On this page
Updated . Example details checked against Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin.
The MLA format
Pattern
Last name, First name. Title of Artwork. Year, Museum, City.
- Title in italics.
- Year the work was made, right after the title.
- Museum and city where it is held.
- Medium can close the entry: Oil on canvas.
A real example
Works Cited entry
Kahlo, Frida. Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird. 1940, Harry Ransom Center, Austin.
In-text citation
(Kahlo)
When details are missing
- Seen online: add the website in italics and the URL as a second container.
- Untitled works: describe the work without italics: Untitled painting of a harbor.
- No date: leave it out. An approximate date takes “circa” abbreviated: c. 1890.
- Unknown artist: start with the title.
Common mistakes
- The title in quotation marks. Artworks are standalone: italics.
- The museum as author. The artist leads.
- No city. Add the city when the museum’s name does not include it.
Or let Format do it.
Choose Artwork or image and fill in the artist, title, year, medium, museum and city. Format writes the Works Cited entry and the in-text citation in MLA 9, exactly as shown above, and builds the Works Cited page when you export to Word or PDF. MLA and APA are free.
Questions
A photo of the art in a book?
Cite the artwork, then the book as a second container with its page or plate.
Do I need the medium?
It is optional in MLA 9. Add it when it matters to your paper.
Sculptures and photographs?
The same pattern: artist, title in italics, year, collection, city.
More citation guides
Similar sources in MLA
Every source kind is on the MLA page, and every style is on How to cite.