Lauren Bell
Preservation & Imaging
Graduate School Papers & Projects
Course: Art Librarianship
Paper Title: A comparison of Google Arts & Culture and ARTstor: Paul Klee’s "Rose Garden"
Abstract: Google has emerged as one of the leaders in sharing cultural heritage images publicly through its Google Arts & Culture initiative. How does this compare to classic databases available privately through universities and libraries like ARTstor? In this paper, I will analyze the overall cataloging of Paul Klee’s Rose Garden in these two image databases. Analysis will include image quality, quality of content, user interface and search features, along with overall
strengths and liabilities of each system. A conclusion will be made about which system is the most successful at sharing quality information regarding cultural heritage images.
Course: Art Librarianship
Project Title: Artwork Provenance & Accession Number Assignment
Abstract: This project is a mock-assignment that was created to teach college-level students about the provenance and accession number of artworks. Learning outcomes of the presentation and assignment include: how to search a museum's website, an artwork's lineage (provenance), how to use provenance and accession number to identify how and when a work came into a museum's collection.
Course: Metadata for Information Professionals
Paper Title: Digital Collection Repository Proposal
Introduction/Scenario: As the Head of Cataloging and Metadata, I am proposing a digital project for the institution so that our collections can be accessible online to users around the world. This proposal has been developed as the Ogdensburg Art Library continues to receive more prominent collections. In the remainder of this proposal, I will suggest solutions for a software framework and metadata schema implementation for a digital repository. By having this digital repository, the library will be able to support digital exhibitions and post extensive finding aids detailing its holdings. Though some items are under copyright and cannot be digitized, a record will be made for each item in the Bell Modern and Contemporary Art Collection to promote access. Please see Table 1 for a breakdown of items in this collection. This collection will be used as a pilot for the library in order to gauge the effectiveness of having collections accessible online. The goal of this project is to create a digital repository that reaches each of the current 3,000 patrons, but promotes growth within the library’s user community. Each item will have a record and each record will contain metadata to aid in discovery, as well as a digital surrogate or copy of the material when appropriate. Controlled vocabulary will be used considerably to promote greatest access, along with interoperability of metadata. Staffing solutions will be discussed and a breakdown of the budget for this project is also included in this proposal.
Course: Knowledge & Society
Paper Title: Scholarly Journals in the Arts Sector: An Analysis of ARTnews
Abstract: Scholarly journals provide reliable access to accurate and authentic information. Though a subjective field, the arts sector includes many notable peer-reviewed journals, magazines, and publications. This paper focuses on ARTnews, with comparisons made to other online art news websites like Hyperallergic and online journal databases such as Oxford Art Journal. I conclude that these sources are reliable, but users must consider the target audience of each publication.
Course: Knowledge & Society
Paper Title: Garry Winogrand: El Morocco, New York
Abstract: Garry Winogrand was a seminal street photographer during his lifetime. His ability to contrast emotion with human life gives his photos extra depth and compassion. This paper focuses on analyzing the 1955 photograph, El Morocco, New York, held by The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met). A description of the photograph, its influence on culture and culture’s influence on the photograph helps us to place it within various classification schemes. The photo’s physical presence within a prominent museum collection aids us in defining the object as a piece of artwork, rather than just another photography snapshot.
Course: Manuscripts & Archives
Project Title: League of Women Voters Collection Processing Plan
Scenario: This project was based on a collection that was given to us in an online course. The instructor provided images and an inventory list of a collection in her repository. Students then conducted an analysis of the collection's inventory, provided suggestions for accessioning and preserving the material, created an EAD-encoded finding aid. Part 1 is a written paper detailing appraisal of the collection, Part 2 is a worksheet used for decision making, and Part 3 is an EAD-encoded finding aid.
Course: Preservation of Library and Archival Material
Project Title: Daguerreotypes: A Preservation Leaflet
Purpose: This leaflet was made to detail the preservation guidelines for Daguerreotypes. The 3-page leaflet contains the following information:
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Key Terms
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Size of plates
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What is a Daguerreotype?
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How is it made?
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Inherent Vices and Deterioration
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Handling and Storage
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Repair, Treatment, and Reformatting Options
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Observations to make
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Prioritization for Preservation
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Bibliography
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Course: The History of Books, Documents, and Records
Paper Title: Photobooks: The Contemporary Democratic Multiple
Abstract: Ed Ruscha’s Twentysix Gasoline Stations is considered to be the first artists’ book and is categorized as a “democratic multiple”. This paper aims to prove that despite book scholars’ conclusions that the democratic multiple no longer exists, that it survives today as what we consider to be the “photobook”. The fluidity of artists’ books, democratic multiples, and photobooks is discussed. Twentysix Gasoline Stations is analyzed in terms of Robert Darnton’s communications circuit, scholarly research is examined to place Ruscha’s work in context, and a survey conducted by the author is analyzed to prove that photobooks are more well-known as a book format than artists’ books and democratic multiples.
Project: This paper is part of a Digital Tools for Book History assignment in which students transformed their paper into a digital tool to make accessing the information easier on digital platforms.
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A downloadable PDF version of the paper is available at the Digital Tools site.
Title: Jersey Makes, the World Takes: Industry in The Great War Era
Position: Exhibitions Assistant Intern
Institution: Rutgers Special Collections & University Archives
Purpose: As an intern in Rutgers' Special Collections & University Archives, I was tasked with curating a case for the "Heaven, Hell, or Hoboken!": New Jersey in the Great War exhibition on view from 3/9/2017-9/22/2017. My case focused on industry in New Jersey during World War I. Curation included object selection, consultation of primary source material both within and outside of the archive, and preservation and organization of the items.
A selection of captions, list of items included, and accompanying catalog caption can be downloaded at left.
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