Instructional Services Librarian
99% Invisible
The Oakland-based 99% Invisible is one of the best podcasts on architecture and design.
The Glass House, by architect Philip Johnson. Photographed by flickr user arwcheek and shared with a Creative Commons license.
Architecture Research Guide
Welcome to the CCA Libraries guide to architectural research. This site helps students and faculty find the resources they need for their academic and creative practices, including links to subscription databases and other research tools. This guide directs you on how to find the best books, articles, design materials, and images, plus examples of how to cite sources in your work. If you have any research questions, ask one of CCA's librarians -- we're here to help.
Research Databases for Architecture
These resources are our best bets for architectural research. They represent just a few of the databases licensed by the CCA Libraries for student, faculty, and staff research. You can also check out our complete list of online resources.
Articles from Journals and Magazines (see more options)
- Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals
A comprehensive index of citations from articles in architecture and design journals and magazines, useful for finding content both online and in print.
- JSTOR
Scholarly articles from hundreds of journals in a wide range of academic subjects, including art and design.
- Art & Architecture Source
Full-text articles and citations from journals and books related to fine, decorative, and commercial art, as well as architecture and architectural design.
Online Encyclopedias (see more options)
Begin your research by seeking background information about your topic using reference sources (enyclopedias, dictionaries, and handbooks). Some reference sources are available in print in the CCA Libraries. Other reference resources are available electronically.
Reference sources are helpful. They . . .
- offer introductory information
- define key terms
- help you focus your research topic
- Bloomsbury Design Library
A wide-ranging set of materials on the history of various design disciplines, includes an Encyclopedia of Design, ebooks, and profiles of specific designers.
- Encyclopedia Britannica
The complete academic encyclopedia, related articles, images, and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.
- Oxford Art Online
Art encyclopedias and dictionaries online, including full-text access to the fundamental Grove Dictionary of Art.
Books and Videos (see more options)
Construction Materials (see more options)
- Material ConneXion
Provides a global, cross-industry perspective on materials, sustainable alternatives, and their potential uses. To create a personal account and unlock additional features use Registration Key: ySzId1600875790
Images (see more options)
- ArtstorHigh-resolution digital images for the arts, architecture, humanities, and sciences. As of 2024, all Artstor content is now hosted on JSTOR.
Recommended Websites
The following websites offer additional information and resources in Architecture and Interior Design disciplines.
- Aggregate
Publisher of research in the history and theory of architecture. CCA's former Dean of Architecture Jonathan Massey is a contributor and past editor. - PlacesPlaces is an online open access journal that publishes essays, criticism, photography, and peer-reviewed scholarship on architecture, design, and urbanism.
- MIT Press BITSOpen-access excerpts from major works from the MIT Press, including titles on architecture, game design, and information science.
- Directory of Open Access Journals - ArchitectureDOAJ is a community-curated online directory that indexes and provides access to open access, peer-reviewed journals.
- MIT Press Open Architecture and Urban Studies
A digital collection of classic and out-of-print architecture and urban studies books made open access by MIT Press. - The Avery ReviewThe Avery Review is a monthly online open-access journal produced by Columbia University that publishes essays on architecture and urbanism.
Digital Archives and Collections
- Archigram Archival ProjectAn academic project to make the highly influential design work of Archigram (1961-1974) available for free online.
- Arts & Architecture OnlineA website devoted to digitizing the influential Arts & Architecture magazine. A&A brought West Coast modernism into the mainstream from the 1940s-1960s. Note that Simpson Library also has print copies of A&A's complete run.
- DocomomoDocomomo is a non-profit organization dedicated to the documentation and conservation of buildings, sites and neighborhoods of the modern movement.
- Marcel Breuer Digital ArchiveThe Marcel Breuer Digital Archive represents a collaborative effort headed by Syracuse University Libraries to digitize over 70,000 drawings, photographs, letters and other materials related to the career of Marcel Breuer, one of the most influential architects and furniture designers of the twentieth century.
- Online Archive of CaliforniaDetailed descriptions of archival collections held in California libraries, museums, and archives, including the personal papers of many influential California architects.
Archives and Museums
- UC Berkeley Environmental Design ArchivesThe work of more than 200 historically significant San Francisco Bay Area architects and firms are represented in their collections. These include drawings, plans, specifications, photographs, audio-tapes, personal papers, business records, furniture, art, models, and artifacts.
- MAK Center for Art and ArchitectureLos Angeles-based museum and artist residency program located in the iconic Schindler-Chase House.
- Center for Architecture + DesignSan Francisco gallery focused on architecture, design, and urban planning.
- Architecture and the City FestivalSan Francisco's unique, annual festival of architecture and design, featuring lectures, tours, and exhibitions every September.
- SPURSan Francisco-based member-supported think tank focused on urban planning and advocacy.
- AIA Historical Directory of American ArchitectsA resource guide to finding information about past architects.
- Impact Design HubImpact Design Hub is an online resource for architects, designers, makers, and others committed to designing a better world.
- ArchitexxAn independent organization for women in architecture with interests in research, theory, and practice.
- The OWAThe Organization of Women Architects and Design Professionals ("the OWA") is a Bay Area non-profit professional organization.
- Chinese Architects: Profiles of Selected ArchitectsProfiles of firms and individual architects from or working in the People's Republic of China.
- AIA San FranciscoLocal chapter of the American Institute of Architects, the largest professional organization in the US.
