bibliottHow to Cite a Image in MLA 9th edition
Format, in-text rule, and a copy-paste example for images in MLA. Citing a photograph, painting, illustration, or other still image.
MLA format for images
Creator Last, First. Title of Work. Year, Medium, Source/Location.
Van Gogh, Vincent. The Starry Night. 1889, oil on canvas, Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Pro tip
For online versions, add the URL and access date as the final container.
Information you need
Before generating your MLA citation, gather these details from the image:
Creator
Year created
Title or description
Format / medium
Source (museum, repository, URL)
Common mistakes to avoid
✗Forgetting to include the medium (oil on canvas, digital photograph, etc.)
✗Citing the host site instead of the original source
✗Missing dimensions for academic art-history papers
Other MLA guides
Frequently asked questions
For a image in MLA, you'll need: Creator, Year created, Title or description, Format / medium, Source (museum, repository, URL). bibliott auto-detects most of these from a URL or DOI.
Forgetting to include the medium (oil on canvas, digital photograph, etc.)
Yes — the example follows the official MLA 9th edition format. Replace the author, title, year and other fields with your source's data, or use the bibliott generator to do it automatically.