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Edgerton - Self-portraits project: Websites

A collection of resources for students researching artists who work with portraiture and self-portraiture.

Can't find what you are looking for using the library databases? Try searching reputable art museums' online collections, such as MoMa and The Met! These will provide better, more creditable information and images than Google. No matter what, never cite Google as the source of your image! 

Citing Images

Most databases provide a citation for images or articles. However, if you get an image off the web, you'll want to cite it using the Chicago citation style since you are using the image in a Humanities class. You must cite the original location for the photo; never cite Google! Here are some examples: 

Last, First M. Photograph Title. Month Date, Year Created. Collection, Museum/Institution, Location. Accessed Month Date, Year. URL.

Cartier-Bresson, Henri. Juvisy, France. 1938. Museum of Modern Art, New York City. www.moma.org.

Caravaggio, The Denial of Saint Peter. Early 15th century. Oil on canvas, 94 x 125.4 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. From: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, http://www.metmuseum.org (accessed September 29, 2009).

Thomas Eakins, William Rudolf O'Donovan. 1981, Black and white photographic print, 6 x 8 cm. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. Available from: Flickr Commons, http://www.flickr.com/photos/smithsonian/
2547841439 (accessed September 29, 2009).

Art Museums Collections

Searching Tips

  • Use the Advanced Search. 
  • Use AND to combine keywords and phrases when searching.
  • Use quotation marks to search for exact phrases
  • Don't limit yourself to just one database or one set of search results.
  • When searching for books, use broader terms than when searching for articles.
  • Use the keyboard shortcut Control+F (or Command+F on the Mac) to find a word somewhere on a page. (This works for web pages, PDFs, and Word documents!)
  • Ask a librarian if you have questions!

The CRAP Test

The CRAP Test is a helpful tool to use when trying to decide if a website is a credible, valid source. The CRAP Test looks at four major areas: currency, reliability, authority and purpose. 
 
Currency
  • How recent is the information?
  • How recently has the website been updated?

Reliability 

  • Is the content of the resource primarily opinion?  Is is balanced?
  • Does the creator provide references or sources for data or quotations?

Authority 

  • Who is the creator or author? What are their credentials?
  • Who is the publisher? What is the publisher's interest (if any) in this information?

Purpose/Point of View 

  • Is this fact or opinion? Does the author list sources or cite references?
  • Is it biased? Does the author seem to be trying to push an agenda or particular side?
  • Is the creator/author trying to sell you something?