Chicago 17 Resource Center: Images

• Information about paintings, photographs, sculptures, or other works of art can usually be presented in the text rather than in a note or bibliography. [14.235]
• If you chose to incorporate images into the text of your paper, the image should appear as soon as possible after the first text reference to it. [3.8]
• Images should bear numbers, and all text references to them should be by the numbers (eg. “as figure 1 shows…”) The word “figure” should be lowercased and fully spelled out, unless in parenthetical references (where “fig” may be used). [3.9]
• Below the image, the caption will begin with “Figure” or “Fig.” followed by a number and period. (Eg. Figure 1.) [3.23]
• A caption may consist of a word or two, an incomplete or a complete sentence, several sentences, or a combination. [3.21]
• Within a caption, most titles (including those for paintings, drawings, photographs, statues, and books) will be capitalized and italicized. [3.22]
• A brief statement of the source of an illustration, known as a credit line, is usually appropriate and sometimes required by the owner of the illustration.[3.29]
• A credit line usually appears at the end of a caption, sometimes in parentheses. [3.30]
• In addition to author, title, publication details, and (occasionally) copyright date, the credit line should include any page or figure number. If the work being credited is listed in the bibliography or reference list, only a shortened form need appear in the credit line [3.32]
• Illustrations from works in the public domain may be reproduced without permission. For readers’ information, however, a credit line is appropriate. [3.35]

​​​​​​​Full Note: 

1. ArtistFirstName LastName, Title of Work in Italics, Date created/completed, medium, Location of work, URL.

Example:

1. Roy Lichtenstein, Drowning Girl, 1963, oil and synthetic on canvas, 67 5/8 x 66 3/4" (171.6 x 169.5 cm), Museum of Modern Art,

New York, https://www.moma.org/collection/works/80249. 

Subsequent Note: 

2. ArtistLastName, Title of Work.

Example:

2. Lichtenstein, Drowning Girl.

Bibliography:

ArtistLastName, FirstName. Title of Work in Italics. Date created/completed. Medium. Location of work. URL.

Example:

Lichtenstein, Roy, Drowning Girl, 1963. Oil and synthetic on canvas, 67 5/8 x 66 3/4" (171.6 x 169.5 cm). Museum of Modern Art, New York.  https://www.moma.org/collection/works/80249. 

Full Note: 

1. CreatorName or ScreenName, "Title of Image", digital image, WebsiteName, accessed Month Day, Year. URL.

Example:

1. KittyGirl, "Cats With a Book", digital image. Cat Shenanigans, accessed June 2, 2022. www.catfun/sunshine.org.

Subsequent Note: 

2. ArtistLastName, "Title of Work".

Example:

2. KittyGirl, "Cats With a Book".

Bibliography:

ArtistLastName, FirstName. "Title of Work". Digital Image. WebsiteTitle. Accessed Month Day, Year. URL.

Example:

KittyGirl. "Cats With a Book". Digital Image. Cat Shenanigans. Accessed June 2, 2022. www.catfun/sunshine.org.

SPECIAL NOTES

• If no title is available, use a description of the image in its place.
• Do not cite the search engine used to find the image, but follow the image link to the website where it is housed and cite that.
• Use Accessed (the date accessed) if there is no publication date available (this is common for clip art and online images. However, if there is a creation date, use that instead without "Accessed".