ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


May 1 9 9 6 /2 8 9

Internet resources in the 
v isu a l arts

By M artin R. Kalfatovic

Visiting museums a n d  galleries 
has never been so easy

T he explosion o f the World Wide Web in the past year has been a boon for the vi­
sual arts. The W eb’s ability to merge text, im­
ages, and inventive graphic design has attracted 
artists, museums, and galleries unlike the 
Internet’s now poor cousin, gopher. The abil­
ity of the Web to show as well as tell means 
that most of the resources listed below will be 
Web sites. Also, be forewarned that a few sites 
sacrifice accessibility (e.g., text-mode access) 
in favor o f design.

Indexes and general resources
Listed below are a number of good starting 
points for exploring the visual arts on the In­
ternet.

• A rchives o f  A m erican Art (S m ithso­
nian Institution). Provides bibliographic ac­
cess to the manuscript and archives collections 
o f American artists, galleries, and museums. 
Most of the collections are available on micro­
film. Access: telnet://siris.si.edu, select “Archives.”

• A rtsou rce. A thorough and well-orga- 
nized index to art resources. A ccess: http:// 
www.uky.edu/Artsource/general.html.

• Arts W ire. Provides news and informa­
tion to the arts community, A program of the 
New York Foundation for the Arts; full access 
by subscription. Access: http://www.tmn.com/ 
Artswire/www/awfront. html.

• FineArt Forum . A comprehensive guide 
to art resources. Particularly good information 
a b o u t o n lin e  jo u rn a ls . A c c e s s : http:// 
www.msstate.edu/Fineart_Online/art-resources.

• Getty A rt H istory In fo rm a tio n  P ro ­
gram . Projects and programs from the Getty 
Museum. A ccess: http://www.ahip.getty.edu/ 
ahip.

■ In ven tory o f  A m erican  Painting and 
S culp tu re. Database o f more than 300,000 
paintings and sculptures by American artists. 
Searchable by creator, title, subject, and other 
access points. A project o f the Smithsonian’s 
National Museum of American Art. Access: tel- 
net://siris.si.edu, select “Art Inventories.”

• U.S. G eneral Services A dm inistration, 
Public Building Service’s Art in A rchitecture 
p ro g ra m . Information about art and artists 
contributing art to federal buildings. Includes a 
“virtual” museum o f artworks. A ccess: http: 
//www.gsa.gov:80/pbs/pt/pts/switcher.htm.

• W ebM useum N etw ork. The ultimate 
“virtual” museum on the Internet. A compen­
dium of artists’ biographies (from Fra Angelico 
to Francis Bacon) with numerous examples of 
their work. Selected “exhibitions” are also avail­
able. Mirrored at numerous sites around the 
world. Access: http://sunsite.unc.edu/wm/.

• W orld Wide Arts R esources. This in­
cludes more than 9,000 categorized art re­
sources. A unique aspect of this site is that it 
has a section on artworks for sale. Access to 
the site is by either an efficient search engine 
or re g io n a l gu id es. A c c e s s : http://www. 
concourse.com/wwar/defaultnew.html.

• W orld Wide W eb Virtual Library Mu­
seum s Page. An excellent source for locating 
museums and online exhibitions. Access: http: 
//ww w .c o m la b .o x .a c .u k / a r c h ive/other/ 
museums.html.

• Y a h o o ’s A rts:Museums. A hierarchical 
subject-oriented guide for Internet resources. 
The “Arts:Museums” section includes a wide

M artin R. K a lfa to v ic is th e in fo rm a tio n  a c c e ss c o o r d in a to r  f o r  S m ith son ian  Institution Libraries, 
W ashington, D.C.; e-m a il: m kalfato@ sil.si.ed u

http://www.uky.edu/Artsource/general.html
http://www.tmn.com/
http://www.msstate.edu/Fineart_Online/art-resources
http://www.ahip.getty.edu/
http://www.gsa.gov:80/pbs/pt/pts/switcher.htm
http://sunsite.unc.edu/wm/
http://www
mailto:mkalfato@sil.si.edu


2 9 0 /C&RL News

range o f museums and exhibitions. A ccess: 
http://www.yahoo.com/Art/Museums_and_ 
Galleries.

Artists and artistic movements
• C hristo an d  Jeanne-Claude. Dedicated 

to the work of Christo and Jeanne-Claude, this 
includes the “Wrapped Reichstag” project, as 
well as images from earlier projects including 
“Running Fence” and “The Umbrellas." Access: 
http://www.nbn.com/youcan/christo.

• Find Arts. Includes links to many indi­
vidual artists’ hom epages. A ccess: http:// 
www.find-arts.com/.

• Fluxus Online. Information about this 
ongoing avant-garde movement. Performance 
art is covered, as well as specific artists such as 
Joseph Beuys and Yoko Ono. Access: http:// 
anansi.panix.com/fluxus.

• !Surréalisme!. An often witty and prop­
erly irreverent guide to the literary and visual 
arts m ovem ent. A ccess: http://pharmdec. 
wustl.edu/juju/surr/ surrealism.html.

Online exhibitions
Online exhibitions by individual artists have 
proliferated on the Internet. Many individual 
artist have seen the Internet as a way around 
the gallery system. Listed below are some of 
the major sites devoted to individual artists.

• äda ‘web. This is an interactive art space 
featuring the work of a number of New York 
City artists. Includes a fascinating Webbed 
version of conceptual artist Jenny Holzer’s “Tru­
isms.” Note: this site is accessible only with the 
N etscape brow ser. A ccess: http://adaweb. 
com.

• Art-Link. Based in Canada, this site fea­
tures works by Canadian and other artists. A c­
cess: http://www.niagara.com/artlink.

• Gallery Row Maui. Features artists and 
galleries in Maui, Hawaii. Access: http://www. 
mothlight.com/grm/gallery.html.

• A rtslink. Sponsored by Time-Warner 
Electronic Publishing, this provides an online 
forum for artists and museums. Among the “art­
ists in residence” are photographers Doris 
Kloster and Chris Makos. Access: http://www. 
pathfinder.com/twep/artslink/artists/.

• Artnetweb. A space for artists that in­
cludes a slide registry and brief biographies of 
artists. Access: http://artnetweb.com/artnetweb/ 
indexl.html.

• The Blue Dot. This site includes online 
exhibitions and art experiences from New York

City artists. Access:■ http://www.razorfish.com/ 
bluedot.

Museums
Museums have flocked to the Internet. Large 
museum complexes such at the Metropolitan 
Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution 
have significant presences, but smaller muse­
ums (the Huntsville Museum of Art and the 
Montreal Museum of Fine Art, for example) are 
also available. University museums and galler­
ies in particular have taken advantage of cam­
pus Internet expertise to put themselves on the 
Internet.

• Art Institute o f Chicago. A unique site 
that includes information about both the mu­
seum and its associated art school. Access: http: 
//www.artic.edu.

• Art Tow er Mito. Japan’s premier venue 
for contemporary art. A ccess: http://www. 
soum.c o . jp/mito/art-e.html.

• Dia C enter fo r th e Arts. This contem­
porary arts organization’s site maintains a wealth 
of information about the Center and contem­
porary art. Includes online exhibitions and a 
special Web project by the idiosyncratic artists 
Kom ar & M elam id. A c c e s s : http://www. 
diacenter.org.

• E m o ry  Museum, M ichael C. C arlos 
Museum. Focuses on the museum’s wonder­
ful collections of arts from Egypt, Greece, Rome, 
th e A m ericas, and Asia. A c c e s s : http:// 
www.cc.emory.edu/CARLOS/carlos.html.

• H eard Museum. This Phoenix museum 
has a large collection of Native American art 
that is well presented on the Web. Access: http: 
//www.heard.org.

• Los Angeles County Museum o f Art. 
A superbly designed and organized site. Pro­
vides information about the museum and its 
collections. Access: http://www.lacma.org.

• M etropolitan Museum o f  Art. This site 
offers information about the collections and cur­
rent exhibitions. Provides an excellent guide 
to the museum’s shop and allows the user to 
order items. A ccess: http://www.metmuseum. 
org.

• Philadelphia Museum o f Art. Exhibi­
tions and visitor information about this eclectic 
museum. A ccess: http://www.libertynet.org/ 
~pma/.

• Pushkin Museum o f  Fine Art. Provides 
a brief introduction with a small selection of 
works from the collection. A ccess: http:// 
www.rosprint.ru/art/museum/pushkin/.

http://www.yahoo.com/Art/Museums_and_
http://www
http://www.find-arts.com/
http://pharmdec
http://adaweb
http://www.niagara.com/artlink
http://www
http://www
http://artnetweb.com/artnetweb/
http://www.razorfish.com/
http://www.artic.edu
http://www
http://www
http://www.heard.org
http://www.lacma.org
http://www.metmuseum
http://www.libertynet.org/
http://www.rosprint.ru/art/museum/pushkin/


May 1 9 9 6 /2 9 1

• Sm ithsonian Institution. Provides in­
formation about the programs and collections 
of the Smithsonian’s art museums (Freer-Sackler 
Gallery; National Portrait Gallery; Cooper- 
Hewitt, National Museum o f Design; National 
Museum of African Art; Hirshhorn Museum and 
Sculpture Garden, etc.). O f particular interest 
is the National Museum o f American Art ( a c ­
cess: http://www.nmaa.si.edu) which maintains 
its own extensive Web site. A ccess: http:// 
www.si.edu.

• The Andy W arh o l Museum. A well-or- 
ganized and informative guide to the museum 
dedicated to the pop art maven. Access: http:// 
www.warhol.org/warhol.

• W h itn ey  Museum o f  A m erican  Art. 
The pleasing minimalist design of this site pro­
vides access to a wealth of information about 
the museum. Access: http://www.echonyc.com/ 
~whitney.

Commercial galleries and auction 
houses
Only a small number o f the major commercial 
art galleries have an Internet presence. How­
ever, numerous smaller galleries around the 
world have seen the Internet as a good place 
to promote their business. See World Wide Arts 
Resources (listed above) for a very complete 
listing of commercial arts resources.

• Artsline. A small but growing site for 
major commercial galleries including Sylvan 
Cole Gallery (New York), Kathleen Ewing Gal­
lery (Washington, D.C.), and Jane Haslem Gal­
lery (Washington, D.C.). Also includes infor­
mation about art dealers’ associations. Access: 
http://www.artline.com.

• Auctions Online. A central site for auc­
tion information. Includes an international auc­
tion calendar and auction news. Access: http:// 
www.auctions-on-line.com.

• B onh am s A uction House. Good infor­
mation from the British auction house. Access: 
http://www.bonhams.com .

• C hristie’s. Provides information about 
upcoming auctions, general information about 
Christie’s, and information about subscribing 
to the auction house’s sales catalogs. Access: 
http://www .Christies.com.

•  C o n tem p o rary  Art Site A world
selection o f smaller art galleries and individual 
artists. Access: http://www.tractor.com.

• Pace W ildenstein. The site for this ma­
jor commercial gallery is a rich resource for 
biographical information about artists repre­

sented by Pace Wildenstein (e.g., Mark Rothko, 
Ad Reinhardt, etc.). Also includes images of the 
artists’ works and information about the New 
York City and Los Angeles locations. Access: 
http://www.razorfish.com/pace.

• Phillips Auction House. Good informa­
tion from the British auction house. Access: 
http://www.phillips-auctions.com.

• P lexu s. An “online gallery” and journal 
that hosts information about a number of art­
ists. Access: http://www.plexus.org.

• S an d ra G ering. This New York City 
gallery’s site provides information about the 
gallery and intriguing, inventive online exhibi­
tions. Access: http://www.interport.net/~gering.

• Sotheby’s. Provides a much glitzier in­
terface than arch-rival Christie’s. Content is not, 
however, sacrificed to presentation. Forthcom­
ing auctions, a history of the firm, and auction 
results available in Adobe Acrobat PDF format 
are all included. “Auction Adventures,” three 
interactive explorations of the auction process, 
are interesting and informative. Access: http:// 
www.sothebys.com.

Organizations and associations
• ARLIS/NA. Homepages of the Art Librar­

ies Society of North America. A ccess: http:// 
web.syr.edu/%7Edcstam.

• College Art Association. Information for 
and about the association of art historians. A c­
cess: http://alberti.mit.edu/caa/.

• M u seu m  C o m p u te r  N e tw o rk . The 
MCN is an organization dedicated to promot­
ing the use of technology in the museum envi­
ro n m e n t. A c c e s s : http :/ / w orld .std .com /  
%7Emcn/MCN.html.

• V isual R e so u rce s A sso cia tio n . Pro­
motes the goals o f the association in furthering 
research and education in the visual arts. A c­
cess: http://www.vra.oberlin.edu/.

Electronic journals
• A r t F o r u m . Online version o f the impor­

tant and influential print journal. Under con­
s tru c tio n  at p re s s  tim e . A c c e s s : http:// 
www.artforum.com.

• A r t P a g e . E xtensive and informative 
guide to galleries and museums in Manhattan, 

weidesp ecially useful for information about contem­
porary artists. Access: http://www.walrus.com/ 
~artforum.

• B o m b . Online version o f the contempo­
rary arts print journal. A ccess: http://www. 
bombsite.com.

http://www.nmaa.si.edu
http://www.si.edu
http://www.warhol.org/warhol
http://www.echonyc.com/
http://www.artline.com
http://www.bonhams
http://www
http://www.tractor.com
http://www.razorfish.com/pace
http://www.phillips-auctions.com
http://www.plexus.org
http://www.interport.net/~gering
http://www.sothebys.com
http://world.std.com/
http://www.vra.oberlin.edu/
http://www.artforum.com
http://www.walrus.com/
http://www


2 9 2 /C&RL News



May 1 9 9 6 /2 9 3

• C om m unications Arts. Online version 
of the magazine for designers, illustrators, and 
art directors. Access: http://www.commarts.com.

• J o u r n a l  o f  C o n tem p o ra ry  Art. Cover­
age of the contemporary art scene, including 
interviews with leading artists. Note: for graphi­
ca l W eb  b ro w se rs  on ly . A c c e s s : http:// 
www.thing.net/jca/.

• L eo n a rd o . Journal o f the International 
Society of the Arts, Sciences, and Technology. 
Access: http://www-mitpress.mit.edu/Leonardo/ 
leohome.html.

• M aine A n tiq ue Digest. Online version 
of the venerable monthly newspaper. Contains 
both articles and, importantly, the display ads. 
A ccess: http://www.maine.com/mad/.

• M useos. Information about museum ex­
hibitions from around the world. Text in En­
glish and Spanish. A ccess: http://www.ivc. 
com .mx/museos.

• Studio S pa ce. An online magazine dedi­
cated to the arts o f the Seattle area. Access: http: 
//www.uspan.com/Studio.

Discussion lists and newsgroups
• AMART-L. Moderated discussion list for 

scholars of American art. Subscribe: listserv@ 
cunyvm.cuny.edu.

• ARLIS-L. Official discussion list of the Art 
Libraries Society of North America. Dedicated 
to issues related to art libraries. Su bscribe: 
listserv@ukcc.uky.edu.

• ARLIS-NE. Official discussion group of 
the New England chapter of ARLIS. Subscribe: 
listserv@mitvma.mit.edu.

• ARLISWYN-L. Official discussion group 
of the New York chapter of ARLIS. Subscribe: 
listproc@cornell. edu.

• ARTCRIT. Forum for general discussion 
of art criticism. Su bscribe: listserv@yorkvml. 
bitnet.

• ARTIST-L. Serves the needs of student 
artists. Subscribe: listserv@uafsysb.uark.edu.

• ArtNEWS. Daily headlines in the print 
media’s coverage of the art world. Subscribe: 
artnews-request@arttrak.metronet.com.

• CAAH. Consortium of Art and Architec­
tural H istorians. S u b s c r ib e : listserv@ pucc. 
princeton.edu.

• CLAYART. For the discussion of all as­
pects of fine art ceramics. Subscribe: listserv@ 
ukcc.uky.edu.

• DESIGN-L. Discussion on basic and ap­
plied design in art and architecture. Subscribe: 
listserv@psuvm.psu.edu.

• FINE-ART. Major list for the discussion 
o f the fine arts. S u bscribe: listserv@rutvml. 
rutgers.edu.

• ALAA. Discussion group for the Associa­
tio n  o f L atin A m erican  Art. S u b s c r ib e : 
listserv@listserv.arizona.edu.

• MEDART-L. Discussions on Medieval art 
history. Subscribe: listserv@utoronto.bitnet.

• PAINT-L. “For painters to discuss all as­
pects of their art including technical and aes­
thetic issues.” Subscribe: majordomo@charliek. 
coe.edu.

• TEACHART. Serves the art teacher’s com­
munity. Subscribe: listserv@sivm.si.edu.

Usenet groups
Only a small number of Usenet groups are avail­
a b le  in th e fin e  arts. T h e a l t .b in a r i e s . 
pictures* hierarchy contains a group for artists 
to post examples of their work.

• a lt .a r t.c o ll e g e s . Low-volume group 
about art colleges.

• a lt.artcom . The lively discussion in this 
group covers a wide range o f topics including 
media and current exhibitions. Individual art­
ists also post announcements o f their Web 
pages.

• alt.binaries.pictures.fi ne-art-digitize.
This group provides a forum for artists to dis­
tribute reproductions of paintings, drawings, 
prints, etc. Images are posted in a variety of 
graphic formats (JPEG, GIF, etc.). This moder­
ated group does not have a high volume of 
submissions.

• rec.arts.fin e. The major list for the dis­
cussion of fine arts. Includes technical discus­
sion about media, art history, and social issues 
in art (e.g., AIDS). ■

ULS 1 9 9 6  ballot notice
An error has been discovered on the ACRL 

University Libraries Section (ULS) spring 1996 
ballot. We are asking ULS members to disre­
gard the bylaws amendment portion of the 
ballot (#01 and #02). Each of the three amend­
ments to the bylaws must be voted on sepa­
rately. The current ULS ballot does not give 
you that opportunity. The ULS membership 
will vote on the amendments at its annual 
membership meeting during the ALA Annual 
Conference in New York, Sunday, July 7, 
1996, 4:30–5:00 p.m.

http://www.commarts.com
http://www.thing.net/jca/
http://www-mitpress.mit.edu/Leonardo/
http://www.maine.com/mad/
http://www.ivc
http://www.uspan.com/Studio
mailto:listserv@uafsysb.uark.edu
mailto:artnews-request@arttrak.metronet.com
mailto:listserv@listserv.arizona.edu
mailto:listserv@sivm.si.edu