When I'm looking for something to peak my interest, or when I'm looking for a source of inspiration or cultural reference, I'm not usually starting with something in mind. I am old-fashioned in that I like to peruse information, to hover over an array or books or media, and to discover the ones that speak to me.
I don't usually have a name or period of time in mind, a specific place to search for; instead one topic often leads to another and the only thing I need is a catalyst .
Being most susceptible to visual imagery and photographs, I like to focus on image databases, but websites like Wikimedia or Pinterest have large masses of data with poor quality mixed with a few clear and useful images.
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Google Art & Cultures seems to be the database that fills this need. It is like the worlds largest online museum. The best part is that there are no fees and the quality of images are on par with scholarly detail. The background information attached to the images are useful and accurate and they make it easy to know where the originals are and who owns copyright on the images.
While the database is limited, it still covers a lot of obscure but important objects, individuals and moments in time, and most importantly it treats them fairly unbiased. I can 'shop' for ideas without feeling burdened by what category to choose.
1- Artworks and Artifacts- Objects Filter
A massive collection of highly detailed images of some of the most treasured artworks on earth, it is a collection of priceless artworks and relics that can be searched like an encyclopedia, or perused like a library.
Detail of Tibetan object: Pigment on Cloth (Rubin Museum of Art in New York)
2- Photographs: Time periods and people
Historical time periods are categorized, defined not by a historical description, but by photographs taken during those moments. Primary sources to what was witnessed, these collections show a stark and vital collage of mankind's strife and accomplishments.
1957 Apartheid Bus Boycotts of Alexandra, South Africa
3- Historical Events: History Filter
Not just limited to American relevance or focused on the western world, it provides history to more cultures and nations than I am familiar with.
Artistic movements are similarly presented, with an open format that avoids hierarchy or prominence to one over another.
Urartu–Assyria War relief carving: Time period
Cul Asia Mespot Assyria War Tiglath Pilerser, B C 745 (TIME Magazine).
4. Historical Figures and Artists
Short and concise biographies accompany images from multiple sources to present 'baseball cards' for influential figures in world history, or influential people in the world of the arts. A great way to view momentous icons of the past and relate them to ideas that might have represented them. From Civil rights activists to dictators, scientists well-know and obscure, it provides a useful database for the people that still have an impact on our lives today.
It is difficult to think or reflect on an artwork without taking into account the person who made it, and so to have a quick and easy way to find genuine and informative files of their artwork can be an indispensable tool.