When I heard Jaskot\u2019s talk, I realized that I was missing out on a new and interesting approach to art history. I had previously used technology to record, organize, and even represent my work as part of a larger conventional framework. I had not used technology to help me better understand my work or to help me draw new conclusions.\u00a0 \u2014Nancy Ross, Dixie State University<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
This comment from Nancy Ross’ article “Teaching Twentieth Century Art History with Gender and Data Visualizations<\/a>” gets at the heart of digital humanities research as we’ve understood it in this class.\u00a0 For most scholars, digital humanity tools are a means of producing an accompanying visualization.\u00a0 This neglects how digital humanity tools can actually serve as a new means of interpretation and scholarly output\u2014an expression of research in itself.\u00a0 Ross goes on to describe how she used a non canonical text book paired with a group networking visualization project to help her undergraduates to better grasp the implications of the research they were conducting on women artists and their social-professional networks.\u00a0 The students responded with enthusiasm and noted how the process of constructing the visualization altered and strengthened the conclusions they had begin to draw before seeing their research in a new form.<\/p>\n In a class discussion on virtual reality models for architectural spaces, JJ commented that many of the scholars working to put the visualization together found the process of compiling the data and making it work cohesively was actually far more revealing than the finalized model itself.\u00a0 Inputting the data dramatically altered the scholars’ understanding of how the space worked, while the final product looked as if the space was always meant to be understood in that way.\u00a0 Process can be a powerful too in research.\u00a0 See, for example, the outputs resulting from George Mason University’ new technology requirement<\/a> for its art history master’s program.\u00a0 These projects allowed the students to experiment with new media relevant to their professional interests while exploring previously unforeseen connections and research conclusions facilitated by their software.<\/p>\n In terms of pedagogy, digital humanities projects really can prove the ideal form for student engagement.\u00a0 Randy Bass of Georgetown’s Center for New Designs in Learning & Scholarship provides a comprehensive breakdown<\/a> of learning approaches made possible by assigning digital projects.<\/p>\n In my own learning experiences, I’ve found that engaging with new media with an assortment of these 6 learning approaches in mind allows me to conceive of my research in a broader context and with a more diverse audience while still delving deeply into the subject.\u00a0 Like Nancy Ross’ students, my attention was sustained for much longer and in manifold ways by having to think critically about making the platform or software work for my purposes.<\/p>\n This course is also making me look back on previous assignments or projects I’ve worked on that could have dramatically benefited from the creation and inclusion of DH visuals.\u00a0 For example, as a senior at Wellesley College, I contributed to a transcription and annotation project around Anne Whitney<\/a> that was associated with Jackie Musacchio’s course on 19th century women artists traveling abroad.\u00a0 As part of the course, we established a standard for transcribing Anne Whitney’s letters from the collection in our archives.\u00a0 The annotation process included researching & footnoting all items of note in our assigned letters and establishing biographies for each individual mentioned, linking letters to which she referenced or within which she continued conversation of a topic.\u00a0 The relationships between Americans participating in the Grand Tour and establishing studios in Europe (Italy especially) was quite tight, ensuring few degrees of separation between cliques.\u00a0 Since Whitney so considerately dated all of her letters and virtually always provided her geographic location, a networked or GIS visualization of the data compiled in the annotation process could show Whitney’s place in the social melee, who she was interacting with where and when, how they connected to other travelers and artists, where Whitney was showing and with whom, just to name a few avenues for the map.\u00a0 This could prove especially fruitful when compared to similar projects occurring in the area that focus on artistic output in the areas in which Whitney was active.<\/p>\n Part of why this sort of visualization might prove important is that it would use that data we’d already compiled to participate in dialogue around these artists and the state of the art world at the time, ensuring relevance beyond just those interested in Anne Whitney.\u00a0 Were the data to be scrubbed in a way that allows for replication or other modeling and then making that data open source would doubly ensure this.<\/p>\n I use Pinterest with embarrassing regularity\u2014both as a personal indulgence in planning the minutia of my theoretical future home, as well as a platform for more scholarly endeavors that incorporate various media.\u00a0 Other than the lack of tagging capabilities, the site is beautifully suited for research and reference.<\/p>\n For example, in my Collections Development course, Professor Mary Grace Flaherty assigned a final project<\/a> in which we developed a collection for a specific population.\u00a0 I chose to create a core collection for book artists.\u00a0 Instead of simply compiling a bibliography of resources, I created a Pinterest board to host a more dynamic catalogue<\/a>.\u00a0 Why Pinterest, you may ask?\u00a0 One obvious advantage is that it embeds video directly into the pin (AKA a catalogue entry, in this case).\u00a0 Of far more importance, however, are Pinterest’s networked search functions.\u00a0 As mentioned, Pinterest doesn’t allow for tagging of pins to simplify searching by category within a single board.\u00a0 It does allow for 1 keyword search function and 4 different browsing functions across boards and pins, though.<\/p>\n Let me break those 5 functions down for you:<\/p>\n This sort of searching and browsing turns Pinterest into a highly linked catalogue and thesaurus.\u00a0 One pin can create an entire network of related items, which turns the items in the Book Artists\u2019 Core Collection into a starting point for practitioners or scholars to conduct more in-depth research into a project.\u00a0 When I began the research that inspired this collection<\/a> (for a book arts class, which also has its own reference board<\/a>), Pinterest allowed me to delve deeply into contemporary and traditional methods for emulating every aspect of a British 14th century book of hours.\u00a0 It also provided inspiration for how to shape that book of hours into an artist book documenting the history of the book.\u00a0 By identifying one relevant pin on parchment & papermaking or regional binding methods or paleography & typography, I could\u00a0follow those pins to related resources by using the browsing functions, or even just by following the pin back to its source.<\/p>\n By using Pinterest as the host for my catalogue, I also skirted around the limitations inherent in any collection\u2014one can only develop each topic within a collecting area up to a point before the resources are outside of the collecting scope.\u00a0 Pinterest lets users control when they’re deep enough into a topic, since the boundaries of the catalogue are so malleable.\u00a0 For instance, my core collection doesn’t contain an encyclopaedia on the saints or regional medieval plants.\u00a0 This information is highly relevant to a book artist working on a book of hours, but it’s too granular for a core collection of resources.\u00a0 For more on the Book Artists’ Core Collection, see this blog post<\/a>.<\/p>\n Articles on digital pedagogy:<\/p>\n When I heard Jaskot\u2019s talk, I realized that I was missing out on a new and interesting approach to art history. I had previously used technology to record, organize, and even represent my work as part of a larger conventional framework. 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Conceiving of social media as another teaching platform for students.<\/h5>\n
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