Categories for the Description of Works of Art Reasons: By providing guidelines for content, independent from software and hardware, the Categories serve as a model to which existing art information systems can be mapped and as a basis on which new systems can be developed. Such guidelines contribute to the integrity and longevity of information transmitted across networks and eventually moved to new systems. Compatible structures also provide researchers with consistent, reliable access to information stored in a variety of systems in geographically dispersed places. The Centro de Documentación de Bienes Patrimoniales of Chile has developed a documentation system using these categories for the collections in all of the Chilean state museums. This data model may serve as the basis for a network of museum information in the Spanish-speaking world. A Guide to the Description of Architectural Drawings Reasons: The Architectural Drawings Advisory Group, the Foundation for Documents of Architecture, and the Information Institute produced this guide to key issues in documenting architectural drawings and records. Developed in cooperation with major architectural collections around the world, the Guide provides both a general introduction to principles of documentation for architectural materials and an advanced set of guidelines applicable to both manual and automated systems. Introduction to Imaging Reasons: Introduction to Imaging is designed to help curators, librarians, collection managers, administrators, scholars, and students understand the basic technology and processes involved in creating an image database depicting works typically found in museums. It also identifies the issues that arise in this process and outlines the points at which choices must be made. Areas of particular concern include the integration of an image database with other information resources and museum activities, and the interchange of visual information among computerized systems. Protecting Cultural Objects in the Global Information Society Reasons: Protecting Cultural Objects is an international collaborative project establishing consensus on a minimum standard for the identification and protection of cultural objects to combat illicit trade. This international collaboration among key communities in the public and private sectors agreed on what constitutes an adequate, and standardized, description of an object. Consultations and worldwide surveys of over 1,000 organizations in 84 countries produced Object ID, a set of essential categories required to identify an object. Object ID Reasons: There is widespread agreement that documentation is crucial to the protection of cultural objects, for stolen objects that have not been photographed and adequately described are rarely recoverable by their rightful owners. Unfortunately, very few objects have been documented to a level that can materially assist in their recovery in the event of theft. Even for objects that have been so documented, the information collected is extremely variable. It is important, therefore, that efforts be made to increase public awareness of the need to make adequate, standardized descriptions of objects. Protecting Cultural Objects: Conservation Specialists Working Group Reasons: A mutual desire to determine how information about the physical characteristics of an object can contribute to its identification led to a collaboration between the Getty Information Institute and the Getty Conservation Institute. August 1994, the two institutes organized a Conservation Specialists Working Group that met in Washington, D.C., to examine the ways in which physical characteristics could be recorded for identification. The participants agreed on the need for the proposed standard, which they believed should include both written and visual information. A category called Distinguishing Features emerged as a key recommendation of the meeting. Its purpose is to record information about an object's physical characteristics that could help to identify it (e.g., damage, repairs, or manufacturing defects). Meta-data Standards: Introduction to Metadata Reasons: The need for classification and organization is crucial for cultural heritage materials as it is for networked electronic resources in general. As professional communities, repositories and computer systems, come together to make the information age a reality, it is essential that we understand the critical roles that different types of metadata can play in the development of effective, authoritative, flexible, scalable, and robust cultural heritage and information systems. Documenting the Cultural Heritage Reasons: This publication presents three internationally agreed standards for the documentation of cultural heritage: The Core Data Index to Historic Buildings and Monuments of the Architectural Heritage, the International Core Data Standard for Archaeological Sites and Monuments, and the recently agreed core data standard for identifying cultural objects * Object ID. These standards are indispensable, for purposes of identification, protection, interpretation, and physical preservation of movable objects, historic buildings, archaeological sites, and cultural landscapes.
Reasons: By providing guidelines for content, independent from software and hardware, the Categories serve as a model to which existing art information systems can be mapped and as a basis on which new systems can be developed. Such guidelines contribute to the integrity and longevity of information transmitted across networks and eventually moved to new systems. Compatible structures also provide researchers with consistent, reliable access to information stored in a variety of systems in geographically dispersed places. The Centro de Documentación de Bienes Patrimoniales of Chile has developed a documentation system using these categories for the collections in all of the Chilean state museums. This data model may serve as the basis for a network of museum information in the Spanish-speaking world.
Reasons: The Architectural Drawings Advisory Group, the Foundation for Documents of Architecture, and the Information Institute produced this guide to key issues in documenting architectural drawings and records. Developed in cooperation with major architectural collections around the world, the Guide provides both a general introduction to principles of documentation for architectural materials and an advanced set of guidelines applicable to both manual and automated systems.
Reasons: Introduction to Imaging is designed to help curators, librarians, collection managers, administrators, scholars, and students understand the basic technology and processes involved in creating an image database depicting works typically found in museums. It also identifies the issues that arise in this process and outlines the points at which choices must be made. Areas of particular concern include the integration of an image database with other information resources and museum activities, and the interchange of visual information among computerized systems.
Reasons: Protecting Cultural Objects is an international collaborative project establishing consensus on a minimum standard for the identification and protection of cultural objects to combat illicit trade. This international collaboration among key communities in the public and private sectors agreed on what constitutes an adequate, and standardized, description of an object. Consultations and worldwide surveys of over 1,000 organizations in 84 countries produced Object ID, a set of essential categories required to identify an object.
Reasons: There is widespread agreement that documentation is crucial to the protection of cultural objects, for stolen objects that have not been photographed and adequately described are rarely recoverable by their rightful owners. Unfortunately, very few objects have been documented to a level that can materially assist in their recovery in the event of theft. Even for objects that have been so documented, the information collected is extremely variable. It is important, therefore, that efforts be made to increase public awareness of the need to make adequate, standardized descriptions of objects.
Reasons: A mutual desire to determine how information about the physical characteristics of an object can contribute to its identification led to a collaboration between the Getty Information Institute and the Getty Conservation Institute. August 1994, the two institutes organized a Conservation Specialists Working Group that met in Washington, D.C., to examine the ways in which physical characteristics could be recorded for identification. The participants agreed on the need for the proposed standard, which they believed should include both written and visual information. A category called Distinguishing Features emerged as a key recommendation of the meeting. Its purpose is to record information about an object's physical characteristics that could help to identify it (e.g., damage, repairs, or manufacturing defects).
Reasons: The need for classification and organization is crucial for cultural heritage materials as it is for networked electronic resources in general. As professional communities, repositories and computer systems, come together to make the information age a reality, it is essential that we understand the critical roles that different types of metadata can play in the development of effective, authoritative, flexible, scalable, and robust cultural heritage and information systems.
Reasons: This publication presents three internationally agreed standards for the documentation of cultural heritage: The Core Data Index to Historic Buildings and Monuments of the Architectural Heritage, the International Core Data Standard for Archaeological Sites and Monuments, and the recently agreed core data standard for identifying cultural objects * Object ID. These standards are indispensable, for purposes of identification, protection, interpretation, and physical preservation of movable objects, historic buildings, archaeological sites, and cultural landscapes.
The Bibliography of the History of Art (BHA) Reasons: BHA indexes and abstracts all writing on Western art, regardless of the country or language of its publication, offering access to more than 2,000 journals, as well as books, exhibition catalogues, conference proceedings, and bibliographies. The BHA database, a collaborative publication of the Getty Information Institute and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, currently contains some 144,000 records, to which approximately 24,000 records are added annually. The Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals Reasons: The Avery Index, the only comprehensive American index to the current literature of architecture and design, produced at the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library at Columbia University since 1934, now surveys more than 700 US and foreign journals, 75 percent of which are not indexed in any other source. It covers not only the international scholarly and popular periodical literature, but also the publications of professional associations, US state and regional periodicals, and the major serial publications in architecture and design of Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. The Avery Index is an essential source for both researcher and practitioner. The Getty Provenance Index Reasons: The Provenance Documentation Collaborative is an international effort overseen by the Getty Provenance Index consisting of institutions that dedicate the time of a staff member to the projects described below. Data collected from these institutions is regularly merged into the Provenance databases which now have over 500,000 records, and in turn the contributing institutions periodically receive updates of the databases on compact disc and eventually via the Internet.
Reasons: BHA indexes and abstracts all writing on Western art, regardless of the country or language of its publication, offering access to more than 2,000 journals, as well as books, exhibition catalogues, conference proceedings, and bibliographies. The BHA database, a collaborative publication of the Getty Information Institute and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, currently contains some 144,000 records, to which approximately 24,000 records are added annually.
Reasons: The Avery Index, the only comprehensive American index to the current literature of architecture and design, produced at the Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library at Columbia University since 1934, now surveys more than 700 US and foreign journals, 75 percent of which are not indexed in any other source. It covers not only the international scholarly and popular periodical literature, but also the publications of professional associations, US state and regional periodicals, and the major serial publications in architecture and design of Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. The Avery Index is an essential source for both researcher and practitioner.
Reasons: The Provenance Documentation Collaborative is an international effort overseen by the Getty Provenance Index consisting of institutions that dedicate the time of a staff member to the projects described below. Data collected from these institutions is regularly merged into the Provenance databases which now have over 500,000 records, and in turn the contributing institutions periodically receive updates of the databases on compact disc and eventually via the Internet.
Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT) Reasons: The Art & Architecture Thesaurus is a controlled vocabulary that is used to improve access to cultural heritage information in the global networked environment. Union List of Artist Names (ULAN) Reasons: The ULAN is used as an authority file or data value standard in the documentation (cataloging, indexing, and description) of cultural heritage information. Building on consensus among its contributing projects and upon ranking according to scholarly usage, the ULAN establishes an "entry form" or heading that can be used as a collective device or point of reference for all of the associated data relating to a particular artist or architect, including variant names, biographical information, and bibliographic citations. Thesaurus of Geographic Names (TGN) Reasons: The Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names (TGN) is a structured vocabulary developed primarily for the field of art history, but with the potential for wide applications in related disciplines such as archeology, history and geography. The TGN is the only available geographical resource that is both hierarchical and global in scope. The TGN contains nearly 1 million place names representing approximately 900,000 places. a.k.a. Reasons: "a.k.a." combines the inclusive nature of the World Wide Web, and the carefully constructed intellectual links and relationships inherent in the Getty vocabulary tools, to provide access to what amounts to a "virtual database" of information. Thanks to this "knowledge navigator," made more efficient because of the years of scholarly work and intellectual integration represented by the Getty vocabulary resources, any Internet user can almost instantaneously access a vast amount of cultural heritage information that would take days or even months of work (and in many cases worldwide travel) to find using traditional research tools. The International Terminology Working Group (ITWG) Reasons: The International Terminology Working Group, an informal association of cultural heritage information professionals from several countries, originally grew out of the Thesaurus Artis Universalis (TAU) committee of the Comité International de l'Histoire de l'Art (CIHA). Members of this group have met, usually once a year in Europe, to report on their various projects and activities in the field of cultural heritage terminology. At the general meeting of the International Terminology Working Group held at the University of Amsterdam in September 1996 on the occasion of the twenty-ninth CIHA conference, members of the group reported on terminology projects under way in Canada, England, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Spain, and the United States. Although most of these projects have taken the AAT as their point of departure,[2] other sources, such as ICONCLASS, [3] or an institution's own collections (as at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London), are also being used. The Vertaalbureau UvA Vertalers of the University of Amsterdam, which hosted the meeting, reported on the first initiative to translate the AAT in its entirety, a joint project of the Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie (RKD) and the Rijksdienst voor de Monumentenzorg. All AAT descriptors and guide terms (totaling approximately 30,000 terms) have been matched with Dutch equivalents, and approximately 17,000 scope notes or definitions have been translated. Next steps include quality-checking of the work done to date (including review by subject specialists), development of mechanisms for updating, and decisions about release formats.[4] A collaborative project to find Spanish-language equivalents to the terms in the AAT was begun by the Getty Information institute and the Chilean Ministry of Education, Centro de Documentación de Bienes Patrimoniales (Santiago) in the Spring of 1997. To date, the Visual Works (Obras Visuales) hierarchy has been translated. Another important project on which the International Terminology Working Group members received an update at the Amsterdam meeting was the Multilingual Lexicon of Religious Objects.This collaborative demonstration project involving four partner countries--Canada, France, Italy, and the United States--has resulted in a specialized multilingual lexicon of terms, definitions, and images relating to a particular group of objects in the field of cultural heritage. The lexicon of some 500 records in three languages, accompanied by definitions, images, and an audio pronunciation guide, will be released on CD-ROM (by the Italian Ministry of Culture's Istituto Centrale per il Catalogo e la Documentazione), print (by the French Ministry of Culture's Inventaire Général), on the World Wide Web (by the Canadian Heritage Information Network), and will eventually be incorporated into the AAT by the Getty Information Institute.
Reasons: The Art & Architecture Thesaurus is a controlled vocabulary that is used to improve access to cultural heritage information in the global networked environment.
Reasons: The ULAN is used as an authority file or data value standard in the documentation (cataloging, indexing, and description) of cultural heritage information. Building on consensus among its contributing projects and upon ranking according to scholarly usage, the ULAN establishes an "entry form" or heading that can be used as a collective device or point of reference for all of the associated data relating to a particular artist or architect, including variant names, biographical information, and bibliographic citations.
Reasons: The Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names (TGN) is a structured vocabulary developed primarily for the field of art history, but with the potential for wide applications in related disciplines such as archeology, history and geography. The TGN is the only available geographical resource that is both hierarchical and global in scope. The TGN contains nearly 1 million place names representing approximately 900,000 places.
Reasons: "a.k.a." combines the inclusive nature of the World Wide Web, and the carefully constructed intellectual links and relationships inherent in the Getty vocabulary tools, to provide access to what amounts to a "virtual database" of information. Thanks to this "knowledge navigator," made more efficient because of the years of scholarly work and intellectual integration represented by the Getty vocabulary resources, any Internet user can almost instantaneously access a vast amount of cultural heritage information that would take days or even months of work (and in many cases worldwide travel) to find using traditional research tools.
Reasons: The International Terminology Working Group, an informal association of cultural heritage information professionals from several countries, originally grew out of the Thesaurus Artis Universalis (TAU) committee of the Comité International de l'Histoire de l'Art (CIHA). Members of this group have met, usually once a year in Europe, to report on their various projects and activities in the field of cultural heritage terminology. At the general meeting of the International Terminology Working Group held at the University of Amsterdam in September 1996 on the occasion of the twenty-ninth CIHA conference, members of the group reported on terminology projects under way in Canada, England, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Spain, and the United States. Although most of these projects have taken the AAT as their point of departure,[2] other sources, such as ICONCLASS, [3] or an institution's own collections (as at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London), are also being used. The Vertaalbureau UvA Vertalers of the University of Amsterdam, which hosted the meeting, reported on the first initiative to translate the AAT in its entirety, a joint project of the Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie (RKD) and the Rijksdienst voor de Monumentenzorg. All AAT descriptors and guide terms (totaling approximately 30,000 terms) have been matched with Dutch equivalents, and approximately 17,000 scope notes or definitions have been translated. Next steps include quality-checking of the work done to date (including review by subject specialists), development of mechanisms for updating, and decisions about release formats.[4]
A collaborative project to find Spanish-language equivalents to the terms in the AAT was begun by the Getty Information institute and the Chilean Ministry of Education, Centro de Documentación de Bienes Patrimoniales (Santiago) in the Spring of 1997. To date, the Visual Works (Obras Visuales) hierarchy has been translated. Another important project on which the International Terminology Working Group members received an update at the Amsterdam meeting was the Multilingual Lexicon of Religious Objects.This collaborative demonstration project involving four partner countries--Canada, France, Italy, and the United States--has resulted in a specialized multilingual lexicon of terms, definitions, and images relating to a particular group of objects in the field of cultural heritage. The lexicon of some 500 records in three languages, accompanied by definitions, images, and an audio pronunciation guide, will be released on CD-ROM (by the Italian Ministry of Culture's Istituto Centrale per il Catalogo e la Documentazione), print (by the French Ministry of Culture's Inventaire Général), on the World Wide Web (by the Canadian Heritage Information Network), and will eventually be incorporated into the AAT by the Getty Information Institute.
Research Agenda for Networked Cultural Heritage Reasons: The Getty Art History Information Program (AHIP), with the American Council of Learned Societies and the Coalition for Networked Information, worked with scholars throughout the country to write a white paper entitled "Humanities and Arts on the Information Highways: A Profile," the early drafts of which were influential in shaping the Administration's Information Infrastructure Task Force Committee on Applications and Technology report The Information Infrastructure: Reaching Society's Goals, especially the critical chapters on "Arts, Humanities and Culture on the NII." The final version of the white paper, issued in September 1994, was a major part of the public comment on the Administration's plan and the fullest articulation of the state of humanities computing at that time. Humanities and Arts on Information Highways: A Profile Reasons: Humanities and Arts on the Information Highways: A National Initiative has been formed to address the urgent need for the humanities and arts to gain a voice in the planning and development of the National Information Infrastructure, the much-publicized plan for a national telecommunications system. The initial sponsors of the National Initiative -- the Getty Art History Information Program (AHIP), the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) and the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) -- are joining with other stakeholders to confront the issues and responsibilities connected with bringing the nation's cultural heritage into the digital environment. White Paper from White House Economic Council Reasons: Contribution to a paper by the National Economic Council from the Getty Information Institute, an operating program of the J. Paul Getty Trust - May 12, 1994. In a multi cultural society, knowing about, understanding, and respecting the multiple cultural heritages of fellow citizens is the basis for community. Every community creates art; the world of manmade objects constitutes our culturally based material landscape. Education and Cultural Heritage: Solid Partners for the NII Reasons: Contribution to a paper by the National Economic Council from the Getty Art History Information Program, an operating program of the J. Paul Getty Trust May 12, 1994. Electronic networks are a key to entirely new modes of communication among people and new methods of access to information. Networks offer the potential for the American people to know themselves and each other better through a rich exchange of information and ideas, for the arts and heritage communities to exhibit collections and provide public services, for children in schools and individuals in the home to experience their culture in myriad facets of their choice, and for the production and enjoyment of creative works in new types of space. Museum Educational Site Licensing Project (MESL) Reasons: The Museum Educational Site Licensing (MESL) project brings representative U.S. museums, colleges, and universities together to define the terms and conditions for educational use of museums' digital images and information on campus-wide networks. During this two-year experiment (launched in 1995 by the Getty Information Institute--then the Getty Art History Information Program--in conjunction with MUSE Educational Media) a select group of educational and collecting institutions are collaborating in good faith to study the capture, distribution, and educational use of museums' digital images and their associated texts. The project has also provided a vehicle for exploring and promoting the educational benefits of digital access to museum collections through campus networks.
Reasons: The Getty Art History Information Program (AHIP), with the American Council of Learned Societies and the Coalition for Networked Information, worked with scholars throughout the country to write a white paper entitled "Humanities and Arts on the Information Highways: A Profile," the early drafts of which were influential in shaping the Administration's Information Infrastructure Task Force Committee on Applications and Technology report The Information Infrastructure: Reaching Society's Goals, especially the critical chapters on "Arts, Humanities and Culture on the NII." The final version of the white paper, issued in September 1994, was a major part of the public comment on the Administration's plan and the fullest articulation of the state of humanities computing at that time.
Reasons: Humanities and Arts on the Information Highways: A National Initiative has been formed to address the urgent need for the humanities and arts to gain a voice in the planning and development of the National Information Infrastructure, the much-publicized plan for a national telecommunications system. The initial sponsors of the National Initiative -- the Getty Art History Information Program (AHIP), the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) and the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) -- are joining with other stakeholders to confront the issues and responsibilities connected with bringing the nation's cultural heritage into the digital environment.
Reasons: Contribution to a paper by the National Economic Council from the Getty Information Institute, an operating program of the J. Paul Getty Trust - May 12, 1994. In a multi cultural society, knowing about, understanding, and respecting the multiple cultural heritages of fellow citizens is the basis for community. Every community creates art; the world of manmade objects constitutes our culturally based material landscape.
Reasons: Contribution to a paper by the National Economic Council from the Getty Art History Information Program, an operating program of the J. Paul Getty Trust May 12, 1994. Electronic networks are a key to entirely new modes of communication among people and new methods of access to information. Networks offer the potential for the American people to know themselves and each other better through a rich exchange of information and ideas, for the arts and heritage communities to exhibit collections and provide public services, for children in schools and individuals in the home to experience their culture in myriad facets of their choice, and for the production and enjoyment of creative works in new types of space.
Reasons: The Museum Educational Site Licensing (MESL) project brings representative U.S. museums, colleges, and universities together to define the terms and conditions for educational use of museums' digital images and information on campus-wide networks. During this two-year experiment (launched in 1995 by the Getty Information Institute--then the Getty Art History Information Program--in conjunction with MUSE Educational Media) a select group of educational and collecting institutions are collaborating in good faith to study the capture, distribution, and educational use of museums' digital images and their associated texts. The project has also provided a vehicle for exploring and promoting the educational benefits of digital access to museum collections through campus networks.
Internet Forum Reasons: The Internet Forum is an exhibition for conferences and events that utilizes Internet-linked computers to demonstrate examples of cultural heritage Web sites. Vocabulary / Standards Workshops Reasons: At a variety of national and international venues, the Institute provides workshops and other training opportunities to introduce cultural heritage professionals to the usefulness of standards and structured vocabularies in creating art documentation. Points of View Project Reasons: The Points of View project examined the needs and expectations of those who use cultural heritage information. One of the project's primary research areas set out to distinguish different points of view. Rather than assigning a questioner to a predefined audience segment (i.e., kindergarten to grade 12, scholar, or general public), the Points of View project attempted to examine what use the questioner planned to make of the information received from cultural heritage information systems.
Reasons: The Internet Forum is an exhibition for conferences and events that utilizes Internet-linked computers to demonstrate examples of cultural heritage Web sites.
Reasons: At a variety of national and international venues, the Institute provides workshops and other training opportunities to introduce cultural heritage professionals to the usefulness of standards and structured vocabularies in creating art documentation.
Reasons: The Points of View project examined the needs and expectations of those who use cultural heritage information. One of the project's primary research areas set out to distinguish different points of view. Rather than assigning a questioner to a predefined audience segment (i.e., kindergarten to grade 12, scholar, or general public), the Points of View project attempted to examine what use the questioner planned to make of the information received from cultural heritage information systems.
Los Angeles Culture Net Reasons: The initiative, which explores how digital technology can help to define and serve communities through collaborative participation, makes arts and cultural information available over the Internet. Faces of LA Reasons: Materials on this site illustrate the places, monuments, events, culture, and history of the people of Southern California -- whether authentic or idealized, historical or contemporary. A demonstration project of the Los Angeles Culture Net, "Faces of L.A."explores the cultural and educational benefits of digital access to cultural resources through networks.
Reasons: The initiative, which explores how digital technology can help to define and serve communities through collaborative participation, makes arts and cultural information available over the Internet.
Reasons: Materials on this site illustrate the places, monuments, events, culture, and history of the people of Southern California -- whether authentic or idealized, historical or contemporary. A demonstration project of the Los Angeles Culture Net, "Faces of L.A."explores the cultural and educational benefits of digital access to cultural resources through networks.
International Terminology Working Group Reasons: The International Terminology Working Group, an informal association of cultural heritage information professionals from several countries, originally grew out of the Thesaurus Artis Universalis (TAU) committee of the Comité International de l'Histoire de l'Art (CIHA). For more details on the genesis of this group, see Guidelines for Forming Language Equivalents: A Model Based on the Art & Architecture Thesaurus, a document released by the International Terminology Working Group in September 1996. Guidelines for Forming Language Equivalents Reasons: This document describes and supports the work of the International Terminology Working Group, the task of which is to provide equivalents in several languages to the terminology in the Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT). Although the aim of the present document is to provide guidelines for forming equivalents between the AAT and existing controlled vocabularies in other languages, the principles outlined here may be useful to others seeking to link vocabularies in different languages. The guidelines are based on "residencies" (group working meetings of about a week in length) held at the AAT offices in Williamstown and elsewhere, and on national and international standards for thesaurus construction]. Further information about AAT methodology can be found in the Guide to Indexing and Cataloging with the Art & Architecture Thesaurus and the AAT Editorial Manual. G7 Multimedia Access to World Cultural Heritage Reasons: The pilot projects aim at demonstrating the potential of the Information Society and stimulate its deployment. The projects will be initially undertaken by the G7 partners but are meant to be open. The participation of other partners, including international organizations, is encouraged. The work undertaken in the G7 pilot projects thus far has been based on joint deliberations and consensus on Theme Areas identified to be of common international interest for the Information Society. These selected themes were then rendered into more concrete project proposals through formal and informal discussions and meetings. Further refinement of the proposals and studies of implementation scenarios are still required for all the projects considered. European Commission Initiatives Reasons: The Getty Information Institute tracks the activities of the three Directorate-Generals of the European Commission having interest in automating cultural heritage information: DG III, DG X, DG XIII. The European Commission has developed a framework for cooperation to accelerate the development of cultural heritage multimedia products called The Memorandum of Understanding concerning Multimedia access to Europe's cultural heritage. The Getty Information Institute is a signatory to the Memorandum. Census of Art and Architecture Known to the Renaissance Reasons: A research database, the Census focuses on ancient monuments recorded in Renaissance sketchbooks, drawings, guidebooks, treatises, and various additional sources. The database includes information about changing locations and ownership of antiquities during the Renaissance and the condition and preservation history of antique monuments. The Census contains approximately 45,000 records and 25,000 associated images, with extensive cross-references linking records to one another, to related documents, and to images associated with them.
Reasons: The International Terminology Working Group, an informal association of cultural heritage information professionals from several countries, originally grew out of the Thesaurus Artis Universalis (TAU) committee of the Comité International de l'Histoire de l'Art (CIHA). For more details on the genesis of this group, see Guidelines for Forming Language Equivalents: A Model Based on the Art & Architecture Thesaurus, a document released by the International Terminology Working Group in September 1996.
Reasons: This document describes and supports the work of the International Terminology Working Group, the task of which is to provide equivalents in several languages to the terminology in the Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT). Although the aim of the present document is to provide guidelines for forming equivalents between the AAT and existing controlled vocabularies in other languages, the principles outlined here may be useful to others seeking to link vocabularies in different languages. The guidelines are based on "residencies" (group working meetings of about a week in length) held at the AAT offices in Williamstown and elsewhere, and on national and international standards for thesaurus construction]. Further information about AAT methodology can be found in the Guide to Indexing and Cataloging with the Art & Architecture Thesaurus and the AAT Editorial Manual.
Reasons: The pilot projects aim at demonstrating the potential of the Information Society and stimulate its deployment. The projects will be initially undertaken by the G7 partners but are meant to be open. The participation of other partners, including international organizations, is encouraged. The work undertaken in the G7 pilot projects thus far has been based on joint deliberations and consensus on Theme Areas identified to be of common international interest for the Information Society. These selected themes were then rendered into more concrete project proposals through formal and informal discussions and meetings. Further refinement of the proposals and studies of implementation scenarios are still required for all the projects considered.
Reasons: The Getty Information Institute tracks the activities of the three Directorate-Generals of the European Commission having interest in automating cultural heritage information: DG III, DG X, DG XIII. The European Commission has developed a framework for cooperation to accelerate the development of cultural heritage multimedia products called The Memorandum of Understanding concerning Multimedia access to Europe's cultural heritage. The Getty Information Institute is a signatory to the Memorandum.
Reasons: A research database, the Census focuses on ancient monuments recorded in Renaissance sketchbooks, drawings, guidebooks, treatises, and various additional sources. The database includes information about changing locations and ownership of antiquities during the Renaissance and the condition and preservation history of antique monuments. The Census contains approximately 45,000 records and 25,000 associated images, with extensive cross-references linking records to one another, to related documents, and to images associated with them.
Time & Bits Reasons: The Time and Bits: Managing Digital Continuity meeting held at he Getty Center on Feb 8-10 produced some remarkable insights into the future uses of digital technologies and their impact on the documentation of cultural heritage. Participants included: Stweart Brand, Doug Carlston, Brian Eno, Danny Hilis, Brewster Kahle, Kevin Kelly, Paul Saffo, Jaron Lanier, Bruce Sterling, John Heilemann, Peter Lyman, Howard Besser, Margaret MacLean, Ben Davis. Communicating Culture Conference, October 22-23, 1998 Reasons: To explore the myriad collaborative possibilities that are emerging for business, industry, government, cultural and educational institutions, the Getty Information Institute will convene a ground-breaking international conference entitled Communicating Culture. This first-ever meeting of world cultural leaders and those who are developing cutting-edge technology will provide a forum to explore the intersection of technology and culture and envision bold outcomes for the future.
Reasons: The Time and Bits: Managing Digital Continuity meeting held at he Getty Center on Feb 8-10 produced some remarkable insights into the future uses of digital technologies and their impact on the documentation of cultural heritage. Participants included: Stweart Brand, Doug Carlston, Brian Eno, Danny Hilis, Brewster Kahle, Kevin Kelly, Paul Saffo, Jaron Lanier, Bruce Sterling, John Heilemann, Peter Lyman, Howard Besser, Margaret MacLean, Ben Davis.
Reasons: To explore the myriad collaborative possibilities that are emerging for business, industry, government, cultural and educational institutions, the Getty Information Institute will convene a ground-breaking international conference entitled Communicating Culture. This first-ever meeting of world cultural leaders and those who are developing cutting-edge technology will provide a forum to explore the intersection of technology and culture and envision bold outcomes for the future.
Sharing Cultural Entitlements in the Digital Age: Are We Building a Garden of Eden or a Patch of Weeds? by Eleanor Fink
The Subject of Subjects: by Eleanor Fink
Subsidizing End User Access to Research Databases, by Joseph Busch
Preservation and Access in a Digital World, by Ben Davis
Teacher of the Future, by Ben Davis
Cultural Heritage Online: Building the Digital Future, by Eleanor Fink
Book Publishing: The Web, CD-ROM and Other Digital Dreams, by Richard Kinney
(10/1/98)
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