Getting Started
Formulate your questions: are you interested in background information (culture, history, geography, etc.), scholarly discussion of a topic, technical guidance about writing, inspirational material? Where do you think this information might be published -- books, journals, magazines, newspapers?
The Fleet Library collection is heavily focused on art and design topics. Members of the RISD community also have borrowing privileges at the Providence Athenaeum and Brown University Libraries.
If you are having any trouble finding what you need, please get in touch with us!
Where to Search
Books:
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RISD/Athenaeum CatalogSearch for books, DVDS, music, ebooks in RISD Library and Providence Athenaeum collections.
Articles:
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Fleet SEARCHCombined search tool (many of our article databases + the RISD/Athenaeum Catalog)
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Credo ReferenceFull-text reference books covering a broad scope of subject areas.
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JSTORAn archive of scholarly articles in PDF form. JSTOR is not a current article database, typically from 1 to 5 years behind most recently published journals. RISD Library normally subscribes to the following collections: Arts & Sciences I, II, III, V, VII, VIII, and XI. For the 2019/20 academic year, we have trial access to the full JSTOR suite, including the new Sustainability package.
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Literary Reference CenterInformation on authors and their works across literary disciplines from antiquity to present, from books, reference works, and articles published 1912 to present. Can be searched together with MLA International Bibliography.
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MLA International BibliographyArticles covering literature, language and linguistics, folklore, literary theory and criticism, dramatic arts, as well as the historical aspects of printing and publishing.
Can be searched together with Literary Reference Center. -
Project MuseProvides scholarly articles to hundreds of humanities, art, and social science journals.
Citation & Style Guidelines:
Browsing Guide
Where to look in the stacks for books
Library of Congress call numbers for literature (RISD and Brown both use the Library of Congress system)
P - General Language and Linguistics
PA - Classical Languages and Literature
PL - Languages and literature of Asia, Africa, Oceana
PN - Literary Criticism, Drama, Journalism & more
PQ - Romance literature (French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese)
PR - English Literature (includes former commonwealth such as South Africa)
PS - American Literature
PT - German, Dutch, Scandinavian literature
PZ - Children's literature
Research Help
Guided Research: meeting with a RISD Art Librarian
Librarians are available to help students research a topic. Make an appointment at the RISD Library Research Help Desk or by emailing a librarian directly. We're available to meet with individuals or groups. This meeting will help you clarify your ideas, provide ways to approach your topic, and identify key terms, print and online resources, and search strategies to help get you started and save time.
A meeting with a librarian usually lasts 15-30 minutes depending on the scope of the topic. You are always welcome to make follow-up appointments.