This page will help you get more out of your Library resources for your assignments, projects and dissertations in Interior Architecture & Design.

Research independently

The resources listed here will help you to make a good start with your research.

Search for a wide range of sources including e-books, articles, reports and images.

Useful for getting a basic understanding of your topic.

  • Credo Reference

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Explore Credo for trusted reference sources like dictionaries - a great alternative to Wikipedia! 

    Watch these short videos to get started:

    1. Search tips
    2. Using the automated mind map
  • Oxford Art Online

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    A virtual reference resource relating to all aspects of the visual arts. It includes links to images and other useful features such as history of art timelines.

  • Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    The national record of over 60,000 biographies, 72 million words, 11,000 portraits of significant, influential or notorious figures who shaped British history and culture, worldwide, from the Romans to the 21st century - extremely useful for detailed biographies about literary figures.

  • Oxford English Dictionary Online

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    The most trusted source about words in English, containing definitions, plus very detailed word histories.

You can find ebooks on Discovery, but you can search the full text of the books by using the individual services. 

  • Bloomsbury Visual Arts

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    An ebook collection covering animation, game development, fashion & textiles, design & illustration, photography, architecture & interiors and more. Explore key topics as well as search and browse books.  Additional features include an interactive world map of architecture, time-line and images of key buildings and museum objects.

  • Construction Information Service

    Up-to-date technical information for the architecture and construction industries, including building regulations, standards, advice notes reports, books and articles.

  • Ebook Central

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Access around 200,000 ebooks across all subject areas.

Searching beyond the basics

This section lists resources for specific purposes.

Find journal and magazine articles. These include up-to-date publications.

  • Art and Architecture Complete

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Use this resource to search for journal articles, e-books and images. All visual arts subjects are included. Links to the full text are provided, where available.

  • British Architectural Library Catalogue

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    The Royal Institute of British Architects Library catalogue can be used to find what journal articles and books have been published on your subject.

  • Detail Inspiration

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Detail Inspiration is an image and reference database with more than 3000 projects from the last 30 years of DETAIL Magazine (UK and German editions and Detail Green). Each project is accompanied by DETAIL project documents, which can be downloaded as PDFs. Please note that off campus access is via VPN only.

  • Greenfile

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    GreenFILE covers research information on all aspects of human impact to the environment. Its collection of scholarly, government and general-interest titles includes content on the environmental effects of individuals, corporations and local/national governments, and what can be done at each level to minimize these effects. This is a multidisciplinary resource and topics include global climate change, green building, pollution, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, recycling, and more. 

  • Science Direct

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Access 1000s of Elsvier articles and book chapters from our subscribed content on scientific, technical, and medical research.

Find (mostly) non-current, full-text, journal and magazine articles.

  • 19th Century UK Periodicals

    A collection covering the growth of readership, including magazines for women, children and leisure interests.

  • Art and Architecture Archive

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Includes archival full text access to magazines including Architects' Journal (1929 - 2005), Architectural Review (1896 - 2005), Art Monthly (1976 - 2005), British Journal of Photography (1860 - 2005) and Eye: International Review of Graphic Design (1990 - 2005).

  • Country Life Archive

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    A comprehensive archive (1897 to 2005) of the weekly British culture and lifestyle magazine, Country Life, focusing on fine art and architecture, the great country houses, and rural living.

  • JSTOR

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Provides access to more than 12 million journal articles, books, images, reports and primary sources in 75 disciplines.
    Watch this video for great tips.

Includes resources you may use in practice.

  • Construction Information Service

    Up-to-date technical information for the architecture and construction industries, including building regulations, standards, advice notes reports, books and articles.

  • Digimap

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Digimap is a collection of EDINA services that deliver maps and map data of Great Britain. We subscribe to the complete collection which provides access to modern and historic Ordnance Survey mapping, geological mapping, aerial photography, Lidar data, demographic data and more.

  • Material District

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    'Join Now' to access full details of this website of innovative materials.

  • Product Selector Plus

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Access building product information online. This database provides access to resources such as catalogues and technical summaries.

  • Nexis Uni

    Full text articles from many news sources and trade journals both UK and international. Archives sometimes stretching back to the mid 1980s. For use in the UK only.

  • PressReader

    PressReader lets you access UK and international newspapers, plus a wide range of magazine content. Everything is full colour with archives varying in length depending on the publication.

    Login guidance

  • British Library Newspapers

    Search and read a wide range of national and regional newspapers from 1741-1950.

    Watch this short video to get a quick overview (we have parts 1 - 5).

  • Daily Mail Historical Archive, 1896-2016

    Use with care as this tabloid is known for its strong views but it can help with some assignments and certain dissertation topics. Search for stories or use the browse feature to flick through the paper on particular days, including special editions published in connection with Queen Victoria, George V, Elizabeth II's coronation and Winston Churchill. Use Nexis if you want to go beyond 2016.

  • The Guardian and Observer Archives

    Access stories and photos from The Guardian (1821-2003) and The Observer (1791-2003). Use Nexis if you want to search up to the current day.

  • Illustrated London News Historical Archive 1842-2003

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    The world's first illustrated weekly newspaper containing useful background for Victorian topics in particular.

  • Mirror historical archive 1903-2000

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Founded in 1903, the Mirror plays a pivotal role in the history of journalism. Peaking in 1967, with a daily circulation of 5.25 million, the newspaper has had a history full of highs and lows. Today, it is the only mainstream left-wing tabloid remaining in the UK. Gale's Mirror Historical Archive, 1903-2000 features more than 800,000 pages of brand-new, full text searchable, scans of the complete run of the Mirror from 1903-2000, including the Sunday Mirror.

  • The Times: Digital Archive 1785-2019

    Search over 200 years of articles. Articles are full facsimiles of what was published on the day and you can view the article in its original page location if you want.

    Watch this video showing you how to make the most of the features available.

Find primary sources including documents and images.

  • Archives of Sexuality and Gender: LGBTQ History and Culture Since 1940

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Explore 20 collections of documents, including minutes of meetings and conferences, press releases, fliers, brochures, press clippings, US government memoranda and reports, private correspondence, surveys and photos.

    Watch this quick introduction to the archive - please note we only subscribe to Part 1 which contains British material as well as coverage from North America.

  • Disability in the Modern World

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Disability in the Modern World: History of a Social Movement encompasses an international set of resources to enrich study in a wide range of disciplines from media studies to philosophy.

  • History of Feminism

    This resource covers the fascinating subject of feminism over the long nineteenth century (1776-1928). It contains an extensive range of primary and secondary resources, including photographs and illustrations.

  • London Low Life: Street Culture, Social Reform and the Victorian Underworld

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Access a range of primary and secondary sources covering London from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. As well as documents, you will find interactive maps, illustrations and photographs to really bring the streets to life.

  • Mass Observation Online

    A key source about daily life in the 20th century. You can look at topic collections (1938-65) on juvenile delinquency, holidays, leisure, industry etc., or view diary entries (1939-51) and day surveys. File reports (1937-1972) cover subjects such as propaganda, morale, popular culture, food, shopping, sex, fashion and much more.

    Watch this 90 second video to find out about the interactive chronology you can access within Mass Observation.

  • Popular Culture in Britain and America: 1950-1975

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Explore documents, fanzines, photos and newsreel footage to help understand these key decades when consumer culture and pop music took off and protest movements were big news.

  • Victorian Popular Culture

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    An essential resource for the study of popular entertainment in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries containing everything from full-text books, to posters and performance tickets.

    Watch this 90 second video about how to store items for later use.

Find more resources from the Visual Culture subject page.

  • Archigram

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Online access to the work of this seminal group of architects.

  • Artstor

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    A database of almost 3 million images related to visual arts and culture. You can create, save and share groups of images and make presentations too. If you want to search for academic articles and images simultaneously, follow the link via the "J" JSTOR icon to the top left of the page.

  • Detail Inspiration

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Detail Inspiration is an image and reference database with more than 3000 projects from the last 30 years of DETAIL Magazine (UK and German editions and Detail Green). Each project is accompanied by DETAIL project documents, which can be downloaded as PDFs. Please note that off campus access is via VPN only.

  • Digimap

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Digimap is a collection of EDINA services that deliver maps and map data of Great Britain. We subscribe to the complete collection which provides access to modern and historic Ordnance Survey mapping, geological mapping, aerial photography, Lidar data, demographic data and more.

  • Historic England Archive

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Includes, photographs and drawings of England's archaeology, historic buildings and social history.

  • Museum of the Home

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Creating exhibitions, events, collaborations, research and debates on the meaning of home.

  • Environment Complete

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Online image collections from the RIBA and, therefore, focus on architecture and interior design. Images are watermarked, but they are of good quality and can be used for educational purposes.

  • Victoria and Albert Museum Collections

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Search millions of objects in the V&A collections.

Documentaries, films and radio broadcasts.

  • Bloomsbury video library

    Not fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Formerly known as ArtFilms, this resource brings together award-winning, international film and videos across a wide range of interdisciplinary subjects including visual arts, architecture, music, film, dance, history and culture.

  • BoB: On demand TV and radio for education

    An archive of UK television and radio programmes from free to air channels (1998 onwards). For use in the UK only. Find some great tips about how to use BoB in these short videos.

  • British Library Sounds

    Fully searchable in EBSCO Discovery

    Sound recordings from all over the world, covering the entire range of recorded sound: music, drama and literature, oral history, wildlife and environmental sounds.

  • Kanopy

    A unique collections of films including award-winning documentaries, training films and theatrical releases on every topic imaginable. Content can be searched or browsed.