All Things Visual: The University of Chicago Visual Resources Center

ARTstor recently added a feature to save searches within the  ARTstor Digital Library. The theory behind this feature is that with ARTstor’s growing collections of content, it’s highly likely that additional results for your search parameters will become available in the future. By saving your search, you can quickly get an updated pool of results when you run it again.

In order to use this feature, you must be logged into your ARTstor account.  For more information on creating an ARTstor account, click here. ARTstor describes how to save your searches:

After you perform a search, you will see an option to Save this search in the upper right of the thumbnail page of search results. Click on it, then click Save and enter a name for your saved search. You can save up to 30 searches.

To run a saved search record, click My saved searches near the search box on the front page of the Digital Library or on a search results page.

Done with a particular saved search? To delete it, click on My saved searches, then click on the X next to the search you want to delete. You’ll see a prompt asking if you want to delete it; click Yes and you’re finished.

Via ARTstor Blog

Good news for ARTstor image users! ARTstor has eliminated the need for the Java plugin to download images from their digital library. ARTstor writes:

After our update, users who download single image files will receive a zip file that contains a JPEG image and an HTML file with the associated metadata. In addition to removing the need for Java, using zip will allow ARTstor to pursue other feature enhancements, such as additional options for image group downloads.

Mac users should have a problem, but PC users might have to install software to unzip the image folder. ARTstor suggests using 7Zip if you’re one of the affected users. Please feel free to contact the VRC if you’re having any issues downloading images from ARTstor.

Via ARTstor Blog

The VRC is now holding office hours from 3-5pm on Mondays and Thursdays! VRC staff will be available during these hours for you to drop by with your questions about finding and using images in your research or the VRC’s scanning equipment.

In addition to these office hours, we are available for both drops in and scheduled appointments during our regular business hours of 8:30a–5p Monday through Friday.

Image: Hyde Park, 57th Street Art Fair, 1950. University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf2-09219, Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Did you know that you can export citations from ARTstor and import then into EndNote’s desktop citation management software? You can!

If you don’t already have EndNote desktop, you can download a trial license or purchase it through University of Chicago’s IT Services Solution Center at a discounted prince.

After you’ve installed EndNote and created a new citation library, you’ll need to download the ARTstor filter from  in order to install it in EndNote. Once the filter is installed, open the image group that you’d like to cite, and then go to Tools > Save citations for image group.

Next, go to Tools > View and Export Citations. Under Export Options, select “Directly Export Citations into EndNote.” At this point, you can choose to export all of the citations from the image group or make a selection. Click Go.

A small window will open asking whether you would like to save or open the file. Click Open. This will launch EndNote.

EndNote will ask if you want to save the citations to an existing library or create a new one. Select your choice. Another window will open, asking you to choose a filter—select the ARTstor filter you just installed so that the metadata from ARTstor will fall into the right fields in EndNote’s program. Your EndNote library will open with the newly imported citations.

You can add thumbnail images to EndNote records: After you’ve exported images from ARTstor, open a citation record, and click on the symbol for Charts to upload the image file. (If you attach the image file to the PDF section of the record, the file will be saved with the record but no thumbnail will appear).

For more information, visit the ARTstor page on Citing Images. If we can help with anything, or if you have any questions about managing image citations, please don’t hesitate to contact the VRC!

Welcome back students and faculty! To start the new school year off right, our iPad 2 is now set up in the VRC. We hope you’ll come check it out in CWAC 257.

We’ve installed a lot of great apps about art and images that have been featured on our blog and Facebook page and other programs that are useful for art historians, including Keynote. There’s also quick links to LUNA, Chalk, and ARTstor.

We also installed a great app called Flipboard, which we’ve set to display RSS feeds from other blogs pertaining to art, culture, and museums. Flipboard takes these feeds and displays them like a magazine [see screenshot above], making it easy to catch up on the latest news and research.

There’s also a wireless keyboard to go with the iPad, so you can easily check your email, look up campus events, or catch up on the news.

And, as always, the VRC’s iPad 2 can be reserved to teach and present in CWAC.

We look forward to seeing you!

VRC staff members know that our faculty and students have subject expertise and can provide excellent additions to our image data. We want your contributions, and it’s easy to notify us! You can automatically generate a link to individual images or entire search results in LUNA. This function may be used to share images with VRC staff when corrections or updates are needed. Find the image or images you would like to share with VRC staff, click on the “Share This” tab, and copy the link into an email.

Please direct all image updates to visualresources@uchicago.edu.

The VRC has a a new and improved coffee station just in time for finals! Our new Keurig coffee maker brews individual cups of coffee or tea on command. Bring your own mug, then choose your own blend or flavor. Suggested donation: 50 cents per cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate; 25 cents per cookie or treat. Stop in, try it, and let us know what you think!

The VRC will close at 2pm on Wednesday, November 24th and will remain closed through the end of the week for the Thanksgiving holiday. Happy Thanksgiving!

The Visual Resources Center’s website, All Things Visual, is now mobile-friendly! Try viewing our site from an iPhone or iPod Touch and you’ll find it’s easy to read and navigate.

. . . make a PowerPoint presentation?

. . . create a high-quality digital image?

. . . find works of art in the VRC Collection?

. . . export a detail from Luna Insight?

. . . share a group of images in ARTstor?

The VRC can help you with all things related to digital imaging. Contact us to set up an appointment.