CMNS 314 Visual Studies and the Arts (Jan Marontate)

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If you need help, please contact Sylvia Roberts, Liaison Librarian for Communication & Contemporary Arts at 778.782.3681 or sroberts@sfu.ca or Ask a librarian

This guide is intended as an introduction to a range of sources you can use to investigate phenomena, issues and research related to CMNS 314, to help you find research related to these conversations.

This is not an exhaustive list of sources so, if you don't find what you need, Ask a Librarian or email Sylvia.

PowerPoint slides (February 26, 2025)

Who produces information about issues, institutions, phenomenon in the art world?

  • Artists themselves (statements, interviews, writings)
  • Scholars (university researchers, curators, independent scholars)
  • Arts infrastructure professionals (workers in arts institutions, agents, administrators, arts educators )
  • Consumers (fans, collectors, students)
  • Journalists (apecialized and generalist)

How would you rank these information providers as authoritative sources?

Factors that might influence how easy it is to find information about an issue, an artist or an organization include:

  • How new is the issue, the artists' practice or the organization?  It can take a while for documentation to catch up to practice.
  • Is the issue/artist/organization focused in a country where English is not the working language?
  • Is it an issue that affects a broad part of the arts sector?  If not, it might take time for research to appear.

Academic sources 

Library catalogue is the best search tool for finding scholarly books about the performing and visual arts, whether discussing the work of specific or groups of artists (by country, by practice, thematically), theoretical and critical approaches to the work.

NOTE: Exhibition catalogues are a significant contribution to visual arts literature.  On the shelf, these look just like books but tend to be focused on the work of a specific visual artist or works selected according to a theme, which could be conceptual, by nationality, by practice, etc.

Background sources, such as specialized encyclopedias, can be useful for an overview of a topic, finding related literature (in reference lists or links to related topics) and discovering the language used when discussing art world phenomena. For example:

Each of the research guides for Contemporary Arts program areas (Dance, Film, Music, Theatre,  Visual Arts) has a link in the left sidebar that will take you to a list of background works for that arts practices, which include encyclopedias, dictionaries, biographical sources, etc. 

Scholarly articles about the visual and performing arts can be found by searching the following indexes:

The following databases are good for searching for issues that might be covered in non-scholarly works

These databases index the full text of articles so you can find articles that mention your topic, even if that's not their main focus:

Data sources

Below are sources of information that may also serve as data that you could propose to analyze as your own research methodology.

Archival sources

At SFU and other universities, libraries, museums and art galleries have collections of rare or unique publications and physical collections that can become objects of study in communications and arts research.  Below are links to digital collections of objects that may relate to your research interests. 

Primary sources for the Humanities  

"A primary source is a document or other sort of evidence written or created during the time under study, or by one of the persons or organizations directly involved in the event. Primary sources offer an inside view of a particular event."

SFU Library Digital collections  include digital editions of many types of data, including oral histories, photography collections, postcards, posters, publishing industry papers, Indigenous arts-related collections and other archival type data that you might use in your research.

Journalism / news sources

News sources will include reviews of specific arts events, interviews with participants, features on trends or noteworthy occurances. You might also use the text of news sources as a data source for your analysis.

The following news sources include both mainstream news outlets and specialized arts news sources

All news databases (including historical sources)

Many specialized arts news sources are available only in digital form or only in print. 

Also look for social media posts on arts association accounts, as well, to get a sense of current issues in arts practice.

Trade publications

Trade publications are those directed at those working in the business.  In the case of the visual and performing arts, these can be the source of  discussions of environmental factors impacting their work (i.e. legislative changes such as copyright or emerging technologies), calls for submissions to competitions/commissions, and other news affecting players in the arts.

Articles in trade publications can be found by searching the specialized arts indexes, primarily.  Similar information can sometimes be found on arts association web sites, as these organizations often act as a collective voice for their membership, lobbying government for favourable legislative environments and providing professional support.

Web sites

Web sites for organizations can be useful to find information about history, funding, current activities, links to press and affiliated organizations, and other information that provide detail and context for your discussion.

Individual artists' or performers' web sites often contain biographical information, bibliography of press and critical articles, examples of their work, artist's statements, etc. 

Arts institutions (for profit, not-for-profit) - local examples:

Arts associations - examples:

Festivals & awards - examples:

Arts research organizations - examples:

Social media

Consumers of arts practice tend to share their opinions via social media. Searching the web for an artist's name is likely to find this type of information, including links to Facebook and Twitter feeds.

Use these to get ideas for pursuing information more credible, definitive sources, but be aware of potential bias.

Scholars often analyse social media posts as data (e.g. content of posts on a topic or by a type of artist, commentary, sentiments expressed).

Statistical sources

If you have a question about how much or how many (number of musicians in Canada, average earnings, contribution to the national economy), you may find it helpful to search for a statistical report.  Usually originating with government departments or researchers, these sources can quantifative but may also include a discussion of what the numbers mean for society or policy makers.

Statistics Canada research guide will introduce you to the use of data gathered to describe the Canadian population, their social and economic activities.

The British Columbia statistics guide provides descriptions and links to data sources providing statistics related to life in BC.

Statista is a database with international coverage of statistical sources, including reports focused on business, media and public policy.

Citing sources

You can find the SFU Library guides to citation styles which offer explanation and examples of how to cite different information sources.

If you scroll further down the page, you'll find links to specialized guide that cover how to cite (for example) Statistics Canada publications or images.

You can also find guides to citation styles in different academic disciplines, e.g. Business.