Recoding the Museum: Digital Heritage and the Technologies of Change

by Ross Parry

Why has it taken so long to make computers work for the museum sector? And why are museums still having some of the same conversations about digital technology that they began back in the late 1960s? Does there continue to be a basic ‘incompatibility’ between the practice of the museum and the functions of the computer that explains this disconnect? Drawing upon an impressive range of professional and theoretical sources, this book offers one of the first substantial histories of museum computing. Its ambitious narrative attempts to explain a series of essential tensions between curatorship and the digital realm. Ultimately, it reveals how through the emergence of standards, increased coordination, and celebration (rather than fearing) of the ‘virtual’, the sector has experienced a broadening of participation, a widening of creative horizons and, ultimately, has helped to define a new cultural role for museums. Having confronted and understood its past, what emerges is a museum transformed – rescripted, re calibrated, rewritten, reorganised.

Genres: Academic

190 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2007

Reviews

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating detailed history of computing in the digital heritage sector. I was unaware of the groundbreaking work and policy development that the Smithsonian did in the 60s. Interesting affect of computation on the artistry and expression of the curator's "day book" used to record acquisitions etc. Ross Parry is a superstar.