How to Write an Art History Research Paper and not Epically FailBy Alison Thompson

STEP 1:Pick your topic

“The paper is to be a study of an aspect of the art of any western culture before 1500, or any aspect of the art of a non-western culture from any time period. You should probably choose one art form (sculpture, architecture, painting) so that your paper is not too broad. One of the most important aspects is to stress how the artwork reflects the concerns of the culture - its history, social structure, ideas about the afterlife, or the like.”

DO: Choose a topic that is something we went over in class already DO: Choose a topic that has more than 5 books of information written

about it DON’T: Choose a contemporary work with little information about the

piece/topic/historical significance DON’T: Choose something you could care less about

STEP 2: Research your topic

“All papers dealing with cultures that had a written language must provide one primary source. A primary source is something written at the time the artwork was produced. Examples could be inscriptions, poems, essays, eyewitness accounts – any kind of writing that provides information about the culture you are studying; it does not have to refer to an artwork specifically. It does have to be quoted directly, though, and not just mentioned in your paper…… You are to have at least three library sources, not including encyclopedias and general works or the internet. All of the above may be used, and must of course be referenced, but they cannot be included in the three sources. Valid sources would be books or journal articles. “

DO: Find ATLEAST three books on your topic DO: Use mostly books from the library DO: Take those books out now DO: Look for a viable primary source; not something that doesn’t have

any significant information to your topic DON’T: Wait until the day before the paper is due to research DON’T: Use only online articles DON’T: Use your textbook as your only source of information

STEP 3Actually write your essay

“The paper is to be 7-10 pages, double-spaced, with foot- or endnotes and a bibliography.”

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DO: Write out a to-do list/outline of what you want your paper to look like

DO: Write out a list of each major topic you want to cover DO: Make a point; you are not just talking about your subject, you are

proving your point/thesis statemento EX) I wrote a paper about the Minoan Snake Goddess, and how

research and evidence shows they were worshiped in not only in the home, but as well at outside shrines – My overall goal was to prove why this statement is true through viable research

DO: Make the essay a FULL 7-10 pages; If you are planning to only write 7, you best be making sure it is a FULL 7 page or I/Dr. Downing will take off points; aka just write 8 pages

DO: Cite cite cite cite cite cite cite (See STEP 4) DO: Add page numbers at the bottom right corner of the page DON’T: Count the bib and endnote page toward your 7-10; it is 7-10

RESEARCH, with a few extra pages for citations DON’T: Do wacky formatting just to get the page number count DON’T: Be Kuzco and keep repeating yourself DON’T: Makeup information because you’re too lazy to do the

research

STEP 4:Citation and create a bibliography and footnotes page

“Art historians do not use the MLA style (parentheses) for references (Murray 1980, 22). There are a number of reasons for this, the main one, for ancient art at least, being that for many references we do not have accurate dates… Use the Chicago Style…. Footnotes/endnotes: In text: place a superscript number or a number in parentheses at the end of the sentence.1 (1) You do not have to use footnotes at the bottom of each page; you may put them all at the end of the paper, on a separate page, numbered chronologically. If you use the same reference, you may use an abbreviated form for the second reference, but you may not use the same footnote number.2 Bibliography: This must be on a separate page, alphabetical with the last name of the author first.”

STEP 4 (cont.): DO: USE THIS SITE!!!!

>http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html DO: Cite every little thing DO: If you are using one article/book for a large piece of content in a

paper, or example in one paragraph, you can save the footnote to the

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end; aka use a footnote for the last sentence to indicate when you are done using that source

DO: If you are going to use images to refer to, put those at the END on their own separate page and title them “Figure 1, Figure 2, etc” and state where you got the image from using the proper citation.

DON’T: Make this harder than it has to be; it’s just a footnote and a footnotes page

HOW TO CITE USING CHICAGO:1. Write a sentence using your own words to interpret an idea

found in the source you are reading//Use a quote from the passage to make a point

2. Complete the sentence/thought with a footnote at the end.1

3. The period goes BEFORE the footnote4. While you’re writing your paper, add that footnote information to

your endnotes page AND bib; DO NOT WAIT ‘TIL THE END; it’s too confusing

5. Make an endnotes page (a list from 1-# of your citations in order)

6. Make a bibliography page (a list of all your sources in alphabetical order)

7. *Each source may have a different citation format. For example, citing an online journal is different than citing a book by one author (see the link posted early for more info)

EXAMPLE

Known as Kamares Ware, this type of pottery was widely used during the Aegean Bronze Age, and consisted of unique characteristics of contrasting colors, a bridge-spout, and nature inspired decorations.2

Endnotes (Its own page)

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1. Authors first then last name, Title of Book/Article (City of Publication : Publisher, Date), Page Numbers.

2. From the Land of the Labyrinth: Minoan Crete, 3000-1100 B.C. (New York: Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation, in collaborations with The Hellenic Ministry of Culture and The Archaeological Museums of Crete, 2008), 35-37.

3. From the Land of the Labyrinth: Minoan Crete, 3000-1100 B.C., 15.

Bibliography (It’s own page)**The difference is the bib uses periods and does not have the page numbers

Author’s last name, First name. Title of Book/Article. City of Publication : Publisher, Date.

From the Land of the Labyrinth: Minoan Crete, 3000-1100 B.C. New York: Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation, in collaborations with The Hellenic Ministry of Culture and The Archaeological Museums of Crete, 2008.

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