1. Artwork in a museum or on a museum website
- Use this format to cite all types of museum artwork, including paintings, sculptures, photographs, prints, drawings, digital art, crafts, and installations.
- List the artist as the author of the work.
- Always include a description of the medium or format in square brackets after the title. The description is flexible (e.g., a general description such as “[Painting]” or a more specific description such as “[Oil painting]” or “[Oil on canvas]”).
- For untitled artwork, include a description in square brackets in place of a title.
- The name and location of the museum appear in the source element of the reference.
- Provide a link to the artwork on the museum website if available.
2. Art exhibition
Design for eternity: Architectural models from the ancient Americas [Exhibition]. (2015–2016). The Met Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, United States. //www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2015/design-for-eternity
Martinez, J.-L., & Douar, F. (2018–2019). Archaeology goes graphic [Exhibition]. The Louvre, Paris, France. //www.louvre.fr/en/expositions/archaeology-goes-graphic
- Parenthetical citations: (Design for Eternity, 2015–2016; Martinez & Douar, 2018–2019)
- Narrative citations: Design for Eternity (2015–2016) and Martinez and Douar (2018–2019)
- Provide the curator(s) of the exhibition in the author element of the reference.
- When the curator is unknown, move the title of the exhibition to the author position of the reference.
- The year or range of years of the exhibition appears in the date element of the reference.
- The name and location of the museum appear in the source element of the reference.
- Provide a link to the exhibition on the museum website if available.
3. Informational museum plaque
[Plaque with background information about American Gothic]. (n.d.). Art Institute Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States.
- Parenthetical citation: ([Plaque with background information about American Gothic], n.d.)
- Narrative citation: [Plaque with background information about American Gothic] (n.d.)
- Provide a description of the plaque in square brackets rather than the name of the artwork or item so it is clear that you are citing the plaque itself.
- If the plaque itself is dated, use that date. If the plaque is not dated, use “n.d.” Do not use the date of the artwork or item being described.
- Information on a plaque is likely consolidated from other sources, making the plaque a secondary source. If possible, cite the same information from a primary source that your readers will be able to retrieve.
This guidance is new to the 7th edition.
Date created: February 2020
Titles: Underline, Italics, or Quotations?
(printable version here)
When writing about other works, it's hard to decide when to underline (or place in italics) a title and when to place it in double quotations. Note that some publications have a "house style" that must be followed. When in doubt, however, these guidelines from the Modern Language Association may help:
For titles of written or musical works that are published within other works use double quotations; underline or italicize names of works published by themselves:
ex. I just read the short story "Looking for Jake" in China Miéville's anthology of the same name, Looking for Jake.
ex. Beckett's play Waiting for Godot will be performed next season.
ex. Devo's second album, Duty Now for the Future, has one of my favorite songs, "Swelling Itching Brain."
ex. Yes, I went to a science-fiction convention. I really enjoy the original Star Trek TV series, especially the episode "Return of the Archons," and the first three Star Wars films, especially The Empire Strikes Back, okay?
ex. I read the story "All about the Bronx" in the city section of today's New York Times.
ex. I have subscribed to my favorite magazine, The Atlantic, for many years.
For names of artwork, always use italics or underlining:
ex. We have a copy of Edward Hopper's painting Nighthawks in the Writing Center lobby. I always think about it when I'm listening to Tom Wait's CD Nighthawks at the Diner.
For the names of famous aircraft, ships, and spacecraft, always use italics or underlining:
ex. I built scale models of the USS Nimitz and the space shuttle Discovery last year.
Sacred texts:
ex. The Bible, Book of Exodus, or Qu'ran do not get underlined in the text of a paper. A specific edition would, however, be underlined in a works-cited list. Their titles are capitalized.
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