SearchWorks is Stanford's online catalog/database for library resources: books, magazine and journal titles (but not the individual titles within them; for a discussion of these see the "Finding Articles" section), e-books, DVDs, etc. SearchWorks allows for two main methods of searching: the Basic Search, which is the default mode, and the Advanced Search, which can be accessed by clicking on "Advanced" underneath the search box.

The Basic Search performs a lot like a typical Web search engine, bringing back hits from a keyword search, sorted by relevance. You can try simply entering the name of an artist in the search box and then hitting the "Search" button--or you might try entering the artist's name and then switching the button to "Subject terms." The Advanced Search allows for more specificity and flexibility, as you can limit a keyword search to specific fields (e.g., title, subject terms) and/or restrict results to a certain library, language, etc. In either mode you can elect to sort results by a method other than relevance: by year (old to new or new to old), title, or author.

Finding books by using bibliographies:

Sometimes the best way to find books (or articles) on an artist or a subject is to use the bibliographies that authors have already compiled. Academic texts often include a back section that lists the works that the authors have cited, referred to, and/or recommended. Tip: the books on course reserve in the Art Library have extensive bibliographies.