Islamic Art and Architecture

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A guide to sources of information on Islamic art produced in Muslim countries from Spain to India, including architecture, metalwork, textiles, illustrated books, calligraphy, glass, pottery and decorative arts from the seventh century A.D. to the nineteenth century.

This subject guide lists selected resources available through the UBC Library and on the web. For addtional help with your research, schedule an appointment with the Art and Architecture librarian or visit our reference desk in the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre.

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Librarian

UBC Vancouver Vanessa Kam (Art + Architecture + Planning)

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Articles

For help finding articles, see the UBC Library's Finding Journal Articles guide.

To find articles on a topic, begin your research in the indexes/databases listed on this page:

Anthropology Plus
Anthropology Plus provides extensive worldwide indexing of journal articles, reports, commentaries, review essays, in the fields of anthropology, ethnology, archaeology, folklore, material culture, and interdisciplinary studies.
Art Full Text
Indexes Art, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Urban Planning journals. Reproductions of works of art appearing in periodicals are also indexed.
Art Retrospective
A bibliographic database that cumulates citations to Art Index volumes 1-32 of the printed index published between 1929-1984.
Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals
Covers the subjects of architecture, landscape architecture, city planning, historic preservation, and interior design and decoration.
Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA)
Covers western art from late antiquity (4th century A.D.) to 2007, Including architecture, sculpture, painting, drawing and prints, decorative and applied arts, industrial design, popular and folk art, photography, new media and the performing arts, and material culture.
Historical Abstracts
Historical Abstracts covers the history of the world (excluding the United States and Canada) focusing on the 15th century forward, including world history, military history, women's history, and the history of education.
Index Islamicus
Multi-disciplinary database providing access to literature about the Middle East, areas of Asia and Africa & Muslim minorities elsewhere.
JSTOR Collection
The Journal STORage database contains backfiles of 100+ journals from a variety of academic disciplines.

Librarian

UBC Vancouver Vanessa Kam (Art + Architecture + Planning)

Journals

Archives of Asian Art
Annual journal devoted to the arts of South, Southeast, Central, and East Asia
Ars Orientalis
Covers the arts of Islam and the Near East - formerly Ars Islamica
Arts of Asia
Asian Arts & Antiques Magazine
Bulletin of the Asia Institute
Studies in the art, archaeology, numismatics, history, and languages of ancient Iran, Mesopotamia, and Central Asia
Islamic Art
Journal focused on the material culture of the Muslim world
Islamic Culture
Articles, bibliographies, illustrations, and book reviews related to the religion and culture of Islam
Islamic Quarterly
Contains articles relating to Islamic law, culture and arts
Mimar
Covers contemporary architecture, building and design in the developing countries
Muqarnas
Covers the historical, cultural and technical aspects of Islamic art, ceramics and architecture, in the medieval and modern periods
Oriental Art
Devoted to the study of all forms of Oriental art
Orientations
Concerned with Asian arts, including painting, calligraphy, bronzes, and ceramics, as well as the decorative arts and crafts
Welt des Islams (World of Islam)
Focuses on the history and culture of the peoples of Islam from the end of the 18th century up to the present

For a selective list of relevant journals, search the UBC Library Catalogue by subject headings such as:

Librarian

UBC Vancouver Vanessa Kam (Art + Architecture + Planning)

Books

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

Atlases

Bibliographies and General Reference Works

UBC Library Catalogue

Books on this subject can be found in the UBC Library Catalogue using subject headings such as:

Architecture, Islamic
Architecture, Ottoman
Art, Islamic
Art, Mogul
Calligraphy, Islamic
Civilization, Islamic
Decoration and ornament, Islamic
Decorative arts, Islamic
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Islamic
Inscriptions, Islamic
Islam and architecture
Islam and art
Islamic antiquities - place name (eg. Islamic antiquities - Egypt)
Islamic art and symbolism
Mogul Empire
Mosque

Or by medium:

Or by place name, such as:

Or by name of building, such as:

Librarian

UBC Vancouver Vanessa Kam (Art + Architecture + Planning)

Exhibition Catalogues

Exhibition and collection catalogues received after 1985 are listed online in the UBC Library catalogue by title, subject, or name of the gallery or museum.

Exhibition and collection catalogues received before 1985 are listed in the Exhibitions Card Catalogue. Exhibition catalogues are listed by gallery name or subject of the exhibition.

Small catalogues under twenty-five pages and without call numbers are filed in the AArP vertical files by the name of the gallery or museum. Ask at the Art + Architecture + Planning Reference Desk to obtain this material.

Check relevant headings such as:

Or names of museums, such as:

To locate collections of Islamic art, look at:

Islamic Art Collections: an International Survey

Librarian

UBC Vancouver Vanessa Kam (Art + Architecture + Planning)

Images

Databases

Archivision Digital Research Library
Archivision is a database of over 53,000 high quality, professionally photographed images of architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning, archaeology, and design searchable within LUNA Commons.
ARTstor
ARTstor is a digital library of more than one million images licensed for educational use at UBC, covering the areas of art, architecture, the humanities and the social sciences.

Web Resources

The Great Buildings Collection
Created by Architecture Week, Great Buildings contains images, and information on over 1000 classics of world architecture, including section on Islamic Architecture.
Casselman Archive of Islamic and Mudejar Architecture in Spain
Maintained by the University of Wisconsin Digital collections, the Casselman Archive of Islamic and Mudejar Architecture in Spain contains over four thousand color slides and black and white photographs of medieval Spain taken by the late Eugene Casselman.
ArchNet: Islamic Architecture Community
An international online community for architects, planners, urban designers, landscape architects, conservationists, and scholars, with a focus on Muslim cultures and civilizations.
Islamic Image Library
Images collected by Allan Langdale at the University of California at Santa Cruz, available for educational use.

Print Resources

Islamic Art; one hundred plates in colour
Sculpture Index
Look under "Islamic" in vol. 2:2.
World Architecture Index : A Guide to Illustrations
Arranged by site, type of building or name.

Librarian

UBC Vancouver Vanessa Kam (Art + Architecture + Planning)

Last Modified 10:40 am, Nov 3 2011

The University of British Columbia

Islamic Art and Architecture