The compilation of this bibliography began as a project that was offered to me during my internship at the Library and Research Center (LCR) of The National Museum of Women in the Arts in the fall semester of 1995, in Washington DC. When I first started this work it was expected to become a reference paper to hand out to researchers that come to the library asking about lesbian artists. However, the amount of literature I found turned out to be much larger than I would ever have thought. By the very nature of a bibliography, the author is mainly confronted with the needs of the researcher. Starting with a limited knowledge of how to index and organize such an expanding compilation of cites, I hope that I found an acceptable way to help the researcher to find the required information. Trying to distribute the bibliography as a printed version, I came to the border of my limits. At that point it wasn't possible for me to fulfill the expectations of publishers in order to make it a marketable book. Since it was important to me to make this bibliography accessible to a wide public, I am grateful to be able to present it now through such a global media as the internet.

First of all I am in great debt to the staff of The Library and Research Center of the NMWA in Washington DC. Without their help this work wouldn't exist. I want to thank Krystyna Wasserman, director of the LCR, for her openness, great support and wonderful personality; Michelle Weber, Research Assistant, for her freindship, criticism, inspiration and especially for all the extra hours she spent proof reading; Leah Davis, Library Assistant, for her help with unfamiliar library systems -- and for encouraging conversations. I want to record my gratitude to Sharon Gomillian for letting me stay at her house during the time of my internship and for making my stay in the U.S. a real pleasure; Sharon Morris for helping me to find my way around Washington and Anja Janssen-Timmen for sharing her experiences of living in a foreign country. Back in Europe, I continued to look for additional sources. There, I found a great help in Cris Regn from the 'Künstlerinnenarchiv' in Hamburg/Germany, who made important material available for me to include in this work. Also I would like to thank Tamsin Wilton, a pioneer in the field of lesbian studies, for writing the introduction. And especially I am indebted to Tanya Powell, whose eagerness, enthusiasm and professional knowledge finally made it possible to present this bibliography here.

This bibliography is itself an introduction to publications in which lesbian studies overlap with art history and art theory. Let me, however, briefly introduce this list of books, articles, dissertations, theses, reference materials and online sources with a few points about why this bibliography is necessary and what its objectives are.

There is currently no reference book that focuses on lesbians and art. Other bibliographies that exist either include gay male artists primarily or treat lesbians within a wider range of disciplines. By contrast, this bibliography lists more than 180 artists who are either self-identified lesbians or individuals who have exerted a strong influence on the lesbian art scene. The value of research tools that focus on lesbians is stressed by Tamsin Wilton. "When academic books do not list 'lesbian' in their index, the importance of community-affirmative publications becomes immense." (Wilton, T., 1995, p.142). The project was offered to me because researchers frequently ask for sources on lesbians in the arts. Although the museum contains the largest archive about women artists in the world, most of the lesbians included were not identified as such. This is not very surprising; for a long time even feminist art historians refused to acknowledge the fact that, in addition to women artists, there are also lesbian artists. It is useful to recognise particular women artists as lesbian, however, so that we may explore the cultural imperatives that shape their artistic production. At the same time, it is necessary to create a methodology which expands the definition of "lesbian" to mean not simply a person but a cultural perspective.

The difficulties I encountered in compiling this work were mainly associated with the parameters of art -- whether I should include theatre performances, for instance, or comic strips. Another problem was determining whether particular women artists should be considered lesbians. The first problem was resolved by applying my own understanding of how art is defined. I tried to include a wide range of media that would still be accepted by art historians. I addressed the second point -- whether an artist is a lesbian -- by including only self-identified lesbians and artists who have influenced the lesbian art discourse through their work.

This bibliography is intended to provoke complex theoretical associations and facilitate further in-depth study. In compiling it, I was encouraged by the tangible presence of lesbian artists as well as by institutional and critical interest in their work. I believe the bibliography both asserts this presence and begins the task of creating a context for lesbian art within the larger framework of art, art history and art theory. I hope it will inspire others to pursue the study of lesbian art, increase critical interest in such work and encourage a broader acceptance of lesbian artists in museums, galleries and exhibitions.

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