How do I Research My Topic?

The Marquette University Libraries have access to hundreds of databases -- many of these are periodical indexes which will tell you what journal and magazine articles were published on various topics. Several of the indexes may also include the full-text of the articles. However, for many of them you will need to check the Marqcat online catalog to see if the Marquette Libraries subscribe to the journal or magazine in order to locate the full-text of the articles.

Some of the following indexes provide references to SCHOLARLY periodical articles as opposed to GENERAL periodical articles. A few of the differences between scholarly and general periodicals are:

Scholarly periodicals are written by experts or researchers in the field, whereas general periodicals are written by staff writers who may have little or no expertise in the area.

The intended audience of scholarly periodicals is faculty, students, researchers and practitioners in the same field, whereas the intended audience of general periodicals is just about anyone in the general public.

Scholarly periodicals often present primary research results, whereas general periodicals provide secondary reports on the research or just summarize the results.

Scholarly periodicals often use the jargon of the field, whereas general periodicals use layperson's terminology so that the general public can understand.

Scholarly periodical articles often cite other sources and contain a bibliography of works; general periodical articles do not.

Examples of Scholarly Periodicals are:

American Artist
Art in America
Artforum
Eire-Ireland
Humanities
Journal of Communication
Journal of Film and Video
Journal of Popular Film and Video

Examples of General Periodicals are:

Irish Times
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Newsweek
People Weekly
Time
USA Today
U.S. News and World Report

For more information about the difference between scholarly and general articles, go to the following guide: " What is the difference between articles in SCHOLARLY Journals as opposed to articles in POPULAR or GENERAL Magazines?"

Provided below is a list of relevant periodical indexes will help to find references to scholarly and general articles required for your upcoming BREC 005 assignments.   Included are database descriptions and tips in selecting appropriate databases for your topics related to Assignment #1.  

Please Note:  There is very little information in the following databases regarding the actual artists involved in the Home and Away Exhibit.  However, these databases could be used to locate journal articles which deal in general with contemporary art, especially contemporary art in Ireland.

Some of the databases listed below  provide the FULL-TEXT of the articles, however, some do not.  For those that do not, you you will need to check Marqcat to see if Marquette Libraries own the journal/magazine/newspaper. (To do this: Go into Marqcat, click on Title and then, type in the TITLE of the periodical -- note:  not the title of the periodical article, but the title of the periodical.)

When you click on the name of the periodical index below, you will be taken into the periodical index and you will be presented with the search box.  To find articles that deal with contemporary art in Ireland, you can then type in  the following search phrases:

Irish Art
Ireland and contemporary art

The following general and multidisciplinary databases would be useful in  researching the various assigned topics as well as for locating possible articles and citations dealing with television/video production techniques:

Art Full Text   -- Indexes articles from a variety of art journals and magazines.  Contains some full-text of articles.  This database goes back to 1984 and can be searched simultaneously with Art Index Retrospective 1921-1984.

Academic Search Elite -- Indexes articles from scholarly journals as well as various general magazines and newspapers. Contains SOME full-text of articles.  Also contains citations/articles on thousands of topics.

Humanities in Proquest  -- These are SUBSETS of the Proquest Research Library database. These subsets contain references to scholarly articles. Both also contain some full-text articles.  

Other sources to consult regarding the "Home and Away" Exhibit:

The "Home and Away" Informational brochure available at the Haggerty Museum. This brochure contains biographical  information on the seven artists included in the exhibit, as well as information on their works.   This brochure is available free of charge and is located near the entrance when you enter the Haggerty Museum. 

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article regarding the exhibit: Irish Art by James Auer
Note:  Although the word "Journal" is part of the name, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is a newspaper not a SCHOLARLY journal!

Article in local paper, Shepard Express regarding Home and Away Exhibit.  This article is also not scholarly, but provides additional information on the exhibit.

Using Google (or other Internet search engines) you may find some bits and pieces of information regarding the artists included in the Home and Away exhibit.  Examples of web pages found regarding several of the artists are as follows:

Elizabeth O'Reilly -- http://www.gowanusartists.com/artists/eo.htm
http://www.kentlergallery.org/pages/archives/bio.html

Helen O'Leary -- http://www.artsandarchitecture.psu.edu/features/oleary.html
http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/h/p/hpo1/resume.html

John Spinks --http://www.absolutearts.com/artsnews/2001/02/13/28091.html
http://www.unbelievabletruth.co.uk/features/interviews/spinks1.html

Darragh Hogan -- http://www.belloclowndes.com/html/darragh_hogan.html 

J. Kieran McGonnell -- http://www.kieranmcgonnell.com/pages/abouttheartist.html
http://www.irishconnectionsmag.com/database/issue4/34.htm

Susan MacWilliam -- http://www.irishconnectionsmag.com/database/issue3/52.htm
http://www.recirca.com/backissues/c88/belfast.shtml
http://www.ps1.org/cut/press/clockwork.html

Newspaper Articles available via Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe -- This service provides full-text NEWSPAPER articles from thousands of newspapers around the world including New York Times, Times (London), Irish Times, Belfast News Letter, and many more.  To locate articles about the above artists, type in the name of the artist in quotation marks in the database's News search box. (Example:  "Susan MacWilliam".)

IMPORTANT:  Information from the above websites (and the News portion of Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe) dealing with the artists DO NOT fulfill the requirement for references to three scholarly journals.  These are additional sources to help in providing information about the artists.  You will STILL NEED to consult the periodical indexes to locate references to scholarly journals.

Reference Books dealing with Art terminology:
You may wish to consult several Reference books dealing with art terms and processes.  These are available for review in the Reference area of Memorial Library.  Two such books are:

Art Speak:  A Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords, 1945 to the Present.  (Mem. Ref. N6490 .A87 1997)

Looking at Paintings:  A Guide to Technical Terms. (Mem. Ref. ND31 .C37 1992)

Ask at the Memorial Library Reference Desk if you need help in locating these books in the Mem. Reference area.

The following periodical index databases would be useful in locating references to SCHOLARLY journal articles regarding television and video production technique. 

(Note you will need to check the Marqcat online catalog,
to see if Marquette University Libraries own the journals in order to get the full-text of the articles.)