Digital meets Culture

Participate in the ECBN Survay

Effects of COVID-19 on the European Culture and Creative Industries

The European Creative Business Network (ECBN), an advocacy institution for the European culture and creative industries, denounced the economic impact due the spread of the corona virus on the cultural and creative industries (CCIs).
The entire sector seems to be closed to collapse as all festivals, fairs and concerts have been cancelled, clubs and theatres are closed. Not only organisers are affected, but also agencies and numerous freelancers in performing arts, film and music, basically all who are active in the broadest sense in the event business. The aspect that contributes to worsening the general situation is the lack of insurance coverage in the case of force majeure, which only increases the instability and economic uncertainty of the sector.
In this critical and unsafe scenario the ECBN lunched this survey addressed to all actors of the cultural and creative industry with the aim to assess the potential impact of the Covid-19 on the cultural sector in the coming weeks in order to be able to formulate current support and relief recommendations to European Policy Makers.
Click on SURVEY and leave your contribute.
More information about ECBNetwork at http://ecbnetwork.eu/

explore the new look of Europeana, and your feedback is welcome

NEW! Europeana portal updated for a fresh experience!

After much work on improving the beta version, the updated Europeana collections website is now live and available.

VISIT! www.europeana.eu

As the Executive Director Harry Verwayen just said “We now feel confident that we are releasing a much-improved website that is faster, easier to explore, more accessible, and offers exciting new ways to discover collections. Further improvements will be introduced in the coming months and we invite you to continue sharing your comments and thoughts on making this a superior user experience. We hope you enjoy it, and we welcome your feedback to help us make it an even better experience.”

If you are nostalgic for familiar features, the previous version of the website remains available under classic.europeana.eu.

Find out more about the new website and the latest improvements on Europeana Pro.

image from Europeana – Ajuntament de Girona/CRDI, Public Domain.

The survey of NEMO to collect information

How are European museums managing COVID-19?

NEMO, the Network of European Museum Organisations, represents the museum community of the Council of Europe member states .

Since its founding, in 1992, it promots the work of museums and their value to policy makers and provide museums with information, networking and opportunities for collaboration.
It includes museum networks as well as individual museums; currently it has more than 30,000 affiliated in 43 countries across Europe.

In this difficult time, NEMO is following the spread of COVID-19 closely and to better assist the European museum community, NEMO finds that it is important to gather and compile information of museums’ actions in regards to the coronavirus.

For this purpose, it created a short survey and it is asking the European museum community to fill it out.

Help NEMO to collect information! Leave Here your contribute .

Read more information here.

A dynamic investigation of common interest for the entire scientific network

Paris 8 University lunches the UNCHARTED project

The choice of Paris 8 to dedicate a page to UNCHARTED project in the university website is a key contribution for the promotion of the project among researchers and experts of the academic world.
The showcase has been included in the section reserved to the “actualités” and it is easily accessible by all visitors of the university website. The description, clear and precise, enhances the kick off meeting of last 7^thFebruary, presents the main topics of the research and identifies the members of the consortium highlighting the scientific and technical knowledge that will support the implementation and outcomes of the project.
Visit UNCHARTED project on Paris 8 website
Visit UNCHARTED website

the Digital Archive is an extraordinary example of common search system and user interface

More than 53000 photographs by the National Archives of Norway online

text by Caterina Sbrana.

“Na na na heyana, Hahiyaha naha ..”

This is how Frozen, the Walt Disney movie directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee, begins. The film has no relevance to the National Archives of Norway but who wrote the opening music, Vuelie, is the Norwegian musician Frode Fjellheim, who inserts the Joik into the song. By doing research on Joik popular music, I have deepened, through this extraordinary archive, the Sami culture. Joik is the Sami folk music, one of the oldest traditional songs in Europe. It has particular vocal characteristics and it is performed as a dedication to a person or an animal. While in the mid-fifties of the twentieth century, the Joik was long condemned as a sinner and it was forbidden to use it in schools in the Sami area, today many young artists include Joik as an element in contemporary music. But this is not the most important topic. The Sami music was the pretext to tell you about this extraordinary photographic archive which, as I wrote, I discovered almost by chance.

Two reindeer Sami on Finnmarksvidda. The photograph comes from an album donated to the National Archive by Nurse Marie Lysnes. In the spring of 1945, she participated in the creation of a field hospital in Finnmark. Lysnes documented her stay in Finnmark through texts and images.

On the National Archives Digital Photo Archive, I found over 200 photographs depicting the daily life of the Sami people with the capture of reindeer, the festivals, the construction of sleds. Photos of the mid-20th century and contemporary ones.

As the project staff says, the National Archives use the Digital Archives as a channel to publish parts of their archive material, primarily that which is in highest demand. On the Digital Archives internet site, most of these source materials are open to all for searching and browsing. The Digital Archives present archive documents in digital form and are free to use and open to all; they are built around the notion that archive users should be able to access as much source material as possible, from one location, presented through a common search system and user interface.

Samelandsmøte, 1962. Photo taken on the occasion of a sightseeing trip to Finnmark for Billedbladet-ORA

From the home page of the Norwegian Digital arkivet, clicking on the National Archives Digital Photo Archive we are returned to the page “Fotoweb 8.0” from which you can start the historical-photographic search.

We find out that the photographs “originate from different archives, both private and commercial, as well as organisations and public sector entities. Some of the photos are taken by professional photographers, others by amateur photographers and individuals”.

I suggest you to read the instructions of the creators of the digital archive before beginning the research: in the middle of the page a search box allows you to write a free-text necessary to find a particular photo. The photographs include the information which has been provided in the archives themselves, are categorized geographically by region and country. “Identification of featured individuals is a time consuming process and for this reason, many photos will contain little or no such information, even if it could have been of great interest”.

Photo taken on the occasion of a Sami wedding; approximate dating 1962; maker Klaeboe, Lasse

People, institutions, as well as organizations can create his own albums, by registering a user account as volunteers in the photo archives. The group of experts working in Digital Archives has set as a rule the usability of the digitized material, and this means that it can be published for free usage on all pages.

The majority of photos in the National Archives Digital Photo Archive can be used freely, and without restriction, but some are restricted for commercial use. Every picture in the photo archives has a tab which says “Rules for reuse”, where we can find the usage rules that particular picture.”Rules for reuse” explains whether a picture is in the public domain; and if not, which licensing conditions apply.

A shepherd of reindeer. Photo by Koji Tsuda, taken from Samisk arkiv, 1974-1986

A few months ago, in September 2019, other Norwegian archives outside of the National Archives will be offered the opportunity to upload and publish their scanned archive material online on the Digital Archives.

I can assure you that in this digital archive we find photographs of extraordinary beauty and interest not only in the field of historical research.

Shortly, I’m going to show you a series of beautiful black and white photographs, from the middle of the twentieth century preserved at the Borgarsyssel Museum, Sarpsborg, and now digitized, concerning daily life and much more.

It’s in front of everyone how much digital technology allows a large number of people access to cultural resources. The researchers themselves claim that the Digital Archives are built around the notion that archive users should be able to access as much source material as possible, from one location, presented through a common search system and user interface.

https://www.digitalarkivet.no/en/

https://foto.digitalarkivet.no/fotoweb/

https://foto.digitalarkivet.no/fotoweb/archives/5001-Historiske-foto/

https://foto.digitalarkivet.no/fotoweb/archives/5001-Historiske-foto/Indekserte%20bilder/PA-0873_U1_1_160.tif.info#c=%2Ffotoweb%2Farchives%2F5001-Historiske-foto%2F%3Fq%3D%2520reinsdyr

https://foto.digitalarkivet.no/fotoweb/archives/5001-Historiske-foto/Indekserte%20bilder/Fo30141604010042.tif.info#c=%2Ffotoweb%2Farchives%2F5001-Historiske-foto%2F%3Fq%3Dsamisk

https://foto.digitalarkivet.no/fotoweb/archives/5001-Historiske-foto/Indekserte%20bilder/3119_026_8050248.tif.info#c=%2Ffotoweb%2Farchives%2F5001-Historiske-foto%2F%3F80%3DTsuda%252C%2520Koji

Vau i Dejës, Albania, 18-21 May 2020

Call for registration is now open for the International Workshop on Heritage sites in the Balkans

Professionals and organizations involved in preservation, management and valorisation of Komani, of other heritage sites in the Drin Valley, Albania and the Balkan region as well as relevant speakers with an important experience in preservation of Balkans heritage are invites to join this three-and-a-half day exchange workshop about heritage sites sustainable management in the Balkans, based on case studies and shared experiences.
The plenary sessions will take place at Villa Franceze located on Komani site (Vau i Dejës municipality). There will be a full day on the field at Komani.The closing session will take place during an official event in Tirana.
Based on Komani case study and on the Grands Sites de France approach, the workshop intends to feed discussion about integrated management of heritage areas.
The seminar is co-organized by the Franco-Albanian archaeological mission of Drin Valley, the municipality of Vau i Dejës and the Réseau des Grands Sites de France (RGSF), in collaboration with the Grand Site de France Bibracte-Mont Beuvray, the French Embassy in Albania, as well as the partners of the RGSF’s International Francophone Centre.
The Grands Sites de France Network is an organisation, bringing together local authorities responsible for both day-to-day operations and long-term evolution of the most remarkable protected landscapes in France (50 affiliated sites, 32 million visitors per year : Pont du Gard, Cliffs of Etretat, Dune of Pilat,…). Since 2010, it manages the International Centre for training and exchange of francophone heritage site managers. The latter organizes trainings in integrated management of heritage sites under the patronage of UNESCO and field workshops. It coordinates an online exchanges network of 130 professionals from 35 countries and supports international cooperation projects between sites.
The Grands Sites de France Network with its national policy, it’s a remarkable point of reference for all private and public organization that are willing to take care of their national heritage sites.
It takes part in national and international reflection on the future of these areas of outstanding natural beauty and heritage site, facing their long-term conservation within the context of growing pressure from tourism.
Download the call for registration
Read more about The Grands Sites de France Network(RGSF)
Link to the International Centre for training and exchange of francophone heritage site managers

Save the date:18-21 May 2020,Vau i Dejës, Albania

International Workshop: Building together the future of heritage sites in the Balkans

The municipality of Vau i Dejës is committed to a project to create a regional natural park in order to enhance the diversity of Komani heritage resources (landscape, archaeology, vernacular heritage, etc.). Based on Komani case study and on the Grands Sites de France approach, the workshop intends to feed discussion about integrated management of heritage areas. It will also discuss the experience acquired within the Grands Sites de France national policy (coordination between preserving heritage value of sites and managing tourist flows, stimulating a socio-economic impact on the area, urban sprawl, etc.).
The workshop offers the opportunity to share experiences and case studies about heritage sites sustainable management in the Balkans and will count on the participation of Professionals and organizations involved in preservation, management and valorisation of Komani, of other heritage sites in the Drin Valley, Albania and the Balkan region as well as the relevant contribution of speakers with an important experience in the topic of the workshop.
The seminar is co-organized by the Franco-Albanian archaeological mission of Drin Valley, the municipality of Vau i Dejës and the Réseau des Grands Sites de France (RGSF), in collaboration with the Grand Site de France Bibracte-Mont Beuvray, the French Embassy in Albania, as well as the partners of the RGSF’s International Francophone Centre.

Download the call for registration

OMM – Odunpazarı Modern Museum in Eskişehir, Turkey, presents Karina Smigla-Bobinski latest artwork.

ADA, interactive kinetic installation inspired by Ada Lovelace

OMM by Kengo Kuma and Associates. Fotoğraf_Photo ©NAARO

OMM – Odunpazarı Modern Museum in Eskişehir, Turkey will play host to an interactive kinetic sculpture named after Ada Lovelace, one of the world’s first computer programmers.

ADA by Karina Smigla-Bobinski is a huge, free-floating interactive drawing tool that unearths the hidden creative talents of machinery, controlled by humans but producing its own autonomous language in charcoal marks across the white walls, ceilings and floors of the gallery space.
Advancing OMM’s mission to promote projects that combine art, design and technology, the installation will be in motion at the museum from 15 February – April 12 2020, marking its inaugural appearance in Turkey.

Karina Smigla-Bobinski, “ADA”, OMM 2020, fotoğraf_photo by Doğan Kayacık

The daughter of renowned poet Lord Byron, Ada Lovelace developed the very first prototype of a computer in the 19th century together with Charles Babbage. While Babbage provided the preliminary computing machine, she wrote the first software. Lovelace was the first to recognize that the potential of computers lay beyond mere calculation – she set out to create a machine that could paint and write poetry. Similarly, ADA extends the possibilities of automation into a realm of creative generation.
Influenced by the mechanical sculptures of Jean Tinguely, ADA is a post-industrial creature that channels the spirit of biotechnology with its organic, self-determined output. Smigla-Bobinski’s kinetic sculpture takes the form of a transparent, membrane-like globe filled with helium and studded with charcoal spikes. Activated by visitors, the sphere revolves around the room with relentless energy, leaving indecipherable charcoal traces on the surfaces it encounters. As the white walls of the exhibition area begin to fill with markings, a complex structure emerges.

Karina Smigla-Bobinski, “ADA”, OMM 2020, fotoğraf_photo by Doğan Kayacık

Although the visitor can control ADA’s trajectory, the form of the composition cannot be calculated in advance; the autonomous movement creates an evolving series of patterns and signs which become its own symbolic language. ADA is movement experienced visually, as if witnessing a computer produce a surprising output upon entering a command.
As Lovelace’s poetic vision for the computer reached past basic command execution, so Smigla-Bobinski’s ADA is a machine that acts as an independent artist, whose spontaneous output can only be decoded through the human power of association.

Odunpazarı Modern Museum | www.omm.art | @ommxart | info@omm.art
Şarkiye Mah. Atatürk Bulvarı
No:37 Odunpazarı – Eskişehir/ Türkiye

Hilversum (The Netherlands), 5-6 March 2020

Europeana XX Century of Change: kick-off meeting

img. credits: Fortepan via Europeana.

A new CEF funded project has just started, and the kick-off meeting was celebrated in Hilversum on 5-6 March 2020, hosted by project coordinator the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision. It was a lively and productive event with presentations, discussions, planning, and various groups activities, in the lovely Institute’s building. Some of the partners representatives could not travel to Holland and a direct streaming was therefore set up, which guaranteed inclusive participation.

In this project, 5 Domain and Thematic Aggregators join forces with technology and educational partners, to stimulate reflection and debate on European recent history, and to improve and enrich Europeana.eu, the European digital library. Overarching theme: the 20th century as a gamechanger, whose impact on society is extensively documented in photographs, audiovisuals and other types of media.

We’re heading for…

a new Thematic Collection in Europeana.eu with compelling editorials
100.000 new high quality records
smart tools to support curators
machine translation and semantic enrichment to hundreds of thousands of Europeana records
an online and on site outreach strategy

Download a presentation by Sofie Taes (KU Leuven), Berlin 19/2/2020 – PDF, 6 Mb

Photo credit: Max Peters, Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision.

Partners

Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision
Istituto Luce Cinecittà
Filmoteka Narodowa Instytut Audiowizualny
KU Leuven
DFF Deutsches Filminstitut Filmmuseum
Catwalkpictures
European Fashion Heritage Association
PHOTOCONSORTIUM
Europeana
NTUA National Technical University of Athens
Pangeanic
Noterik
Technische Informationsbibliothek
ThinkCode
Jewish Heritage Joods Historisch Museum
Anacode

The project Europeana XX is co-financed by the European Union in the framework of CEF Connecting Europe Facility Programme under GA n. INEA/CEF/ICT/A2019/1932087.

Understanding, Capturing and Fostering the Societal Value of Culture

Successful kick off meeting for the UNCHARTED project!

Last 7th February, the UNCHARTED partners held their first meeting in Paris.

10 partners, from 7 EU Countries, presented their work packages and they worked in a positive and functional way going through the main technical and logistic issues and preparing the floor for a future profitable cooperation.

The occasion was good also for planning the first UNCHARTED workshop that will be held in Porto, on April 22-24 2021 and will be used to hold several further organizational meetings.

Photo gallery:

[Show as slideshow]