The University Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has contributed approximately 3,700 images from a variety of special collections to the Artstor Digital Library. The selection in Artstor includes material from the Rare Book & Manuscript Library that relates to a variety of fields, including Irish political history, and theater, as well as an array of plans, drawings and photographs of campus architecture and design.

A selection from the Collins Collection of Irish Political Cartoons presents the history of Ireland from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, a transitional period between British rule and Irish self-government, as seen through the eyes of cartoonists and published in The Weekly Freeman and National Press, United Ireland, and other sources.

Images from the Portraits of Actors collection, 1720-1920, feature studio portraits, actors in costume and in performance, including notable figures such as Sarah Siddons, Edmund Kean, John Philip Kemble, Edwin Booth, Ellen Terry, Charles Mathews, Dorothy Jordan, and Frances Abington.

Another valuable resource for the history of theater is the Motley Collection of Theatre and Costume Design, also represented in the Artstor selection. The Motley Group consisted of Margaret Harris, her sister Sophia Harris, and Elizabeth Montgomery. They designed sets and costumes from 1932 to 1976. Their designs were used in productions in the West End of London, the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, the English National Opera, and in Broadway theaters and the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

The University Library has also provided images from its Built Environment collection — drawings, plans and photographs related to the development of the campus.

Founded in 1867, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) is the oldest and largest campus in the University of Illinois system. Located in the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign, the University was one of the original 37 public land-grant institutions created after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Morrill Act in 1862. UIUC is a public research university.

The University Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign holds more than 14,000,000 volumes, with even greater numbers of items in varied formats. These collections form the bulk of I-Share, the statewide library online catalog.