Art History and Cultural Policy: Books & eBooks

Information about books, journals, databases and other useful Art History and Cultural Policy resources

Special Collections

Special Collections contains unique book, archival and manuscript collections. UCD students and staff, and external users can consult the collections in the Special Collections reading room. Special Collections is located on Level 1 of the James Joyce Library.

Reference Books for Art History and Cultural Policy

Reference items are helpful for finding background information; definitions and spelling; facts and figures; translations; statistics and topical overviews of subjects. Reference books can be found both in print and online. See here for further information.

Useful online reference material for Art History and Cultural Policy include:

Oxford Art Online (OUP) This link opens in a new window
Oxford Art Online provides Web access to the entire text of The Dictionary of Art with quarterly additions of new material and updates to the text, plus extensive image links and all the sophisticated search advantages possible with an online reference source.
Dictionary of Irish Biography (RIA) This link opens in a new window
The Dictionary of Irish Biography is Ireland's national biographical dictionary. Devised, researched, written and edited under the auspices of the Royal Irish Academy, its online edition covers nearly 11,000 lives. It describes and assess the careers of subjects in all fields of endeavour, including politics, law, religion, literature, journalism, architecture, painting, music, the stage, science, medicine, engineering, entertainment and sport.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (OUP) This link opens in a new window
Authoritative biographical resource offering access to over 50,000 biographies of distinguished persons from all walks of life who have shaped the lives of the British Isles and beyond. Coverage: from earliest time to 2002. Includes deceased persons only. Powerful advanced search capabilities. Print version available in James Joyce Library at GR920.042/DIC.
Oxford Reference Online (OUP) This link opens in a new window
Oxford Reference Online consists of a wealth of facts, figures, definitions, and translations found in dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works published by Oxford University Press.

Books for Art History and Cultural Policy

Books and eBooks are listed in OneSearch, our resource discovery service. Useful titles available via UCD Library include:

The Dictionary of Art (Grove Dictionary of Art) by Jane Turner (Editor)
ISBN: 0195170687
Publication Date: 2003-02-11
Boasting well over 6,000 contributors from 12 countries, the Dictionary offers its readers authoritative and comprehensive global coverage. A resource for both art and cultural studies, the Dictionary serves as a unique guide to all the visual arts: painting, sculpture, architecture, photography, drawing, printmaking, as well as the decorative arts. The Dictionary ranges far both geographically and historically; it features unparalleled coverage of Africa, Southeast Asia, Central Asia and Mongolia, China, India, the Islamic world, Japan, Korea, Native North America, Pacific and Aboriginal Australia, Pre-Columbian America, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, the Ancient Near East, and Ancient Rome. Providing depth as well as breadth, The Dictionary of Art examines important art forms and key issues of design, taste, function, and patronage, illuminating them in light of the cultural context in which they developed.

ACLS Humanities E-Books This link opens in a new window
This comprehensive electronic library consists of scholarly and peer reviewed books in the humanities.
Academic Complete (Proquest Ebook Central) This link opens in a new window
An extensive multidisciplinary collection of online titles covering life, health, social and physical sciences, and humanities.