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African Art Research Guide

Books

McCain Library has numerous books related to African art. To find them, search SOPHIA. Do a subject search for the following subject headings:

Art African
Art Black Africa
Art Primitive Africa

In the lists of headings that come up, you will see additional related subject headings (e.g. Art African History or Art Black Africa Sub Saharan). Click each heading to see a list of books.

Note: don’t rely solely on browsing the general collection shelves. Since LC call # arrangement in art is not by region, you may miss relevant items. Also, several items are in the oversized collections (e.g. A history of art in Africa, Folio Collection 3rd Floor, N7380 .H54 2001)

Reference Books

Dictionary of Art edited by Jane Turner. New York: Grove's Dictionaries, 1996.
Ref. N31 .D56 1996 vols. 1 – 34.

Volume 1 includes a large section on African art. Entries on individual artists are included.

Encyclopedia of World Art. New York: McGraw-Hill 1959, 1987
Ref. N31 .E4833 vols. 1 – 17.

Use the index (vol. 15) to find various entries on African art. Supplemental volumes also contain useful entries (section in vol. 16 in “Primitive Art” section; section in vol. 17 “Africa and Oceana”).

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Art, edited by Bernard S. Myers. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1969.
Ref. N33 .M23 vols. 1 – 5.

Praeger Encyclopedia of Art. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1971.
Ref. N33 .P68 vols. 1 – 5.

Artist Biographies Master Index edited by Barbara McNeil. Detroit, MI: Gale, 1986.
Ref. N40 .A78 1986

Browse the Reference Collection in the N call # area for additional dictionaries, encyclopedias and biography resources.

General Collection Books

Some books in the general collection related to Africa contain chapters on African art. For example:

Africa, edited by Phyllis M. Martin. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1986 2nd ed
DT3 .A23 1986

Includes chapter “Traditional Arts of Black Africa”

Art History by Stokstad.
Reserve Collection (First floor circulation desk) 2 hour loan

Includes chapter “Art of Africa in the Modern Era”

Electronic Resources

Databases – Periodical Indexes

Search the following databases for journal articles.

Art Abstracts and Art Index Retrospective

Current Contents Connect

Humanities Abstracts

Databases – Reference

Grove Dictionary of Art (full-text)

Full-text Journals

African Arts
Available in full text in the databases Academic Search Complete and Research Library

Websites

National Museum of African Art (http://www.nmafa.si.edu/)

Site includes online exhibitions. Searchable by artist, region, country, ethnic group, medium, etc.

Modern African Art: a Basic Reading List (http://www.sil.si.edu/SILPublications/ModernAfricanArt/modern-african-art.htm)

Annotated list compiled by Janet L. Stanley of the National Museum of African Art.

Links to WWW sites related to African art (http://www.vub.ac.be/BIBLIO/nieuwenhuysen/african-art/african-art-links.html)

Extensive list of links to websites with information and images. Includes an extensive list of museum sites online.

Art History Resources: African Art
(http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHafrica.html)

Compiled by Chris Witcombe, Professor of Art History at Sweet Briar College.