SEPIA Workshop on management of photographic collections, Sept. 2001

[Anne Muller <ECPA _at__ bureau.knaw.nl>]

With apologies for multiple postings.

***
Announcement 
SEPIA Workshop on management of photographic collections
Amsterdam, 3-7 September 2001

Librarians, archivists and curators in charge of photographic materials
need to
know about the role of new technology in collection management. Digital
imaging
offers unprecedented opportunities for access to historical materials. But how
can it be combined with established preservation methods in an integrated
strategy, to ensure optimal access today as well as in the future?

Three workshops on management of photographic collections in 2001, 2002 and
2003  will address this issue. The workshops will cover essentially the same
topics and will be organized by the European Commission on Preservation and
Access (ECPA).
They are part of the SEPIA (`Safeguarding European Photographic Images for
Access') project, subsidized by the Culture 2000 programme of the European
Union. 

Introduction.
The characteristics of various photographic processes and the different
materials encountered in photographic collections will be reviewed. Specific
requirements for their handling and preservation will be related to the nature
and function of different types of photographic collections. The workshops
will
explore the different methods for capturing images (especially for fragile or
sensitive materials), technical requirements in relation to image quality, and
long-term management of digital files. Issues will be approached as management
problems, and due attention will be given to aspects like needs assessment,
setting priorities, planning, budgeting and outsourcing, and project
management.

In the scope of the workshop, participants will acquire knowledge of technical
issues that will enable them to make informed decisions about the role of
digitization in care and management of photographic collections.

The speakers include leading figures from the field of photographic
conservation, preservation management, and digital imaging,  who have
first-hand knowledge of the challenges facing managers of photographic
collections. They will present outlines of issues and practical cases, and a
substantial part of the workshops will be spent on discussions and group
assignments to develop participants? skills in finding their own solutions.


Topics and features

The nature of photography: history of photography, identification of
photographic materials and techniques, forms of deterioration

Preservation: preventive measures, environmental issues, storage, packaging,
handling, effect on life span; duplication: analogue or digital; financial and
managerial aspects of preservation

Digital imaging: planning a digitization project, goals, selection criteria,
technical specifications, scanning, color management, image enhancement yes or
no? quality control; scanning & preservation, management of digital assets:
long-term access to digital archives, descriptions & metadata

Collection management: photographic collections & institutions, users?
requirements, defining preservation policies, storing and displaying
photographs, digitization as one option in collection management

Case study: participants will work in small groups on a project combining
digitization and preservation aspects. key words: planning, assessment,
defining
goals and priorities, workplan, budgeting, staffing

The course will be in English.

Daily sessions from appr. 9.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. Course ends Friday appr. 3
pm.



Target group
All those responsible for photographic collections in archives, museums,
libraries. For this introductory course, no specific expertise of photographic
techniques or digital imaging is required. Participants are expected to have a
working knowledge of English in order to participate in discussions.

Workshop leaders
Mattie Boom, Curator, Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam)
Franziska Frey, Imaging scientist, Image Permanence Institute (Rochester, USA)
Hans de Herder, Director, National Photographic Conservation Studios
(Rotterdam)
René van Horik, Digital imaging specialist, Netherlands  Institute for
Scientific Information Services (Amsterdam)
Luis Pavão, private consultant (Lisbon)
Simon Tanner, Senior Digitisation Consultant, Higher Education Digitisation
Service (UK)
Clara von Waldthausen, photographic conservator (Amsterdam)

Organisation
National Photographic Conservation Studios, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
European Commission on Preservation and Access, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

For more information contact the ECPA: 
P.O. Box 19121, 1000 GC Amsterdam, The Netherlands
tel.: ++31 20 5510839 
fax: ++31 20 6204941
e-mail: ecpa _at__ bureau.knaw.nl

Location and scheduling
The workshop will be held from 3-7 September at the Royal Netherlands Academy
of Arts and Sciences in Amsterdam.

Registration fee 
The fee for this 5-day course is 500 euros. This includes coffees, teas,
lunches and a course pack with reading materials. Participants from
institutions that are SEPIA partners or ECPA contributors will pay 450 euros.

How to apply
For online registration: http://www.knaw.nl/ecpa/form.htm

The form should be sent to the ECPA before 11 June 2001. By July 2nd you will
be informed whether your application has been accepted. In view of the
character of the workshops which require group work and active participation,
the number of participants is limited. If the number of applications exceeds
the number of available places a selection will have to be made. Preference
will be given to those applicants who manage a photographic collection. A
detailed programme will be mailed after confirmation.


Accommodation and travel
Participants should make their own hotel reservations and travel arrangements.


SEPIA
Historical photographic collections are an essential part of the European
cultural heritage both for their artistic as for their documentary value.
Photographs speak a universal language, and as a record of past times
appeal to
a large audience. However, many of them are fragile and the preservation of
the
wide variety of photographic materials is a problem for all institutions.
Digital imaging, offering new opportunities for access and care, is now widely
explored for its role in management of photographic collections.

In 1999 a the SEPIA (Safeguarding European Photographic Images for Access)
project was set up aimed at the long-term preservation of all kind of
photographic materials, and defining the role of new technology in collection
management. The success of these activities encouraged the partners to
formulate a follow-up program for another 3 years which has recently been
selected as a result of the latest call for proposals of the Culture 2000
programme. More partners and associate partners have joined, so that the group
now consists of 15 institutions in 10 countries.

For more information see: http://www.knaw.nl/ecpa/sepia 

The SEPIA partners: 
British Library (London)
European Commission on Preservation and Access (Amsterdam)
Finnish Museum of Photography (Helsinki, Finland)
National Library of Spain (Madrid)
National Photographic Conservation Studios (Rotterdam) 
Public Record Office (Kew, Richmond)
Royal Library of Denmark (Copenhagen) 
Sächsische Landesbibliothek -Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden,
Deutsche Fotothek (Dresden)
Stockholm City Museum (Stockholm) 

Associate Partners:
Centre de Recherches sur la Conservation des Documents Graphiques  (Paris) 
Netherlands Institute for Scientific Information Services (Amsterdam)
Netherlands Institute for War Documentation (Amsterdam)
Norwegian Museum Authority, The Secretariat for Historical Photography (Oslo)
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (Amsterdam)
University College Dublin, Department of Archaeology (Dublin)

*****


European Commission on Preservation and Access (ECPA)
P.O. Box 19121, NL-1000 GC  Amsterdam, 
visiting address: Trippenhuis, Kloveniersburgwal 29, NL-1011 JV  Amsterdam,
The Netherlands
tel. ++31 - 20 - 551 08 39   fax  ++31 - 20 - 620 49 41
URL: http://www.knaw.nl/ecpa/