This course provides students with an introduction to the range of digital methods and computational approaches that are deployed in heritage work for the purposes of documentation, site and collections management, public engagement and outreach, preservation, and research. The course pays particular attention to both the practical methods and ethical implications of digital heritage practice. 

In this course, I learned about digital heritage, ethical considerations, the different technologies used in different types of heritage work, and was shown different examples of successful projects. Assignments included four reflective blog posts about the readings we discussed, two labs that allowed us to dive into digital heritage tools, and a final project that let us prepare a real-life digital heritage project (links to materials can be found below).

 Reflective Blog Posts 

 Lab #1 

Prompt: Your team has been approached by X heritage institution (replace X with an institution of your choice).  They want to build a digital project of some kind to enable the general public to better explore and experience their collections, their institution, etc. Work in groups to envision a digital project for this scenario.  Produce a vision document and a spec.  Be prepared to briefly present your concept. The project (focus, platform, implementation, etc) is totally open.

Our team decided to "work with" the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Sweden. Our pitch was to create "Venture into Vasa," a program that used virtual reality (VR) technology to explore the historic shipwreck. “Venture into Vasa” will be a VR experience that will help users explore the Vasa before and after it sank. VentureVR.org is the website that will be developed as the home base. The vision document and spec are featured below.

 Lab #2 

Prompt: Practice plotting points on a map. Choose any location and plot one point with a pop-up information window. Send final html file via email. Use the provided Leaflet guide for reference.

 Final Project 

Prompt: The final assignment for the course is a Digital Heritage Project Proposal. While the content/focus/platform of the project is entirely up to students, it must fall under one of the course’s “big ideas” – preservation & access, public engagement, or heritage futures. This project will be designed entirely “on paper.”  The idea is that student teams have been asked to submit a project proposal to heritage institution, site, organization, collection, etc.  What they produce for this assignment is a complete vision for that proposed project. The proposals are expected to be professional, thoughtful, detailed, creative, and comprehensive. They should draw upon what student’s have learned in the course, and show their experience with the domain of digital heritage. The proposal will be produced by student teams and presented at the end of the semester. The project must be “real” in the sense that it meets a real need, makes a real intervention, and is grounded in real technology (no proposals that rely on magical technology that doesn’t exist).

Provide a clear and concise explanation of the project’s goals and describe how the proposed activities and the ultimate results address a need or challenge for specific audiences. Describe how your project advances the field by contextualizing it within the landscape of similar projects. Provide a clear and concise summary of work that is relevant in terms of content, technology, or methodology. Describe the expected final product (or products)  from this proposal.  Discuss how these align with the project’s goals, and how you propose to ensure they will reach your intended audiences. Describe the plans to disseminate the project to your intended audiences. Include comprehensive design mockups (what will your proposed project look like). Each project team should prepare a formal presentation of their project proposal.  The presentation should be 15 minutes, well structured, clear, and to the point.  Imagine that you are pitching this idea, and the quality of the presentation dictates whether you will get funded. 

Our team decided to pitch The Global Golden Age Film Archive, which would be an educational website that will provide digital access to cinematic posters of the 1950s-1970s in order to help preserve this art form and allow users to learn about its cinematic and cultural heritage.