As the Art & Architecture Librarian, Alex Watkins works with students, faculty and researchers in the subject areas of Art & Art History, Cinema Studies, Critical Media Practices, and Anthropology.
Alex is available to answer research questions as well as to provide in-depth research consultations in the areas of art, film and anthropology. He teaches sessions on research skills, information evaluation, visual literacy, fair use for images, and Wikipedia editing; educators are invited to contact him to discuss how these concepts might be integrated into your class. He also teaches a one-credit online asynchronous course, Art History Research Methods, offered each fall and open to graduate and undergraduate students. Alex builds the library’s collection of books, journals, video and electronic resources for art, architecture and film housed in the Art & Architecture Collection, and welcomes your suggestions of potential purchases for the collection. Schedule a research consultation with Alex via the link above, or contact him directly via email for other requests and suggestions.
His research focuses on information and visual literacy education, including ethics in visual literacy, the research needs of creator students and innovative practices in teaching art research. Alex is the co-editor of the two volume series Creators in the Academic Library (2023), which brings together chapters on library services for creator students across disciplines. He also investigates equity and inclusion in scholarly discourse and library collections, notably as a co-collaborator in creating the Anti-Racist Collections Workbook. His professional service includes extensive involvement with the Art Libraries Society of North America, previously holding roles as chair of the Diversity & Inclusion Committee, Public Policy Committee, and Mountain West chapter.
Alex received a Bachelors of Arts degree in the History of Art and Anthropology from the University of California Berkeley, and holds Masters degrees in the History of Art & Design and Library & Information Science from Pratt Institute.