Where to Search for Books
Method | What's there | Why use it |
IUCAT | Books, journals, maps, etc. already at IU (both physical copies and e-resources) | Covers most topics, materials often immediately available |
Worldcat | Books, journals, maps, etc. that may or may not be at IU | Covers all topics, can find material regardless whether IU happens to own it |
Interlibrary Loan | Use this service to order materials that are unavailable at IU (either because IU doesn't own it or it is checked out) | Use alongside Worldcat or when you don't find a book, journal, etc. in IUCAT |
Google Books | Books and journals that Google has scanned from many Library collections. Many items are available only in preview or snippet view. | Ideal for journals and books in the public domain (usually published before 1923). Preview can help locate particularly useful sections. |
Hathitrust | Scanned books and journals, often the same materials as Google Books | Navigation is often more cumbersome than Google Books, but locating specific journal issues is often easier |
What Expert Researchers Know
Type of Book | How to Use These Books |
Exhibition Catalogues |
These titles document museum and gallery shows; are often the best source for high-quality images; and usually include artist biographies, curatorial essays, artist interviews and/or writings, and career chronologies. Use the term "Exhibitions" as part of your keyword or subject search in IUCAT. To find contemporary designers featured in group exhibitions, search the Designer Directory from the Interior Design Media company. |
Monographs | These are books by or about designers published independent of any exhibition. Usually, these are in-depth writings that analyze or provide context for a designer and their work. Look for words like "Criticism and Interpretation" in the subject heading of a book. Search in IUCAT using "criticism" or "analysis" as keywords. |
Here are the top six recommended article databases for interior design research. For further options, look at the Specialized Databases page. Articles may be published by scholarly journals, magazines, or newspapers. In addition to news and criticism, you can find case studies and designer interviews in these databases.
Art research database covering fine, decorative and commercial art, as well as areas of architecture and architectural design.
Features full-text articles as well as detailed indexing and abstracts for an array of journals, books, podcasts and more. Also includes periodicals published in French, Italian, German, Spanish and Dutch. Designed for use by art scholars, artists, designers, students and general researchers. Supersedes Art Full Text and includes all the material available from that database.
Specialist bibliography of modern and contemporary art from 1974 to the present.
Includes abstracts of journal articles, books, essays, exhibition catalogs, dissertations, and exhibition reviews. Also incorporates book records, including those drawn from the collections of the Tate Library and the Bibliothèque Dominique Bozo, Musée LAM. Covers performance art and installation works, photography, video art, computer and electronic art, body art, graffiti, artist's books, theatre arts, conservation, crafts, ceramic and glass art, ethnic arts, graphic and museum design, fashion, and calligraphy, as well as traditional media including illustration, painting, printmaking, sculpture, and drawing.
Published by the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library at Columbia University, this database indexes journal articles on architecture and design, covering subjects such as the history and practice of architecture, landscape architecture, city planning, historic preservation, and interior design.
Coverage includes international scholarly and popular literature as well as publications of professional associations, state and regional periodicals, and major serial publications on architecture and design of Europe, Asia, Latin America and Australia.
International index to design and craft journals; contains references to 500+ journals published since 1973 and data on over 50,000 designers, craftspeople, studios, workshops, etc.
DAAI, an international index to design and craft journals, contains references from more than 500 design and craft journals published since 1973 as well as data on over 50,000 designers, craftspeople, studios, workshops, firms etc. Coverage includes all areas of design and crafts. DAAI contains four supplementary databases: an education directory of universities and colleges which offer courses in design and craft subjects; an organizations directory of design and craft organizations, societies, associations, and centers; an archives directory of design and craft archives and special collections; and a periodicals directory of design and craft journals.
Access to e-books and dedicated supplementary resources focusing on interior design curriculum.
Includes instructor materials and supplementary tools, such as flashcards, and multiple-choice quizzes.
Allows users to search across ProQuest databases with an emphasis on the arts.
Scholarly journals, including those that publish peer-reviewed articles, are a major source of scholarly communication about art and art history.
Use the checkbox in these databases to limit your search results to only scholarly articles or peer-reviewed articles.
Art research database covering fine, decorative and commercial art, as well as areas of architecture and architectural design.
Features full-text articles as well as detailed indexing and abstracts for an array of journals, books, podcasts and more. Also includes periodicals published in French, Italian, German, Spanish and Dutch. Designed for use by art scholars, artists, designers, students and general researchers. Supersedes Art Full Text and includes all the material available from that database.
Allows users to search across ProQuest databases with an emphasis on the arts.
Specialist bibliography of modern and contemporary art from 1974 to the present.
Includes abstracts of journal articles, books, essays, exhibition catalogs, dissertations, and exhibition reviews. Also incorporates book records, including those drawn from the collections of the Tate Library and the Bibliothèque Dominique Bozo, Musée LAM. Covers performance art and installation works, photography, video art, computer and electronic art, body art, graffiti, artist's books, theatre arts, conservation, crafts, ceramic and glass art, ethnic arts, graphic and museum design, fashion, and calligraphy, as well as traditional media including illustration, painting, printmaking, sculpture, and drawing.
International index to design and craft journals; contains references to 500+ journals published since 1973 and data on over 50,000 designers, craftspeople, studios, workshops, etc.
DAAI, an international index to design and craft journals, contains references from more than 500 design and craft journals published since 1973 as well as data on over 50,000 designers, craftspeople, studios, workshops, firms etc. Coverage includes all areas of design and crafts. DAAI contains four supplementary databases: an education directory of universities and colleges which offer courses in design and craft subjects; an organizations directory of design and craft organizations, societies, associations, and centers; an archives directory of design and craft archives and special collections; and a periodicals directory of design and craft journals.
The databases below provide a wide variety of image of visual artworks. Printed books are often the best source of images, when looking for a specific artwork; use IUCAT to look for books about the artist or artistic movement. Find directions for citing images in the Image Citation: Formats and Best Practices guide.
The A&AePortal is an authoritative eBook resource that features important works of scholarship in the history of art, architecture, decorative arts, material culture, photography, and design.
Also provides access to images that accompany scholarly texts.
PLEASE NOTE: the Artstor platform is being retired and will no longer be available as of August 1, 2024. Content has already migrated to Artstor on JSTOR. Existing individual Artstor user accounts will carry over to the new JSTOR platform. A digital image library of over 2.5 million digital images in the areas of art, architecture, the humanities, and social sciences. To save or download images, users must register for an individual account.
Users who create an account also gain access to a set of tools for sharing images, curating groups of images, downloading them directly into PowerPoint presentations, and comparing and contrasting images.
Primary Sources provide direct or first-hand evidence about an event, object, person or work of art. Primary sources:
Use the databases below to search for primary sources.
Full text issues of the Architectural Digest, 1922-2011.
Covers the history of design, and provides a look at culture, art, unique homes and international design concepts through the years. It also features the AD100, the Architectural Digest list of top 100 architects and interior designers worldwide.
The following databases provide streaming films.
500 hours of documentaries and interviews illustrating the theory and practice of a variety of art forms and providing the context necessary for critical analysis.
Covers Renaissance, Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Modern, and Contemporary art. Also includes video on applied topics such as architectural and graphic design.
The criterion collection is a series of important classic and contemporary films with high technical quality and award-winning, original supplements.
Provides award-winning documentaries with relevance across the curriculum, presents points of view and historical and current experiences from diverse cultures and traditions world-wide.
Filmakers Library Online provides access to more than 1,500 online streaming titles from the award-winning distributor Filmakers Library. New releases will be added as made available.
Streaming educational video. Covers a wide range of curricular subjects, including history, biology, business and economics, engineering, computer science, technical and trade skills, art and architecture, music and dance, philosophy and religion, geography, environmental science, anthropology, language and literature, mathematics, psychology, sociology, political science, and more.
Includes titles produced by A&E, PBS, BBC Learning, National Geographic, ABC News, NBC News, CNBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, HBO Documentary Films, PBS NewsHour, Open University, Bill Moyers, California Newsreel, Annenberg Learner, TED, Films for the Humanities & Sciences, and more.
This collection assembles hundreds of documentary films and series from the history of the Public Broadcasting Service into one online interface.
In general, start your search in ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. If you are looking for an IU dissertation and cannot find it in ProQuest, search IUCAT. If it is not in IUCAT, search WorldCat.
For search tips, visit the IU Libraries' guide to Finding Dissertations & Theses.
Comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses from around the world, including millions of works from thousands of universities. Each dissertation published since July, 1980 includes a 350-word abstract written by the author. Master's theses published since 1988 include 150-word abstracts. Simple bibliographic citations are available for dissertations dating from 1637.
Includes the following:
ProQuest Dissertations & Theses: UK & Ireland
ProQuest Dissertations & Theses: A & I
ProQuest Dissertations & Theses: CIC Institutions
Looking for examples of IU MFA theses, including accompanying images? Email archives@indiana.edu with your request.