Digital meets Culture

Paris (France), 28th June 2016

Heritage content: how to address the new digital challenges?

Digital content is in no comparison stronger to analog when it comes to reaching wider grounds and larger audiences. Come and discover how new digitization techniques improve the original works preservation and distribution.

Experts from FeniXX, BnF (French National Library), EDRLab and Jouve will share useful insights from their ongoing projects.

Introduction:
- Mr Bruno Delorme – VP international organizations – Jouve

Unavailable Books of the XXth century: how to combine mass digitalization with high quality achievement?
- Mr Regis Habert – Director – FeniXX

The « unavailable books of the XXth century » is the largest worldwide project of mass digitization of books in a structured format (XML – ePub).
FeniXX is the company created by the French publishers to operate the project; its objective is to digitize 200.000 books over a nine year period.
The presentation will address how FeniXX and its digitization partner Jouve have managed the numerous challenges encountered while setting up the project. It will also describe the methods and processes applied to ensure that the quality level required for this production will be reached.

Accessibility, Format Adoption, Epub Format: Pragmatic accessibility in digital publishing
- Mr Daniel Weck – Software Engineer – Affiliations: EDRLab – DAISY – Readium

The EPUB3 format is an industry standard for digital publications. There are still interoperability challenges, and the accessibility bar must be raised. In addition to “good practice” content production guidelines, a formal definition of a11y conformance is emerging, alongside recommended authoring techniques, as well as software validation tools. Mainstream reading systems are improving too. Is the dream of an inclusive publishing ecosystem being realized?

Ebook collections of the 19th century
- Caroline Kageneck – Corporate accounts – BnF Partenariats

Two exemples of ongoing services (internet websites) for the Libraries to give their Patrons access to selected parts of the BnF collections:
– Bnfcollection ebooks (key point) and music
– Retronews (Heritage Press Collections)

Keys to a better access to content
- Etienne Vazolerretto – Product Director – Jouve

Key Metrics and facts to help size projects and find the best approach allying quality and productivity for digitization programs. Also, answers on colorimetry, image optimisation techniques and the best methods for efficiently searchable content.
We will end with a networking session.

LIMITED SEAT AVAILABLE, REGISTER NOW.

June 28th 2016, from 2pm to 5 pm.

At the French National Library: BnF, Room “le Belvédère” – Tour des Lois, Quai François Mauriac, 75013 Paris.

Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria, 26–28 September 2016

Call for Papers open for DIPP2016

The Sixth International Conference on Digital Presentation and Preservation of Cultural and Scientific Heritage–DiPP2016 is organised under the UNESCO patronage and aims at presenting innovative results, research projects and applications in the field of digitisation, documentation, archiving, representation and preservation of global and national tangible and intangible cultural and scientific heritage.

Authors are invited to submit original, unpublished research and project papers that are not (and will not be) simultaneously under consideration for publication elsewhere. General areas of interests include (but are not limited to) the following topics:

Digital libraries, e-archives, repositories, virtual museums, e-exhibitions and encyclopaedias of cultural heritage
Virtual reconstructions and interactive multimedia solutions for museums, theatres, concert halls, exhibitions, etc.
Restoration and preservation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage
Acceleration and facilitation of the sharing and exchange of research data
Issues of the protection of intellectual property: determination, accreditation and management of rights to digital content
Documentation, visualisation and interaction in museums and archives
e-Infrastructures and open access to digitised cultural and scientific heritage
Aggregators for transfer of digitised wealth within the European and global digital environment
Semantic processing of cultural heritage knowledge. Techniques for extracting digital data and knowledge
Use, efficiency and design of interfaces for applications in cultural heritage. Multilingualism
Interactive systems in cultural and creative industries. Social games. Digital storytelling in cultural heritage
Educational applications of digital libraries with cultural and scientific content
Digitalisation of cultural heritage and economics of cultural tourism

Paper types: full papers (8-10 pages); short papers (6 pages) and project papers (6 pages)

All research papers must be written in English and follow the formatting guidelines of Springer’s Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS). Authors should clearly indicate the topic/s and the type of the contribution. All papers are peer-reviewed by at least two members of the programme committee. All submissions are reviewed on the basis of relevance, originality, significance, soundness, and clarity. At least one author should attend the conference to present the paper.

Demos, demonstrations and exhibitions: Memory institutions (e.g., libraries, museums, galleries, archives), research institutions and universities are invited to demonstrate their digital content management systems, digital archives, libraries and repositories preserving national cultural and scientific heritage.

Important dates:

DiPP2016 conference: September 26–28, 2016

Deadline for papers submission: July 5, 2016

For more information contact dipp2016@math.bas.bg or visit http:/dipp2016.math.bas.bg.

Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria, 26–28 September 2016

DiPP2016 Conference

The main focus of International Conference Digital Presentation and Preservation of Cultural and Scientific Heritage DiPP2016 is to provide open access to digitised cultural heritage and to set up sustainable policies for its continuous digital preservation and conservation. The priority area is the digital presentation and preservation of cultural and historical objects under conditions of risk. The forum will demonstrate innovative technologies and prototypes, including digital repositories, digital archives, virtual museums and digital libraries, which result from established practices and achievements in the field. Representatives of a number of public and specialised libraries, museums, galleries, archives, centres, both national and foreign research institutions and universities will be invited to participate and exchange experiences, ideas, knowledge and best practices of the field.

There will be also Workshop on Open Access to Scientific Publications and Data, which will primarily focus on the following activities: Open Access indicators; disseminate partners’ best practices; discuss research problems in the field; discuss the possibilities of establishing a network of open-access repositories; contribute to the problems of the harmonization of national legislation and practices; and discuss the possibilities of developing training courses for creators and managers of scientific digital repositories to ensure interoperability.

DiPP2016 conference: September 26–28, 2016

Principal organiser: Institute of Mathematics and Informatics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113, Sofia, 8, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., website: http://www.math.bas.bg, phone +359 2 870 1072, fax +359 2 971 3649, e-mail: director@math.bas.bg

Co-organisers: Veliko Tarnovo Municipality, Regional Museum of History, P. R. Slaveykov Regional Public Library, Veliko Tarnovo, St. Cyril and St. Methodius University of Veliko Turnovo

Hosts of the event: Regional Museum of History and P. R. Slaveykov Regional Public Library, Veliko Tarnovo

For more information contact dipp2016@math.bas.bg or visit http://dipp2016.math.bas.bg.

available open access at Springer, the book makes a creative addition to the debates surrounding the cultural heritage domain.

Cultural Heritage in a Changing World – the RICHES book

Developed within the RICHES project about the context of change of our society and cultural heritage, the book “Cultural Heritage in a Changing World” addresses several core topics, through essays of important experts, adding to the debates surrounding the cultural heritage domain.

The Book is divided into four interrelated sections: Context of Change; Mediated and Unmediated Heritage; Co-creation and Living Heritage for Social Cohesion; and Identity and Belonging.

The Introduction and the whole editorial process have been curated by RICHES partners Karol Jan Borowiecki (University of Southern Denmark), Neil Forbes (Coventry University) and Antonella Fresa (Promoter SRL).

List of chapters:
Context of Change

Cultures and Technology: An Analysis of Some of the Changes in Progress—Digital, Global and Local Culture, by Mariella Combi
Interdisciplinary Collaborations in the Creation of Digital Dance and Performance: A Critical Examination, by Sarah Whatley and Amalia G. Sabiescu
Sound Archives Accessibility, by Silvia Calamai, Veronique Ginouvès and Pier Marco Bertinetto
Technology and Public Access to Cultural Heritage: The Italian Experience on ICT for Public Historical Archives, by Calogero Guccio, Marco Ferdinando Martorana, Isidoro Mazza and Ilde Rizzo
Copyright, Cultural Heritage and Photography: A Gordian Knot?, by Frederik Truyen and Charlotte Waelde

Mediated and Unmediated Heritage

A Case Study of an Inclusive Museum: The National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari Becomes “Liquid”, by Anna Maria Marras, Maria Gerolama Messina, Donatella Mureddu and Elena Romoli
The Museum as Information Space: Metadata and Documentation, by Trilce Navarrete and John Mackenzie Owen
The Museum of Gamers: Unmediated Cultural Heritage Through Gaming, by Serdar Aydin and Marc Aurel Schnabel

Co-creation and Living Heritage for Social Cohesion

Change of Museums by Change of Perspective: Reflecting Experiences of Museum Development in the Context of “EuroVision—Museums Exhibiting Europe” (EU Culture Programme), by Susanne Schilling
Technologies Lead to Adaptability and Lifelong Engagement with Culture Throughout the Cloud, by Silvia de los Rios Perez, Maria Fernanda Cabrera-Umpierrez and Maria Teresa Arredondo
The Place of Urban Cultural Heritage Festivals: The Case of London’s Notting Hill Carnival, by Ernest Taylor and Moya Kneafsey
Tools You Can Trust? Co-design in Community Heritage Work, by Simon Popple and Daniel H. Mutibwa
Crowdsourcing Culture: Challenges to Change, by Dora Constantinidis

Identity

The Spanish Republican Exile: Identity, Belonging and Memory in the Digital World, by Lidia Bocanegra Barbecho and Maurizio Toscano
Growing Up in the ‘Digital’ Age: Chinese Traditional Culture Is Coming Back in Digital Era, by Situ Xiaochun

Further, a chapter about Riches and the Riches Taxonomy conclude the book.

Civic Epistemologies and Riches signed on November 2015 the Berlin Charter, a set of principles for encouraging and supporting citizens’ engagement in cultural heritage and humanities research in the digital age.

The Book is downloadable for free here.

Cluj-Napoca (Romania), 8-14 September 2016

4th International Festival of NanoArt

The 4th International Festival of NanoArt was be hosted in Cluj-Napoca, Romania by Babes-Bolyai University between September 8 – 14, 2016 in parallel with the 11th International Conference On Physics Of Advanced Materials (ICPAM-11). The artworks were shown in the Hall of Transilvania Philharmonic Cluj-Napoca. The exhibition is curated by artist and scientist Cris Orfescu, founder of NanoArt 21 and artist Mirela Suchea, PhD, researcher in the field of nanostructured materials synthesis. The previous editions of the festival were held in Finland, Germany, and Romania.

Joe Nalven: The Fruit that the Snake gave to Eve in Eden-nanoart

NanoArt is a complex artistic-scientific process that comprises three major components:

1. creation of the nanosculpture (sculpture at atomic and molecular levels, by manipulating atoms and molecules using chemical reactions and physical processes) or discovery of the nanolandscape (natural nanostructures, mostly biological);

2. visualization of the nanostructure (which is facilitated by the use of advanced microscopes) and image capture;

3. artistic interpretation of the scientific images using different artistic techniques in order to convert these images in pieces of artwork to be showcased for large audiences and to educate the public with creative images that are appealing and acceptable.

http://nanoart21.org/nanoart_festival.html

View NANOART21 exhibitions: http://nanoart21.org/nanoart-exhibitions/

a dedicated event in Berlin took place for showcasing the tool.

Europeana Space Toolbox, a flexible solution for museums educators

by Beatrix Lehmann (Museumsmedien)

At the end of May 2016 the Europeana Space Toolbox was presented by Beatrix Lehmann from Museumsmedien, in an event for educators in memorials and museums. The participants came from different institutions in Berlin:

German Historical Museum, Topography of Terror, Berlin Cathedral Church, Memorial to the Murdered Jews in Europe, Otto Weidt’s Workshop for the Blind and German Resistance Memorial Center.

[Show as slideshow]

The Toolbox was explained in detail, and scenarios of uses cases were discussed. The audience was very impressed by the usability and the open source structure of the Toolbox.

Learn more about the Toolbox here: http://www.europeana-space.eu/toolbox/

an interesting article about photographic heritage and digital technologies

Reliving the past and revisiting the present through photographic heritage

An interesting article recently appeared on the blog of the Europeana Space Photography Pilot, led by prof. Fred Truyen of KU Leuven. The article is derived from a very lively and high-profile speech delivered by prof. Truyen during the Photoconsortium seminar “Virtual Museums and Photographic Heritage” (Pisa, 4th May 2016).

The article talks about the power and the role of photography in representing or witnessing the reality, and the implication on which it is possible to leverage when using photography in virtual museums. As explained in the article,

“Virtual museums as we know them today are interactive websites that allow visitors to navigate, walk through and view objects from different angles, often in 3D – a feature frequently used for archaeological sites. In the best cases, they also offer a social dimension, where personal experiences can be shared.”

prof. Fred Truyen during his speech at Photoconsortium Seminar

Digitized early photographic images have the ability to bring historical realities close beyond expectation. Somehow, they manage to render the past more tangible, more credible and imaginable than it could ever be, perceived from a dusty photo album or a glass plate. Most of all, photography enhanced by digital technologies is able to support heightened user engagement and identification, which are key elements of the museal experience. Digitized images not only offer a totally different view on photographic heritage, but also fundamentally change the experience of the past they represent.

Talking about mirrors, frames, trompe l’oeil, impressionism and pixeling, the article is a journey of uncommon reflections around photography and digitized photography, suggesting a wealth of creative possibilities for the use of this medium in virtual museums, also providing current examples of state-of-the-art ways of creating, remixing and playing with virtual museums.

“Going back to our virtual museums, the opportunity that they offer lies in the possibility to mix the typical 3D spaces and navigation, with the archetypical photographic elements of scale, framing and distance, and with the richness of the light as it is captured: the reflectance, the illusion and the scattering of the light on the texture.”

Full article by Fred Truyen and Clarissa Colangelo (KU Leuven) is available HERE.

On 15-17 September 2016 KU Leuven will host a conference on Intersectionality in Digital Humanities.

Conference “Intersectionality in DH”

The last few years have witnessed a movement towards a more open and inclusive Digital Humanities field. The Alliance for Digital Humanities Organizations has appointed a Multilingualism/Multiculturalism committee to address these issues and accepted a special interest group, Global Outlook :: Digital Humanities, to try to break down barriers between countries in the Global North and the Global South. Intersectional studies are also developing within DH to try to bring a plurality of voices into the conversation.

KU Leuven’s Digital Humanities Task Force invites individual paper proposals, panel sessions, poster sessions, and tool demonstrations related to intersectionality in Digital Humanities.

Meeting venue: KU Leuven

Dates: September 15^th to 17^th (immediately after the Digital Humanities Summer School, September 12^th to 14th).

Confirmed plennary speakers include:

Deb Verhoeven (Deakin University)
Roopika Risam (Salem State University)
Daniel O’Donnell (University of Lethbridge)
Alex Gil (Columbia University)
Padmini Ray Murray (Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology)
Melissa Terras (University College London)

Topics might include but are not restricted to:

Development and evaluation of feminist, gender, queer, and disability studies in Digital Humanities
Digital manifestations of critical race studies
Digital Humanities and activism
Collaborations between digital humanities specialists and scholars in other fields
Born-digital critical and creative initiatives in cultural history
Histories and futures of the digital
Editorial initiatives, digitization and curation of primary texts, representation of manuscripts and the writing process
Inquiry into texts, networks, and historical processes via visualization and strategies, e.g. distant reading, big data, etc.
Authorship and collaboration: the work of women and other historically marginalized writers, traditional models of scholarship, and new conditions of digital research and new media
Identities and diversity in new media: born-digital arts in word, sound, and image, in genres including documentaries, blogs, graphic novels, memoirs, hypertexts and eLiterature
Conditions of production: diversity in academia, publishing, library, information science, or programming, past and present
Cultural and political implications of particular tools or digital modes of presentation
Pedagogical objectives, practices, environments
Dissemination, accessibility, and sustainability challenges faced by digital projects
Detecting and managing bias in text corpora for linguistic research
Strategies of dealing with bias in historical research based on large datasets
Gender in music canonisation

INFO: http://www.arts.kuleuven.be/digitalhumanities/women-in-digital-humanities

Call for moving image and performance work - deadline 13 June

Visions in the Nunnery 2016

Visions in the Nunnery is back for its tenth incarnation at the Nunnery Gallery in London.

A renowned showcase of recent performance and moving image works by emerging and established artists, Visions aims to offer an international overview of the challenging and thoughtful uses of these ever shifting mediums.

We are now inviting artists from all over the world to submit moving image and performance works for Visions 2016, which will run from October to December 2016 at the Nunnery Gallery.

WHO Moving image and performance artists

WHAT We are looking for cutting edge work that has been made in the last two years. There is no theme. Selection will be based on innovative uses of your chosen medium. No more than three entries per artist.

WHEN Application deadline: 13 June 2016. Exhibition: October to December 2016

REQUIREMENTS

Moving Image

We are mainly looking for single screen works of up to 10 minutes in duration. However, we do have some limited space for small installation/monitor based work, or longer single-screen pieces. If you are submitting an installation, please provide an additional document describing the work, including equipment, dimensions etc. Please, be aware that we cannot provide equipment specifically for individual installations.

Performance

We are looking for live, networked and hybrid performance works (not documentation!) of up to 10 minutes in duration. Please describe the work’s mechanics, including equipment, participants, dimensions, props, space requirements, number of performers, etc.

With full support for all PDF/A parts and conformance levels

veraPDF 0.16 released and available for download

The latest version of veraPDF features full support of all PDF/A-2 and PDF/A-3 requirements (all levels). Together with earlier support of PDF/A-1 validation, it represents the first full support for all PDF/A parts and conformance levels.

Features:

Conformance checker
- validation of digital signature requirements
- extraction of color space info from JPEG2000 images
- validation of permissions dictionary
- PDF/A-2B fix: correct implementation of CIDSystemInfo entry requirements
- command line support for plugin execution to extend feature extraction
veraPDF characterisation plugins
- first set of example pure java plugins available
- optional sample plugin pack available through installer

Test corpus:

112 new atomic test files for parts 2 and 3

Infrastructure:

support for all parts and conformance levels at http://demo.verapdf.org

Download veraPDF 0.16:

http://www.preforma-project.eu/verapdf-download.html

http://downloads.verapdf.org/rel/verapdf-installer.zip

Release notes:

https://github.com/veraPDF/veraPDF-library/releases/latest

veraPDF is building the definitive, open source PDF/A validator. The project benefits from a high level of development resource and PDF/A expertise. Please support our efforts by downloading and testing the software. If you encounter problems, or wish to suggest improvements, please add them to the project’s GitHub issue tracker. You can expect a speedy response. YPlease support our efforts by downloading and testing the software.

Keep up to date with the latest developments of veraPDF by subscribing to the veraPDF consortium’s newsletter.

About veraPDF

Led by the Open Preservation Foundation and the PDF Association, the veraPDF consortium is developing the definitive open source, file-format validator for all parts and conformance levels of ISO 19005 (PDF/A). The software is designed to meet the needs of memory institutions responsible for preserving digital content for the long term.

The veraPDF consortium is funded by the PREFORMA project. PREFORMA (PREservation FORMAts for culture information/e-archives) is a Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP) project co-funded by the European Commission under its FP7-ICT Programme.