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| Prestidigitator (Conjuring Trick) (1927), Paul Klee, Philadelphia Museum of Art |
Most art historical research uses the Chicago Manual of Style; your professor will tell you which style manual you should use for your citations.*
The Chicago Manual of Style Online provides excellent examples for citing your sources in bibliographies and foot- and endnotes. You can also consult the Chicago Manual of Style in the reference section of the Emporia State Library.
Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) also provides excellent help with citations for several styles, including Chicago.
Bibliographic reference can be very complicated, especially when there is more than one author, when you wish to cite only a section of a book (an essay in compilation, for example), or when you are citing online material. Always check the Chicago Manual of Style (rather than fudging it!).
Things to remember:
- You must cite your references used during research. Even if you paraphrase (re-write an idea in your own words) you must add a footnote or endnote to your text to cite the source of this idea. Plagiarism is not tolerated in a university setting or anywhere.
- Keep track of your sources as you do your research. They don't have to be in perfect format while you are working, but make sure you take note of all the information you will need for your citations. Use the "List" feature on the library website, or consider using a "reference management software," which can help you keep track of your sources online. (There are a number of these--Zotero, for example, is a free software, RefWorks is one you can purchase.)
- Determining the DOI (Digital Object Identifier) for online journal articles can be difficult. You can check for a DOI using the site CrossRef.org's free DOI Lookup.
- Style manuals often change frequently; don't use as a guideline a bibliography or footnote in a published text that pre-dates the current style manual you must use.
- When using the Oxford Art Online database, Credo Reference, and a number of other databases, note that citation information is available to download or export. You can copy and paste the citation in MLA or Chicago style, or export the citation to a reference management software. NOTE that you should always proofread these citations for compliance to the latest style!
- You can often use WorldCat (a union catalog of over 10,000 worldwide libraries) to help with citations. Again, you must proofread these citations for compliance!