Getting Started
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Find Books and More using the FLO Catalog
- MassArt is part of the Fenway Libraries Consortium, a network of academic libraries in the Boston area. The collections of most of these libraries appear in the FLO Catalog, which lists over a million items.
- If you find a book in FLO that belongs to MassArt, note the book's call number and availability. The call number tells you where it is located in the stacks. (See our Map, which shows where the call number ranges are.)
- If it is an electronic resource or e-book, click on the title and then the MassArt link and login with your MassArt username and password if you are off campus. You can then access the full text of the book within Ebrary, our e-book database.
- If you find a book in FLO that belongs to a different library, you can go to that library and borrow the item yourself using your MassArt library barcode (located on the back of your ID).
- You can also order a book online by clicking on the link titled "Make a Request" in the upper right of the screen and then entering your barcode and last name. It generally takes 2 to 4 business days for a book to arrive and we will contact you when it is ready to be picked up. Please note that only books can be borrowed from other libraries; videos and magazines do not circulate.
- The MFA Library is the only non-lending library in the FLO Consortium. You have to go to the library in order to view its materials.
- Several of the Fenway libraries such as Simmons and UMASS Boston do not use the FLO catalog but lend to MassArt users. You must search their catalogs separately.
Didn't find it in FLO?
- If you can't find a book in FLO, you can search the Virtual Catalog, which lists the holdings of over 300 libraries across Massachusetts. Log in using your library barcode. You can request items online. Allow at least a week for the book to arrive.
- Check the Boston Public Library, one of the premier public library systems in the United States. With proof of Boston residence, MassArt users can obtain a library card and borrow items from BPL.
- You can also search in WorldCat, a vast database of of library catalogs in the US and abroad. Many books found in WorldCat can be requested via Interlibrary Loan. Books ordered through ILL can take up to two weeks to arrive at MassArt.
- With the exception of Harvard, most academic libraries around Greater Boston allow visitors to use their collections on site. If you can't wait for an interlibrary loan request to materialize, you can see if the item is available at and then go to MIT, BC, Tufts or any of the other nearby libraries with open-door policies.
- Feel free to ask at the reference desk about gaining access to materials. We are happy to search for you and to set up interlibrary loan requests.
Find Articles, Journals, and Electronic Resources
- To see if we have a particular journal or magazine online or in print, consult our A-Z List of Periodicals.
- Use our databases to find journal articles and more. You can view a list of our databases in Databases by Subject or Databases Alphabetically.
- If you are off campus, log in with the same username and password that you use for your MassArt email.
- If you find a citation to an article in a database but not the article itself, click the "Search for Full Text" or "SFX" link to see if the full text is in another database that MassArt subscribes to or if it is available in print in the periodicals section on the 13th floor of the library. If it is not accessible electronically or in print, you may submit an interlibrary loan request.
- Most of our databases consist of journal articles, but not all. Credo, for example, is composed of encyclopedia entries on many different subjects. Lynda.com offers software tutorials. Mango does the same but with foreign languages. Material ConneXion provides information on different physical materials that are used in design.
Find Digital Images
- ARTstor is a database with over a million high-resolution, zoomable images. MDID is our homegrown image repository and is heavily used by MassArt faculty. See our Digital Images guide for information on these and other resources.
Use our Research Guides
- The Library website has a collection of Research Guides. They list recommended books, databases, and websites on a variety of subject areas. If you have a suggestions for them, contact Greg Wallace at greg.wallace@massart.edu.