Research

ARTH 291/EAST 291: Art of Japan

Fall 2007

Mayu Tsuruya

Fuji from Kajikazawa in Kai Province (Koshu kajikazawa) Hokusai: ca. 1831-1834 Image courtesy of ArtSTOR

Nedda H. Ahmed, Fine Arts Librarian
ahmedn@denison.edu / x6688

Starting Points

General:

Japan Encyclopedia / DEN Ref DS821 .F73 2002
Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan / DEN Ref DS805 .K633 1983
Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture / DEN Ref DS822.5 .E516 2002

Art-Related:

ArtSTOR (images only)
Grove Art Online
Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art / DEN Ref N7358 .B55 1981
Dictionary of Japanese Art Terms / DEN Ref N34 .N52 1990
Symbols of Japan: Thematic Motifs in Art & Design / DEN Ref N7350 .B233 2001
Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints / DEN Ref NE1310 .H68 2005
Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917 / DEN Ref NC1766 .J3 C53 2001

Finding Books

Try the following search techniques in the OhioLINK Catalog:

SUBJECT Search: Artist name
Enter an artist's name (Lastname, Firstname)
RESULT: All the books by or about the artist, divided up by the type of book (e.g., "Exhibitions," "Criticism & Interpretation")

SUBJECT Search: Theme or topic
Enter a topic or medium, such as: "Art Japan" or "Prints Japanese"
RESULT: All the books about the topic, subdivided by time period or geographic region

KEYWORD Search: When you're not sure of the exact name or topic
Use AND between terms to narrow your search (ex.: buddhist and shinto)
Use OR between like terms/synonyms to save time (ex.: temple or pagoda)
Use * to search all forms of a word (ex.: japan* = japan, japanese)
Use ( ) to create a complex search (ex.: (temple or pagoda) and buddh*)
Use " " to search a phrase (ex.: "buddhist temples")

Finding Articles

Databases help you find relevant articles from journals and magazines.
After you find a good article, use the Library Catalog to obtain the journal issue (if the article is not in full text online). If Denison does not own the journal issue you need, simply place an InterLibrary Loan request.

Main database to check first: Bibliography of Asian Studies.

Other Databases to Try:

Finding Images

ArtSTOR
Museum of Fine Arts (Boston): Art of Asia, Oceania, + Africa (includes several links for Japanese portions of the collection)
Metropolitan Museum: Works of Art: Asian Art
The Asia Society: Japanese Objects
The Cleveland Museum of Art: Japanese Art
Asian Art Museum (San Francisco)
Freer/Sackler Gallery (Smithsonian): Japanese Art
Tokyo National Museum: Collections
Kyoto National Museum: Online Database