# Artwork Search: Art Institute of Chicago Collection (`smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks`) Actor

Search the Art Institute of Chicago's public collection by keyword. Returns title, artist, date, medium, place of origin, department, public-domain status, artwork page and IIIF image URL. Filter to public-domain works only. Free official API, no key.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks.md
- **Developed by:** [돈벼락](https://apify.com/smilemask) (community)
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $1.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Artwork Search: Art Institute of Chicago Collection

Search the Art Institute of Chicago's public collection by keyword. Returns title, artist, date, medium, place of origin, department, public-domain status, artwork page and IIIF image URL. Filter to public-domain works only. Free official API, no key.

### What does Artwork Search do?

Search 100,000+ artworks: artist, date, medium, origin, department, public-domain flag and image link.

### What can you use it for?

- Collect public-domain images for design and education projects.
- Research an artist's works held by a major museum.
- Build art datasets and moodboards.
- Enrich cultural-heritage catalogues.

### Why use this Actor?

- **Fast and cheap:** lightweight HTTP-based Actor with no browser, so runs finish in seconds and cost very little.
- **No API keys or accounts needed** for the data source (see notes below).
- **Clean, structured JSON** that you can export as CSV, Excel, JSON or XML, or pull through the Apify API and integrations.
- **Scheduling, webhooks and integrations:** run it daily and send results to Google Sheets, Slack, Zapier, Make, n8n or your own API.

### Input

Configure the run in the **Input** tab (all fields have sensible defaults).

| Field | Type | Required | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| `query` | string | yes | - | Artist, title or subject, e.g. monet, water lilies, samurai. |
| `publicDomainOnly` | boolean | no | `false` | Return only works flagged as public domain. |
| `maxResults` | integer | no | `50` | Maximum number of results. |

#### Example input

```json
{
  "query": "monet",
  "maxResults": 50
}
```

### Output

Results are stored in the default dataset. Download them from the **Output** tab or via the API.

#### Example result

```json
{
  "id": 16568,
  "title": "Water Lilies",
  "artist": "Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926)",
  "date": "1906",
  "medium": "Oil on canvas",
  "placeOfOrigin": "France",
  "department": "Painting and Sculpture of Europe",
  "classification": "oil on canvas",
  "dimensions": "89.9 × 94.1 cm (35 3/8 × 37 1/16 in.); Framed: 103.2 × 107 × 5.8 cm (40 5/8 × 42 1/8 × 2 1/4 in.)",
  "isPublicDomain": true,
  "imageUrl": "https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/3c27b499-af56-f0d5-93b5-a7f2f1ad5813/full/843,/0/default.jpg",
  "url": "https://www.artic.edu/artworks/16568",
  "scrapedAt": "2026-09-27T05:45:21.609Z"
}
```

#### Output fields

| Field | Type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| `id` | number | 16568 |
| `title` | string | "Water Lilies" |
| `artist` | string | "Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926)" |
| `date` | string | "1906" |
| `medium` | string | "Oil on canvas" |
| `placeOfOrigin` | string | "France" |
| `department` | string | "Painting and Sculpture of Europe" |
| `classification` | string | "oil on canvas" |
| `dimensions` | string | "89.9 × 94.1 cm (35 3/8 × 37 1/16 in.); Framed: 103.2 × 1... |
| `isPublicDomain` | boolean | true |
| `imageUrl` | string | "https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/3c27b499-af56-f0d5-93b5-a7f... |
| `url` | string | "https://www.artic.edu/artworks/16568" |
| `scrapedAt` | string | "2026-09-27T05:45:21.609Z" |

### How much does it cost?

The Actor is billed by Apify according to the pricing shown on the **Pricing** tab of this page. Runs are small and fast, and the Apify Free plan includes monthly platform credits so you can try it at no cost. You can set a maximum cost per run, and the Actor stops cleanly when that limit is reached.

### Notes and limitations

- Images may be used freely only when the public-domain flag is true; check the museum's terms for the rest.

### Tips

- Start with a small test run, then scale up the input.
- Use **Schedules** to automate recurring runs and **Webhooks** or **Integrations** to deliver the data where you need it.
- Call the Actor from your code with the Apify API or the official JavaScript and Python clients.

### FAQ

**Can I filter to free-to-use images?**

Yes, enable Public-domain only.

### Feedback

Found a bug or need an extra field? Open an issue from the **Issues** tab of this Actor and it will be looked at quickly.

### More tools from the same author

- [Project Gutenberg Book Search: Free eBooks with EPUB Links](https://apify.com/SmileMask/gutenberg-book-search) - Search 70,000+ public-domain eBooks: authors, subjects, languages, download counts and EPUB/text links.
- [Internet Archive Search: Books, Audio, Video & Software](https://apify.com/SmileMask/internet-archive-search) - Search archive.org collections: books, audio, video, images and software with downloads and links.
- [Wikidata Entity Search: Find QIDs, Labels & Descriptions](https://apify.com/SmileMask/wikidata-entity-search) - Search Wikidata for people, companies, places and concepts: QID, label, description and link.

# Changelog

This Actor's version history is a separate document: https://apify.com/smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks/changelog.md

# Actor input Schema

## `query` (type: `string`):

Artist, title or subject, e.g. monet, water lilies, samurai.

## `publicDomainOnly` (type: `boolean`):

Return only works flagged as public domain.

## `maxResults` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of results.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "query": "monet",
  "publicDomainOnly": false,
  "maxResults": 50
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "query": "monet",
    "maxResults": 50
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "query": "monet",
    "maxResults": 50,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "query": "monet",
  "maxResults": 50
}' |
apify call smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,smilemask/art-institute-chicago-artworks"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/4ccVODtnujHwZz0CV/builds/H5fVCAxJawf8vdKeu/openapi.json