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Cultural Studies: Art of the Renaissance

Research guide curated for the Cultural Studies Art of the Renaissance Project, Spring Term 2023. Please contact Ms. Sinai with any questions regarding the resources.

Getting Started

Assignment Links: Presentation Guidelines

Botticelli, Sandro, Florentine. The Birth of Venus. ca. 1482. Artstor, library.artstor.org/asset/AIC_880006
To access databases and other library services from home, you will be prompted to sign-in through Lawrenceville's EZproxy. When you click link for a Bunn database or service, the log-in screen (pictured below) will appear.
  • Username: first part of your email address (before the @lawrenceville.org). Example: asinai
  • Password: your email password
Having trouble with access? Email dgeary@lawrenceville.org and include a description or screenshot of your issue. 

Finding Sources

Understanding the Basics: Background Reading

Online Collections from Bunn Library:
Encyclopedia Britannica: Includes the complete encyclopedia, as well as a Merriam-Webster dictionary and thesaurus. The Internet Guide provides links to recommended web sites.
Gale eBooks: Search the artist's name, or title of the piece (if it is particularly famous). Use quotation marks “” around multiple words to search for key phrases.
Suggested Books (Encyclopedias) to Explore: 

Secondary Source Collections

Interpretation and Analysis: Secondary Sources

Library Databases:
JSTOR: A highly selective digital library of academic content in many formats and disciplines. Use the Advanced Search and limit to Articles and Books.
Project MUSE: A comprehensive selection of prestigious humanities and social sciences journals. Every journal is heavily indexed and peer-reviewed, with critically acclaimed articles by the most respected scholars in their fields.
ProQuest Databases: A vast library of periodicals (newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals) covering a wide range of subjects. To search, select the Full Text checkbox so that your results yield only material that you can access, and use filters to limit results to scholarly articles.
Academic Search Engines:
Google Scholar: Google Scholar is a free search engine that allows users to search for academic content (such academic papers, dissertations, theses, and case law) across the web, including content owned by Bunn Library. Results with full-text access will have a link in the column to the left of the title.
Websites:
Metropolitan Museum of Art: Search the Met's collection online.
+ Timeline of Art History: European Art in the Renaissance: Developed by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, this timeline uses the museum's collections to illustrate Renaissance art history chronologically, geographically, and thematically. Includes entries for European Renaissance figures, concepts, and places as well as timelines, maps, thematic essays, and further readings.
+ Essays: European Art in the Renaissance: From the Metropolitan Museum of Art, these essays provide useful context and analysis. 
Art History Resources on the Web: Renaissance Art in Italy: A gateway to images and information on Italian Renaissance art and artists from an eclectic selection of online resources.
Web Gallery of Art: The Web Gallery of Art is a virtual art gallery website. It displays historic European visual art, mainly from the Baroque, Gothic and Renaissance periods, available for educational and personal use. Also includes useful artist biographies, providing context to the artwork and its influences. 
Books from the Library Catalog:
  • Bunn Library Catalog: Access Bunn Library's print and ebook collection. Start with a "subject keyword" search.
  • Proquest eBook Central: Filter your results using limiters and change your search terms according to your topic. Contact Bunn or visit our Haiku page for helpful search tips. 
To find a book, search the Bunn Library Catalog. Use the General Keyword search to broaden your results. For a narrower focus, search the catalog by Subject Keyword using the drop-down menu. 
To find books in the stacks, look at the call number:
  • 000-699: Lower Level
  • 800-899: Main Floor, next to Fiction
  • 700-799, 900-999: Second Floor *Most of your books will be in the 700s
Have a useful book in hand?
  • Look at the Index for additional keywords and locate where they are discussed in your book. 
  • Check the Bibliography for additional sources that are connected to your topic.

Image Collections

Identifying Supporting Images

Analyzing a visual source can be tough! Start with these questions to help think through how the imagery supports the creator's goals. What is the value of the source? What does it say? What does it leave out? 
 
[1] Describe the source: List information about the images, colors, lines, placement of objects, other details.
[2] Record basic information about the work. Who created it? When? Does the piece have a title, or supporting text that can provide more context? In what format was it originally distributed, and how it was it used?
[3] Based on what you know about the image, what message did the creator(s) of the poster intend to express? Who was the intended audience? What do you think they wanted the audience to do or feel once they have seen the image?
[4] Is the image effective? Does it successfully communicate the intended message? Does it use misleading information or lies to express its message? If so, how?
Image Collections to Explore: 
ArtSTOR: Artstor contains over 1.8 million digital images in the arts, architecture, the humanities, and science from outstanding international museums, photographers, libraries, scholars, and photo archives.
Bridgeman Images: Bridgeman Images for Education is a complete visual resource offering over 1,000,000 digital images of art, history, and culture from global museums, galleries, private collections, and contemporary artists all copyright-cleared for educational use.
Google Arts and Culture: Renaissance Art: More heavily focused on images, but provides some context regarding the artist and artworks, with links to museums and galleries
Metropolitan Museum of Art: Search for digital images of the art held within The Met's collections. 
Web Gallery of Art: The Web Gallery of Art is a virtual art gallery website. It displays historic European visual art, mainly from the Baroque, Gothic, and Renaissance periods, available for educational and personal use.