Keywords
KEYWORDS carry some of the most important meanings that will open doors to vast amounts of information. You can develop keywords by searching reference sources, books, websites, and thesauri, among other materials.
Creating KEYWORD lists are important in that you will use these terms to search library tools such as the library catalog and article research databases.
Be sure to think broadly and narrowly about your topic when developing your keywords.
Thesaurus
In addition to the link to Thesaurus.com below, MS Word has a built-in thesaurus:
Where can I find background information?
It is important to gather background information on a topic before diving into doing research. It can supply context information to give a better understanding of a topic, and it can also be a great way to start developing keywords to use during the research process. Background information on a topic can be gathered from a variety of sources, including textbooks, books, reference materials like encyclopedias, and reputable websites. Listed below are several examples of websites and databases art that could be used for this purpose:
- Oxford (Grove) Art Online This link opens in a new windowallows users to access and cross-search multiple Oxford Art reference titles, including an image library, in one location
- ART21: ArtistsArt21, the companion website to the Art21 TV show on PBS, promotes artists of the 21st century by chronicling the artists at work through video, interviews and exploration of new artistic ideas.
- ArtsyArtsy features the world’s leading galleries, museum collections, foundations, artist estates, art fairs, and benefit auctions, all in one place. Our growing database of 300,000 images of art, architecture, and design by 40,000 artists spans historical, modern, and contemporary works, and includes the largest online database of contemporary art. Artsy is used by art lovers, museum-goers, patrons, collectors, students, and educators to discover, learn about, and collect art.
- EuropeanaMulti-lingual online collection of millions of digitized items from European museums, libraries, archives and multi-media collections.
Don't forget that museum websites can also be good sources of background information about artists, movements, specific works of art, general time periods, etc.
Recommended Art Image Databases
- ARTstorRepository of hundreds of thousands of digital images, from across many periods and cultures. Architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, decorative arts, design, and other forms of visual culture are represented. Provides tools to actively use images for scholarship, teaching, and learning. You can browse ARTstor collections while on SU's campus, but in order to download or save content, you will need to register for an ARTstor user account.