The Current State and Challenges in Democratizing Small Museums’ Collections Online
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.6017/ital.v42i1.14099Abstract
This article focuses on the problematic democratization of small museum collections online in Cyprus. While the web has enabled cultural heritage organizations to democratize information to diverse audiences, numerous small museums do not enjoy the fruits of this digital revolution; many of them cannot democratize their collections online. The current literature provides insight into small and large museums’ challenges worldwide. However, we do not have any knowledge concerning small Cypriot museums. This article aims to fulfill this gap by raising the following research question: What is the current state of small museum collections online in Cyprus, and what challenges do they face in democratizing their collections online? We present our empirical results from the interview summaries gathered from six small museums.
References
Paul Katz, “The Quandaries of the Small Museum,” The Journal of Museum Education 20, no. 1 (1995): 15–17, https://www.jstor.org/stable/40479486.
Nik Honeysett and Julia Falkowski, Museum Technology Landscape 2018: Discovery and Findings (Lyrasis: 2018), https://www.lyrasis.org/Leadership/Documents/LYRASIS-Museum-Tech-Landscape-Report-2018.pdf.
Eric Miller, Uche Ogbuji, Victoria Mueller, and Kathy MacDougall, Bibliographic Framework as a Web of Data: Linked Data Model and Supporting Services (Washington, DC: Library of Congress, 2012), 42.
Sheila Watson, ed., Museums and Their Communities (Routledge: New York, 2007).
Guido Cimadomo, “Documentation and Dissemination of Cultural Heritage: Current Solutions and Considerations about Its Digital Implementation,” in 2013 Digital Heritage International Congress (DigitalHeritage) (IEEE: 2013), 555–62, https://doi.org/10.1109/DigitalHeritage.2013.6743796.
S. Sylaiou, F. Liarokapis, P. Patias, and O. Georgoula, “Virtual Museums: First Results of a Survey on Methods and Tools” (paper presented at CIPA 2005 XX Symposium, 26 September–01 October 2005, Torino, Italy).
Rachel Regelein, “A Digital Collections Plan for the Southwest Seattle Historical Society” (unpublished master’s project, University of Washington, 2019), https://www.washington.edu/museology/2019/11/13/a-digital-collections-plan-for-the-southwest-seattle-historical-society/.
Ion Gil Fuentetaja and Maria Economou, “Studying the Type of Online Access Provided to Museum Collections” (2008), https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Studying-the-Type-of-Online-Access-Provided-to-Fuentetaja-Economou/b44415e02b5fca204d79b481d325b66482461f41.
Bernadette Flynn, “Making Collections Accessible” (Federation of Australian Historical Societies Inc., January 2018), https://www.history.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/MakingCollectionsAccessible.pdf.
Karol J. Borowiecki and Trilce Navarrete, “Digitization of Heritage Collections as Indicator of Innovation,” Economics of Innovation and New Technology 26, no. 3 (2017): 227–46, https://doi.org/10.1080/10438599.2016.1164488.
Morgan Schlesinger, “The Museum Wiki: A Model for Online Collections in Museums” (master’s project/capstone, University of San Francisco, 2016), https://repository.usfca.edu/capstone/456.
Genevieve Horan, “Digital Heritage: Digitization of Museum and Archival Collections” (research paper, Master of Public Administration, Political Science Department, Southern Illinois University, 2013), https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/gs_rp/374.
Ilse Harms and Werner Schweibenz, “Evaluating the Usability of a Museum Web Site Abstract” (2001), https://www.museumsandtheweb.com/mw2001/papers/schweibenz/schweibenz.html.
Steen Hvass, preface to The Museum’s Web Users, A User Survey of Museum Websites (Heritage Agency of Denmark, 2010), https://slks.dk/fileadmin/publikationer/Kulturarv/The_museum_s_web_users_2010.pdf.
Monica Bercigli, “Dissemination Strategies for Cultural Heritage: The Case of the Tomb of Zechariah in Jerusalem, Israel,” Heritage 2, no. 1 (March 2019): 306–14, https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage2010020.
Elena Villaespesa and Trilce Navarrete, “Museum Collections on Wikipedia: Opening Up to Open Data Initiatives” (paper presented at MW19, the 23rd MuseWeb Conference, Boston, MA, April 2–6, 2019), https://mw19.mwconf.org/paper/museum-collections-on-wikipedia-opening-up-to-open-data-initiatives/.
Gerald Wayne Clough, “Democratization of Knowledge through Digitization in Libraries, Museums, and Archives” (2020), https://smartech.gatech.edu/handle/1853/62423.
Gerald Wayne Clough, “Democratization of Knowledge through Digitization in Libraries & Archives” (2020), video, https://smartech.gatech.edu/bitstream/handle/1853/62423/clough.mp4?sequence=5&isAllowed=y.
Eva Richani, Georgios Papaioannou, and Christina Banou, “Emerging Opportunities: The Internet, Marketing and Museums,” in 20th International Conference on Circuits, Systems, Communications and Computers (CSCC 2016) 76, https://doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/20167602044.
Lynsey Martenstyn, “Digital Archives: Making Museum Collections Available to Everyone,” Culture Professionals Network, The Guardian, May 3, 2013, https://www.theguardian.com/culture-professionals-network/culture-professionals-blog/2013/may/03/museum-archives-digital-online.
Shyam Oberoi and Kristen Arnold, “New Architectures for Online Collections and Digitization” (paper presented at MW2015: Museums and the Web, Chicago, IL, April 8–11, 2015), https://mw2015.museumsandtheweb.com/paper/new-architectures-for-online-collections-and-digitization/.
Barbara Lejeune, “The Effects of Online Catalogues in London and Other Museums: A Study of an Alternative Way of Access,” Papers from the Institute of Archaeology 18, no. S1 (2007): 79–97, https://doi.org/10.5334/pia.289.
Chryssoula Bekiari, Leda Charami, Martin Doerr, Christos Georgis, and Athina Kritsotaki, “Documenting Cultural Heritage in Small Museums” (paper presented in 2008 Annual Conference of CIDOC), https://cidoc.mini.icom.museum/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2018/12/25_papers.pdf.
Rolf Däßler and Ulf Preuß, “Digital Preservation of Cultural Heritage for Small Institutions,” in Digital Cultural Heritage, ed. Horst Kremers (Springer International Publishing, 2020), https://www.springerprofessional.de/en/digital-preservation-of-cultural-heritage-for-small-institutions/16842836.
Penelope Kelly, “Managing Digitization Projects in a Small Museum” (master’s project, Arts and Administration Program, University of Oregon, March 2005), https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/937.
Kate Taylor, “Going Digital Not Easy for Cultural Institutions,” The Globe and Mail, April 18, 2020, https://www-theglobeandmail-com.cdn.ampproject.org.
Susan Wigodner and Caitlin Kearney, “Who Reviewed This?! A Survey on Museum Web Publishing in 2018 (paper presented at MW18: Museums and the Web 2018, Vancouver, Canada, April 18–21, 2018), https://mw18.mwconf.org/paper/who-reviewed-this-a-survey-on-museum-web-publishing-in-2018/index.html.
Shyam Oberoi and Kristen Arnold, “New Architectures for Online Collections and Digitization” (paper presented at MW2015: Museums and the Web, Chicago, IL, April 8–11, 2015), https://mw2015.museumsandtheweb.com/paper/new-architectures-for-online-collections-and-digitization/index.html.
Nuno Freire, Pável Calado, and Bruno Martins, “Availability of Cultural Heritage Structured Metadata in the World Wide Web” (paper presented at 22nd International Conference on Electronic Publishing, June 2018), 11, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325914185_Availability_of_Cultural_Heritage_Structured_Metadata_in_the_World_Wide_Web.
Manolis Gergatsoulis and Pantelis Lilis, “Multidimensional RDF,” in On the Move to Meaningful Internet Systems 2005: CoopIS, DOA, and ODBASE (2005): 1188–1205, https://doi.org/10.1007/11575801_17.
Cruce Saunders, “Content Authoring for Human and Machine Consumption.” [A], September 2, 2019, https://simplea.com/Articles/Content-Authoring-for-Human-and-Machine.
Alejandra Garcia Bittar, “Is a Digital Strategy Necessary in Small Museums?” Museum and Digital Culture – Pratt Institute, November 11, 2018, https://museumsdigitalculture.prattsi.org/is-a-digital-strategy-necessary-in-small-museums-a72c1645e495.
Charles Tongue, “Museum Survey 2017,” Vernon Systems (blog), May 12, 2017, https://vernonsystems.com/museum-survey-2017/.
Network of European Museum Organisations, “Final report: Digitisation and IPR in European Museums” (Network of European Museum Organisations, July 2020), https://www.ne-mo.org/fileadmin/Dateien/public/Publications/NEMO_Final_Report_Digitisation_and_IPR_in_European_Museums_WG_07.2020.pdf.
Axiell, “Museums Accelerate Implementation of Digital Strategies, Making More Content Available Online and On-Site to Improve Visitor Experiences,” Axiell (blog), June 28, 2017, https://www.axiell.com/axiell-news/museums-accelerate-implementation-of-digital-strategies-making-more-content-available-online-and-on-site-to-improve-visitor-experiences-2/.
Joan Beaudoin, “Art Museum Collections Online: Extending Their Reach” (paper presented at MW20, the 24th MuseWeb Conference, March 31–April 4, 2020), https://mw20.museweb.net/paper/art-museum-collections-online-extending-their-reach/.
Avgoustinos Avgousti, Georgios Papaioannou, and Feliz Ribeiro Gouveia, “Content Dissemination from Small-Scale Museum and Archival Collections: Community Reusable Semantic Metadata Content Models for Digital Humanities,” The Code4Lib Journal, no. 43 (February 14, 2019), https://journal.code4lib.org/articles/14054.
“Vernon Systems – Museum Survey,” Vernon Systems (blog), May 19, 2016, https://vernonsystems.com/vernon-systems-museum-survey-data/.
Nuno Freire et al., “A Survey of Web Technology for Metadata Aggregation in Cultural Heritage,” Information Services & Use 37, no. 4 (2017): 425–36, https://doi.org/10.3233/ISU-170859.
Europeana: Discover Europe’s Digital Cultural Heritage (website), accessed January 29, 2023, https://www.europeana.eu/en.
Denis Pitzalis, “3D and Semantic Web: New Tools to Document Artefacts and to Explore Cultural Heritage Collections” (2013).
Denis Pitzalis, “3D and Semantic Web: New Tools to Document Artifacts and to Explore Cultural Heritage Collections. Signal and Image Processing,” (PhD diss. Université Pierre et Marie Curie, 2013).
Chryssoula Bekiari et al., “Documenting Cultural Heritage in Small Museums;” Lejeune, “The Effects of Online Catalogues in London and Other Museums: A Study of an Alternative Way of Access.”
Paul Klimper, “Introduction to Museums in the Digital Age,” in NEMO 21st Annual Conference Documentation, Bukarest, Romania, 2013, ed. Julia Pagel and Kelly Donahue, https://www.ne-mo.org/fileadmin/Dateien/public/statements_and_news/NEMO_21st_Annual_Conference_Documentation.pdf.
Dorel Micle, “Heritage Networks and Portals,” in Museum and the Internet. Selected Papers from the International Summer Course in Buşteni, Romania, 20th – 26th of September, 2004, ed. Irina Oberlander-Târnoveanu (Budapest: Archaeolingua, 2008), 73-120.
Magdalena Laine-Zamojska, “Virtual Museum and Small Museums: ViMuseo.Fi Project,” in Museums and the Web 2011: Proceedings, ed. J. Trant and D. Beardman (Toronto: Archives and Museum Informatics, 2011), https://www.museumsandtheweb.com/mw2011/papers/virtual_museum_and_small_museums_vimuseofi_pro.
Noah Lenstra, “Website Development for Small Museums: A Case Study of the Katherine Dunham Dynamic Museum,” January 1, 2008, https://www.academia.edu/2439955/Website_development_for_small_museums_A_case_study_of_the_Katherine_Dunham_Dynamic_Museum.
“Resources for Small Museums,” Gallery Systems (blog), accessed July 13, 2022, https://www.gallerysystems.com/online-tools-resources-small-museums/.
Jasmine Hoover, “Gaps in IT and Library Services at Small Academic Libraries in Canada,” Information Technology and Libraries 37, no. 4 (2018): 15–26, https://doi.org/10.6017/ital.v37i4.10596.
Vikas Bhushan, Shiv Shakti Ghosh, and Sudipta Biswas, “Bridging the Gap between CMS and Semantic Web” (paper presented at NACLIN 2015 Conference, Kamataka, India), ResearchGate, 2016, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/307923260_Bridging_the_gap_between_CMS_and_Semantic_Web.
Stéphane Jean Joseph Corlosquet, “Bootstrapping the Web of Data with Drupal” (master’s thesis, National University of Ireland, Galway, 2009), https://aic.ai.wu.ac.at/~polleres/supervised_theses/Stephane_Corlosquet_MsEng_2009.pdf .
Athanasios Velios and Aurelie Martin, “Off-the-Shelf CRM with Drupal: A Case Study of Documenting Decorated Papers,” International Journal on Digital Libraries 18, no. 4 (2017): 321–31, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00799-016-0191-5.
Konstantinos Vavliakis, Georgios Karagiannis, and Pericles Mitkas, “Semantic Web in Cultural Heritage After 2020” (2012), https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Semantic-Web-in-Cultural-Heritage-After-2020-Vavliakis-Karagiannis/c69d14de020d5dedb9e76a173c94cc56cc254251.
Illias Daradimos, Costas Vassilakis, and Akrivi Katifori, “A Drupal CMS Module for Managing Museum Collections” (2015), https://www.academia.edu/29947679/A_Drupal_CMS_Module_for_Managing_Museum_Collections.
Quinn Dombrowski, Drupal for Humanists (College station: Texas A&M University Press, 2016.)
Jennifer Zaino, “2017 Trends for Semantic Web and Semantic Technologies,” DATAVERSITY (blog), November 29, 2016, https://www.dataversity.net/2017-predictions-semantic-web-semantic-technologies/.
Grigoris Antoniou and Frank van Harmelen, A Semantic Web Primer, Second Edition (Cambridge Massachusetts and London, U.K.: The MIT Press, 2008).
Jackson Joab, “Tim Berners-Lee: Machine-Readable Web Still a Ways Off” GCN, October 30, 2009, https://gcn.com/articles/2009/10/30/berners-lee-semantic-web.aspx.
Eric Miller, Uche Ogbuji, Victoria Mueller, and Kathy MacDougall, “BIBFRAME Primer – Bibliographic Framework as a Web of Data: Linked Data Model and Supporting Services” (November 2012): 42, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280113409_BIBFRAME_Primer_-_Bibliographic_Framework_as_a_Web_of_Data_Linked_Data_Model_and_Supporting_Services.
Bryn Farnsworth, “Qualitative vs Quantitative Research – What Is What?” imotions (blog), June 11, 2019, https://imotions.com/blog/qualitative-vs-quantitative-research/.
Ceryn Evans, “Analysing Semi-Structured Interviews Using Thematic Analysis: Exploring Voluntary Civic Participation Among Adults,” in SAGE Research Methods Datasets Part 1 (SAGE Publications, Ltd., 2018), https://doi.org/10.4135/9781526439284.
Sandra Faulkner and Stormy P. Trotter, “Data Saturation,” in The International Encyclopedia of Communication Research Methods (American Cancer Society, 2017), 1–2, https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118901731.iecrm0060.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Avgoustinos Avgousti and Georgios Papaioannou
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Authors that submit to Information Technology and Libraries agree to the Copyright Notice.
