๐จDP Visual Arts
Citing Sources
Citing an artwork
When writing an essay in Visual Arts, you will need to include more detail about the art work you are citing than you would for sources in other subjects.
artists's name
title of the artwork
date of the artwork
medium of composition
institution it is housed in (e.g. the name of the gallery or museum), and city if visited in person.
Optional: the dimensions of the work if relevant.
If the image is reproduced on a website or a book you should treat this as the MLA container and include this information in your reference too.
For a Visual Arts Extended Essay, full references for images used can be included in a separate list (in MLA format) after your works cited list. This list of references should be called "Illustrations".
Basic format
For Caption:
Artist First Name + Lastname (not reversed). Title of work, date of composition, medium, size.
For works cited list:
Artist Lastname, First Name. Name of Work. Original year of composition, medium, size. Holding institution (gallery or museum), URL. Access Date.
Note that information about the original year of composition, medium and size is included as an MLA supplmental element.
Citing an artwork from a gallery or museum website
Note that the reference below has three supplemental elements added after the title of the art work: the date of composition, the medium, and the dimensions.
Fig. 1. Piet Mondrian. Lozenge Composition with Yellow, Black, Blue, Red, and Gray. 1921, oil on canvas, 60 x 60 cm.
Works Cited
Mondrian, Piet. Lozenge Composition with Yellow, Black, Blue, Red, and Gray. 1921, oil on canvas, 60 x 60 cm. The Art Institute of Chicago, www.artic.edu/artworks/109819/lozenge-composition-with-yellow-black-blue-red-and-gray. Accessed 20 Aug. 2022.
Citing an artwork from a gallery or museum website
This is a public domain image from The Met's Open Access Collection.
Works Cited
Cรฉzanne, Paul. Mont Sainte-Victoire. Circa 1902-6, oil on canvas, 57.2 x 97.2 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/435878. Accessed 20 Apr. 2022.
A work you have created yourself
Citing a sculpture from a gallery or museum website
Works Cited
Fitting in the form of a quadruped with interlace. 5th century BCE, Late Eastern Zhou dynasty, Warring States period, bronze, 11.8 x 20.4 cm. The Smithsonian Institution, www.si.edu/object/fitting-form-quadruped-interlace:fsg_F1948.24. Accessed 12 Aug. 2022.
Viewed in a book
Warhol, Andy. Do-It-Yourself (Flowers). 1962, acryclic and silkscreen on canvas, 175 x 150 cm, Collection of Thomas Ammann, Zurich. Warhol, by Klaus Honnef, Taschen, 2000, p. 56.
Viewed firsthand
Castigolione, Guiseppe. The Qianlong Emperor Enjoying the Lunar New Year. Circa 1736โ38, The Palace Museum, Hong Kong. Hanging scroll, ink and colour on silk.
Note that here only the medium and size (though in this case the size is not given) are put in a supplemental element at the end of the reference.
Research
Research databases
Art & Architecture Source via HKPL
Art & Architecture Source includes Art in America (11/01/2002 to present).
Galleries & Museums with Digital Collections
Public Domain (CC0) and Open Access images
Other Links
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