Chris Schiff
x6274
cschiff@bates.edu
AVC 288
Visualizing Race
Prof. Rand
2/8/06
Visualizing Race Research Strategies
Resources Organized by Research Strategy
Catalogs
Ladd Library Catalog
Maine InfoNET
NExpress
WorldCAT
Online Databases
General Resources
Academic
Search Premier (EBSCO)
Alternative Press Index
Multi-Database
Search : News
Art Specific Resources
Art Abstracts (Wilson), 1984-
Art Index Retrospective,
1929-1984
Bibliography
of the History of Art (BHA) and RILA
JSTOR Art &
Art History collection
Area Studies Resources
Bibliography of Asian Studies
RAMBI: The Index
of Articles on Jewish Studies
Africa-wide:
NiPAD
Bibliography of Africana Periodical
Literature
Handbook of Latin American
Studies
Ethnic Studies Resources
Ethnic
NewsWatch
International Index of Black Periodicals
Hispanic American Periodical Index
JSTOR African American
Studies
Gender Studies Resources
Contemporary
Women's Issues
Gender Studies
Database
African Women's Bibliographic
Database
Web
Google: Search artist by name. Also try searching by image. VERIFY the results!! Web searches can lead you to recent gallery shows, and provide an inroad to exhibition catalogs or works that are not available anywhere else.
Museum/Gallery web sites: Occasionally galleries may have catalogs for past exhibitions that have not made it into libraries. Knowing the name/location of a gallery and the approximate date of an exhibition gives another way to search for reviews and/or interviews; artist’s statements, etc.
Sample Vocabulary for Subject/Word Searches
Art terms:
Art; Arts; Artists; Painters; Sculptors; etc
Race/Ethnicity terms:
African American; Afro-American; Black; Negro; Creole; Kreol; Womanist
Latino; Latina; Chicano; Chicana; Hispanic American; Mexican American; Cuban American; etc.
Asian American; Japanese American; Nisei; Sansei; Chinese American; Korean American; etc.
Indian; Native American; First Nations; Indigenous; Indigenista; Hopi, Kwakiutl, etc.
National/Geographical terms:
South American; Latin American; Chilean; United States; Costa Rica; Mexico; Trinidad and Tobago; etc.
SEARCH TIPS:
Choose a set of terms and combine them carefully, trying your combinations in all the databases you choose.
Each database will have its own peculiarities of terminology and syntax. Remember, terms can change depending on time and context.
Having a variety of search strategies and terms will open up many more resources for you to choose from.
Keyword searches allow you to use a broader vocabulary, and can sometimes find things that are inaccessible any other way, but don’t let them make you lazy. Just because your keyword search didn’t turn up anything, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist.
Keyword searches include subject headings but return an unsorted list. Use the keyword to get into your topic; then use the subject headings to organize your information and expand/narrow your possibilities.
Be sure to check for suggestions for broader or narrower subject terms and/or substitute terminology.
Examples:
African American artists (See also…)
Latin American art (See Art, Latin American)
Art, Latin American (See also Inca Art)
ORGANIZATION TIPS:
Keeping track of your searches and search strategies will help you organize your work. It will also keep you sane!
Keep a running bibliography. When you find and article or book, create a citation right away – even before you use the item. It is a lot easier to toss things out later, than it is to figure out where you read something three weeks after the fact. It also helps you avoid plagiarism.
Citation and styles manuals are available from the library’s web site at: Citation and Style Manuals. Although these cover the vast majority of questions, more extensive citation manuals are available at the circulation desk to help with difficult questions.