August 1, 2004, vol. 1, no. 4
Image Stuff Home

Co-editors: Corey Schultz (Stanford University) & Kristin Solias (University of Massachusetts, Boston)

Table of Contents
Summer Blockbusters, Part 1 - ARTstor
Summer Blockbusters, Part 2 - MDID 2
Summer Institutes, Part 1 - SEI
Summer Institutes, Part 2 - Knowledge Sharing
TEACH Act Update - VRA Intellectual Property Rights Committee
Who's that Girl?- New Image Stuff Logo
VRA Bulletin Sneak Peak - Vol. 30, No. 3 (Spring 2004)
Chapter News- Upcoming Meetings

Summer Blockbusters - ARTstor
There has been quite a bit of discussion of ARTstor on VRA-L, especially since the release of the fee structure in April. Kristin Solias asked Barbara Rockenbach, Assistant Director of Library Relations at ARTstor, to address two of the concerns most often voiced in these discussions: the fee structure and interoperability with existing software, in particular presentation tools. What follows is her response. It is longer than our normal items, but we thought that our readers would appreciate the response in its entirety.

Participation Fees
As you may know, ARTstor is a non-profit organization that is collaborating with content creators, curators, and users to establish an art resource that will ultimately have institution-wide value, and one which institutions can comfortably come to rely on for the *very* long-term. Our goal in setting participation fees has been threefold: to generate enough recurring revenue on an annual basis to cover our operational costs after five years; to create a dedicated fund to allow us to meet our long-term preservation responsibilities; and, most importantly, to create a participation model for a sustainable enterprise that the academic and museum communities can rely on for many years to come. Only by doing so can we in good faith invite participating institutions to make future decisions based on the assumption that ARTstor, unlike many digital initiatives, will be around for the long term.

It is our expectation that ARTstor will be viewed as an institution-wide library resource, to be supported by central library budgets, rather than by a visual resource collection budget, a departmental or school budget, or a departmental art library budget. So far, this belief has been confirmed by early participants, though at some institutions a variety of departmental units have collaborated on participation in ARTstor. Obviously, each institution will make its own decision about the immediate and long-term value of ARTstor to its programs, services, and users. Some institutions feel the need for ARTstor now, while others may be comfortable waiting for a more appropriate time. We realize that we exist within an ever-changing landscape and we appreciate the need for institutions to evaluate digital resources in relation to both their immediate and long-term goals.

We take feedback from our key user communities – about our participation fees and all other matters – very seriously. This feedback was essential in ARTstor defining distinctly different classification parameters and participation fees for museums and independent schools of art. It is important, though, that we carefully balance the desire for lower and lower participation fees with the community’s desire for a reliable, long-term digital image resource and the very real costs associated with building and maintaining that resource.

Interoperability
ARTstor’s mission is to balance the interests of educational users and content owners, both here and abroad. We believe it is essential that the entire community advance together into a digital world that remains fraught with uncertainty for all involved. This approach has fundamentally shaped the permitted uses of content in the ARTstor Digital Library. It has also led us to develop a software environment supporting the fullest use of ARTstor content. We realize, of course, that digital resources do not exist in a vacuum, and accordingly we are taking a number of steps to ensure that the ARTstor environment will work to interoperate with the landscape. To this end, we are enabling or developing several levels of “interoperability” with other digital resources – both online resources and online tools – that may be already in place at different institutions. The following steps should enable not only integrated access to ARTstor and non-ARTstor content, but also provide paths to discovering and using ARTstor content through other systems:

We believe that these solutions are a good beginning. The availability of these various approaches should help those institutions that have invested in a specific software solution to integrate aspects of their existing infrastructure with ARTstor and vice versa.

A key element of our approach to interoperability is the ARTstor offline image viewer mentioned above. While we have worked hard to ensure that the ARTstor on-line environment can be used without either the participating institution or the end user downloading special software to local systems and workstations, this separate piece of software is downloaded and installed onto a user’s local computer. Doing so allows the user to download a group of images previously saved in ARTstor, to work with and present those images offline, and to integrate into these presentations images from other sources, such as personal image collections and institutional collections.

In its next version (due this Fall) the ARTstor offline image viewer will offer a range of new presentation options. VRA members should also know that it will also allow for data editing for those users who wish to integrate cataloging data associated with local images alongside ARTstor’s image and data. In addition, the offline image viewer will allow the user not only to integrate local and licensed content offline, but also to upload local images or image groups dynamically into the ARTstor Digital Library, to be shared with other users. This (and other tools that we are developing) aim at providing ARTstor users with the flexibility they need to incorporate local content alongside the collections available via ARTstor.

We, as a community, are still in the very early stages of a lengthy transition from analog to digital. ARTstor was conceived and built for the purposes of trying to make this transition less onerous and, ultimately, less expensive for any single institution. We will continue to work with the communities that we serve to ensure that we are headed in the right direction; we recognize and are grateful for the ways in which the membership of VRA have been the pioneers in exploring and understanding the complex data, image, and rights issues that we face. We appreciate all of the accomplishments of visual resource curators in this area, the help that we have received during our testing period and the early days of the live service, and the feedback that we have received thus far from a wide range of VRA members. We very much hope that you will continue to contact us with your comments, concerns, and suggestions.

****
Do you have comments or questions about this response? Are you at one of the 80 institutions already subscribed to ARTstor? Please send your comments, questions, or reviews to Kristin Solias (kristin.solias@umb.edu).

[Back to Table of Contents]

Summer Blockbusters - MDID 2
While Image Stuff will not normally include announcements for product releases, we feel that free, open-source resources such as MDID 2 deserve special attention and treatment. The notice below was submitted by Sandy Maxfield, Director of Library Public Services, Instructional Technology, and Distance Learning at James Madison University.

We are very pleased to announce that the new version of the Madison Digital Image Database (MDID 2) is now available to the general public. Developed at James Madison University, the MDID system brings the digital image library into the teaching and learning process. Visit the new MDID web site (http://mdid.org/) where you can have some fun playing with the MDID 2 online demo, find more information about MDID 2, and download the software. New features in MDID 2 include:

[Editor's Note: Kevin Hegg, one of MDID's programmers, told the MDID users list that he expects to have the new version of the Image Viewer, the classroom presentation module, ready by the end of August.]

[Back to Table of Contents]

Summer Institutes - SEI
Summer Educational Institute for Visual Resources and Image Management
submitted by John Taormina, Co-Chair, ARLIS/NA-VRA Joint Education Task Force

The inaugural Summer Educational Institute for Visual Resources and Image Management (SEI) was held at Duke University from July 7-10, 2004. The Institute was jointly sponsored by the Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA) and the Visual Resources Association (VRA), which formed a Joint Education Task Force in 2002 to develop the curriculum for the program. The Institute is intended to provide a standardized and sustainable program for visual resources and image management training, with a focus on issues related to the transition from analog to digital collections.

Co-chairs Mary Wassermann (Philadelphia Museum of Art) and John Taormina (Duke University) welcomed ten instructors and forty-five students to Duke’s forested campus located in central North Carolina. The Institute launched on a typically hot, humid, Southern summer day in a dedicated classroom on Duke’s Georgian-style East Campus. Students got to re-live their college days, as well as network with each other, by staying in the newest, air-conditioned dorm on Duke’s Gothic-style West Campus. Youthful memories surely surfaced during breakfast and lunch in the campus student eateries.

Throughout the four days of the Institute the attendees experienced thirty intense contact hours of lecture, discussion, and classroom exercises on the full range of topics pertinent to contemporary visual resources and image management. The knowledgeable and enthusiastic instructors covered administration, collection development, image organization, database design basics, digital transition strategies, human resources, cataloging, facilities management, digital image best practices, digital assets management systems and presentation technologies, visual resources and the library, intellectual property rights, grant writing, project management, and visual resources and the museum.

The instructional team included Kathe Albrecht (American University), Sarah Cheverton (James Madison University), Trudy Jacoby (Princeton University), Virginia Kerr (Northwestern University), Lee Sorensen (Duke University), Christina Updike (James Madison University), Mary Wassermann (Philadelphia Museum of Art), Margaret Webster (Cornell University), Karin Whalen (Reed College), Ann Whiteside (University of Virginia), and Susan Williams (Cornell University).

All students received large instructional binders containing 235 pages of course syllabi, lecture printouts, readings, bibliographies, worksheets, sample administrative forms, and other course materials used throughout the week. Attendees also received copies of the ARLIS/NA-VRA publication, Guidelines for the Visual Resources Profession, and copies of two Getty publications, Introduction to Imaging and Introduction to Art Image Access, generously donated by that institution. A packet of flyers and brochures from various vendors and a folder of Duke and local offerings were also distributed.

At the end of the first day of the Institute, a full reception of Middle Eastern savory and sweet foods, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages was sponsored by the Duke Department of Art and Art History, the hosting department for the Institute. Annabel Wharton, Acting Chair of the Department, welcomed the group to Duke and encouraged the attendees in their educational ventures.

Throughout the week, instructors and students interacted in the classroom and during breaks and lunches, discussing issues that all visual resources professionals are encountering in their workplaces. The Institute brought together members of both ARLIS/NA and VRA as well as non-members. Students and instructors came from all geographic regions of the United States and Canada. Attendees included students in library and information science programs, VR managers just beginning their careers, and long-time members of the profession.

At the conclusion of the Institute on Saturday afternoon, a rousing “graduation” ceremony was held for the students with Certificates of Completion being distributed by VRA President Kathe Albrecht.

[Back to Table of Contents]

Summer Institutes - Knowledge Sharing
Museums, Libraries, and Archives: Summer Institute for Knowledge Sharing
submitted by Cynthia Scott, Program Director, with input from Kristin Solias, participant

Building on the success of the four UCLA/Getty Summer Institutes in Los Angeles (1999-2002), the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College brought the Summer Institute for Knowledge Sharing to Boston for its fifth incarnation from July 12 to 15, 2004. The Institute welcomed an array of professionals including information specialists, collection managers, librarians, archivists, visual resources curators, and educators for an intensive four days of instruction and dialogue on the issues and decision-points institutions face in the acquisition, management, dissemination and preservation of digital collections.

On the first morning, Michèle Cloonan, Dean of the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College, and Cynthia Scott, Program Director of the Institute, welcomed participants. Sam Quigley, Director of Digital Information and Technology at the Harvard University Art Museums, set the tone for the week with a keynote address entitled “Complex Decisions Today, Knowledge Sharing Nirvana Tomorrow.” Borrowing a term from Clifford Lynch, he emphasized the importance of thinking in terms of “deep time” while acknowledging that we cannot possibly imagine what technologies will be available even in the next twenty years. Quigley also noted that people, encompassing the whole range of constituents, from makers to users, are the real key to successful digital projects. Rounding out the morning program were: case studies of digital projects, featuring Kay Bearman of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Emily Croll of the Barnes Foundation; a workshop on grant proposals for digital collections, led by Sandra Doucett, Senior Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations at Smith College; and introductions of participants.

Over the course of the four days, experienced and knowledgeable instructors led the various sessions and workshops. Martha Mahard, Curator of Historic Photographs and Special Visual Collections at Harvard University’s Fine Arts Library, led a session on selecting and appraising collections for digitization. Murtha Baca, Head of the Standards and Vocabulary Programs and the Digital Resource Management Department at the Getty Research Institute; Erin Coburn, Data Standards Administrator at the J. Paul Getty Museum; and Mary Woodley, Collection Development Coordinator at California State University, Northridge, collaborated on a multipart session tackling the issues involved in creating effective online collections. Topics included: making a case and planning for digitization; creating one data set for multiple purposes; and the selection and application of standards, vocabularies, and metadata schema in cataloguing and for the World Wide Web. Tim Hart, Web Analyst at the J. Paul Getty Trust, shared his expertise in analyzing visitor use and usability of websites in sessions on audience metrics, usability testing, and focus groups. Amy Lucker, Head of Technical Services and Slides & Digital Imaging at Harvard University’s Fine Arts Library, led a workshop on managing digital projects from concept to conclusion. And Robin Dale, Program Officer for Member Initiatives at the Research Libraries Group, led a session on digital longevity and preservation that clarified what is meant by digital preservation and what institutions need to know to preserve digital collections. In this session, Stephen Chapman, Preservation Librarian for Digital Initiatives at Harvard University, presented a case study that considered the affordability of repository storage. In the final session, participants worked in teams on a capstone exercise to apply the lessons learned during the Institute to several challenging cases.

A reception on Wednesday, July 14, at the beautifully restored Massachusetts Historical Society, highlighted the week. Hosted by Peter Drummey, Stephen T. Riley Librarian, the reception included a lively demonstration by Nancy Heywood, Digital Projects Coordinator, of digital projects featuring treasures from the MHS collections.

For more information about the Institute go to: http://ksi.simmons.edu.

[Back to Table of Contents]

Implementation of the TEACH Act
submitted by Jane Darcovich of the Intellectual Property Rights Committee

In a recent post on the digital copyright listserv, there was a question concerning implementation of the TEACH Act. Valerie Lang from Hudson Valley Community College asked for clarification on one of the criteria published in an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education (http://chronicle.com/free/v49/i29/29a02901.htm?cch). The article contains a “copyright checklist” for allowable uses of copyrighted material in online courses without seeking the author's permission. The criterion she questioned was: "The material must not have been originally intended for educational use."

In a response, John Rutter, from California State University at Santa Barbara wrote, "It comes back to the profit issue... specifically [that] 'mediated instructional activities' do not encompass use of textbook and other materials which are typically purchased or acquired by students." As Ken Crews writes "The point of this language is to prevent an instructor from including, in a digital transmission, copies of materials that are specifically marketed for and meant to be used by students outside the classroom in the traditional teaching model.... The provision is clearly intended to protect the market for materials designed to serve the educational marketplace." The general practice at our institution is for any type of media purchase to be channeled through our Instructional Media Center. This ensures broadest access to the materials and compliance with copyright and licensing.

Additional TEACH Act resources are available online at The American Library Association web page “Distance Education and the TEACH act” (http://www.ala.org/washoff/teach.html) which contains an extensive article by Kenneth Crews; and North Carolina State University’s TEACH Act Toolkit (http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scc/legislative/teachkit).

[Back to Table of Contents]

Who's that Girl?

Xochiquetzal

The new Image Stuff logo is Xochiquetzal, the Aztec patron of artisans. Her name can be translated variously as "precious feather flower" or "most precious flower." Xochiquetzal was the goddess of love and the fecundity of the earth.

Information taken from the following sources:

"Xochiquetzal"A Dictionary of World Mythology. Arthur Cotterell. Oxford University Press, 1997. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.BLC UMass Boston.28 July 2004 <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t73.e410>

"Xochiquetzal."Encyclopædia Britannica. 2004. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 28 July 2004 <http://search.eb.com/eb/article?eu=79787>.

[Back to Table of Contents]

VRA Bulletin Sneak Peek
Volume 30, No. 3 (Spring 2004) - coming in September 2004

Current Topics

Collection Administration: Large Collection Staffing Statistics
Joan Beaudoin, Bryn Mawr College

Intellectual Property Rights: Ditto.com or Kelly v Arriba Soft
Maryly Snow, University of California at Berkeley

Feature Articles

Digital Classroom: Safe Harbor or Danger Zone?
VRA Sponsored Session at 2004 CAA Conference, Seattle
Summary by Ben Kessler, University of Chicago

An Introduction to the NINCH Guide to Good Practice
Kathe Hicks Albrecht, American University

Keywords
Marcia Focht, Binghamton University

What is a Keyword?
Ben Kessler, University of Chicago

WordNet and Keyword Searching in Art and Architecture Image Databases
Hemalata Iyer, University of Albany, SUNY
Jeanne M. Keefe, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Is There a Place for Open Source Software in Visual Resources Collections?
Summary by Jacqueline Allen, Dallas Museum of Art

Rethinking Trial and Error
Jackie Spafford, University of California at Santa Barbara

Collaboration, Community, and Consortia in the Digital Provision of Images
Stephen O’Brien, Hunter Campus, Hunter Institute of Technology

The HASTAC Vision: Humanities, Arts, Science, and Technology Advanced Collaboratory
The HASTAC Working Group

[Back to Table of Contents]

Chapter News
Below is a tentative list of Fall meetings. Check the chapter websites and VRA-L for updates.

Great Lakes : October 22-23 at Ohio University in Athens, OH

Mid-Atlantic: October 1-2 in Williamsburg, VA (joint meeting with ARLIS/MD-DC-VA)

Midwest: November 12-13 in Minneapolis, MN (in conjunction with MCN and MINERVA)

New England: November 5 in Portland, ME

Upstate New York: November 5 at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Art Institute in Utica, NY (joint meeting with ARLIS/WNY)

NEW CHAPTER for the Southwest!
VRA members interested in forming a Southwest Chapter are encouraged to attend the ARLIS/Mountain West conference in Denver, CO, September 30-October 2. Look for updates on VRA-L.

If you would like more information on any of the other regional chapters, please contact the appropriate chapter chairperson. A list of the chapters and contact information is posted on the VRA web site (www.vraweb.org/chapters.html).

[Back to Table of Contents]