LibGuides: Creative Commons, Public Domain, Fair Use & Open Access Content for Faculty: Introduction

Creative Commons Content

Creative Commons licenses vary, so double check to make sure your use is fair use. This info is frequently at the item level, or under the about or terms of use of the site. At the very least you should be label to provide links to the content.

Creative Commons Search
Flickr Creative Commons
Google Image Search
Enter your term to search (use quotes around a phrase), then go to Tools below the search bar> Usage Rights and select Creative Commons Licenses
LUNA Commons
Wikimedia Commons

Fair Use Content

Rights and Terms of use can vary from item to item and may include some in the public domain or copyrighted. This info is frequently at the item level, or under the about or terms of use of the site. At the very least you should be able to provide links to the content.

ARTSTOR Public Collections
Europeana
Flickr Commons
Google Arts & Culture
Internet Archive
JSTOR Images (for subscribing institutions)
Just select the image tab and enter your search term to get started.
The images in Artstor are curated from reliable sources and have been rights-cleared for use in education and research — you are free to use them in classroom instruction and handouts, presentations, student assignments, and other noncommercial educational and scholarly activities.
Library of Congress
NASA
Smithsonian

Public Domain Content

Public domain content can be freely used. No permission required.

Open Access Content

These top Open Access content providers, also available from our A-Z Databases: Open Access page, may have a mix of copyrighted, fair use, creative commons and public domain content. At the very least you should be label to provide links to the content.