VRA Conference Minneapolis 2024

The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation has been digitizing a collection of more than 1,500 film negatives shot by Rauschenberg throughout the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. These images are critical to research for the artist’s forthcoming Catalogue Raisonné. Anne Boissonnault, Digital Asset Specialist, will discuss this year-and-a-half long project, and concurrent and related initiatives, from pilot selection, to copy stand photography, to cataloging and metadata cleanup.

The Center for Creative Photography has recently completed the digitization of Lola Alvarez Bravo’s collection of negatives. Numbering over 30,000 negatives in different formats, this project is the culmination of a five year digitization effort. In this session Miles Scott, Digital Archivist at CCP, will discuss the scope of the project from beginning to end. He will also discuss tracking progress, reusing metadata, storage and public access.

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden digitized 312 artworks (2D and 3D) by Marcel Duchamp in preparation for a two-year exhibition showcasing all works from a single donor, including condition assessment, cataloging, photography, and exhibition photography of these works. Julia Murphy, Head of Documentation and Archives, will share the digitization process from private donor’s home to museum gallery installation. "

The Detroit Institute of Arts is the home of a monumental fresco cycle executed by Diego Rivera in 1932-1933. The process was documented by Ford Motor Company photographer W.J. Stettler, and the DIA Research Library & Archives preserves a set of approximately 378 prints. In addition, the archives has 44 of Stettler's negatives which are in various stages of degradation. Archivist James E. Hanks will discuss recent activities to preserve the primary sources as well consider the value of re-scanning materials, and how this project has enhanced outreach for the DIA Research Library & Archives. The DIA plans to include archival imagery in a future iteration of its digital asset management system, as well as expanding the use of linked data to provide access to collection items. As Diego Rivera's murals are some of the most popular works in the museum, the archives has an important role in art historical documentation.