CHArt CHArt Computers and the History of Art - 1998 Conference Paper Abstract
At both large and small institutions, visual resource curators as well as individual professors are scrambling to establish digital collections of art and architectural history images. Rather than a time of clear-cut answers, this is a time of exploration and development. Excitement and anxiety are paired as we begin to fathom the tremendous opportunities of digital resources. This paper will focus on the opportunities of Web-based collections. Two collections will be highlighted: the American Architecture Image Bank Project, already online, and the subsequent World Architecture Image Bank Project, now in development. Technical issues such as standards for software, hardware, image sources and manipulation, support and staffing, and security will be outlined in addition to the pedagogical and theoretical issues raised. These projects demonstrate the powerful opportunities available to educators for collaboration and co-operation in the virtual world.