search the library catalog:

  • Search for the name of the museum as Author.  Remember to use the full name of the museum (e.g. "Sterling and Francine Art Institute" rather than "The Clark."

Search the Clark Library Catalog:

  • Do a Name search for the museum.

Search Williams WorldCat:

  • Search for the name of the museum as Author.  If you find a catalog, you can request to borrow it from another library.

Search Online:

  • Search for the museum's website to see if they make collection catalogs available online.

Exhibition Catalogs

Search the library catalog:

  1. Use the advanced search screen.
  2. In the first box, search for the name of the museum as Author or the name of the artist as Subject.  Remember to use the full name of the museum (e.g. "Sterling and Francine Art Institute" rather than "The Clark."
  3. In the second box, search for "exhibit*"as Keyword, which will look for both "exhibit" and "exhibition."

Search the Clark Library Catalog:

  1. Do a Name search for the museum or artist.

Search Williams WorldCat:

  1. Use the advanced search screen.
  2. In the first box, search for the name of the museum as Author or the name of the artist as Subject.  Remember to use the full name of the museum (e.g. "Sterling and Francine Art Institute" rather than "The Clark."
  3. In the second box, search for "exhibit*"as Keyword, which will look for both "exhibit" and "exhibition."
  4. If you find a catalog, you can request to borrow it from another library.