APA Image Citation Rules [APA 7th Edition]

Last Updated on: 2nd February 2024, 03:03 am

These APA image citation rules apply to images and artwork such as a drawing, painting, photograph, chart, monograph, map, or diagram. Of course, any images that you create do not have to be cited.

Here are the current APA image citation rules, according to the 7th edition of the manual. 

APA Image Citation: Image From a Print Book

Whether you just refer to the artwork, or paraphrase or quote information from the book, you will need to provide the page number. 

In-text citation (paraphrase and quotation)

(Name of author, year, page number)

Example

(Godfrey, 2015, p. 43)

One of Richard Hamilton’s pop exhibitions, Man, Machine and Motion, was displayed at Harton Gallery in Newcastle, in 1955 (Hamilton, 2015, p. 43).

Reference list (one or more authors)

Author’s Last Name. First Initial. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.  

Example

Godfrey, M. (2015). Richard Hamilton (Tate modern, London: Exhibition catalogues). Tate. 

APA Image Citation for a Book With No Author

Often, artwork from a book or maps from an atlas will not have an author. Therefore, use the title of the book or atlas in place of the author. The title of the book should be in italics, and should be written in upper- and lowercase, and not in sentence format like it is written in the reference list. 

In-text citation 

(Title of book, year, page number)

Example

(Atlas of the World, 2019, p. 12)

The photograph of the Augustine Volcano in Alaska highlights its central dome and lava flow complex (Atlas of the World, 2019, p. 12).

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Reference list

Title of book/atlas. (Year). Publisher. 

Example

Atlas of the world. (2019). Oxford University Press. 

APA Image Citation: Images and Artwork Retrieved Online

Images or artwork found online have a slightly different format than those found in books. The APA’s image citation guidelines for these are as follows.

In-text citation

Because you will be referring only to the artwork itself, no page number is needed. 

(Artist’s Last Name, Year artwork was created)

Example

(Monet, 1917)

Claude Monet’s favorite flowers were irises, which he depicted in his masterpiece, Irises (Monet, 1917). 

Reference list

Artist’s Last Name. First Initial. (Year artwork was created). Title of the artwork [Format]. Title of the Website. URL 

Example

Note that you no longer have to write “Retrieved from” before the URL. 

Monet, C. (1917). Irises. [Oil on canvas]. The Met 150. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/438007

Citing an Image With no Author, Title, or Date

In-text citation

For the in-text citation for images with no author, use a few of your own words to describe the artwork, and for the date write “n.d.”

(Description of artwork, n.d.)

Example

(Drawing of blood flowing, n.d.)

High blood pressure decreases the blood low to the heart (Drawing of blood flowing, n.d.)

Reference list

Write the description of the artwork in square brackets.

[Subject and type of work]. (Date, if no date put n.d.). Name of website. URL

Example:

[Photograph of blood flowing through the arteries]. (n.d.). CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/about.htm

APA Image Citation: Artwork from a Museum 

The APA image citation guidelines for artwork from a museum that you visit or access from its online website can be used for all types of artwork, such as paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculptures.

In-text citation

There is only one type of in-text citation (for a paraphrase) because there will be no quotations to provide page numbers for when referring only to the artwork itself. 

Example

(van Gogh, 1888)

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Vincent van Gogh’s nocturne series include his iconic masterpiece Starry night over the rhone (van Gogh, 1888). 

Reference list

Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Date the artwork was created). Title of artwork [Type of media]. Name of museum, Location of museum. URL if accessed through a museum’s website. 

Example

Van Gogh. V. (1888). Starry night over the rhone [Painting]. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY.

Map from Google Maps

Maps from Google Maps do not have titles or dates, so you will need to write “Google,” and “n.d.”

In-text citation (paraphrase and quotation)

(Google, n.d.)

A map of Egyptian historical landmarks provides the sites of structures, such as the Pyramid of Djoser and the Red and Bent Pyramid (Google, n.d.).

Reference list

Google. (n.d.). [Name of description of map]. URL of map. 

Example

Google. (n.d.). [Egypt. Historical landmarks.]. https://www.google.com/maps/search/egypt+historical+places/@27.8858704,29.6546871,7z/data=!3m1!4b1

APA Image Citation Guidelines: Summary

If you need assistance with APA style or any other aspect of your dissertation, take a look at our Dissertation Editing and Dissertation Coaching services. Or feel free to book a free 30-minute consultation.

For more information on how to cite an image, refer to section 10.14, pages 346-347 in APA 7^th edition.