Art & Architecture Databases
Use our list of Art & Architecture Databases as a starting point for finding scholarly articles, images, or other indexed works as sources for your research.
Search Tips When Doing Artist Research
Make effective use of Boolean search operators: AND, OR, NOT and especially "" and ( ).
Search for the artist name. Either use first name, last name, or try using last name, first name.
Search for the artist name AND name of art movement, OR the medium of artwork, OR the name of an exhibition they were in, OR the name of a school or gallery they were associated with.
Search for a specific work of art by that artist by its title and year, AND name of artist.
If you are looking for a specific article and know the author, type in the name of the article AND the author's name.
You can request material through PittCat using Get It, even for material that we do not own. You must be signed in, then click on the item you need to see the full menu of options available.
Use 'Request' to receive print materials from a Pitt library or ULS - Thomas Blvd. for No-Contact Pick-Up or Home Delivery.
To make a request:
Additional questions? Please contact us so we can work with you to try and get the material you need.
You can request material through PittCat using Get It, even for material that we do not own. You must be signed in, then click on the item you need to see the full menu of options available.
Use 'Request' to receive a scanned book chapter or an article from print material.
To make a request:
Additional questions? Please contact us so we can work with you to try and get the material you need.
If you identify an item in PittCat that is not available through our collections, or if PittCat indicates that we have access to an item in error, you can request it through our Interlibrary Loan (ILL) service.
ILL services are available to Pitt students, staff and faculty with a valid Pitt ID and Pitt computing account
Additional Questions? Please contact us so we can work with you to try and get the material you need.
In-Person Requests at the Frick Fine Arts Library
If the books you need are available in the Frick Fine Arts Library, you can bring in the title, author, and call number of the books you would like to see and one of our pages at the front desk can retrieve it for you. Please see librarians Kate Joranson or Kiana Jones for more detailed research assistance.
Searching WorldCat
If there is a book or other resource that our library system does not own, and if that book is unavailable through E-Z Borrow, WorldCat is a great option for searching libraries worldwide, who you can request the book from, have it sent to Pitt, and borrow it for a short amount of time.
Search Tip: Search WorldCat for resources would be to compare subject headings of books in our catalog that you found most helpful.
Requesting Materials: To request materials that you find in WorldCat, use Interlibrary Loan.
Finding Newspapers
To learn how to access newspapers through Pitt's library system, take a look at this helpful guide:
