Research Guides: Finding Images in Architecture, Art & Design: Finding Images in Architecture

Find Images in Books and Print Journals

The majority of architectural images such as site plans, elevations, floor plans, sections, and details can be found not online but rather in books: encyclopedias, atlases, dictionaries, histories, catalogs, and monographs. To find these books, search the library's online catalog.

To locate images in journals, search the Avery Index. Other journals can be found by browsing our list of journals.

Grove dictionary of art: styles and movements in Western art, 1400-1900 / by ed.by J.Turner
ISBN: 9780333920459
Online version of this 32-volume dictionary is available via the library website
The Phaidon atlas of 21st century world architecture.
ISBN: 9780714848747
Showcases architecture built worldwide between 2000 and 2008.
The Phaidon atlas of contemporary world architecture.
ISBN: 0714843121
Presents 1,052 buildings completed between 1998 and 2004.
World architecture 1900-2000: a critical mosaics by ed. by K.Frampton
ISBN: 3211832831
This 10 volumes set gives a most precise and authoritative description of 1000 famous objects in ten geographical regions.
World architecture index by Teague,E.
ISBN: 9780313225529
This is a reference tool for finding images of approximately 7,000 architectural works reproduced in more than 100 books

Find Images Using Databases at NJIT

The following resources are available by subscription; remote access from off campus requires a UCID login.

Art Index Retrospective (H.W. Wilson) from EBSCOhost This link opens in a new window
An index database provides access to art literature covering fine, decorative, and commercial art. Content includes peer-reviewed publications and citations of book reviews. Coverage:1929-1984
Artstor This link opens in a new window
Artstor provides faculty and students with a complete image resource covering a wide array of subjects with the breadth and depth to add context and examine influences beyond the confines of one's discipline. Contains hundreds collections composed of over two million images (and growing).
Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals from EBSCOhost This link opens in a new window
The Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals indexes periodicals published worldwide on archaeology, city planning, interior design, historic preservation and architecture.
BuildingGreen This link opens in a new window
Limited Availability: please see Maya Gervits at the Littman Library for further information. The online resource features comprehensive, practical information on a wide range of topics related to sustainable building--from energy efficiency and recycled-content materials to land-use planning and indoor air quality. The BuildingGreen Suite integrates online versions of GreenSpec, Environmental Building News, and a database of hundreds of high-performance building case studies. This wealth of information is searchable and cross-referenced by CSI MasterFormat division, LEED credit, or green topic. Each article, product listing, and case study also lists related content and information sources.

Digital Archive of Newark Architecture
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The information portal includes plans of the city, architectural drawings, old photographs and postcards, rare books, articles in periodicals, monographs, exhibition catalogs, student projects, as well as links to already existing online materials.

Grove Art Online This link opens in a new window
Access is available for 3 simultaneous users. The Grove Dictionary of Art Online contains articles on every aspect of the visual arts - painting, sculpture, graphic arts, architecture, decorative arts and photography - from prehistory to the present day. Entries include bibliographic information with related resources.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
The JSTOR includes hundreds of core titles across disciplines including humanities, social sciences, business, science and mathematics, botany, ecology, health sciences, and more.

Littman Library Image Database
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Our database includes almost 254,000 images of architecture & design: elevations, site and floor plans, sections, details of numerous buildings with emphasis on the 20th century.

Urban Land Institute Development Case Studies This link opens in a new window
Limited Availability: please see Maya Gervits at the Littman Library for further information.
Access to hundreds of detailed case studies of completed projects ranging from low-income housing to mixed-use downtown developments to commercial and industrial projects. Case studies provide photographs and site plans, information on costs and rents, innovative features and strategies of the project, and an explanation of the entire development process. Coverage: 1985 - present.

Free Image Resources on the Web

There are numerous collections of digital images of architecture available on the Web. Below you will find links to those selected and recommended by library staff.

Subject Guide

Maya Gervits

Search Engines

Images can be found on the Web by using specialized search engines: