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Database Guides : New and Updated Resources

Overview of new or updated library electronic resources

Bibliography of the History of Art - Overiew and Tips

Getty's Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA) indexes selected publications on European and American visual arts from the European Late Antiquity to the present day. Combining records  from RILA and BHA, it searches records for over 500,000 items (1/3rd in English), primarily from selected art journals published from 1975 to 2007.   (For coverage of more recent publications, search the International Bibliography of Art.)

Search Tips
  • On a search results screen, you can limit by:
    • Language
    • Date published (Creation Date)
    • Subject
    • Document Type (articles, books reviews, dissertations)
  • Use the Advanced Search for searching by field or with Boolean operators.
Full-Text
  • Use OneSearch or Interlibrary Loan. (No full-text is available directly from BHA.)
  • To access an item:
    • Note the citation information.
      • Title & author.
      • If available: journal name, ISSN / ISBN, etc.
    • Search for the item in OneSearch.
      • Access the full-text, the library location, and/or a "Get it" request in OneSearch.
    • If the item is not listed in OneSearch, request via Interlibrary Loan.

OpenBibArt Detailed Description

The Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA) is a database born out of a collaboration between the Institut National d’Histoire de l’Art (INHA) and  the Getty Research Institute (GRI).

The BHA indexes journal literature on European and American visual arts from Late Antiquity to the 20th century, providing access over 500,000 bibliographic records of periodicals, books,

Getty's BHA portal includes records from the following traditional art indexes:

  • Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA) [1990 - 2007]
  • Répertoire international de la littérature de l'art (RILA) [1974 - 1989]

Traditional Art Indexes

Scholarly art indexing has traditionally started with the Répertoire d’art et d’archéologie (RAA, 1910-1989) and Répertoire de la Litterature de l'Art (RILA, 1974 - 1989).  In 1990, these efforts were combined to from the Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA, 1990 - 2007).  ProQuest's International Bibliography of Art (IBA) continues the editorial practices of the BHA, and the IBA covers 2008 - present.

  • Répertoire d'art et d'archéologie (RAA)
  • Répertoire international de la littérature de l'art (RILA)
  • Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA)
  • International Bibliography of Art

Electronic Resource Information

Platform: BHA (Primo @ Getty Research Institute)

Electronic Resource Type: Indexing Database

Subscription source: Free online

Producers: Getty Research Institute (GRI)

Dates covered: 1974 - 2007

Number of Records: 500,000

Topics covered: Art in the European / American tradition from Late Antiquity to the present.

Main types of publications indexed: periodicals, books, exhibition and exhibition reviews.

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