Collection vs Media,Digital vs Analogue

Adrian Kingston, Digital Asset Manager Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

• The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Act 1992 combined the former National Museum and the National Art Gallery

• Opened in new building 14th February 1998

• Averages over 1.1 million visitors annually

• Collections include Photography, Art, History and Pacific, Taonga Maori, Archives, and Zoological and Botanical sciences.

Wellington Picture

Previous situation: Te Kahui

Photography Collection Objects and Media Assets catalogued in the same place

Confusion over what was original, a copy, or whether part of the Collection or not

Digital Collection Objects waiting for cataloguing

No specific fields for digital information

The issues:

How do we Manage Collection Objects as

Collection Objects regardless of format or material?

Appropriately manage Media Assets in a way that distinguishes them from Collection Objects?

Record required technical information about Objects and Assets?

Highlight the relationships that may exist between a Media Asset and a Collection Object?

Objects that have been collected by the Museum because of their historical, aesthetic, scientific or other significance and have been through a formal acquisition process

May be analogue OR digital

Collection Objects:

Records (predominantly images) created or used by the museum to support collection documentation; access and preservation; and other museum activities

May be analogue OR digital

Media Assets:

All digital objects in Multimedia module Would have separated analogue

Collection Objects from digital Collection Objects, analogue Media Assets from digital Media Assets

Media Assets (analogue or digital) in Multimedia Module Inadequate cataloguing capabilities Lack of support modules

(Conservation etc) Where do digital Collection Objects

go?

Collection Objects and Media Assets in the catalogue, Multimedia as an “import” tool only

Options:

• Media Asset

• Scanned

• Digital (TIFF)

• Collection object

• Painting

Collection

•Media Asset

•Colour Transparency

•Analogue

Media Assets

CATALOGUE

Current situation; Scan of photograph of Collection Object

MULTIMEDIA

TIFF

Resolutions

Metadata

Image.tif

Current situation; Hierarchy

• Collection object

• Digital

Collection Media Assets

CATALOGUE

MULTIMEDIA

TIFF

Resolutions?

Metadata

Image.tif

Current situation; Digital Collection Object

• Media Asset

• Scanned

• Digital (TIFF)

Collection Media Assets

CATALOGUE

Current situation; Media Assets of non-collection subjects

MULTIMEDIA

TIFF

Resolutions

Metadata

Image.tif

Current situation - Positives

Collection items managed together   Media Assets managed together

Appropriate management modules and cataloguing tools available

Ability to relate media assets to collection items

Current situation - Negatives

Separation based on a single field in the catalogue

Complex security and access

Confusing relationship of Media Asset records to other modules

Duplicate info in multimedia module record

Two records required for every digital object (Collection or Media Asset record, and a Multimedia record)

Our ideal

Retain hierarchical relationships between Collection records and Media Asset records.

Collection and non-collection items

are distinct

Appropriate tools and support modules are available for describing and managing objects of any format

Only one record is required per object or asset

• Media Asset

• Scanned

• Digital

• Collection object

• Painting

Collection

•Media Asset

•Colour Transparency

•Analogue

Media Assets

CATALOGUE

Preferred situation; Scan of photograph of Collection Object

Image.tif

Multimedia functionality

•TIFF

• Resolutions

•Metadata

• Collection object

• Digital

Collection Media Assets

CATALOGUE

Image.tif

Preferred situation; Digital Collection Object

Multimedia functionality

•TIFF

• Resolutions

•Metadata

• Media Asset

• Scanned

• Digital (TIFF)

Collection Media Assets

CATALOGUE

Preferred situation; Media Assets of non-collection subjects

Image.tif

Multimedia functionality

•TIFF

• Resolutions

•Metadata

Conclusions – our ideal (again)

Retain hierarchical relationships between Collection records and Media Asset records.

Collection and non-collection items

are distinct

Appropriate tools and support modules are available for describing and managing objects of any format

Only one record is required per object or asset