The library's collections support the curriculum at CIA. In addition to an excellent print monograph collection, we have current magazine subscriptions to the key periodicals for our majors and several specialty collections such as graphic novels, pop up books, videos, and board games. The library has a large teaching collection of artists' books and other interesting items in our special collections. Your CIA ID serves as your library card and you must present it to borrow materials at our library and at our partner libraries.
The library is more than books! The library provides access to hundreds of thousands of full text journals and ebooks, hundreds of research databases, language learning resources, millions of images, streaming videos, and so much more. Off campus access to all of our digital resources is available, using your CIA username and password. We recommend starting your research with Quick Search, which searches all of our resources at once.
If you are interested in licensing streaming videos, beyond those in our collections, please contact the library director.
The library has two study rooms that students and employees can reserve for group study, collaborative work, meetings, or any time a space is needed during library hours. Priority for the use of these spaces is given to students and student groups.
The librarians are always willing to meet with faculty to discuss your research needs, to review library resources, or to discuss how we can help you with your work. Please schedule a meeting with a librarian today!
The best place to start searching our library is our Quick Search discovery service. This service will return search results from nearly all of our resources. If you need assistance with Quick Search, contact the library staff.
LIBRARY A to Z LIST
The library's special collections include a nationally recognized collection of artists' books, CIA's institutional archives, and rare books and portfolios.
If you would like to use items from our archives, artists’ books collection, or special collection materials for your class, contact the Library Director, Laura M. Ponikvar. The Library Director will work with you to create displays of library items, including special collections, artists' books, and archives items to support class topics. We currently have three display spaces in the library. In addition to displays, these items can be shown to classes in the library or in the classroom. Faculty interested in introducing primary source materials for artist research should schedule a visit to the archives with their class.
CIA faculty, staff, and students have full access to The Chronicle of Higher Education through the Chronicle's website. By creating a free account using a cia.edu or student.cia.edu email address, you have access to premium content anywhere in the world. To sign up for your CIA account, click on the “Log In” link at the upper right corner of the Chronicle site and follow the process to create your CIA sponsored account.
As a faculty member at CIA, you are eligible for borrowing or use privileges at the Jessica R. Gund Memorial library, as well as the libraries of our partners, Case Western Reserve University, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives.
We are a member of OhioLINK, offering our patrons access to a wealth of research databases, ebooks, and many other digital resources. OhioLINK also provides a statewide borrowing system for books and physical media. As a patron at an OhioLINK member institution, you can borrow circulating materials from other area libraries with your CIA ID.
Most of University Circle's cultural institutions also have libraries that you can typically make arrangements to use. Please contact each institution individually to inquire about access.
Finally, the area has some of the best public libraries in the nation. As a resident of Ohio, you are eligible for accounts at both Cleveland Public Library and Cuyahoga County Public Library, both of which have resources that will be useful to you at CIA.
If an item is not available through our local consortium catalog, please check the OhioLINK catalog, SearchOhio, and the Cleveland Public Library catalog before considering interlibrary loan. For help finding materials, please contact the library staff. Be prepared to provide as much information as possible, including author, title, publisher, date, and page numbers, as well as the location of the original citation. Please be aware that the owning library may charge a fee for lending a book or providing a photocopy. Submit questions or requests to the library staff here.