The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th Edition
by
What is an annotation?
An annotation is a brief summary of a book, an article, or any other kind of publication (including audio-visual materials).
What is an annotated bibliography?
An annotated bibliography includes a short summary of a publication's content in addition to the complete citation. The summary is intended to inform the reader of the content, viewpoint, and relevance to the subject of the bibliography.
What information will help accomplish the intent of the annotation?
Summary Annotations:
A summary annotated entry is a brief explanation of what information is available in the source. It also describes the author and publisher, as well as any other relevant bibliographic data. That is all you need to include.
Evaluative Annotations:
1. State the qualification and viewpoint, if known, of the author. This helps to place the article in a framework of authority.
2. Explain the purpose and scope of the publication. You cannot hope to summarize the entire content, but you do want the reader to understand its subject matter. A more complete explanation is better saved for a narrative paper.
3. Indicate the author's audience and level of difficulty.
4. Point out any bias which you note.
5. Relate works to each other. Often there is the "thread" that binds your annotations into a meaningful commentary on the literature available on the subject.
6. Conclude with a summarizing statement. This is the step that synthesizes your reading of separate items into a coherent and cohesive project.
TIPS: Watch your tenses, Maintain the same tense throughout the bibliography. Use citation chaining as a fruitful source of possible entries (meaning look at the bibliography of one article to find other articles on the same topic. Weed out irrelevant items. Some work will be wasted. That's the process! Exercise initiative and search for the unusual if appropriate.
The following information is found in the Chicago Manual of Style (print), 17th edition 2017, paragraph 14.235, page 859. You can find the book in the reference section at Griffith Library on the University City Campus and at the Service Desk at Drexel Library on Hawk Hill Campus.
14.235 (page 859) Citing paintings, photographs and sculpture. Information about paintings, photographs, sculptures, or other works of art can usually be presented in the text rather than in a note or bibliography. If a note or bibliography entry is needed, list the artist, a title (in italics), and a date of creation or completion, followed by information about the medium and location of work. For works consulted online, add a URL.
Work of Art:
If you have viewed this work in person, cite as below.
Footnote:
1. Michelangelo Buonarroti, The Slave, 1513-15, marble, 2.09 m., Paris, The Louvre.
Bibliography:
Buonarroti, Michelangelo. The Slave, 1513-15. Marble, 2.09 m. Paris, The Louvre.
Dior, Christian. May, 1953. Silk, Length at CB ((a) to waist): 5 3/4 in. (14.6 cm) Length at CB (b):
45 1/2 in. (115.6 cm) New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art.
If you find an image of the work of art in a website, book, article, use the format below.
Delaroche, Paul. "Portrait of a Woman," 1829. Pastel drawing, 10 by 12 in. (Ackland Art Museum,
Chapel Hill, NC). In European Drawings from the Collection of the Ackland Art Museum, by
Carol C. Gillham and Carolyn H. Wood. Chapel Hill: The Museum, University of North Carolina,
2001, page 93.
Art Found on the Web:
Dior, Christian. May, 1953. Silk, Length at CB ((a) to waist): 5 3/4 in. (14.6 cm) Length at CB (b): 45 1/2
in. (115.6 cm) New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art.
http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/80002249.
Art Found in an Article:
Abdel Hadi Al-Gazzar, Un Djinn Amoureux, 1953. Gouache and india ink on paper, 53 by 28 centimeters.
Alexandria, Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts. "Exceeding Realism: Utopian Modern Art on
the Nile and Abdel Hadi Al-Gazzar's Surrealistic Drawings." South Atlantic Quarterly 109, no. 3
(Summer 2010): 585, Figure 1.