F e l l o w s h i p F i n a l R e p o r t

UNESCO Fellowship Program in Support of Program Priorities (2010-2011)

Research on Design from a Cultural Heritage Management Perspective

Supervisor: Gregory P. J. Most, Chief, Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art

Research Fellow: Rae’ut E. Stern

November 2011

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A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s

I would like to thank the UNESCO Fellowship Programme Section for their generous support of this research.

Special gratitude goes to Gregory P. J. Most, the National Gallery of Art and Peggy Pearlstein, the Library of

Congress, for hosting my research and providing useful guidance and advice.

Additional supporters I would like to acknowledge include:

Daniel Bar-Elli, Secretary-General, Israel National Commission for UNESCO

Ann Brener, Hebraic Section at the Library of Congress

Elaine J. Rigas

Boaz Shilo

Ben, Elia and Yaniv Stern

For their kind contribution to the research, I would like to express my gratitude to the individuals who agreed to

share their time and thoughts. Each and every interview provided interesting and useful information.

Arden Alexander Library of Congress John Mahar Library of Congress

Katherine Arrington Library of Congress Adam Metallo Smithsonian Institution

Julie Blake National Gallery of Art Michael Neubert Library of Congress

Sandy Bostian World Digital Library Ford Peatross Library of Congress

Karen Cassedy National Gallery of Art Michelle Rago World Digital Library

Elizabeth Concha National Gallery of Art Herb Rosenbleeth National Museum of American Jewish Military History

Verna Curtis Library of Congress

Peter Dueker National Gallery of Art Vince Rossi Smithsonian Institution

Susan Finkel National Gallery of Art Gail Shirazi Library of Congress

Kenneth N.Fleisher National Gallery of Art Jason Steinhauer Library of Congress

Nahid Gerstein Library of Congress John Tsantes Smithsonian Institution

John Gordy National Gallery of Art Stephen Van Dyk Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum

Cory Grace Smithsonian Institution John Van Oudenaren World Digital Library

Nancy Hartman United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Mary Westly National Museum of American Jewish Military History

Yasmeen Kahn Library of Congress

Erik Landsberg Museum of Modern Art Lindsay Zarwell United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Michael Levy United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Alison Zhang World Digital Library

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C o n t e n t s

P r e f a c e ...................................................................................................................................................... 3

R e s e a r c h O b j e c t i v e s ................................................................................................................ 4

R e s e a r c h A c t i v i t i e s .............................................................................................................................. 4

F i n d i n g s ..................................................................................................................................................... 7

Project Design & Management ................................................................................................................ 8

Establishing Project Mission, Goals and Boundaries ............................................................................ 8

Setting the Pace .................................................................................................................................. 10

Building Alliances ................................................................................................................................ 12

Striving to Offer Value ......................................................................................................................... 20

Curatorial Processes ............................................................................................................................... 22

Technical Recommendations ................................................................................................................. 31

Digitization .......................................................................................................................................... 31

Photography ................................................................................................................................................... 33

Scanning ......................................................................................................................................................... 36

Colour Management ....................................................................................................................................... 38

Three-Dimensional Digitization ........................................................................................................... 40

Digitization Workflow and Digital Asset Management ....................................................................... 47

Cataloguing Digital Content ................................................................................................................ 49

Digital Rights Management ................................................................................................................. 54

Information Preservation and Migration ............................................................................................ 57

Work Force Development ................................................................................................................... 60

Public Outreach and Audience Engagement ......................................................................................... 63

Unidirectional Information Dissemination ......................................................................................... 65

Bidirectional Communication and Participatory Interaction ............................................................. 67

Conclusions ................................................................................................................................................. 72

Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 74

List of Website references .......................................................................................................................... 78

Appendix A .................................................................................................................................................. 85

Appendix B .................................................................................................................................................. 88

Cover: Detail of Sjoerd Hofstra, All Meadows, 2005 Presented at the Rare books and special collections Reading Room, Library of Congress

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P r e f a c e

In January 2011 I embarked on a four month fellowship, generously provided by the

UNESCO Program in Support of Program Priorities (2010-2011). The purpose of the

fellowship was intended as supplementary to the research activities of the Memory of the

World Initiative at Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, aimed at establishing a digital library

for design, art and architecture in Israel. For that reason, the fellowship took place in

Washington D.C., at the National Gallery of Art (NGA) and Library of Congress (LC).

The fellowship has proven to be an intense and unique professional experience. This is due

to the ongoing efforts of Gregory P. J. Most, Chief of the Department of Image Collection at

the National Gallery of Art, and Peggy Pearlstein, Head of the Hebraic Section at the Library

of Congress. Both provided continual, attentive and insightful support of my research. They

also introduced me to experts and enabled me to witness activities that I would not have

had access to otherwise.

The opportunity of meeting some of the leading experts in the field of cultural heritage

preservation provided me with both valuable information and with important contacts for

future consultation and knowledge exchange. Each and every encounter provided relevant

information and interesting recommendations.

True to its reputation, Washington D.C is a cultural hub offering continual opportunities to

observe how cultural heritage is presented to different audiences, and experienced by

them. In addition, the city’s large museum community offered me events and educational

meetings I could not have attended without the fellowship.

All of the above have contributed to the success of my fellowship research. The information

accumulated during the fellowship was vast, varied and could not have been attained

otherwise. In the months that have passed since my return to Israel, I witness daily how the

fellowship has contributed to my knowledge and understanding of the challenges posed by

digital libraries of visual content. My ability to plan and promote the establishment of the

digital library has increased considerably with the ability to analyze and foresee the

implications of various decisions within a larger, international perspective.

This document is a final report of the fellowship. As the purpose of the fellowship research

was to acquire applicable knowledge about the actual elements of building a digital library,

the fellowship was not designed as a rigid procedure but rather as an ongoing opportunity

to acquire firsthand advice and examples in lieu with the research objectives. Accordingly,

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the purpose of this document is not to offer a revision of the available literature but rather

compile the experience, knowledge and insights that were shared by the experts

interviewed, alongside specific examples collected from the observations and literature.

1 . R e s e a r c h O b j e c t i v e s

The goals set for fellowship research were derived from the conclusions of the first stage of

the Bezalel research and focused on learning from the vast experience of leading

institutions in the field. Specifically, Washington DC was chosen as it is home to some of the

largest and most comprehensive cultural heritage institutions in the world.

The field of study was defined as Research on Design from a Cultural Heritage Management

Perspective. The particular areas in which knowledge was to be gained included two

different perspectives:

The role of the digital library as a cultural resource, corresponding with current and

future research needs.

The technical aspects of establishing and managing a digital library as a form of

cultural heritage management. This includes process management in digital

libraries and the strategic aspects of creating a useful and active premium data

base.

2 . R e s e a r c h A c t i v i t i e s

In order to make the best use of the limited time and available resources, several research

methods were implemented with the guidance of the supervisors at both institutes. These

methods were chosen for their potential in serving the applied nature of the research and

due to their ability to ensure exposure to many aspects of the research objectives. The

research methods were as follows:

2.1. Interviews

An initial list of 23 subject-matter experts was compiled according to supervisors’

recommendations. The experts were contacted to request a meeting and interview and

all but five responded positively. A follow-up meeting was scheduled with several of the

experts to discuss additional topics or gain a deeper understanding of a certain topic.

During the interviews additional recommendations were collected and all together 48

meetings were conducted with 36 experts during the fellowship.

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Interview duration ranged between 45 minutes to 3 hours, and averaged 2 hours. Notes

of the interviews were taken in writing to maintain a flowing and comfortable rapport.

A list of the subject matter experts interviewed can be found in appendix A.

2.2. Observations

To gain a better understanding of the context in which each of the experts performs

their work, contextual information was collected prior to each meeting. This included

both a review of the web resource or website the expert was connected to, and, when

applicable, a visit to the space in which the content was originally or physically

encountered (e.g., museum exhibitions).

Fifteen physical observation sessions were conducted, ranging between 3 to 6 hours. Of

these observations, six sessions took place in institutions in which no expert was

interviewed. These included the Textile Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the

Museum of Art and Design (NY), the Tenement Museum, the National Geographic

Society, and the Phillips Collection.

Session findings were documented in writing and photographed (when possible).

2.3. Conference Participation

In addition to a field trip to NYC, the fellowship enabled participation in the joint

conference of the Visual Resources Association (VRA) and the Art Libraries Society of

North America (ARLIS/NA) in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The five day conference

organized by two of the leading associations of visual resource management and art

librarianship was a comprehensive and useful learning opportunity. The large variety of

sessions dealt with topics such as visual resource digitization, art and design research

tools, online resources, mobile access to cultural heritage, etc.

The conference also provided an excellent opportunity to make new acquaintances and

inquire about products and services presented by relevant vendors. The list of lectures

and sessions attended can be found in appendix B.

2.4. Review of Online Resources

During the various research activities, many online websites and resources were

encountered. The useful and relevant links were added to a list compiled during the first

stage of the MOW research at Bezalel Academy. The list includes hundreds of links to

various online resources, tagged with keywords. The new resources (over 375) added

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during the fellowship are tagged fellowship-report and with other keywords and are

available online1.

1 See at http://delicious.com/mow_pilot

Joseph Mallord William Turner, Keelmen Heaving in Coals by Moonlight, 1835 Inspiring Work in progress by unknown artist at the National Gallery of Art, May 2011

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3 . F i n d i n g s

Corresponding with the initial research objectives, the information gathered and analyzed

addressed the meeting points of Design History, Anthropology, Museum Studies, and

Information Science as they take form in the creation and use of digital collections of design

and decorative arts. Having interviewed different experts in a variety of fields, it was

necessary to present the findings clearly. The two objectives initially described in the

research objectives2 were both addressed in the research. However, since the fellowship

was focused on practice rather than theory, these were not found to be the most efficient

categories through which to present the findings.

During the fellowship a few dominant themes were identified as prevalent. These themes

reflect thoughts that were expressed repetitively in many of the interviews and often were

discussed from the perspective of each field of expertise. In order for this document to

serve as a valuable supplementary resource for the team working on the Memory of The

World initiative at Bezalel Academy, these themes were grouped as four major categories.

Each category is divided into several topics to enable quick access to relevant information

when needed:

Project Design & Management

Curatorial Processes

Technical Requirements

Outreach and Audience Engagement

The four themes are hereby presented with relevant examples. Although scholarly

resources were reviewed for this paper, creating a practical resource required leaving the

theoretical discussion aside. Given that this is not an academic exercise, reference is given

to specific resources that were used directly or to interviewees who provided unique

insight. In many cases an idea was mentioned by several interviewees and therefore specific

reference is not provided.

2 See item 1.

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3.1. Project Design & Management

Several of the interviews took place with current or past initiators of digitization

projects. Whether these were projects initiated within a large organization or as

independent initiatives, common challenges were often mentioned during the

interviews. While describing the challenges they had faced, and often still do, both

junior and senior management offered me a set of recommendations. These

recommendations were derived from their unique overlook and experience in

establishing, designing and managing a digital resource.

3.1.1. Establishing Project Mission, Goals and Boundaries

One of the most difficult stages of digitization projects is the initial steps towards

establishment of the project. The seemingly endless possibilities offered by

technology in the digital age often create an illusion that everything is possible

and worthwhile. Before long, this misconception shatters in the face of budget

constraints and other limitations such as unavailable technology or inability to

predict technological advancement. Nevertheless, these limitations are actually

an important catalyst in the process of establishing the project goals and

boundaries.

Not all of the digitization projects or departments visited during the fellowship

had officially established the project goals and boundaries. In many cases, the

goals were established ad hoc, derived from an immediate need that later on

evolved in to a larger project. However, several of the managers interviewed

regarded a written Mission Statement or Vision as useful tools to which they

repeatedly referred to during the first stages of establishment.

Useful Mission and Vision Statements usually result from careful analysis of the

circumstances in which a digitization project is created and the purpose it aims

to fulfil. The process in which these statements are created can assist in

developing the communication between all parties involved and should ensure a

clear and agreed upon base for action. According to Jason Steinhauer, Liaison

Specialist at Library of Congress Veterans History Project, the basic statements

can become even more useful when used not only as general guidance but as an

instrument for decisive and consistent decision making. By initially eliminating

certain courses of action, the attention that would have gone to considering

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them is now spared. An example of a clear and useful Mission Statement for a

digital library was created by the World Digital Library (WDL), a project initiated

by the Library of Congress and developed with UNESCO. The WDL mission

includes a concise definition and lists the principle objectives3. A more elaborate

example, well-crafted and serving a large scale initiative, can be found in the

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) ten year strategic plan4.

Similar to the WDL Mission Statement, other Mission and Vision Statements of

digital libraries usually address three important aspects. These include the

assumed responsibilities towards documentation and access, the scope and

depth of the content, and the definition of the target audience. The assumed

responsibilities are usually based on those of the establishing parties and reflect

the cultural role of the organizations to which the project is affiliated. This issue

will not be further discussed at this stage. The definition of the scope and depth

of the content are in fact the first steps in the curatorial process which will be

further discussed in item 3.2.

The third aspect, the definition of the target audience, impacts many of the core

decisions and requires attention right at the beginning of the establishment of

project goals and boundaries. Several project managers pointed out that the

desire to create free digital resources that provide information for all often

results in a mistaken definition of the target audience. A digital resource can be

free for all yet still require a clearer definition of the target audience.

According to Stephen H. Van Dyk, Head of the Art Department at the

Smithsonian Institution Libraries, the users of the Cooper-Hewitt National

Museum of Design library comprise mostly scholarly researchers, art and design

curators, designers, art appraisers, design collectors and authors. Understanding

the needs of these users, both in the library and in any digital service provided by

it, enables focusing the efforts of information dissemination effectively.

Two different informal definitions of a target audience were presented during

the interviews. The first definition perceived the target audience as the group of

3 See at http://www.wdl.org/en/about/

4 "Part II What Do We Want To Achieve?." In Preserving the past to protect the future the strategic plan of the

National Archives and Records Administration, 2006-2016.. Revised ed. Washington, D.C.: United States National Archives and Records Administration, 2009. 3-4. http://www.archives.gov/about/plans-reports/strategic-plan/2009/nara-strategic-plan-2006-2016-final.pdf

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people who are to make the best use of the information to promote human

knowledge in that field (such as scholars, researchers and educators). The

second definition included the groups or individuals who will make any sort of

significant use of the resource (such as practitioners, private collectors, etc.).

Using either definition or both together improves the ability of the digital library

to serve the exact needs of its most dominant users, and perhaps its most

effective knowledge agents as well. By learning whom those users are, the

services provided can be based on suitable curatorial decisions, efficient

technology choices and valuable research tools. Using the endless definition of

the target audience as “everyone” or “the general public” deflates that ability.

Practical goals can be determined once the scope, mission and boundaries are

set. However, since all of these are established in specific circumstances,

changes and re-evaluation may be necessary at times. It is difficult to make

accurate predictions and therefore missions can change and evolve.

3.1.2. Setting the Pace

Once an agreed upon outline has been set, a work plan can be designed and

executed. Each project has its own natural evolution, pace and circumstances.

However, most of the digitization projects reviewed had an initial short stage

dedicated to strategic planning. In this stage, a small team or a manager took the

official or unofficial mission and drew a more detailed, practical plan, including

short and long term action items.

3.1.2.1. Project Planning and Deliverables

Michael Neubert, Supervisory Digital Projects Specialist at the Library of

Congress, stressed the importance of careful planning of a digitization project.

From his experience with many digitization initiatives, the planning stage of a

medium scale digitization project can take approximately a year. However,

during this time he recommended creating deliverables that complement the

strategic plan.

The deliverables should answer two essential objectives. The first objective is

to create the plan based on concrete experience within the specific

environment of the current project. The experience gained will improve the

understanding of the challenges ahead and may also shed light on problems

that were difficult to anticipate.

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The second objective is to develop a small pilot product. This product does

not have to be a full and running system but rather an instrument to illustrate

the direction the project is heading. Furthermore, such a product

demonstrates the progress made during the planning stage to the

stakeholders supporting the project. Being a pilot product, changes and

corrections may be required later as the entire project progresses and

therefore the pilot product should be flexible enough to evolve. In certain

cases it may even be scrapped after its conclusion, having been used solely to

demonstrate the direction and tools of the main project.

Michelle Rago , Technical Director for the World Digital Library at the Library

of Congress, supported this approach and provided an example for such a

pilot product. During the initial stages of building the World Digital Library, a

short promotional video5 was produced. The video illustrated the vision for

the upcoming digital library in a way that was easy for external partners to

understand and relate to. The ambitious goals were appealing and inspired

them to respond and support the initiative. In addition, the process of

creating the video evoked ideas that would later become building blocks of

the information architecture and user interface.

John Gordy, Web Manager at the National Gallery of Art, provided another

suggestion for a pilot project. In order to understand and apply best practice,

a case study of a few dozen objects arranged as a database can serve as a

quick yet detailed draft for the project structure. As a draft, the case study

can be built without extensive programming, using widely available and low

budget online tools6.

3.1.2.2. Incorporating Technology

Another aspect of setting the pace for the project is making decisions about

technology. Specifically, questions regarding predictions of future technology

often surface at this stage. In the Digital Age, as the pace of technological

change accelerates, it becomes unclear whether closely following

technological evolution should become a goal in its own. The question is no

5 See at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhBYGI6Tfzo . The video was edited by Joon Yi and soundtrack

produced by Fred Simonton. 6 For example at www.squarespace.com

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longer What technology should we use? But rather- How can we keep up with

technological change?

Many of the project managers spoke of this dilemma and advised to keep in

mind the declared mission of the project. If the Mission Statement does not

relate to this issue, the across-the-board recommendation is to maintain a

delicate balance between the content and the platform in which it is

delivered. Content may be the core of a digital library but the technology with

which it is documented and delivered influences the digital library’s present

relevance and future existence.

Vince Rossi and Adam Metallo of the Smithsonian Institution point out

technology often moves faster than bureaucracy and therefore proper timing

becomes even more challenging. Planning ahead is advisable but alternative

routes should be created as well to enable prompt response when necessary.

For example, following Google’s footsteps and releasing beta versions is

increasingly more prevalent and can serve as a time saver. A beta version also

allows continual changes and encourages the users to send in their feedback.

3.1.2.3. Maintaining a Balanced approach

Summarizing the process of setting the pace for the project, Alison Zhang,

Metadata Specialist for the World digital Library at the Library of Congress,

suggested asking two important questions: “What do we want to do? and

How do we make it simple?” .

3.1.3. Building All iances

Aside from partners within the organization to which a digital library is affiliated,

fruitful alliances can be developed with external partners as well. Four types of

partners can be identified: content contributors (or suppliers), content

aggregators, knowledge exchange partners, and commercial partners. Alliances

forged with each of these groups can greatly contribute to the project in

different ways.

3.1.3.1. Content contributors

Alliances with content contributors are the most direct way to enrich the

database content and widen the scope of a digital library. The motivation of

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such partners is usually to be able to gain online exposure to their content or

widen its reach.

An example for such cooperation on a national level can be found at the

United Kingdom Visual Arts Data Service (VADS)7. Based at the Farnham

Campus of the University College for the Creative Arts, the service has built up

a large database of visual art collections from external collections grouped

together. Each collection has its own introductory page and search is available

within a collection or across collections. By collaborating with the various

content contributors across the UK, VADS not only provides a central entry

point to these collections, but has also accumulated knowledge in all aspects

of digital resource management that it may share with partners and entire

visual arts research, teaching and learning communities.

The World Digital Library (WDL) is a fascinating example for collaboration on

an international level. Initiated by the Library of Congress and endorsed by

UNESCO, the WDL offers online access, free of charge to significant primary

materials from around the world, in multilingual format. To do so, the WDL

builds alliances with content contributors from different countries and

cultures. John Van Oudenaren, Director of the World Digital Library, sees

great importance in developing and maintaining fruitful relationships with all

content contributors. These efforts have resulted in measures taken to ensure

efficiency and positive outcomes for all parties involved.

During the first few years, the agreements between the WDL and the

contributing partners were created individually for each content contributor.

As the number of alliances grew, the agreements were replaced with the

World Digital Library Charter8, accepted by all contributing partners. The

charter states clearly the legal rights, responsibilities and obligations of all

parties, and regulates the ways in which decisions are made. The charter also

ratifies the contributors’ ability to influence and direct the work of the WDL

through the Executive Council, advisory committees and working groups.

7 See at: http://www.vads.ac.uk/index.php

8 See at: http://project.wdl.org/about/org.html

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Due to the large number of content contributors9 the WDL works with, one of

the biggest challenges is aggregating the varied content into one consistent

and usable database. This requires standardization in both the digital imagery

and the descriptive metadata.

For the digital imagery a set of minimums standards10 is communicated to the

partners alongside file naming guidelines11 . Adherence to these guidelines

enables efficient content transfer and maintenance. Not without humour,

Sandy Bostian, Content Manager for the World Digital Library at the Library of

Congress, referred to this process as file herding. Intervention in the images

themselves is usually not done at the WDL.

Specific requirements were created for the descriptive metadata as well. For

all objects a fixed set of metadata elements12 is used to enhance discovery,

simplify maintenance, and improve search and browse possibilities. The set is

mapable to MARC, Dublin Core and MODS formats. Alison Zhang, Metadata

Specialist for the World digital Library at the Library of Congress explained

that requiring the partners to provide the data within an acceptable standard

enables focusing the efforts on improving the content of the metadata itself.

In many cases, information received from partners includes spelling mistakes,

mixed terminology and other inconsistencies. These demand attention from

the metadata team aiming to provide a seamless search experience across

many items.

Altogether, much communication is required in maintaining a positive

relationship with the content providers. Michelle Rago, Technical Director for

the World Digital Library at the Library of Congress, recommended regulating

the continuous communication with the partners via a listserv. Much of the

information required by one partner is later useful for another and often

questions can be answered by other partners.

Ms. Ragu also pointed out that when projects are built with plans to expand,

it is important to establish the alliances according to what they are to become

9 Standing at 119 partners according to http://www.wdl.org/en/partners/ reviewed during October 2011

10 See at http://project.wdl.org/standards/imagestandards.html

11 See at http://project.wdl.org/standards/filenaming.html

12 See at http://project.wdl.org/standards/metadata.html

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down the line. Promises made to partners at an early stage may be possible to

maintain with ten or twenty partners but might become impossible when the

number grows to a hundred partners or more.

3.1.3.2. Content Aggregators

Striving to improve worldwide access to digital treasures and promote

digitization in the last few years, mega digitization initiatives have emerged

around the world. These large scale international initiatives serve as either

access points to a large number of collections (on both the collection and item

levels) or actually aggregate collections.

Europeana13, for example, enables exploring the digital resources of Europe's

museums, libraries, archives and audio-visual collections in a multilingual

setting. More than 15 million items can be found using Europeana, including

images (paintings, drawings, maps, photos and pictures of museum objects),

text (books, newspapers, letters, diaries and archival papers), sound (music

and spoken word from cylinders, tapes, discs and radio broadcasts) and video

(films, newsreels and TV broadcasts). The item listings are aggregated to

Europeana from nearly 1500 cultural heritage institution across Europe and

viewed using a link directing to their original location in the appropriate

institution website.

The ARTstor Digital Library14 is a nonprofit resource that includes more than

one million digital images in the arts, architecture, humanities, and sciences

with supporting tools, and meant for teaching and research. The community-

built collections comprise contributions from museums, libraries, photo

archives and private collections. The resource is available by institutional

subscription fees that fund the continual maintenance and development of

the collections and software.

Alliances with mega digital libraries such as ARTstor or Europeana can offer

greater exposure to target audiences and promote knowledge transfer. The

possibility of becoming a contributing partner to a mega digital library should

13 See at http://www.europeana.eu/portal/

14 See at http://www.artstor.org/index.shtml

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even be considered during the early stages of creating a digital library, since it

may affect the choice of an acceptable metadata schema.

Beyond their social value, alliances with mega digital libraries may open new

financing possibilities. As recognized and large initiatives, funding is

frequently available in support of research, scholarship or specific digitization

projects. Also, as highly complex projects, tools and software are often

custom built for the project, available to the partners at a low cost or even as

open-source software.

Artstor, for example, is developing Shared Shelf15, a web-based image

cataloging and management software service. The service is designed to offer

seamless integration of image collections with the ARTstor Digital Library,

however can be used as a standalone system as well. Shared Shelf service

provides remote hosting of digital assets, cataloging tools, vocabulary tools,

digital asset management options, as well as web publishing and export tools.

3.1.3.3. Knowledge Exchange Partners

An additional type of alliance can grow between two or more organizations

that can benefit from content or knowledge exchange.

Content exchange takes place when separate collections can benefit from

including content derived from the other collection. This way, each collection

can offer a larger database to its users and Increase the public exposure of

the other collection by providing proper reference or a direct link. Content

exchange cooperation in some cases can also become cost effective when the

cost of future digitization projects is shared by the organizations interested in

presenting the items in their digital collections. As always, copy and usage

rights must be addressed in these cases and can usually be resolved.

Founded in 2006, with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the

New York Art Resources Consortium (NYARC)16 aims to enhance available

resources to research communities through collaboration. The consortium

brought together research libraries of three leading art museums in New York

City: The Brooklyn Museum, The Frick Collection, and The Museum of Modern

15 See at: http://www.artstor.org/shared-shelf/s-html/shared-shelf-home.shtml

16 See at: http://www.nyarc.org/

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Art. As part of the collaboration, joint digitization projects are executed,

benefiting all of the content exchange partners, and of course the research

community.

Knowledge exchange partnerships offer the possibility to promote or initiate

new possibilities rather than exchange existing content. The purpose of such

alliances is to bring together knowledge or nonmonetary resources held by

either partner for a specific goal or project. The knowledge or resources can

be for example experimental technology, new research tools, theoretical

perspective, etc.

Encouraging such alliances, in 2009 the National Endowment for the

Humanities joined forces with the National Science Foundation and

institutions around the world to create the grant program challenge Digging

into Data17. The purpose of this grant program is to address how the large

quantities of data can change the research possibilities for the humanities and

social sciences using new computationally-based methods. To do so, grants

were awarded to eight international, multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary

research teams, out of nearly ninety that competed.

An interesting example for the potential of such research in the field of visual

culture digitization appeared in the research Digging into Image Data to

Answer Authorship Related Questions (DID-ARQ)18. Proposed by a team of

researchers from different research fields at the University of Sheffield, UK,

the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA and Michigan State

University, USA. The group collaboration aimed to discover what salient

characteristics make an artist different from others, and how this information

can first be extracted and then enable statistical learning about individual and

collective authorship. The research focused on three datasets of visual works:

fifteenth century manuscripts, seventeenth and eighteenth century maps,

and twentieth-century quilts.

The Strategic Content Alliance19 was set up by the Joint Information Systems

Committee (JISC), in collaboration with the British Library, the British

17 See at http://www.diggingintodata.org/

18 See at http://isda.ncsa.illinois.edu/DID/

19 See at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/contentalliance.aspx

18

Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the British Education Communications and

Technologies Agency (BECTA), the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council

(MLA) and the NHS National Library for Health (NLH). The alliance promotes

the ability of any public sector organization involved in the creation or

management of digital content to share expertise, leverage the most from the

public funding and avoid duplication of effort.

3.1.3.4. Commercial Partners

For digital libraries in the public realm, cooperation with commercial partners

poses legal and ethical dilemmas. Extraneous agendas or conflicting pressures

may arise and interfere with the responsibilities of a public institution.

Nevertheless, with proper consideration, alliances with commercial partners

can enhance the possibilities of a digital library to provide better services or

increase its revenues.

A straight-forward example was discussed during an interview with Susan

Finkel, Collection Information Systems Coordinator, and Elizabeth Concha,

Collection Information Systems Assistant, Office of the Registrar. The National

Gallery of Art began in 2005 a mutually beneficial cooperation with the

company Gallery Systems. By assisting Gallery Systems to improve their off-

the-shelf collection management system, The Museum System (TMS), a

reduced cost was negotiable. Furthermore, the product was upgraded and

adjusted according to the specific and long-term needs of the National Gallery

of Art and thus suited many other museums that comply with NGA standards.

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is engaged in

several creative collaborations with commercial partners20. One of the

interesting alliances was made with the Generations Network (TGN), parent

company of Ancestry.com. This agreement supports NARA’s mission to

maintain and make available to the public certain historical records and other

documentary materials of the US government by allowing Ancestry.com to

digitize materials at the National Archives for online access. Access to the

materials on Ancestry.com is available via subscription. However, to ensure

continual free public access, the digitized materials are also available in

National Archives research rooms nationwide. In addition, a copy of all

20 For additional examples see http://www.archives.gov/digitization/partnerships.html.

19

digitized content and metadata is donated to the National Archives. Other

limitations appear in the signed agreement, protecting NARA and limiting the

rights of TGN21.

Debuting in 2011, the Google Art Project22 has received high profile public

exposure. Led by Google, a dominant force in the world of digitization, the

project enables users around the world to take a virtual tour through some of

the leading art museums and view high resolution imagery of treasured works

of art.

The Freer Gallery of Art23 at the Smithsonian Institution24 participated in the

project by providing Google with access and a limited amount of staff hours.

Cory Grace, Digital Asset Manager, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler

Gallery, recalled the process of working with Google as an interesting

professional collaboration. The project promoted virtual access for users

around the world to imagery of chosen works of art from the gallery

collection also using the "gigapixel" process, which stitches together multiple

high-resolution images.

Alongside the obvious advantages and public interest, evident drawbacks

surfaced during the collaboration, as in any learning experience. One

weakness was the use of street view technology which was still not suitable

for the space and light conditions of the gallery. Furthermore, the use of

street view did not portray the changing nature of an art gallery.

Another weakness may be viewed in long-term project management.

Sustaining continual public interest requires continual expansion in either

depth or breadth. Perhaps due to the start-up nature of the project, in this

case the future and scope of the project remained unclear during the

collaboration stages, not enabling long term planning.

Commercial partners as exemplified above are often large-scale private-

sector entities. When considering partnerships, it may be useful to look into

21 The full digitization agreement is available at http://www.archives.gov/digitization/pdf/tgn-agreement.pdf

22 See at: http://www.googleartproject.com/

23 See at: http://www.asia.si.edu/

24 See at: http://www.si.edu/

20

other sectors as well. In January 2011 the VIP Art Fair25, an online

international contemporary art fair, took place for the very first time. Nearly

one hundred and thirty prominent contemporary art galleries took part in the

event, showcasing their available works to both collectors and other art

traders.

The success of the event amplified the growing need of galleries to expose

their work to international buyers online. Galleries seek this exposure but can

also offer valuable digital documentation and metadata regarding

contemporary art in their possession. On these grounds, collaboration can

assist a large digital library with documentation of contemporary art in return

for exposure to target audiences.

3.1.4. Striving to Offer Value

Perhaps the most important aspect of project management is the ability to

understand the greater perspective in which the digital library operates and

provides added value beyond basic digitization and online access services.

Although this opinion was voiced repeatedly in interviews, creating a project that

offers profound added value is not an easy task.

One way of defining added value is considering it as an additional factor

justifying the investment. Digital libraries require large investments of funds and

effort over time. There are many reasons for making this investment such as

promoting research, advancing education and providing inspiration, to name a

few. However, even if the purpose is of the highest moral value, investments

usually demand measurable justification or proof. Measurable justification can

be, for example, increased web traffic, new research uses, new audiences or

even public discussion. The added value offered by a digital library ensures that

the information is not only available but also accessed and used in ways that

justify the investment.

The Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection: Fifty Works for Fifty States (Vogel

50X50)26 is an inspiring example for a digital collection that offers unique added

value based on the inherent circumstances of the physical collection. Beginning

25 See at: http://www.vipartfair.com

26 See at: http://vogel5050.org/

21

in 1992, The National Gallery of Art, gained stewardship of part of the large art

collection gathered by Dorothy and Herbert Vogel. In 2008, the collection,

encompassing nearly four thousand paintings, objects, drawings, photographs,

prints, and illustrated books, could not be placed in any one institution. Thus

came to life the Vogel 50x50 project in which the treasures of their collection

were shared with museum patrons nationwide. The project has support from the

National Endowment for the Arts and the Institute of Museum and Library

Services, and in 2009 the project website and its digital collection were launched.

Although the 2500 works were distributed to museums nationwide, museum

patrons at the various locations could not view the collection as a whole entity.

The project website and digital collection provided unique added value to its

users by solving this problem and overcoming the geographical barrier. The

digital collection enables viewing the virtual collection as a unified entity in spite

of its fragmented physical reality.

Added value is not an intermittent goal but rather a continual aspiration. As

technological realities change rapidly, the possibility to offer valuable services

changes as well, along with user expectations. Therefore, the search for added

value should not focus only on the inherent circumstances of the digital content

but also review the constant developments in the field of digital information.

Expanding the horizons can be done by participation in the many professional

organizations that try to improve their understanding of the future of cultural

heritage digitization through continual discussion and research. For instance, the

Museum Computer Network27 encourages exploration, discussion and

dissemination of new technology and best practices for the non-profit

organization. Museum3 is a social network dedicated to the future of museums,

galleries, libraries, archives and science centres28.

27 See at: http://www.mcn.edu/

28 See at: http://museum3.org/

22

3.2. Curatorial Processes

A common misconception outside the professional circles is that digital libraries can

and should include “everything”. Whether or not this should be an aspiration remains

debatable. However, not many digital libraries attempt to do so, understanding the

costs, labour and time required. This constraints demand prioritization which can be

developed and implemented as curatorial process29.

Not many curators responded to the request to meet. However, from the interviews

that took place with curators, cataloguers and project managers, it became apparent

that the complex curatorial process should be addressed after answering the following

set of seemingly simple questions: What are we? What do we decide to collect? What

do we collect within a collection? What do we say about an item? Who Is “We”?

3.2.1. What Are We?

Digital libraries that evolved from physical collections owned by libraries,

archives or museums often resemble the mission and functions of the

organization to which they are affiliated. Arguably, differences between

different digital libraries can be identified due to the different purposes their

parent organizations fulfil. For example, digital libraries of library collections

often emphasize the responsibility of a library to organize the information in

meticulous order with thorough consideration of the assigned metadata. Digital

libraries of museum collections often emphasize user engagement and visual

appeal. These differences are becoming more indefinite, yet remain perceptible.

John Gordy, Web Manager at the National Gallery of Art, explained that the

answer to the question “Who are we?” directly influences the fundamental

curatorial approach. For example, the answer “museum” may require limiting

the digital collection to mostly “wall-worthy” objects whereas answering

“library” may require creating a digital collection that provides a wider view on

matters. These differences influence basic curatorial decisions. A comprehensive

understanding of the mission of the project prevents it from failing as a result

from unsuitable decisions.

29 Not to be confused with the phrase “Digital Curation” which is further discussed in item 3.2.

23

Even if the digital initiative is not affiliated to a distinct type of collection, the

mission statement should provide an answer to the question “Who are we?”.

The answer does not have to be one type or the other, but may present a

combination of several types such as assuming the responsibilities of an archive

with the services of a library and the actions of a museum.

3.2.2. What Do We Decide to Collect?

A common tool used by museums and libraries alike is the Collection Policy

Statement30 for administering the collection development and related

acquisitions, while providing the curatorial process with a general framework.

The policy outlines the scope of the collection, the level of collecting extent and

goals to be achieved. A detailed and useful booklet providing guidance on writing

a Collection Development Policy from a library perspective31 was published in

2001 by the Section on Acquisition and Collection Development at the

international Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)32.

In order to create the Collection Policy Statement, a philosophical discussion may

be required to clarify the fundamental concepts, assumptions and interpretation

that construct the worldview on which the collection is based. Stephen H. Van

Dyk, Head of the Art Department at the Smithsonian Institution Libraries,

recommended attending to the philosophical questions as part of the

establishment of the curatorial process.

Mr. Van Dyk explained that in the field of Design, collection policies can greatly

vary due to the multifaceted nature of the field. In New York two of the leading

cultural institutes offer viewers fascinating, yet dissimilar collections of design

objects. The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) holds a collection of design objects

that are included as modern and contemporary art33. Two miles away, the

Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum is the single museum in the United

30 Also titled Collection Selection Criteria, Collection Development Policy.

31 The booklet uses the Conspectus methodology. The Conspectus level indicator is an alpha-numeric code used

per subject to indicate both the existing collection strength (ECS) of what a library already holds, and the current collecting intensity (CCI) in terms of collection-building goals. The Numbers range from 0 – Out of scope to 5 – Comprehensive level. 32

Guidelines for a collection development policy using the Conspectus model. The Hague: IFLA, Section on Acquisition and Collection Development, 2001. http://www.loc.gov/acq/devpol/cpc.html 33

See the MOMA collections management policy at www.moma.org/docs/explore/CollectionsMgmtPolicyMoMA_Oct10.pdf

24

States devoted entirely to historic and contemporary design. Due to the difference in

philosophical standpoints, parts of the collections are mutually exclusive. One

collection may ask “What are the greatest designs?” and the other may ask

“What great change can design promote?” This is not to say that one collection is

superior to the other, but rather point out the different perspectives the

collections offer.

The Collection Policy Statement attempts to project the philosophical standing

on the actual decisions. Other influences may, in fact, impact curatorial decisions

and should be acknowledged as well. Michael R. Levy, Director of the Digital

Collections at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM),

regarded the effect of trends in research and in public interest as a positive yet

challenging requirement. A trend can promote public interest and new findings.

It may, however, draw the attention and efforts from other important topics that

are not as appealing. Since the USHAMM collections aspire to provide a rich,

wide and accurate historical account, a balanced approach is maintained. This

challenge receives great consideration not only in the curatorial process but in

the construction of the digital platform and metadata as well.

Finding the equilibrium between research trends and a balanced representation

is important for future uses as well. The ways in which materials will be used in

the future are hard to predict, but leaving leeway for unanticipated future

interests requires a wider rather than narrower curatorial approach. In an

interview to the New York Times34 the director of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln,

Daniel W. Stowell, recollected that when the collected published works of

Abraham Lincoln were posted online a few years ago, he expected historians to

be the most frequent visitors to his project’s site. But he was surprised to

discover that the heaviest users were connected to Oxford University Press;

editors of the Oxford English Dictionary had been searching the papers to track

down the first appearance of particular words.

An additional influence on a curatorial process may result from the difficulty to

anticipate the readiness of content for acquisition. The availability of new

content is not always made in accordance with desired priorities, or

34 Cohen, Patricia. "Digital Keys for Unlocking the Humanities’ Riches" . New York Times (NY), November 16, 2010,

NY edition. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/arts/17digital.html?pagewanted=1

25

philosophical standpoints. Ford C. Peatross, Director of the Center for

Architecture, Design and Engineering, Prints and Photographs Division at the

Library Of Congress, recalled a long list of situations that encourage contribution

of a private collection, many of which are tragic circumstances or the threat of a

natural disaster.

Due to the discrepancy between the available private collections and the

collection policy statement, Mr. Peatross suggested developing a supporting

instrument in the form of a decision tree. The decision tree can be used for

uniform evaluation in support of the curatorial process. The details of the

comparison should enable the curator specialist to assess the value of the new

content, the established importance, the present and future impact, the

resources required to handle the content (e.g. space, metadata and

conservation), the legal rights and the financial value vs. cost. Implementing a

decision tree enables a smooth translation of the collection policy statement into

a well thought-out decision about a specific collection

3.2.3. What Do We Col lect Within a Collection ?

Even the most interesting collection acquired by a museum, archive, library or

digital repository may still include items which are of little or no value. Cases in

which a curator must sift through a collection to make Individual decisions about

thousands of objects may require more time and effort than the investment in

digitization of those items. For that reason, Mr. Peatross recommended

favouring global over individual decisions per collection. This requires attaining a

basic acquaintance with the collection from which a set of priorities and

digitization rules can be generated. The specific nature of the collection dictates

the forms of treatment different types of content receive. Naturally, a collection

from an engineering firm would require a slightly different set of decisions than

would an architecture firm.

The Issue of leeway is relevant for the selection within a collection as between

collections and relates again to the identity of the digital library. A digital library

that assumes the role of a library or archive would require a more flexible

selection than would a museum. The Archives of American Art (AAA)35 at the

Smithsonian Institution are a remarkable example of value that can be found

35 See at: http://www.aaa.si.edu/

26

when grouping information that may have been lost otherwise. The unique

possibility to look in to the peripheral information about art and artists’ lives

exposes not only new information about specific cases but also enables new

interpretations and cross sectional analysis.

Other disciplines of visual culture could also gain from a more holistic approach.

Mr. Peatross stated that in many architecture collections, the historical tendency

was to exclude the technical specifications. Valuable information about

elevation, electricity, plumbing and structural construction was lost. And yet, as

tempting as the idea of digitizing “everything” may be, the fine line between

potential value and no value must be maintained in accordance with the mission

of the digital library.

A surprising perspective on the question of inclusion was offered by Susan

Finkel, Collection Information Systems Coordinator, and Elizabeth Concha,

Collection Information Systems Assistant, Office of the Registrar. On occasion, a

video art instalment includes a device (e.g. television) on which the work is to be

shown. Technically, the video and device can be updated as technology evolves,

according to the digital preservation strategies of the institution. However, in

some cases the device itself is considered an integral part of the work and

requires preservation. Kirschenbaum (2008)36 discusses the importance of

understanding the attributes of technological objects when analysing new

media. His suggestion that a similarity can be drawn between research of books

as physical objects and computer forensics raises a question that is relevant for

any attempt to separate content from medium.

Physical archives have been dealing with this question for several decades.

Digital collections are increasingly facing similar questions as the speed of

technological change accelerates. When dealing within a digital collection with

the above example of a video shown on a specific television the digital surrogate

may require additional documentation. One part would be the video itself and

the other is a video of the operating television instalment. As technology evolves

at an increasing speed, more complex problems may arise.

36 Kirschenbaum, Matthew G.. Mechanisms: new media and the forensic imagination. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT

Press, 2008.

27

3.2.4. What Do We Say About An Item?

Not to be confused with the curatorial process discussed in this document, the

phrase “Digital Curation” refers to the long-term management and preservation

of digital data including managing data from its creation, through digitization and

documentation, discovery and re-use (Abbott, 2008). Part of this process is the

assignment of metadata to digital objects. Descriptive metadata is the data

which assists users to locate resources, to distinguish one resource from

another, and to discover further information about the subject or content37. The

descriptive metadata requires curatorial involvement regarding accuracy of

information, subject headings and providence of accompanying information.

The World Digital Library team highly values accurate, precise and viable

metadata, which they provide in seven different languages. John Van

Oudenaren, Director of the World Digital Library, asserted this to be both the

responsibility and the privilege of the WDL as a joint initiative of the Library of

Congress and UNESCO. The metadata is received from the WDL partners and the

WDL team works with the help of subject matter consultants and translators to

guarantee that the information added to the database matches the high

standards that were set.

The quality assurance process at the WDL is costly in terms of time and

expertise. The database includes significant content from about every UNESCO

member country and currently includes over 4000 items. As opposed to the work

done by the WDL, other digital collections that deal with larger volumes use

different strategies to create metadata. In large, fast growing collection, rapid

digitization methods have evolved for certain types of works such as books, fine

art prints and photographic materials (e.g. slides, negatives and prints). Such

strategies include, for example, rapid cataloguing of entire collections by

providing large groups of items within a collection with only basic descriptive

metadata or using crowd sourcing for information tagging.

From the curatorial perspective, the decision to use rapid cataloguing strategies

for descriptive metadata contradicts the aspiration to provide valuable viable

37 A framework of guidance for building good digital collections a NISO recommended practice. 3rd ed. Baltimore,

MD: National Information Standards Organization (NISO), 2007. http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/framework3.pdf

28

information. The rapid cataloguing is criticized as allowing partial, inaccurate or

misleading information. Critics also claim rapid cataloguing does not exert the

curator’s responsibility to share the knowledge and research with the public.

Contrary approaches view rapid cataloguing to be a useful tool for making raw

materials available to the public. To prevent misleading the public with any

inaccuracy, several digital collections add a note to the public regarding the

status of the provided information. The Harvard Art Museums website, for

example, adds the following pink coloured statement alongside some of the

objects: “This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been

reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently

revised and enhanced. Please contact the curatorial department listed above for more

information.”38

Beyond the dilemma of saying a lot on a little, or a little on a lot, the dominance

of text in the descriptive metadata can also be questioned. John Gordy, Web

Manager at the National Gallery of Art suggested rethinking text as the dominant

way to describe an object or inform users of information. Mr. Gordy explained

that textual representation remains important for the access and discovery

environments, and yet users can benefit from other forms of information

delivery such as video, sound or information visualization techniques. If an item

deserves the curatorial attention in terms of knowledge sharing or

interpretation, the various possibilities of providing rich and valuable

information about it should be explored. An historical account of an artist’s

biography, a recorded interview or a video of the artist at work all shed a light on

different aspects of the artist’s creations. By committing only to textual

communication about that artist, supplementary information is left out and

users who prefer to consume information in other ways are alienated.

3.2.5. Who Is “We”?

The decisions made in the curatorial process are intertwined with the complex

and specific circumstances of each digital library. As the preceding set of

questions demonstrated, the curatorial process requires a deep understanding

of both the subject matter and the technical aspects of managing a digital

database. These requirements bring many inexperienced project managers to

38 See for example: http://www.harvardartmuseums.org/collection/detail.dot?id=M9346

29

make misguided decisions when recruiting staff, according to Ford C. Peatross,

Director of the Center for Architecture, Design and Engineering, Prints and

Photographs Division at the Library Of Congress. Mr. Peatross explained that

project managers often assume that if knowledge in both fields is required, the

most efficient action would be to hire one person that understands both aspects.

These people do exist; however, being a cataloguer and curator are two distinct

professions that require specialized training, experience, and the proper amount

of time to perform their duties. Therefore, hiring one person to tackle both tasks

is not an efficient way to manage the curatorial process. Also, the tasks involved

in either profession are quite dissimilar and as a result, prioritizing and dividing

the time usually eliminates important tasks.

To ensure a balanced management of the curatorial process, Mr. Peatross

recommended setting up the curatorial process as a team effort. For the more

general questions, such as “Who are we?” and “What do we decide to collect”?,

the dialogue should take place between the project leadership, curators, web

managers and other appropriate stakeholders such as a curatorial committee.

The more detailed questions involved in the continuous work can be regulated

as a team process. For a new collection that has been acquired, the curator

investigates the collection content and background to create a document that

provides users with an introduction to the collection, including a historical

account, highlights and appropriate references. Then, in a joint effort with the

cataloguer, they create a detailed list of cataloguing guidelines for the specific

collection (e.g. appropriate subject headings, terms, dates and further details).

After the collection is catalogued according to the guidelines, it can be reviewed

again by the curator for any minor corrections necessary.

The role of the curator can be filled by an individual expert or a committee. In

large and fast growing digital initiatives, one expert is usually not enough and a

team of experts, each in a different field, are required to provide attention to the

possible acquisitions and the content flowing into the collection.

John Van Oudenaren, Director of the World Digital Library divides the curatorial

process at the WDL into two stages. In the first stage, the collections are chosen

in a bidirectional process with each of the partners. Mr. Van Oudenaren reviews

the collections that the partners are considering sharing and assists them with

appropriate choice. Once the collections have been chosen and transferred,

additional curatorial work is often required to adjust or create the accompanying

30

descriptive metadata. Due to large variety of material received at the WDL, it is

not possible to hire a full-time content expert for each topic. Instead, the WDL

works with project-based consultants.

Mr. Van Oudenaren also pointed out the yet-to-be-fulfilled potential of the

academic world to contribute knowledge through digital libraries. Academic

knowledge is most often shared in the formats, such as journal and book

publications, that promote their creators. Since sharing the knowledge in a

digital library does not offer academic recognition, not as many researchers use

these platforms for knowledge sharing. However, digital libraries are in need of

expert knowledge and lack the funding to fully support it. Therefore, by

providing academic recognition via proper procedures (e.g. peer review)

research in support of digital libraries can be encouraged.

The answer to Who is “We”? seems to already head beyond the professional

world and academia. New-media advocates see the users become increasingly

involved, and claim user participation can actually increase the value of

curatorial judgment (Wright, 2010)39. How exactly this will affect the curatorial

process will unfold in the years to come, however, embracing user participation

while maintaining the objective of providing viable information will ensure a

smooth transition.

39 Wright, Alex. "Online, It’s the Mouse That Runs the Museum." . New York Times (NY), January 19, 2010, New

York edition. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/arts/design/20museum.html?pagewanted=1

New Acquisitions presented at the Rare Books and Special Collections Reading Room. Library of Congress

31

3.3. Technical Recommendations

The many aspects of creating a digital collection include digitization of objects,

cataloguing, asset management, information preservation and many other tasks. The

international professional community has created many useful best-practice resources

and guidelines that provide standardized recommendations from leading experts. These

have been partially reviewed in the final report of the first stage of the Memory of the

World (MOW) research at Bezalel Academy40.

Therefore, in this document only the prevailing resources recommended by the

interviewees are listed. In addition, specific titbits of advice are listed as detached items.

Many of these recommendations are part of the accumulated yet undocumented

knowledge from the personal experience of the experts interviewed. To the experienced

reader, they may seem to be stating the obvious. However, these reflect answers to

questions that came up during the first stage of the MOW research at Bezalel.

3.3.1. Digitization

McKenna and De Loof (2009[a] p.6)41 define "Digitisation" as the process of

transformation of original material into digital form. In this context, reproduction

is digitisation aimed at reproducing the original material in digital form, as

accurately as possible. Many digital forms exist, this report will discuss

digitization in to 2D and 3D imagery alone. General information and guidelines

about Digitization can be found in the following resources:

Federal Agencies Digitization Guidelines Initiative (FADGI)42 – Is a joint effort of

federal agencies to provide agreed upon methods, guidelines and practices. The

initiative was created in 2007 and since then focuses on digitization of historical

content in still images and audio visual materials. The FADGI website offers

guidelines and resources update by the working groups that have created them.

40 Stern, Rae'ut E.. Preparatory Research for the Establishment of a National Digital Library of Art, Architecture and

Design. Final Report, phase I. Jerusalem: Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, 2010. http://www.bezalel.ac.il/res/about/Bezalel_Final_Report_July_2010.pdf 41

McKenna, Gordon, and De Loof Chris. ATHENA Report on existing standards applied by European museums . eContentplus, 2009. www.athenaeurope.org/getFile.php?id=396 42

See at: http://www.digitizationguidelines.gov

32

The Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS)43 - The Institute is the

primary source of federal support for 123,000 libraries and 17,500 museums in

the United States. The Institute works at the national level and in coordination

with state and local organizations to preserve heritage, culture, and knowledge

by enhancing learning and innovation, and supporting professional

development.

Art Librarians Society of North America (ARLIS/NA)44 - is an organization of

individuals devoted to fostering excellence in art and design librarianship and

image management. Founded in 1972, the group aims to foster excellence in art

and design librarianship and image management by providing a forum for ideas,

projects, and programs.

Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)45 – Is a United Kingdom based

resource on information and digital technologies for education and research. The

JISC has expanded its scope of projects and publications to a wide variety of

topics including digitization, digital repositories, and digital preservation amongst

others46.

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)47 – Was

founded in 1927 and has developed in to a global force in the library and

information profession, while empowering libraries to enable their users to have

equitable access to information. Through activities and groups such as the Art

Libraries Section48, publications are provided.

The Visual Resources Association (VRA)49 - Is a multi-disciplinary organization

devoted to advancing research and education in the field of image management

within the educational, cultural heritage, and commercial environments. The

Association develops standards and offers educational tools, publication

programs and educational activities for knowledge advancement and best

practice. The Association promotes discussion of vital concern to the field,

43 See at: http://www.imls.gov/

44 See at: http://www.arlisna.org/index.html

45 See at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/

46 See at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/publications.aspx

47 See at: http://www.ifla.org/

48 See at: http://www.ifla.org/en/art-libraries

49 See at: http://www.vraweb.org/

33

including: preservation of and access to images of visual culture, cataloguing and

classification standards and practices, and intellectual property policy.

Online Computer Library Centre (OCLC)50 - is an international library cooperative

and computer network that enables libraries to share library resources, services

and expertise in order to reduce costs and improve visibility and viability. The

OCLC publishes reports from collaborative research and international

conferences.51

The above resources and others provide a useful starting point for inquires about

digitization. Resources on specific issues are list below along with the advice

provided by interviewees.

3.3.1.1. Photography

Visiting the National Gallery of Art provided a unique opportunity to

observe the outstanding image reproduction facilities in which some of

the world’s finest art is documented. Peter Dueker, Digital Asset

Management Solutions and Kenneth N. Fleisher, Colour Scientist from the

Division of Imaging and Visual Services, provided a review of the detailed

and careful steps taken at the National Gallery of Art to ensure continual

implementation of best practice in image creation and management. This

review was reiterated in the visit to the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA),

NY, where Erik Landsberg, Head of Collections Imaging Department of

Imaging Services, introduced the photographic work done at the MOMA

from the perspective of engagement with the curatorial process. An

unplanned meeting with John Tsantes, Head of Imaging and Photographic

Services at Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, proved

insightful in terms of adjusting equipment and imaging process to budget

constraints.

The scope of this report naturally cannot detail all of the useful

information shared in these meetings. However, excellent resources for

further reference and specific recommendations are listed below.

50 See at: http://www.oclc.org/middleeast/en/global/default.htm

51 See at: http://www.oclc.org/research/publications/default.htm

34

Digital Photography Resources

Many of the general resources provide a basic review of photography

recommendations referring mostly to Image resolution and file types.

However, for institutions who digitize visual culture objects such as

fine art, design and architecture and require updated and detailed

advice three resources were recommended:

Digital Photography Best Practices and Workflow (DPBestflow)52 is an

initiative of the American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP)

funded by the Library of Congress. The initiative website provides

guidelines for refined production workflows, archiving methods, and

best practices for professional digital photography based on a variety

of capture methods and intended image use. A useful Glossary is

included as well53.

Universal Photographic Digital Imaging guidelines (UPDIG)54 – were

created by the UPDIG Coalition UPDIG Coalition, dedicated to

promoting standards for photographic digital imaging. The guidelines

were last updated in 2008 and aim to clarify issues affecting accurate

reproduction and management of digital images. These issues include

establishing photographic standards and practices for the entire

image production process including the photography technicalities

and workflow, digital asset management, colour profiling, and

associated metadata.

ImageMuse55 is a group of museum imaging and publishing

professionals, dedicated to defining guidelines for the creation and

use of digital files for reproduction. ImageMuse participants have

worked together to write shared guidelines for preparing and

handling digital files for fine art reproduction. The group also holds a

52 See at http://www.dpbestflow.org/

53 See at http://www.dpbestflow.org/resources/glossary

54 See at: http://www.updig.org/index.html

55 See at: http://www.imagemuse.org/index.html

35

discussion group56 that offers members the possibility to share and

discuss pressing issues and dilemmas.

Content Considerations:

o To ensure consistence, at the MOMA, all 3D objects (statues,

furniture, etc.) are photographed with a grey backdrop along

with either a black or white backdrop which is chosen with the

respective curator.

o At all the departments visited the graphic intervention is

minimized as much as possible. The only cases in which a

slight intervention is necessary are, for example, when a

highly detailed image is required and therefore patched

together from several smaller images of section, using

appropriate software. Or, when an object cannot be

documented properly due to its reflective features.

o When photographing architecture, photographer John

Margolies57 made a special effort not to include cars or other

distractions. To do so, he would arrive early in the morning at

the site or ask the car owners to move their vehicle away.

Studio and Equipment:

o The average assessment of a fully operational studio ranges

between $80,000-$100,000 dollars. This includes the camera

and related equipment (at certain cases two cameras are

recommended), camera stand, studio lighting gear, railing

systems, backdrops, pc, professional grade screens, editing

software, daylight stand, printing equipment etc.

With noticeable concessions in quality, the list can be reduced

to basic gear ranging at $20,000-$30,000. In both cases the

equipment would require maintenance and some of the items

require replacement every three to five years.

56 See at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ImageMuse/

57 Margolies, John. "Content and Process: 36 Years on the Road Taking Photographs of American Commercial

Architecture and Design." Lecture, Symposium Exploring Main Street and Roadside Photographs of John Margolies from Prints and Photographs Division at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC, March 9, 2011

36

o If a large part of the documentation is to take place on site or

in field conditions, suitable gear is to be purchased. The field

gear should be stored separately and not used for the daily in-

house studio work.

The justification for separating the equipment is to save the

time unpacking and repacking the equipment every time. Also,

the long list of gear will increase the chance of forgetting to

take an item that may hinder a shooting session and waste

valuable time. Field conditions put the gear at a higher risk of

damage and therefore the studio work should not rely on the

availability of the field gear.

3.3.1.2. Scanning

Primary visual documentation equipment can be grouped into contact

(flatbed scanners, transparency scanners) and no-contact equipment

(cameras, book scanners and overhead scanners). The decision which

type of equipment to use relies heavily on the type of object, desired

quality of documentation, dimensions and physical condition of object,

and of course, the available budget.

According to DPBestflow Camera Scanning Guide58, high grade digital

cameras can be used to create high-quality scans of negatives, slides or

print originals as a Rapid Capture Process (RCP). Designating a camera

for this process and purchasing supporting hardware may increase the

budget required in comparison to a scanner. However, using camera

scanning offers certain advantages such as increased quality of

documentation, increased ability to control technical parameters, and the

ability to handle objects varying in size.

In spite of these advantages many of the imaging departments visited

used high quality flatbed desktop scanners for a large part of their

collection when suitable dimensions. Such scanners are easy to operate

and offered a good quality-to-cost ratio. At the United States Holocaust

Memorial Museum’s Photographic Reference Collection, a flatbed

58 See at: http://www.dpbestflow.org/camera/camera-scanning

37

desktop scanner is sufficient for many of the collection requirements.

According to Nancy Hartman, Photo Archivist at the Photographic

Reference Collection of the Curatorial Affairs Division, the large collection

is frequented by many types of users and researchers. However, not

every item in the collection requires digitization beyond the quality

provided by the scanner.

Flatbed scanners cannot properly scan large or bound materials.

Therefore, collections that deal with oversized flat materials such as

maps and architectural plans often use planetary scanners or digital

cameras as described above. For small objects such as negatives and

slides, a wide range of scanners at different costs are available. Beyond

the varying quality of these devices, Ford C. Peatross, Director of the

Center for Architecture, Design and Engineering, Prints and Photographs

Division at the Library Of Congress pointed out that in many of the

private slide collections, information regarding the content of the slide

was commonly written on the slide’s mounting by the photographer or

Tavatimsa. Eighteenth century accordion-style paper manuscript. Burma. Southern Asian Section, Asian Division, Library of Congress

38

owner. This often offers valuable information regarding dates, locations

and other bits of information that can shed light on the content of the

slide and therefore should be scanned as well.

Led by the success of book digitization, advances in the field of rapid

capture process (RCP) in recent years have progressed both in new

technology and new uses of existing technology. Erway (2011)59 reviewed

nine case studies in which RCP was used in libraries, archives and

museums and offers different examples in which different content

required different strategies.

Peter Dueker, Digital Asset Management Solutions at the National Gallery

of Art anticipates RCP to become more prevalent as the technology

advances. Book scanning cradles that enable half or full automation of

scanning can already be purchased at reasonable cost and RCP solutions

for art prints are following closely.

3.3.1.3. Colour Management

The attempt to create digital surrogates for visual culture artefacts is in a

constant conflict between the desire to provide a perfect substitute and

the inherent inability to do so. While digital surrogates of physical

artefacts may not be able to replace the experience of viewing and

interacting with the artefacts in real life, there are many reasons for

aspiring to do so. A digital surrogate is used not only to enable online

access but also in order to document change over time, illustrate the

effect of restoration, enlarge a detail, uncover unique perspectives etc. In

some cases the digital surrogate is the documentation of an object before

its destruction.

For all these reasons, the ImageMuse experts60 assert that creating and

preparing digital reproductions of artworks entails careful attention to

details and workflow. According to the Image muse contribution to the

UPDIG guidelines, the colours within digital surrogates of artwork should

not be subject to interpretation or individual preference. The

59 Erway, Ricky. Rapid capture faster throughput in digitization of special collections. Dublin, Ohio: OCLC Research,

2011. http://www.oclc.org/research/publications/library/2011/2011-04.pdf 60

See at: http://www.imagemuse.org/2.html

39

reproduction process should aim to produce the same perceived colour

(within physical limitations) as in the original artwork.

The National Gallery of Art puts great effort in achieving this goal by

applying best practices in every step of the digitization and assets

management. Kenneth N. Fleisher, Colour Scientist from the Division of

Imaging and Visual Services at the National Gallery of Art explained the

importance of colour management in digital collections as a means of

ensuring reliable and independent documentation. For that reason,

understanding colour management is a crucial requirement for any

member of the staff handling digital files. A useful and detailed

introductory guide on colour management can be found at the

DPBestflow website61.

Colour management requires not only general awareness, but also

supervision of a colour specialist62 and procedure regulation. Some of the

procedures call for specific devices for the calibration and profiling of

equipment. This is done at fixed intervals and before important projects.

Some of the useful hardware devices include, for example, a colour

rendition chart63 and rulers that are photographed along with all objects

to ensure persistent points of reference for camera profiling. Colorimeter

or Spectrophotometer64 use the parameters set in the monitor

calibration to create a profile for correcting the monitor imperfections. A

lightbooth is a high quality reference light source for examining prints,

indicating the quality of the calibration and profiling.

An additional aspect Mr. Fleisher recommended attending to is the

design of the working environment. To minimize visual distraction a dim,

unchanging light level is suggested. This illumination can originate from

daylight-balanced D50 (or 5,000º Kelvin) fluorescent or filtered halogen

lamps rather than actual day light which shifts and changes throughout

61 See at: http://www.dpbestflow.org/links/31

62 A Color specialist can either be part of the staff or on consultation contract according to the size of the

operation. 63

By its name Macbeth ColorChecker. 64

Commonly referred to as a “puck”.

40

the day. The room’s furniture, walls and ceiling should use neutral

colours such as a neutral light grey of low reflectance.

Finally, if proper colour management cannot be guaranteed, the digital

image metadata should include a comment stating that the image cannot

be verified to be colour managed correctly. This will limit the viewer

expectations from accuracy of the included information.

3.3.1.4. Three-Dimensional Digitization

Cultural heritage digitization efforts are mostly invested in creating two-

dimensional surrogates of artefacts, along with audio and video

conversions. In recent years three-dimensional (3D) technology,

prevalently used in commercial settings, started to infiltrate the field of

cultural heritage. Typically, these efforts are conducted as experimental

projects within large collections or as academic collaborations. Such

projects include, for example, the Rome Reborn65 3D digital models

65 See at: http://www.romereborn.virginia.edu/

Students exploring works by Alexander Calder , 1898 -1976 at the National Gallery of Art

41

illustrating the urban development of ancient Rome, and the Scanning

Monticello66 project aiming to create an accurate 3D digital model of

Thomas Jefferson's Virginia home. Less common are larger initiatives

such as CyArk67 that aims to document with 3D technology cultural

heritage sites at risk due to environmental or human threats.

3D digital content can contain either computer generated 3D graphics of

an entity that does not yet exist in a physical form, or detailed geometry

measurements of an actual physical environment or object. In some

cases, digital content contains 3D measurements to which layers of

computer generated 3D graphic are added.

Computer generated 3D graphics are commonly created with commercial

Computer Aided Design (CAD) programs that are widespread in different

fields and for different purposes, such as AutoCAD (Architecture),

SolidWorks, Creo Elements/Pro (Engineering and Design), Rhino, 3DsMax,

Maya (Design and Animation) or the many other available tools. Free

Software such as SketchUp, Blender, Shapeshop, FreeCAD are also

available, yet often do not offer the full range of possibilities of the

commercial products.

Creation of 3D digital documentation of actual physical environments or

objects can be achieved with several types of scanning technology.

Currently the use of these technologies requires two stages and at times,

two sets of software. The first stage is the actual scan in which data is

collected and represented graphically (usually in a form of a point cloud).

The second stage requires transformation of the data collected into a

manageable 3D geometry file.

Currently, 3D digital scanning used by museums is achieved with four

dominant technologies (Metallo & Rossi, 2011)68 : Laser Scanning, White

Light Scanning, Computer Tomography Scanning and Photogrammetry.

66 See at: http://www.cs.virginia.edu/Monticello/

67 See at: http://archive.cyark.org

68 Metallo, Adam , and Vincent Rossi. "The Future of Three-Dimensional Imaging and Museum Applications."

Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 1 (2011): 63-69. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2151-6952.2010.00067.x/abstract

42

Laser Scanning is an optical remote sensing technology that can measure

the distance to, or other properties of a target by using pulses from a

laser beam. Its capture size ranges from details of several millimetres to

larger architectural proportions when using together a few devices.

Significant limitations are the inability to measure reflective surfaces and

collect information about colour. The cost of equipment ranges from

$3,000 to $200,000

White Light Scanning projects a pattern of light, rather than a laser beam

pulse, and references the variations with a digital camera to capture

surface geometry. Its capture size ranges according to the ability to

properly project the pattern. A significant limitation is the inability to

measure reflective surfaces. However, colour can be captured to a

certain extent. The cost of equipment ranges from $15,000 to $250,000

Computer tomography (CT) Scanning uses X-ray equipment rotating

around an axis to produce 3D representations of internal and external

components (shape, volume and density). Its capture size can range from

one micron to human scale objects. $200,000 to $2,000,000

Photogrammetry extracts 3D data from 2D photography. Equipment

ranges from point-and-shoot pocket camera to large format digitals but

requires numerous images to collect detailed information. Its capture size

depends on the ability of the camera. The cost of photography

equipment ranges from $200 – $50,000.

All of the above technologies require additional software for processing

and using the information collected. The cost of software ranges from

free to $40,000. The output of these efforts can remain digital or be

turned in to an actual product using a variety of technologies such as

Computer Numerical Controlled (CNC) milling or 3D printing of polymer

or metal, depending on the desired result.

The use of 3D digital scans offers more than mere documentation of

existing objects. Creative application of 3D digitization of cultural heritage

artefacts has resulted in new research possibilities and findings. For

example, an international collaboration has enabled the 3D digital

documentation of the Buddhist cave temples of Xiangtangshan that were

once home to an array of sculptures. During the 20th century the

43

limestone caves were severely damaged and their contents were

chiselled away and sold. The ability to create 3D imagery of the caves,

statues and broken objects currently located around the world has

provided the opportunity to research the digital surrogates and even

place them back together, virtually69.

Another useful application of 3D digitization of cultural heritage artefacts

is currently being developed at the Lawrence Berkeley National

Laboratory at the University of California. Lead by the physicists Carl

Haber, have developed IRENE/3D (Image, Reconstruct, Erase Noise, Etc.)

a machine which uses 3D imaging of the grooves on old lacquer records

and wax to reproduce the sound they contain.70

Amongst the leaders of 3D application in the Museum environment is the

Smithsonian Institution with the experimental work done by Vince Rossi

and Adam Metallo from the Digitization Program Office. A visit to the 3D

digitization studio at a Smithsonian facility provided a special insight into

the many ways 3D digitization can contribute to digital efforts in the field

of visual culture.

69 See at: http://xts.uchicago.edu/

70 See at: http://irene.lbl.gov/

Cory Grace, Digital Asset Manager at the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution, presenting 3D representation of Buddha Hand on a touch screen at the “Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan” at the Sackler Gallery

44

The variety of 3D digitization experiments and projects conducted at the

Smithsonian Institution71 is constantly growing and much affected by the

diverse assortment of materials the Smithsonian museums and research

centres deal with. According to Mr. Rossi and Ms. Metallo the primary

use of 3D digitization is for preservation purposes. This, for example, is

achieved by collecting 3D measurements to create an identical model of

a statue using 3D laser printers, or by scanning objects such as mummies

to gain information about their interior parts, without damaging the

exterior72.

The impending opportunities for visual culture projects is exciting and in

its very early stages of development. Architecture history research for

example could greatly benefit from some of the technologies already

applied in archaeology, and new implementations such as scans of as-

built structures or 3D scans of cardboard models could be added as

information for analysis.

Mr. Rossi and Ms. Metallo regarded the required resources and technical

expertise as preventing accelerated adoption of 3D technology in

museums and cultural heritage institutions. The cost of applying 3D

digitization on a regular basis requires not only funds for hardware and

software but also many staff hours, since of the processes require

complicated set up and post production. In addition, no single technology

is suitable for all types of projects and therefore creating a digitization

department necessitates considerable funds for purchasing a variety of

tools.

In terms of technical expertise, most projects require a team effort of

technology experts and content experts (art historian, physician,

anthropologist, etc.). These types of corporations are not difficult to

create, however the problem of interdisciplinary cooperation has deeper

roots. Many of the researchers have not received in depth training in

regard to the possibilities offered by 3D digitization and therefore do not

seek out ways to apply it in their research. The high cost of 3D processing

71 See at: http://www.si.edu/

72 For additional examples and samples of the ongoing work at the Smithsonian's Digitization Program Office See

http://www.facebook.com/3d.si.edu?sk=wall

45

and analysis programs, also prevents researchers

from learning to use those programs for their needs.

In spite of these considerable challenges, Mr. Rossi

and Ms. Metallo pointed out that many of the open-

source or low cost 3D digitization tools offer the

opportunity to experiment with 3D digitization

technologies as a learning process prior to obligating

to a costly purchase. Shoestring budgets can make

use of the many available tools for 3D

measurements, data processing and even printing.

For 3D measurements, basic laser scanners are

available for small scale objects, such as the

NextEngine73 3D desktop scanner offered at

approximately $3000. Alternative low budget

options to laser scanning are constantly explored

around the world. The Microsoft product X-Box 360

Kinect includes advanced gesture-sensitive sensor

system. Since its launch in November 2010,

numerous developers around the world have

started to create applications of Kinect that go

beyond the initial intended purpose of a gaming

console. These include using Kinect as a portable, 3D

digitization device74.

Since Photogrammetry extracts 3D data from 2D photography, the

equipment requirements can be limited to a mid-range digital camera for

most small scale objects. For large scale documentation of buildings or

sites, crowd sourcing can be implemented. Photocity75 is a game-like

platform encouraging users to take pictures of building exteriors for

reconstructing the world in 3D.

73 See at: http://www.nextengine.com/

74 Eaton, Kit. "Zoolander Meets Dr. Evil: Kinect Hack Prints Out a Model Mini-You." Fast Company, April 1, 2011.

http://www.fastcompany.com/1744069/forget-passport-photos-kinect-hack-lets-you-print-out-a-little-model-you 75

See at: http://photocitygame.com/

Adam Metallo (left) and Vince Rossi at the Smithsonian Institution 3D Studio

46

The clear advantage of using crowd sourcing for photogrammetry is the

ability to collect large quantities of information in a short period of time.

It also can support outreach efforts as discussed in item 3.4. If choosing

to pursue one of the low budget projects, Mr. Rossi and Ms. Metallo

recommended attending to details such as unchanging lighting to prevent

patchwork appearance.

An additional resource on 3D digitization for cultural heritage is provide

by Cultural Heritage Imaging (CHI)76, a California based non-profit

organization promoting development and adoption of tools and

methodologies for creation of interactive, 3D digitization by cultural

heritage institutions. CHI offers online resources, demonstration videos

and real-life training opportunities. For further updates about

technological innovation and new uses and equipment, Mr. Rossi and Ms.

Metallo recommended following websites that discuss 3D use in other

fields such as the movie and gaming industry or medical and archaeology

research.

Processing the collected data can also be done with freely available tools.

Photosynth77 is a Microsoft website that offers users the ability to upload

images from which 3D data is extracted using photogrammetry and like

tools. Meshlab78 is an open-source software for processing and editing of

unstructured 3D triangular meshes.

Digital libraries may not require printing 3D object as part of their

services but should earnestly consider a future demand by users to

receive information that can be used and manipulated as 3D. RepRap79

and Makerbot80 are opensource desktop 3D printers capable of printing

polymer, metal and ceramic objects and also parts for constructing

additional printers as self-replicating machines. Shapeways81 and

Ponoko82 are companies that provide 3D printing and CNC milling

76 See at: http://www.c-h-i.org/index.html

77 See at: http://photosynth.net/default.aspx

78 See at: http://meshlab.sourceforge.net/

79 See at: http://reprap.org/wiki/Main_Page

80 See at: http://www.makerbot.com/

81 See at: http://www.shapeways.com/

82 See at: http://www.ponoko.com/

47

services. The impact of these technological developments is yet to be

foretold, however it will surly effect issues such as digital rights

management and information preservation and migration, as discussed in

items 3.3.4 and 3.3.5 respectively.

3.3.2. Digitization Workf low and Digital Asset Management (DAM)

A digital library that digitizes content on a regular basis often has a complex

behind-the-scene database. According to Peter Dueker, Digital Asset

Management Solutions at the National Gallery of Art, the assets managed in the

collection include a variety of files for nearly every object documented. The files

were created for different purposes and include, for example, original raw files,

colour editing files, publicity files, scans, etc. Many of the objects have been

documented several times throughout the years, adding to the volume of the

database.

Ensuring sustainability of file creation, storage, search and retrieve strategies

requires an administrative tool that allows users organizational control and

management of various file types and their associated metadata. A properly

employed digital asset management system is supervised by system

administrators and interacts with other systems used by the institution.

(Newman & Dueker, 2006)83

Peter Krogh (2009)84 offers a comprehensive guide to Digital Asset Management

for professional photographers. Krogh explains that the system administrator

has a crucial role in ensuring that the system is used properly. Proper use of the

DAM system aims to protect and enable access to images. This includes

preventing information from getting lost, enabling swift and intuitive discovery,

making sure images look right, and ensuring future compatibility regardless of

software.

In addition to the common DAM requirements, digital libraries that aggregate

items from content contributors face additional challenges. Sandy Bostian,

83 Newman, Alan, and Peter Dueker. "Digital Image Asset Management at the National Gallery of Art (US)." RLG

DigiNews 10, no. 6 (2006) http://worldcat.org/arcviewer/1/OCC/2007/08/08/0000070519/viewer/file1650.html#article2 84

Krogh, Peter. The DAM book: digital asset management for photographers. 2nd ed. Sebastopol, Calif.: O'Reilly, 2009.

48

Content Manager for the World Digital Library at the Library of Congress,

identified two types of DAM related challenges that arise from the vast amount

of content contributors the World Digital Library partnered with. One type of

problem is the inherent inconsistencies between collections. Collections were

often created and catalogued without consideration of an international varied

audience. For these cases, specific requirements85 were created for Image file

formats and descriptive metadata. Another type of challenge relates to the

actual transfer of information, and the need to confirm that it was not altered

during transfer. For this purpose, the Library of Congress uses software tools

such as Bagger86 for validation and transfer of data that conforms to BagIt

specifications.

Due to the scope of this document, DAM will only be further addressed through

the other topics it involves, such as colour management discussed in item

3.3.1.3, digital rights management discussed in item 3.3.4, and metadata and

information migration discussed in item 3.3.5.

85 See at: http://project.wdl.org/standards/content.html

86 Available at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/loc-xferutils/files/loc-bagger/

African and Middle Eastern Division Reading Room at the Library of Congress

49

3.3.3. Cataloguing Digital Content

Consistency is perhaps the most important demand when creating metadata for

a digital library. In interviews with both cataloguers and project managers,

consistency was the most common recommendation, as a vital condition for the

resource’s sustainability and interoperability over time. The second most

important demand was compliance with international standards. Both metadata

schemas (data structure standards) and controlled vocabularies (data content

standards) have been formally dealt with by international organizations, offering

tools and regulations. Even if the available standards may not seem like the

perfect solution for a specific database, choosing a standard and adhering to it as

much as possible can enable interoperability with other databases and continual

upgrade to new data management systems.

The importance of consistency influences the information architecture from the

very early stages of its design. Michelle Rago , Technical Director and Alison

Zhang, Metadata Specialist, for the World digital Library at the Library of

Congress highly recommended designing the metadata according to the planned

user interface. The user interface is the gate in to the database and should

reflect the user needs and expectations87. According to the anticipated

information the user interface is planned to detail, a standard schema can be

chosen and perhaps slightly altered or added.

Murtha Baca (2008)88 points out that there is no single metadata scheme perfect

for all databases and therefore Institutions must carefully choose the

appropriate suite of metadata schemas and controlled vocabularies. Different

metadata schemes have been developed over the years for different purposes:

MARC (Machine Readable Cataloguing)89 for bibliographic items, CDWA

(Categories for the Description of Works of Art)90 for art objects, VRA Core

(Visual Resources Association Core)91 for visual surrogates of works of art and

87 These user needs may include being exposed to new information that was not searched for, however this can be

defined as a need and dealt with accordingly. 88

Baca, Murtha, and Tony Gill. Introduction to metadata. Online ed. Los Angeles, Calif.: Getty Research Institute, 2008. http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/standards/intrometadata/index.html 89

See at: http://www.loc.gov/marc/ 90

See at: http://www.getty.edu/research/publications/electronic_publications/cdwa/ 91

See at: http://www.loc.gov/standards/vracore/

50

architecture, and Dublin Core92 for Web resources. At times, collections choose

to work with Dublin core as a default choice for mapping diverse information

resources. However, selecting an inappropriate metadata scheme can cause

much confusion and misrepresentation.

An interesting example of overcoming the differences in metadata schema can

be seen in Metadata for Architectural Contents in Europe (MACE)93 is a European

initiative aimed at integrating and connecting vast amounts of content from

diverse repositories that use different technologies, different metadata structure

and values. MACE attempts to solve this problem by becoming a central store to

which metadata is aggregated and enriched, pointing the users to the different

collection. As part of the metadata collection and enrichment, the cataloguing of

architecture was revised, offering as a focal point the Real World Object (RWO)

which is a building, object, architect or other item not stored in the database but

rather an empty placeholder to which related items can be related to. Different

data from different resources about RWOs can be stored as metadata, such as

names, designer/architect, location or other information. People and buildings

can be related to locations (geo-positions) and to particular dates (timestamps)

to gain a better understanding and analysis capabilities (Boeykens,2009)94.

Another large initiative, Visual Arts Data Service (VADS)95, is an online resource

for visual arts in the United Kingdom, previously mentioned in item 3.1.3.1. VADS

created a national scale database of visual art collections. The database includes

over 100,000 freely available images that are copyright cleared for use in

learning, teaching and research in the UK. A large portion of the digitization is

managed by the VADS eliminating much of the need in mapping metadata

schemas. Due to the variety of visual arts content from different partners, the

metadata schema chosen by VADS was VRA Core. The choice of VRA Core over

Dublin Core enables using together discipline-specific data elements such as

separate fields for artist, printer and publisher for graphic design or

manufacturer for industrial design.

92 See at: http://dublincore.org/

93 See at http://portal.mace-project.eu/ and http://www.mace-project.eu/index.php

94 Boeykens, Stefan. "Connecting digital architectural archives with MACE." Lecture, Hybrid Architectural Archives

Conference from Netherlands Architecture Institute, Rotterdam, June 11, 2009. http://conference.nai.nl/papers_and_presentations 95

See at: http://www.vads.ac.uk/

51

Regardless of which standard is chosen, when applying the chosen metadata

schema, Karen Cassedy, Library Systems Manager at the National Gallery of Art,

recommended limiting the amount of data elements to a manageable number.

The ability to provide a detailed description using data elements is tempting and

in theory it enables quick discovery and interesting data mining options.

However, increasing the number of data elements requires more effort on behalf

of the cataloguer and complicates the ability to provide consistent content. John

Gordy, Web Manager at the National Gallery of Art, supported this approach and

drew attention to cases in which resources for cataloguing are scarce or not

prioritized. In those cases, Mr. Gordy recommended to make sure the most basic

data elements for the name of the object, the date it was created, the collection

it belongs to and the internal identifier (especially important for physical

collections) are included and fed manually or even automatically.

Paying close attention to early decisions on metadata schema and consistency

may save much effort in the years to come. At the United States Holocaust

Memorial Museum a collection management system for the photo reference

collection has been in use for many years. Nancy Hartman, Photo Archivist at the

Photographic Reference Collection of the Curatorial Affairs Division explained

that the system was tailor-made for the collection needs, and the choice of

MARC element set was appropriate for their content and users all along. Only

recently changes have been considered since the technology used was becoming

obsolete and could no longer suit their needs. This was an opportunity to

reassess the use of MARC and perhaps consider mapping the database to a

different element set.

Beyond Data structure standards, the consistency and quality of cataloguing can

be greatly improved by using data content standards that provide guidelines for

the format and syntax of the data values. Peter Dueker, Digital Asset

Management Solutions at the National Gallery of Art recommended as a broad

guideline the Cataloguing Cultural Objects (CCO)96 standard. The CCO book97,

which is now freely available online, is a useful and popular manual for

describing, documenting and cataloguing cultural heritage works and their digital

96 See at: http://cco.vrafoundation.org/

97 Baca, Murtha. Cataloging cultural objects: a guide to describing cultural works and their images. Online Edition

ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 2006. http://cco.vrafoundation.org/index.php/toolkit/cco_pdf_version/

52

surrogates. The focus of CCO is art and architecture, including but not limited to

paintings, prints, sculpture, installations, manuscripts, photographs, built works

and other functional objects.

Nahid Gerstein, Acting Team Leader for the Israel/Judaica catalogers at the

Library of Congress, emphasized the importance of data value tools such as

controlled vocabularies. Dealing with a multi-lingual cataloguing challenge,

maintaining consistency cannot rely on memorized rules but rather use of Name

Authorities that assist with the Romanization of Hebrew letters. The Library of

Congress offers a subscription service to a useful compilation of documentation

resources in an integrated, online system named Cataloger’s Desktop. The long

resource list includes resources such as; Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules

(AACR2), All Movie Guide, American Antiquarian Society Catalog, Art &

Architecture Thesaurus (Getty Institute), Cataloging Cultural Objects (Visual

Resources Association), Hebraica Cataloging: A Guide to ALA/LC Romanization

and Descriptive Cataloging, Hebrew Cataloging (Princeton University) and many

more useful tools.

Another useful online tool is the Virtual International Authority File (VIAF). VIAF

is supported by the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC), as a joint project of

several national libraries to increase the utility of library authority files by

matching and linking widely-used authority files and making the result available

online. At the World Digital Library a seven language thesaurus was provided by

the Library of congress and is used to make the information available at those

languages, saving considerable time in terms of translation.

Meticulously maintained content can enable not only long term benefits but also

certain styles of user interface design. The Yale University Office of Digital Asset

and Infrastructure has created Cross Collection Discovery (CCD)98 to enable

searching across the many Yale collections that include 1,500,000 records of

250,000 digital assets. Searching for a keyword brings up both the results and a

side menu that enables refining the search according to specific data elements

that are fed using controlled vocabularies. Not having used a controlled

vocabulary, the rate of cataloguing error would have risen, not enabling applying

98 See at: http://discover.odai.yale.edu/ydc/

53

this option. This user interface style has been prevalent in commercial websites

for many years; however, few cultural heritage digital libraries apply this option.

Not contradicting this approach, Alison Zhang, Metadata Specialist, for the

World digital Library at the Library of Congress suggested including in any chosen

metadata schema a content description data element. Such elements are often

neglected or disregarded as unnecessary because the image can “speak for

itself”. However, a free style description data element enables a certain amount

of cataloguing flexibility, and more important, it assists in making content

accessible for people with visual disabilities.

Another recurring topic when discussing cataloguing was the issue of using

crowd sourcing for cataloguing purposes, also known as collaborative tagging,

social tagging, and social indexing. This issue will be further discussed in item

3.4.2 due to the current perception of social tagging as a means of engaging

audiences rather than substantial cataloguing assistance.

Wheelchairs avialable for use by patrons visiting the National Gallery of Art

54

3.3.4. Digital Rights Management (DRM)

Learning about the legal aspects of managing a digital library of art architecture

and design was not the goal of the fellowship. However, the issue of digital rights

management affects much of the work within a digital library and hence requires

attention at all times. Therefore, the purpose of this section is to provide useful

resources for further research. This section does not aim to deal with details of

complying with specific legislation in the USA as Israeli law is a mixed legal

system resembling the laws of the former British Mandate.

At the very beginning of the first interview with John Gordy, Web Manager at the

National Gallery of Art he stated clearly that although difficult at times, digital

projects must be undertaken with a full understanding of ownership rights and

with full recognition that permissions are necessary for converting materials that

are not in the public domain. Establishing the legal status of a collection is

essential to digitization work as it cannot begin without clarifying the related

issues.

In the United States, the Artist Right Society (ARS)99 represents the intellectual

property rights interests of visual artists and estates of visual artists from around

the world in the United States. The society provides information and negotiates

on the behalf of artists with clients in a variety of issues of copyright (publishing,

merchandise, advertising, etc.). The active role the society has taken since its

establishment in 1987, has effectively caused all visual culture institutes and

firms to rigorously and properly manage the copyright issue.

Other issues of concern are situations in which copyright holders cannot be

traced, and the creations are considered orphaned works. Also, in certain cases a

collection is purchased with limited rights that changed along the years. Michael

Levy, Director, Digital Collections at the United States Holocaust Memorial

Museum pointed out that in many cases the USHMM receives digital content

from collections of partners around the world in which copyright issues are

difficult to define. At times the organizations that contributed the information

99 See at: http://www.arsny.com/index.html

55

are unaware of the copyright holder or even of the importance of determining

ownership.

David Green (2010)100 provides a detailed guide to DRM best practice, focusing

on the four major steps in the DRM workflow:

IP audit: clarifying the rights and restrictions status of all works in a

collection

Recording and managing object and image rights information

Licensing: managing the licensing of the images of objects to third

parties

Rights enforcement: tracking, protecting and policing those images.

Additional useful information can be found at the Copyright Advisory Office at

Colombia University Libraries Information Services101, Lawyers' Committee for

Cultural Heritage Preservation102 and in the report by Brown & Crews (2009)103

titled Control of Museum Art Images: The Reach and Limits of Copyright and

Licensing.

Taking these precautions as a regulated part of the digital asset management

workflow can prevent many confusions and mistakes. And yet, the field is very

dynamic as visual culture institutes constantly attempt to find balance between

the rights of copyright holders and the duty to make works available for visitors

and on-line users. To do so, several actions are commonly used in the various

institutes. In the past, watermarks were used as a deterrent in low budget

collections. More common are pan and zooming tools such Openzoom104 and

Zoomify105 that enable inspecting details without releasing a high resolution

image. Inserting a statement about copyrights that requires an acknowledgment

before viewing a high resolution image ensures exposure to the information. In

100 Green, David. A Museum Guide to Digital Rights Management. Canadian Heritage Information Network, 2010.

http://www.pro.rcip-chin.gc.ca/gestion_collections-collections_management/GND-DRM/gestion_numerique_droits-digital_rights_management-eng.jsp 101

See at: http://copyright.columbia.edu/copyright/2011/06/27/copyright-museums-and-licensing-of-art-images/ 102

See at: http://www.culturalheritagelaw.org/ 103

Brown, Melissa A. and Crews, Kenneth D. "Control of Museum Art Images: The Reach and Limits of Copyright and Licensing." Lecture, Annual Congress of the International Association for the Advancement of Teaching and Research in Intellectual Property (ATRIP), Vilnius: Lithuania, December 13, 2009. 104

See at: http://www.openzoom.org 105

See at: http://www.zoomify.com

56

these cases the copyright information should be added to the metadata of the

item in a way that enables automatic update.

In cases in which all attempts made to identify and contact a copyright holder

were in vain, adding a comment that status is unclear is also helpful. The

comment should include contact information in case a copyright holder would

like to claim ownership. This can help create a trusting relationship with

copyright holders and ensure that immediate actions are taken to satisfy all

parties.

In spite of the seemingly clear steps a visual culture institute should take to

guard copyrights, Brown & Crews (2009) detail cases in which a museum

protecting copyrights was argued to be acting in ways that betray its public

service mission by preventing access and use of the images. At the same time,

initiatives such as the Flickr Commons106 encourage institutions to share images

from their collections with the usage rights attribution “No Known Copyright

Restrictions,” in order to promote free access and use.

The difficulties with DRM will most probably not be solved in the near future.

With the addition of 3D digitization new problems will arise. The available

technology enables visual culture consumers to easily document and replicate

images and objects in ways that were not possible in the past.

Currently, some misuse occurs in academic settings by visual arts student, who in

the future will require protection as artists. Their lack of understanding of the

copyright meaning leads to mistakes otherwise preventable. Investing efforts in

educating users at the beginning of their career can assists in maintaining a

balanced approach.

106 See at: http://www.flickr.com/commons/

57

3.3.5. Information Preservation and Migration

In spite of the long history of computation, the seemingly short history of

computers can be traced to the end of the 18th century with rapid development

beginning only during the 20th century following WWII107. Since WWII, ever-

increasing technological development is under constant change and

improvement. The fast pace of this evolution has cast away many technologies

that were used for a short period of time before being replaced and becoming

obsolete. Much of the information that was associated with the obsolete

technologies was lost as well. During the 1990s, organizations such as the

Coalition for Networked Information (CNI)108, the Australian Preserving Access to

Digital Information (PADI)109 and The Internet Archive110 were established. Since

then, many other organization have joined the effort of raising the awareness to

short lifecycle of digital information and acting upon the need to vigorously

implement preservation as an on-going process.

Peter Dueker, Digital Asset Management Solutions at the National Gallery of Art

recalled that in the past, digitization was perceived as a preservation strategy on

its own. Digitization using photography was expected to be a single project, done

once and for ever. This perception has changed as technology offers continually

improving possibilities, demanded by stakeholders. Also, the cost of digital

preservation often exceeds that of conservation. For institutes that hold in their

possession the original artefact, creating a digital surrogate every few years

relies on the condition of the original item and the available funds to re-digitize

it.

In many cases however, the original artefact is not available. Michael Levy,

Director, Digital Collections at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum,

has come across several cases in which information was provided to the USHMM

stored in obsolete software with no possibility to locate the original artefacts or

migrate to new software. In addition to the concern of digital obsolescence,

physical deterioration of digital storage hardware, threats of natural disaster and

107 Kelly, Martin, and William Aspray. Computer a history of the information machine. 2nd ed. Boulder, Colo.:

Westview Press, 2004. 108

See at: http://www.cni.org/ 109

See at: http://www.nla.gov.au/padi/ 110

See at: http://www.archive.org/

58

human aggression pose a budding concern when attempting to preserve the

digital content and its availability.

Thorough resources about digital preservation and migration are easily available

online and constantly updating. Generally, recommendations for creating a

preventive digital preservation and migration policy include: assessing the needs

and risk of the collection, assessing the technical possibilities of long term

preservation and developing a workflow and preservation tactics accordingly.

Detailed resources about creating a preventive digital preservation and

migration policy can be found at the National Digital Information Infrastructure

& Preservation Program111 led by the Library of Congress; the British Library

Digital Preservation program112; the Archives and Library Information Centre at

the National Archives113: the Digital Curation Centre (UK)114; and at the above

PADI and CNI.

Katherine Arrington, Digital Conversion Specialist for the Prints and Photographs

Division at the Library of Congress pointed out that in spite of the general

awareness and actions taken by institutions to ensure digital preservation and

migration, some challenges have yet to be met. Specifically relevant to visual

culture documentation, 3D vector graphic files have yet to receive proper

attention. Most apparent is the growing gap in documentation of architectural

firms. In the past, firms would preserve at least a few printed documents such as

sketches, blue prints and facade illustrations for the customer. The growing use

of CAD software has decreased the preservation of printed documentation. As

part of the market forces, CAD software is commonly updated making the old

versions obsolete, at times not enabling even viewing the old files.

Due to this documentation gap, the Prints and Photographs Division at the

Library of Congress currently does not rely on digitally born documentation and

accepts only printed matter. This does not enable them to make the most of the

viewing possibilities in 3D; however, as long as the architectural firms do not

111 See at: http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/

112 See at: http://www.bl.uk/aboutus/stratpolprog/ccare/introduction/digital/index.html

113 See at: http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/reference/virtual-library.html

114 See at: http://www.dcc.ac.uk/

59

demand from software companies the possibility to preserve information, those

companies do not have the incentive to do so.

Recognizing this problem, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Libraries along with the School of Architecture and Planning initiated the

research project Future-proofing Architectural Computer-Aided Design

(FACADE)115 in attempt to promote the preservation of CAD architectural models

over archival timeframes. The project promoted the awareness to the problem

among the professional circles and also provided tools for curatorial work within

archives. The complexity of reliance on privet companies was not solved in the

research but it provided ground for continual work.

Vince Rossi and Adam Metallo of the Smithsonian Institution regarded the use of

point-cloud representation as an easily maintained form of 3D representation.

The basic information in point-cloud documentation is presented as a Cartesian

coordinate system for a three-dimensional space and can be described in a text

document that includes the x, y, and z coordinates for each point. Text

documents are already manageable and therefore information in the manner

can be preserved.

Yasmeen Kahn, Sr. Rare Book Conservator at the Library of Congress,

emphasized the importance of backing up information in more than one way.

Regions that are at risk of natural disasters or human aggression require specific

attention to these matters. Electricity generators, fire extinguishers and flooding

prevention are all important as well. In certain cases, organizations that cannot

afford or support such efforts can use external services. The Hathi Trust is a

partnership of major research institutions and libraries around the world that

preserves content and provides access to public domain works to participating

institutions. Hathi Trust was planned to provide efficient and effective storage

for the digital materials contributed by partnering libraries and to provide

secure, reliable, long-term preservation for deposited materials. The work done

in this aspect has certified Hathi Trust as a trustworthy digital repository by the

115 See at: http://facade.mit.edu/

60

Centre for Research Libraries (CRL) as part of the Trustworthy Repositories Audit

and Certification (TRAC) assessment program116

Whether the high cost of digital preservation is supported by the institution itself

or some other institution, the cost to society is high. The Final report of the Blue

Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and Access (BRTF-SDPA)117

stressed the importance of taking a critical stand prior to engaging in digital

preservation efforts and asking What is to be preserved?, By whom?, How is it to

be sustained continually?, How can the return on investment be measured?

Based on the answers to these questions and others, the report recommends

deciding in favour of content expected to be used the most for the longest time.

Since digitization without preservation is of little value, these are questions that

are to be addressed in any digitization process, involving content experts.

Finally, according to the BRTF-SDPA report, executing a preventive digital

preservation and migration policy should include four levels of operation. In the

first level are the organizational actions that ensure knowledge, economic and

organization support from within the organization and from partners. The

second level is the technical actions required to executing the plan with the

lowest acceptable cost and curatorial support. The third level is the public policy

action creating legal and financial support for the preservation efforts. The

fourth level is the education and public outreach to encourage public use and

support of the resource and awareness of the urgency to take action.

3.3.6. Work Force Development

A different perspective on managing technical aspects of digital library was the

influence of building and developing a professional workforce. Evolution of

digital libraries tends to resemble other start-up initiatives. In that sense, the

initial stages in the digital library is often formed by a small group of individuals

that attends to many different tasks. At that stage, Michelle Rago , Technical

Director for the World Digital Library at the Library of Congress, recommended

building a team from multitalented staff that are not only capable of learning

116 See at: http://www.crl.edu/archiving-preservation/digital-archives/certification-and-assessment-digital-

repositories 117

Sustainable economics for a digital planet: ensuring long-term access to digital information; final report of the Blue Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and Access.. La Jolla, CA: Blue Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and Access, 2010. http://brtf.sdsc.edu/biblio/BRTF_Final_Report.pdf

61

new things quickly, but also have a positive approach to tackling problems. As

the project evolves, the team evolves as well and includes in addition to project

administrators also experts in metadata, documentation, content, information

technology, as well as developers. The role of developers is often understaffed in

smaller initiatives; however Ms. Rago reminded that developers enable continual

growth and active response to user requirements.

Yasmeen Kahn, Sr. Rare Book Conservator at the Library of Congress pointed out

that in digitization projects the important objective to minimize the intervention

of the camera should also include minimizing the unintended intervention of the

photographer. The photographer in cultural heritage initiatives fills an important

role that can highly affect the quality of the content created. Pursuing this role

requires comprehensive technical understanding, acquaintance with information

science along with personal diligence. Since many photographers enjoy using

photography as an expressive art form, it is important to make sure the

photographer on staff can draw clear lines between artistic and documentary

photography.

In order to accelerate photo-shoots Ms. Kahn also recommended including an

on-sight assistant that can help with carrying and moving delicate items in

addition to any other needs. Planning photo-shoots in advance can improve the

understanding of the preservation concerns and necessary equipment. Also

discussing the importance of team work, John Tsantes, Head of Imaging and

Photographic Services at Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

recommended creating a work process in which decisions are made as a team,

preferably with the curator as well.

If 3D digitization is to be included in the work of the documentation team, tech-

savvy staff, committed to finding the right workflow for digitizing specific objects

or collections should be sought after (Metallo & Rossi, 2011)118. Experience with

vector graphics and a general interest in 3D digitization can perhaps shorten the

learning curve for each new technology.

118 Metallo, Adam , and Vincent Rossi. "The Future of Three-Dimensional Imaging and Museum Applications."

Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 1 (2011): 63-69. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2151-6952.2010.00067.x/abstract

62

Metadata in digital libraries must be managed by staff with proper training. In

the United States and Canada a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS)

is the master's degree required for most professional librarian positions, slowly

replacing the Master of Library Science (MLS(. Admission to MLIS programs

normally requires holding a bachelor's degree in any academic discipline. These

degrees are accredited by the American Library Association (ALA)119 and can

have specializations within fields such as archiving, records management,

information architecture, public librarianship, academic librarianship, or a

specific field of librarianship (e.g. law, medicine, art history).

The MLIS degrees also encourage their applicants and students to pursue an

additional master’s degree in the field in which they would like to work. This is

recommended not only due to the competitive nature of these positions but also

due to the information science requirements in many of the digitization projects,

libraries are now leading. According to Alison Zhang, Metadata Specialist for the

World digital Library at the Library of Congress, a digital library team requires a

metadata specialist from the very beginning of planning the information

architecture. The daily work also requires the metadata specialist to maintain

the compliance of the cataloguing with the set parameters and architecture.

In order to deal with low budgeted projects or understaffing, Ms. Zhang

recommends hiring additional staff as Copy Cataloguers. Explicit cataloguing

instructions can be provided regarding the purpose of each data element,

spelling and thesauri tools. The cataloguing work is supervised by the certified

cataloguer who also adds the appropriate subject headings.

An additional important aspect of work force development is the continual need

to be updated with current technological changes and future trends. In each

field, professional organization provides year-long learning opportunities and

annual conferences. A well informed team member can prevent costly mistakes,

make appropriate choices and use a professional network for consultation.

Therefore, planning a project budget should take in to account annual

participation in conferences and encourage making use of the yearlong learning

opportunities. Beyond conferences, project management can do so by creating

various learning opportunities. These, for example can be monthly gatherings for

119 See at: http://www.ala.org/

63

all to share general professional updates or encouraging or occasional group

participation in of the many online learning opportunities.

3.4. Public Outreach and Audience Engagement

Creating a digital library requires a great deal of thought, effort and resources. After

having planned the project, arranged the settings, created alliances, built a database,

documented and catalogued items and uploaded them to provide online access, the

project seems to be complete. And yet, with the proliferation of digital databases, the

simple possibility of accessing information online is no longer a novelty. The abundance

of available resources and information requires visual culture digital libraries to actively

promote their content, appeal to new audience and perhaps revise their entire role as

now active knowledge agents rather than passive resources.

This understanding was predominant in most all of the interviews and presented as a

great opportunity to provide added value, as previously discussed in item 3.1.4. For

Museums, the transition from the maintaining a relationship with museum patrons to

maintaining a relationship with website users was a natural evolution. However, for

libraries the transition often requires changing a mind-set and at times, breaking old

traditions. John Van Oudenaren, Director of the World Digital Library, views this

transition as emphasizing a user driven approach, based on the assumption that people

are tired of seeking but not tired of finding.

Especially in the field of visual culture, the idea of a collection of (digital surrogates of)

art and design artefacts can easily be associated with the concept of a museum.

Therefore, digital libraries that are not affiliated to a museum can still adopt some of

the strategies and concepts used in museums and museum websites to create and

maintain a relationship with the digital library. This does not have to contradict with

the original mission of the digital library, whether affiliated to an academic library, to

an archive or to any other form of institution.

For a digital platform, actively providing added value can be achieved in many creative

ways. The ever progressing possibilities of information consumption promoted by new

applications and hardware can enable inspiring interaction, as will be further discussed

below. However, although tempting, technology requires moderate use. While

64

discussing the use of technology in exhibition design in museums, Wyman et al.

(2011)120 make a suggestion that can be more generally applied, proposing to use a

little technology well rather than a lot of technology poorly. Jason Steinhauer, Liaison

Specialist at Library of Congress Veterans History Project added to this, asserting that

creating added value does not always require bells and whistles. A well curated

exhibition, a unique event or well-conveyed information can do great service to

museum patrons and website users alike, whereas in certain cases bells and whistles

can actually alienate users that do not possess the required skills.

Another limitation of technology was pointed out by John Gordy, Web Manager at the

National Gallery of Art. The desire to produce an identical surrogate is often mistaken

for a desire to replace the experience of encountering the original object. This

exaggerated expectation from digital collections does not take in to account the

limitations of the medium. Expecting to provide added value by offering replacement of

reality is therefore futile. As with any medium, the aspiration should be to make the

most of the advantages in spite of existing downsides. The Internet excels at collecting

large quantities of information and promoting communication. Cultural heritage

representation can greatly benefit from these qualities that enable arranging

information about reality, providing context and advancing the understanding of them.

In spite of the limitations of the Internet, technological innovation can be applied in

many ways and offer a variety of opportunities for a digital library to collect and

disseminate information, to advance human knowledge and to remain valuable for a

long time. Putting together the examples collected in interviews, in observations and in

website reviews helped identify two levels of public outreach, implemented by digital

libraries: unidirectional information dissemination, bidirectional communication and

participatory interaction.

120 Wyman, Bruce, Scott Smith, Daniel Meyers, and Michael Godfrey. "Digital Storytelling in Museums:

Observations and Best Practices." Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 4 (2011): 461-468.

65

3.4.1. Unidirectional Information Dissemination

From the moment a collection offers access to its content it can be described as

engaged in unidirectional information dissemination. The most basic stages start

as unidirectional because the user can receive information but not engage in any

further communication with the digital library. Even in this stage a digital library

can use technology to reach out to the public and offer added value.

Beyond offering online access to all users, the user experience provided by the

information architecture and user interface can offer added value. Varied in their

needs, users can be offered different access styles to information described by

John Gordy, Web Manager at the National Gallery of Art as skim, swim and dive.

These can be offered either by creating different platforms or by designing the

interface to include different types of retrieval tools and results. To provide

useful options, a good acquaintance with the different users is required. For this

purpose, Mr. Gordy recommended using both qualitative and quantitative

research to gain better understanding of the variety of users, the dominant

groups within them and their specific needs.

After realizing who the users are, along with which additional users are desired,

straight forward tactics can be implemented in a visual culture digital library.

Content wise, offering additional representation of the artefacts and related

information, using video 3D documentation and other tools can enrich the

content provided. An interview with the artist, documentation of the studio and

other such resources offer different insights, even if produced within constraints

of a low budget. For example, at the University of Manitoba Fort Garry Campus,

the architecture and fine arts library linked the outdoor art collection of the

university to a Google earth map and an online catalogue listing using signs

presenting QR codes121. Translating descriptive metadata can also add value to

new audiences that can now overcome the language barrier.

Wyman et al. (2011)122 discuss the rising demand from museums to apply

engaging interaction installations. To answer this demand, the authors

recommend maintaining a focus on storytelling by framing content and making it

121 See at: http://valmesta.wordpress.com/

122 Wyman, Bruce, Scott Smith, Daniel Meyers, and Michael Godfrey. "Digital Storytelling in Museums:

Observations and Best Practices." Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 4 (2011): 461-468.

66

desirable. This approach is also relevant to outreach efforts in digital libraries.

The European Library for example, created digital exhibitions123 in which

highlighted content from the collections can be viewed. The exhibitions are not

curated as fine art but borrow the traditional concept of an exhibition to

function as a preface to the available content.

In recent years, the proliferation of smartphones in affluent societies has opened

a new possibility for museums to enrich the exploration experience of the

collections. By combining digital content and a portable communication device, a

variety of applications (apps) are offered at little or no cost.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, released a free app named MetGuitars,

dedicated to one of its exhibitions, Guitar Heroes124, which examined the history

and craftsmanship of Guitars. The app provided not only textual information but

also enabled watching short videos of a known musician playing on the

instrument exhibited and listening to interviews125. In many cases, such apps

offered by large institutions provide additional information that was already

available prior to the app launch. However, the new platform reduced the

demand from the user to actively seek and access the information. The added

value is entailed in providing the information exactly when desired or when it

can make the best impact.

For academic visual culture digital libraries, advancing information dissemination

can make use of apps, but in any case requires dealing with a more pressing

issue. Anna Simon (2011)126 of Indiana University explored the information

literacy and seeking strategies among studio students. Her findings suggest that

many students do not feel comfortable in a library setting and therefore avoid

making use of it and of the digital resources it provides. Students that are not

required to develop information literacy skills do not make use of such resources

later as professionals and perpetuate the problem when becoming instructors.

123 See at: http://www.theeuropeanlibrary.org/exhibition/

124 See at: http://blog.metmuseum.org/guitarheroes/

125 Grobart, Sam. "Multimedia Tour Guides on Your Smartphone." New York Times (NY), March 16, 2011.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/17/arts/design/apps-give-museum-visitors-multimedia-access.html?_r=2 126

Simon, Anna. "Studio Students and The Art Library: Demystifying Information Seeking and Supporting Artistic Practice." Lecture, VRA + ARLIS/NA 2nd Joint Conference, Minneapolis, MN, March 25, 2011. http://www.arlisna.org/news/conferences/2011/ses_inside_simon.pdf

67

In this context apps could perhaps assist in enabling creative ways to consume

information. However, this tactic should not replace the importance of providing

students with information literacy skills.

3.4.2. Bidirectional Communication and Participatory Interaction

The second level of public outreach resulted from accumulative changes that

occurred in the uses of the Internet and rise of Web 2.0 and social media.

Whether a result of public demand or an independent initiative, many

institutions develop or experiment with a new type of communication with

users127. Changing from the previous unidirectional monologue to a dialogue,

digital collections are now required not only to provide information but also

respond to questions, comments and requests. Furthermore, this dialogue is

encouraging users to become collaborators as well.

The initial awkwardness of communicating with users perhaps resulted from the

questions “Why should there be communication?” and “How should it be done?”

John Gordy, Web Manager at the National Gallery of Art, explained that without

a specific purpose beyond the simple act of communication, engaging in

communication will not be beneficial to anyone. Offering users the ability to

engage in discussion does not always offer value and therefore the cases in

which communication is enabled should be chosen carefully as they require

attention and resources.

At the Smithsonian Institution the aspiration to provide a valuable lifelong

learning environment is combined with attempts to create an active social

environment. The Smithsonian Commons128 prototype complies with the

objective of the Smithsonian Web and New Media Strategy to offer an updated

digital experience and a new learning model. The plans for the commons

environment will allow greater use and interaction with the information

provided by the Smithsonian. Yet, being adjacent to the Smithsonian Web site

rather than replace it, draws a line between the social interaction and the official

authority.

127 See at Peters, Isabella, and Paul Becker. Folksonomies indexing and retrieval in Web 2.0. Berlin: De

Gruyter/Saur, 2009. 128

See at: http://www.si.edu/commons/prototype/

68

Archives are facing the demand to interaction as well. Archive users have come

to expect that to interact with that content and obtain research help if

necessary, while they are engaged with the content. Understanding that

Archivists need to actively experiment with Web 2.0, the Society of American

Archivists (SAA)129 has developed a resource including case studies and examples

of Web 2.0 implementations named The Interactive Archivist130.

With the fast pace of interaction supported by available technology, the ability

to communicate soon evolved in to institution-user collaboration. Out of the

variety of interesting examples of participatory Interaction as a form of outreach,

an outstandingly successful example is the Flickr Commons131. The Flickr

commons is a designated zone within the commercial photo sharing service

Flickr where cultural heritage institutions such as the Library of Congress (LC) can

share photographs that have no known copyright.

The now international zone started in 2007 as a joint collaboration between the

Office of Strategic Initiatives and the Prints and Photographs Division, both at the

Library of Congress. Looking to create a pilot project that would explore the

potential of social networks in providing exposure to collections and enabling

crowd sourcing, the Library of Congress approached Flicker and established a

framework for cooperation. While choosing a suitable partner for this initiative,

the LC set forth certain demands that were to be met. These demands were

aimed to ensure free access, exclude commercial content, set a non-exclusive

liaison, provide LC the ability to moderate content and state clearly the copyright

status and source of content. The choice to engage with Flickr was also affected

by the large image focused community that already existed within the network

(Springer et al.)132.

Since the establishment of the Flickr commons, many institutions around the

world have joined the initiative. Arden Alexander, Cataloguer Specialist for

Pictorial Collection, Prints and Photographs Division shared the thoughtful

129 See at: http://www2.archivists.org/

130 See at: http://interactivearchivist.archivists.org/

131 See at: http://www.flickr.com/commons?GXHC_gx_session_id_=6afecb2055a3c52c

132 Springer, Michelle, Beth Dulabahn, Phil Michel, Barbara Natanson, David W. Reser, Nicole B. Ellison, Helena

Zinkham, and David Woodward. For the common good the Library of Congress Flickr pilot project. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, 2008. http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/flickr_report_final.pdf

69

details that make the Flickr commons a continual success. Rather than share

sporadic images from different collections, two target collections in the public

domain were selected, offering appealing historical content in both colour and

black and white photography. Ms. Alexander recalled that although the

collections had been digitized and available long before the Flickr pilot, many of

the users were unaware of the large digitization efforts by the LC and regarded

this as novelty.

As the project continued, additional collections were added, often in connection

with public interest and annual themes. The content management required

establishing a workflow in which content is supervised and communication is

reciprocated. A team of LC cataloguers provides these services by rotation, in

addition to their daily responsibilities, using a comments browser designated to

assist in quick management of comments. Many of the user comments express

appreciation or interest, however some of the comments offer information or an

inquiry that cataloguers respond to.

In spite of the concern that many of the comments will be considered

inappropriate, the overall experience in this matter has been positive. Ms.

Alexander explained that as a community, Flickr users apply self and group

discipline. Also, a comment and posting policy133 is available at hand.

Along with the added visibility, collaboration with Flickr users provided at times

new information about the photographs. Any new information provided by users

is accepted and updated in the LC database only after the users provide evidence

supporting their claim which is then examined by the LC staff. This process has

resulted in successful updates, diminishing some concerns about the erosion of

authoritative status of crowd sourcing initiatives in other organization pilot

projects. Developing a dialogue with clear boundaries prevented any erosion of

the LC status.

Ms. Alexander summed the collaboration in the Flickr project as having

generated exciting results and new possibilities. The weekly image upload on

Fridays has become an anticipated event by a large group of users who enjoy the

collaboration, offer their knowledge in return and continue to disseminate the

photographs in other venues such as Wikipedia. The collaboration has also

133 See at: http://www.loc.gov/homepage/commentspolicy.html

70

increased traffic to the LC website and furthered awareness of the available

treasures there.

Another interesting institution-user collaboration that focused on social tagging

can be seen for example in the New York Public Library “What’s on the

menu?”134 project, in which documentation of historical restaurant menus is

transcribed by users. This concept could perhaps be applied to architectural

plans that currently hold valuable information transcribed on them but are not

suitable for optical character reading (OCR).

A problem that seems to arise with tagging projects is the ability to create

accurate and useful metadata. Some of the criticism directed at the use of social

tagging discusses the lack of a standard set of conditions, the structure which

does not organize tags hierarchically and the prevalence of spelling errors.

Different social tagging projects deal with this problem. Flickr automatically

normalizes tag spelling when it aggregates a tag, allowing the user to maintain

his unique spelling for his personal use. Capitalization of tags is ignored and

special characters are also changed to the closest English equivalent135. In many

projects, multiple classifications are used to assess the reliable they are.

The Galaxy Zoo136 project and the British Your Paintings Tagger137 are examples

in which users undergo a short tagging training process to improve the quality

and accuracy of metadata. Galaxy Zoo requests users to classify galaxy images

drawn from NASA's Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) according to their shapes. The

classification uses human perception qualities that currently irreplaceable by

computational processes. The Your Paintings Tagger provides a highly structured

tagging process in which tags are created with the guided process. Prior to

entering tags to the database, users are requested to undergo a short training

process in which the tags are not collected.

The Your Painting Tagger, however, may suffer from another problem that

occurs in social tagging initiatives. The successful tagging projects, such as Flickr,

Ravelry138, and Delicious139, often accumulate tags as a bi-product of the service

134 See at: http://menus.nypl.org/

135 Peters, Isabella, and Paul Becker. Folksonomies indexing and retrieval in Web 2.0. Berlin: De Gruyter/Saur, 2009.

136 See at: http://www.galaxyzoo.org/

137 See at: http://tagger.thepcf.org.uk/

138 See at: http://www.ravelry.com

71

provided. In Flickr the service is photo sharing, in Ravelry knitting patterns are

shared and in Delicious webpage bookmarks are stored. Your Painting Tagger

however, offers users the joy of viewing fine art but this can be argued as a

pastime that few can afford. Unlike Galaxy zoo that offers the opportunity to be

the first to discover astronomic phenomena, the Your Paintings Tagger requires

selfless initiative on behalf of taggers.

The potential of participatory interaction has yet to be fulfilled, specifically in the

world of digital libraries. Future applications can assist with translation in cases

where bilingual thesauruses have not been created or cannot be applied.

Documentation could perhaps be assisted as well. Public participation should be

considered when creating and managing a visual culture digital library as it offers

not only visibility and public relations but also potential for actual involvement.

Further involvement can also include participatory design of the services

themselves and perhaps certain curatorial decisions.

139 See at: http://www.delicious.com

72

4. C o n c l u s i o n s

This report aimed to discuss the information gathered during a four month fellowship

provided by UNESCO to research design from a cultural heritage management perspective

and specifically, the meeting points of Design History, Anthropology, Museum Studies, and

Information Science as they take form in the creation and use of digital collections of design

and decorative arts.

Due to the generous efforts of Gregory P. J. Most, Chief of the Department of Image

Collection at the National Gallery of Art, and Peggy Pearlstein, Head of the Hebraic Section

at the Library of Congress, the fellowship exceed all expectations and proved to be an

incomparable learning experience. Mr. Most’s and Ms. Pearlstein’s advice and direction

were crucial to the success of the fellowship and without the opportunities they afforded

me I could not have had access to the interesting and relevant interviewees.

The choice of Washington D.C. enabled expanding the scope of the fellowship to include

some of the world’s leading cultural heritage institutions. Spending time at a central cultural

metropolis that attracts so many visitors annually demonstrated in the clearest way how

important cultural heritage is to mankind and that it should be protected and shared at the

same time.

Due to the limitations of this report and the purpose it is to serve, I did not detail all of the

data collected, including site observations and book reviews. I decided to focus on the core

resource that was made available to me during the fellowship. This unique resource was

direct access to the individuals who exercise their expertise on a daily basis, promoting

cultural heritage preservation and digitization. The knowledge kindly shared with me was

attained from their vast experience and I am grateful for their willingness to do so.

The different conclusions are detailed in the above items; however, several important

conclusions were derived from the entire experience. Creating a visual culture digital

resource is remarkably complex. It involves a team effort comprising many different

professions in a fast and ever changing technological environment. Four major elements can

be identified as involved in the creation and existence of a digital library: the project

management, the curatorial process, the technological realization and the public outreach.

Each of these important elements can hinder the effort of creating a valuable resource.

Effective project management can ensure the success of a project if effort is made to

promote the collaboration of all parties involved and the integration of all their efforts.

73

Another important aspect in the creation of digital libraries is the establishment of a long-

term sustainable plan. The large effort and funds required should be invested in a way that

ensures longevity both for the content and the service. Without a steady and continual

advancement, a resource can quickly become irrelevant. This again can result from the

efforts and initiatives from all the above elements. The curatorial process can ensure

relevant content, the technological elements can provide a suitable platform or initiate a

new one, and the public outreach can maintain a close relationship with the audience,

inviting participation and ensuring best service.

I hope to continue applying the knowledge that was shared with me. Since my return to

Israel, I have shared my experience in a few lectures and have also passed on the

information to members of my team in the Memory of the World initiative at Bezlael

Academy of Art and design. The design of this report was created to enable a quick and easy

reference for my team when facing new challenges and contemplating how to deal with

certain situations.

I would like to conclude this report by expressing again my deep gratitude to all that were

involved in making this fellowship possible. I could not have been more pleased with this

opportunity and am humbled by the knowledge and unique places I was exposed to.

National Gallery of Art, East Building, Main Hall Interior

74

5. B i b l i o g r a p h y

A framework of guidance for building good digital collections a NISO recommended practice.

3rd ed. Baltimore, MD: National Information Standards Organization (NISO), 2007.

http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/framework3.pdf

Abbott, Daisy. What is Digital Curation? Edinburgh, UK: Digital Curation Centre, 2008.

http://www.dcc.ac.uk/resources/briefing-papers/introduction-curation/what-

digital-curation

Baca, Murtha. Cataloging cultural objects: a guide to describing cultural works and their

images. Online Edition ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 2006.

http://cco.vrafoundation.org/index.php/toolkit/cco_pdf_version/

Baca, Murtha, and Tony Gill. Introduction to metadata. Online ed. Los Angeles, Calif.: Getty

Research Institute, 2008.

http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/standards/intrometadata/ind

ex.html

Bearman, David, and Jennifer Trant. "Do You Know Who Your Users Are? The Role of

Research In Redesigning sfmoma.org." In Museums and the Web 2007 proceedings.

Toronto, Ont.: Archives & Museum Informatics, 2007.

http://www.archimuse.com/mw2007/papers/mitroff/mitroff.html

Boeykens, Stefan. "Connecting digital architectural archives with MACE." Lecture, Hybrid

Architectural Archives Conference from Netherlands Architecture Institute,

Rotterdam, June 11, 2009.

Brown, Melissa A. and Crews, Kenneth D. "Control of Museum Art Images: The Reach and

Limits of Copyright and Licensing." Lecture, Annual Congress of the International

Association for the Advancement of Teaching and Research in Intellectual Property

(ATRIP), Vilnius: Lithuania, December 13, 2009.

Cohen, Patricia. "Digital Keys for Unlocking the Humanities’ Riches" . New York Times (NY),

November 16, 2010, NY edition.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/17/arts/17digital.html?pagewanted=1

75

Eaton, Kit. "Zoolander Meets Dr. Evil: Kinect Hack Prints Out a Model Mini-You." Fast

Company, April 1, 2011.

http://www.fastcompany.com/1744069/forget-passport-photos-kinect-hack-lets-

you-print-out-a-little-model-you

Erway, Ricky. Rapid capture faster throughput in digitization of special collections. Dublin,

Ohio: OCLC Research, 2011.

http://www.oclc.org/research/publications/library/2011/2011-04.pdf

Green, David. A Museum Guide to Digital Rights Management. Canadian Heritage

Information Network, 2010.

http://www.pro.rcip-chin.gc.ca/gestion_collections-collections_management/GND-

DRM/gestion_numerique_droits-digital_rights_management-eng.jsp

Grobart, Sam. "Multimedia Tour Guides on Your Smartphone." New York Times (NY), March

16, 2011.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/17/arts/design/apps-give-museum-visitors-

multimedia-access.html?_r=2

Guidelines for a collection development policy using the Conspectus model. The Hague: IFLA,

Section on Acquisition and Collection Development, 2001.

http://www.loc.gov/acq/devpol/cpc.html

Kelly, Martin, and William Aspray. Computer a history of the information machine. 2nd ed.

Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 2004.

Kirschenbaum, Matthew G.. Mechanisms: new media and the forensic imagination.

Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2008.

Krogh, Peter. The DAM book: digital asset management for photographers. 2nd ed.

Sebastopol, Calif.: O'Reilly, 2009.

Margolies, John. "Content and Process: 36 Years on the Road Taking Photographs of

American Commercial Architecture and Design." Lecture, Symposium Exploring Main

Street and Roadside Photographs of John Margolies from Prints and Photographs

Division at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC, March 9, 2011.

Metallo, Adam , and Vincent Rossi. "The Future of Three-Dimensional Imaging and Museum

Applications." Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 1 (2011): 63-69.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2151-6952.2010.00067.x/abstract

76

Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) Guitar Heroes Exhibition

http://blog.metmuseum.org/guitarheroes/

McKenna, Gordon, and De Loof Chris. ATHENA Report on existing standards

applied by European museums . eContentplus, 2009.

www.athenaeurope.org/getFile.php?id=396

Newman, Alan, and Peter Dueker. "Digital Image Asset Management at the National Gallery

of Art (US)." RLG DigiNews 10, no. 6 (2006)

http://worldcat.org/arcviewer/1/OCC/2007/08/08/0000070519/viewer/file1650.ht

ml#article2

"Part II What Do We Want To Achieve?". In Preserving the past to protect the future the

strategic plan of the National Archives and Records Administration, 2006-2016..

Revised ed. Washington, D.C.: United States National Archives and Records

Administration, 2009. 3-4.

http://www.archives.gov/about/plans-reports/strategic-plan/2009/nara-strategic-

plan-2006-2016-final.pdf

Peters, Isabella, and Paul Becker. Folksonomies indexing and retrieval in Web 2.0. Berlin: De

Gruyter/Saur, 2009.

Simon, Anna. "Studio Students and The Art Library: Demystifying Information Seeking and

Supporting Artistic Practice." Lecture, VRA + ARLIS/NA 2nd Joint Conference,

Minneapolis, MN, March 25, 2011.

http://www.arlisna.org/news/conferences/2011/ses_inside_simon.pdf

Springer, Michelle, Beth Dulabahn, Phil Michel, Barbara Natanson, David W. Reser, Nicole B.

Ellison, Helena Zinkham, and David Woodward. For the common good the Library of

Congress Flickr pilot project. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, Prints and

Photographs Division, 2008.

http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/flickr_report_final.pdf

Stern, Rae'ut E.. Preparatory Research for the Establishment of a National Digital Library of

Art, Architecture and Design. Final Report, phase I. Jerusalem: Bezalel Academy of

Art and Design, 2010.

http://www.bezalel.ac.il/res/about/Bezalel_Final_Report_July_2010.pdf

Sustainable economics for a digital planet: ensuring long-term access to digital information;

final report of the Blue Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and

77

Access.. La Jolla, CA: Blue Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and

Access, 2010.

http://brtf.sdsc.edu/biblio/BRTF_Final_Report.pdf

Wright, Alex. "Online, It’s the Mouse That Runs the Museum." . New York Times (NY),

January 19, 2010, New York edition.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/arts/design/20museum.html?pagewanted=1

Wyman, Bruce, Scott Smith, Daniel Meyers, and Michael Godfrey. "Digital Storytelling in

Museums: Observations and Best Practices." Curator: The Museum Journal 54, no. 4

(2011): 461-468.

78

6. L i s t o f W e b s i t e r e f e r e n c e s

American Library Association (ALA)

http://www.ala.org/

American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS)

http://www.isprs.org/

Archives of American Art

http://www.aaa.si.edu/

Artist Rights Society (ARS)

http://www.arsny.com/index.html

Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA)

http://www.arlisna.org/index.html

Artstore Digital Library

http://www.artstor.org/index.shtml

Artstor Shared Shelf

http://www.artstor.org/shared-shelf/s-html/shared-shelf-home.shtml

Blue Ribbon Task Force on Sustainable Digital Preservation and Access (BRTF-SDPA)

http://brtf.sdsc.edu/biblio/BRTF_Final_Report.pdf

British Library Digital Preservation program

http://www.bl.uk/aboutus/stratpolprog/ccare/introduction/digital/index.html

Cataloguing Cultural Objects (CCO)

http://cco.vrafoundation.org/

Cataloguing Cultural Objects (CCO) A Guide to Describing Cultural Works and Their Images,

Online Edition http://cco.vrafoundation.org/index.php/toolkit/cco_pdf_version/

Categories for the Description of Works of Art (CDWA)

Centre for Research Libraries Certification and Assessment of Digital Repositories

http://www.crl.edu/archiving-preservation/digital-archives/certification-and-

assessment-digital-repositories

Coalition for Networked Information (CNI)

http://www.cni.org/

79

Copyright Advisory Office at Colombia University Libraries Information Services

http://copyright.columbia.edu/copyright/2011/06/27/copyright-museums-and-

licensing-of-art-images/

Cultural Heritage Imaging (CHI)

http://www.c-h-i.org/index.html

CyArk

http://archive.cyark.org

Delicious

http://delicious.com

Digging into data

http://www.diggingintodata.org/

Digging into Image Data to Answer Authorship-Related Questions (DID-ARQ)

http://isda.ncsa.illinois.edu/DID/

Digital Curation Centre

http://www.dcc.ac.uk/

Digital Photography Best Practices and Workflow

http://www.dpbestflow.org/

Dublin Core

http://dublincore.org/

European Library Exhibition Foyer

http://www.theeuropeanlibrary.org/exhibition/

Future-proofing Architectural Computer-Aided Design (FACADE)

http://facade.mit.edu/

Flickr Commons

http://www.flickr.com/commons/

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, The Smithsonian Institution

http://www.asia.si.edu/

Galaxy Zoo

http://www.galaxyzoo.org/

80

Google Art Project

http://www.googleartproject.com/

Harvard Art Museums

http://www.harvardartmuseums.org/home/

Institute of Museum and Library services (IMLS)

http://www.imls.gov/

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA)

http://www.ifla.org/

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Art Libraries Section

http://www.ifla.org/en/art-libraries

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Guidelines for a

Collection Development Policy Using the Conspectus Methodology

http://www.ifla.org/en/publications/guidelines-for-a-collection-development-policy-

using-the-conspectus-model

Internet Archive

http://www.archive.org/

IRENE Sound Reproduction

http://irene.lbl.gov/

Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/

Lawyers' Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation

http://www.culturalheritagelaw.org/

Library of Congress

http://www.loc.gov/index.html

Library of Congress and RLG Conspectus Collecting Levels

http://www.loc.gov/acq/devpol/cpc.html

Library of Congress Comment and Posting Policy

http://www.loc.gov/homepage/commentspolicy.html

81

Machine Readable Cataloguing (MARC)

http://www.loc.gov/marc/

Makerbot 3D printer

http://www.makerbot.com/

Meshlab

http://meshlab.sourceforge.net/

Metadata for Architectural Contents in Europe (MACE)

http://portal.mace-project.eu/

http://www.mace-project.eu/index.php

Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) Collection Management Policy

www.moma.org/docs/explore/CollectionsMgmtPolicyMoMA_Oct10.pdf

Museum3

http://museum3.org/

National Archives (NARA) Archives and Library Information Centre

http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/reference/virtual-library.html

National Archives (NARA) Digitization Partnerships

http://www.archives.gov/digitization/partnerships.html

National Archives (NARA) Preserving the Past to Protect the Future: The Strategic Plan of

the National Archives and Records Administration 2006-2016.

http://www.archives.gov/about/plans-reports/strategic-plan/2009/nara-strategic-

plan-2006-2016-final.pdf

National Archives (NARA) The Generations Network (TGN) Agreement

http://www.archives.gov/digitization/pdf/tgn-agreement.pdf

National Digital Information Infrastructure & Preservation Program

http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/

New York Public Library (NYPL( What’s on the Menu?

http://menus.nypl.org/

New York Art Resource Consortium (NYARC)

http://nyarc.org/

82

Online Computer Library Center (OCLC)

http://www.oclc.org

Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) Rapid Capture: Faster Throughput in Digitization of

Special Collections

http://www.oclc.org/research/publications/library/2011/2011-04.pdf

Openzoom

http://www.openzoom.org

PhotoCity

http://photocitygame.com/

Photosynth by Microsoft

http://photosynth.net/default.aspx

Ponoko

http://www.ponoko.com/

Preserving Access to Digital Information (PADI)

http://www.nla.gov.au/padi/

Public Art at the University of Manitoba Fort Garry Campus

http://valmesta.wordpress.com/

Ravelry

http://www.ravelry.com

RepRap 3D Printer

http://reprap.org/wiki/Main_Page

Rome Reborn

http://www.romereborn.virginia.edu/

Scanning Monticello

http://www.cs.virginia.edu/Monticello/

Shapeways

http://www.shapeways.com/

Smithsonian Institution

http://www.si.edu/

83

Smithsonian Commons

http://www.si.edu/commons/prototype/

Society of American Archivists (SAA)

http://www2.archivists.org/

Society of American Archivists (SAA) The Interactive Archivists

http://interactivearchivist.archivists.org/

Squarespace

http://www.squarespace.com/

Strategic Content Alliance

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/contentalliance.aspx

VIP Art Fair

http://www.vipartfair.com/

Visual Arts Data Service

http://www.vads.ac.uk/index.php

Visual Resource Association (VRA)

http://www.vraweb.org/

Visual Resource Association Core (VRA Core)

http://www.loc.gov/standards/vracore/

Vogel 50x50

http://vogel5050.org/

World Digital Library (WDL)

http://www.wdl.org/en/

World Digital Library (WDL) Charter

http://project.wdl.org/about/org.html

World Digital Library (WDL) PR video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhBYGI6Tfzo

Xiangtangshan Cave Project

http://xts.uchicago.edu/

84

Yale Digital Content

http://discover.odai.yale.edu/ydc/

Your Paintings Tagger

http://tagger.thepcf.org.uk/

Zoomify

http://www.zoomify.com

85

A p p e n d i x A

Subject Matter Experts Interviewed (Alphabetically)

Name Surname Title Institute Meeting focus Meetings

Arden Alexander Cataloger Specialist for Pictorial Collection, Prints and Photographs Division

Library of Congress

Cataloging 2

Katherine Arrington Digital Conversion Specialist, Prints and Photographs Division

Library of Congress

Digital preservation

2

Julie Blake Archivist, Gallery Archive National Gallery of Art

Overview 1

Sandy Bostian Content Manager World Digital Library

Overview 1

Ann Brener Hebraic Area Specialist, African & Middle Eastern Division

Library of Congress

Overview continual

Karen Cassedy Library Systems Manager National Gallery of Art

Overview 1

Elizabeth Concha Collection Information Systems Assistant, Office of the Registrar

National Gallery of Art

Cataloging 1

Verna Curtis Curator, Prints and Photographs Division

Library of Congress

Curatorial processes

1

Peter Dueker Digital Asset Management Solutions

National Gallery of Art

Documentation 1

Susan Finkel Collection Information Systems Coordinator, Office of the Registrar

National Gallery of Art

Cataloging 1

Kenneth N. Fleisher Color Scientist, Division of Imaging and Visual Services

National Gallery of Art

Documentation 1

Nahid Gerstein Acting Team Leader for the Israel/Judaica catalogers

Library of Congress

Cataloging 1

John Gordy Web Manager National Gallery of Art

Strategy 2

Cory Grace Digital Asset Manager, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Smithsonian Institution

Overview 1

Nancy Hartman Photo Archivist, Photographic Reference Collection, Curatorial Affairs

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Cataloging 1

86

Yasmeen Kahn Sr. Rare Book Conservator Library of Congress

Preservation 1

Erik Landsberg Head of Collections Imaging, Department of Imaging Services

Museum of Modern Art

Documentation 1

Michael Levy Director, Digital Collections

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Overview 1

John Mahar Book Exchange Program Library of Congress

Acquisition 1

Adam Metallo 3D Digitization, Office of the Chief information Officer

Smithsonian Institution

Documentation 1

Gregory P. J.

Most Chief, Department of Image Collections

National Gallery of Art

Fellowship Research Supervision

Continual

Michael Neubert Supervisory Digital Projects Specialist

Library of Congress

Overview 1

Peggy Pearlstein Head, Hebraic Section at Library of Congress

Library of Congress

Fellowship Research Supervision

continual

Ford Peatross

Director, Center for Architecture, Design and Engineering, Prints and Photographs Division

Library of Congress

Curatorial processes

1

Michelle Rago Technical Director World Digital Library

Overview 2

Herb Rosenbleeth Nation Executive Director. Colonel, U.S. Army (Ret)

National Museum of American Jewish Military History

Overview 1

Vince Rossi 3D Digitization, Office of Exhibits Central Model Making Unit

Smithsonian Institution

Documentation 1

Gail Shirazi African/Middle Eastern Acquisitions Section in the Order Division

Library of Congress

Acquisition 1

Jason Steinhauer Liaison Specialist, Veterans History Project

Library of Congress

Strategy 2

John Tsantes Head/Imaging & Photographic Services, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Smithsonian Institution

Documentation 1

Stephen Van Dyk Head, Art Department, Smithsonian Institution Libraries

Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum

Overview 1

John Van Oudenaren

Director World Digital Library

Strategy 2

Mary Westly Assistant Administrator National Museum of American

Overview 1

87

Jewish Military History

Lindsay Zarwell Archivist, Steven Spielberg Film and Video Archive, Curatorial Affairs

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Cataloging 1

Alison Zhang Metadata specialist World Digital Library

Cataloging 1

88

A p p e n d i x B

VRA + ARLIS/NA 2011 full schedule at vraarlis11.sched.org

E Event | M Meeting | I Session | P Special Interest Group - User Group

March 24 • Thursday

M 2:00pm – 3:00pm ARLIS/NA Architecture Section Meeting

P 3:00pm – 4:00pm Cataloging Issues Discussion Group

P 3:00pm – 4:00pm Future of Art Bibliography

March 25 • Friday

I 9:00am – 10:30am Case Studies II

E 10:00am – 5:00pm Exhibits Hall

I 11:00am – 12:00pm Opening Plenary: Works and Fair Use: Can Bridges Be Built Between Educational Users and Copyright Owners?

I 1:30pm – 3:00pm Images Unleashed: Expanding Beyond Traditional Disciplines

I 3:15pm – 4:45pm Inside Out: Examining Studio Artists’ Perceptions, Representations, and Actual Use of the Fine Arts Library

March 26 • Saturday

I 8:30am – 10:00am Case Studies IV

E 10:00am – 12:00pm Vendor Slam, part I

E 12:00pm – 1:30pm Joint VRA+ARLIS/NA Buffet Lunch

I 3:30pm – 5:00pm Engaging New Technologies

March 27 • Sunday

I 9:45am – 11:15am More Than Meets the Eye? Retrieving Art Images by Subject

M 11:15am – 12:15pm ARLIS/NA Art and Design School Libraries Division Meeting

I 1:30pm – 3:00pm Paving the Way for an Uncertain Future

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